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Junior comes in 2nd place during meet

The Albert Lea boys and girls cross country teams got their 2024 season underway Tuesday afternoon when they hosted four other teams at Bancroft Bay Park.

Both the boys and girls teams had runners finish in the top 10 and has coaching staff looking forward to the rest of the season.

The boys team was led by junior Andrew Tscholl, who came in second place with a time of 17:32.

“The coaching staff will be asking Andrew to do a great deal,” said head coach Jim Haney. “Andrew is up to the challenge as he has run many important races earlier in his running career. In his race he used his experience to navigate the course and had an outstanding finish. This will be the first of many strong finishes that Andrew will have.”

Also scoring for the boys team was sophomore Cade Hanke, coming in 22nd place with a time of 20:18, junior Noah McGaffey, who came in 24th with a time of 20:28; junior Axel Calderon in 37th with a time of 21:41 and senior Jacob Miller in 44th place with a time of 22:14.

As a team, the boys finished in fifth place with 97 points, while Owatonna won the meet with a score of 25. A total of 74 racers competed in the event.

Sophomore Elle Schulz led the girls team with a ninth place finish and a time of 22:38

“Elle is an outstanding runner and she proved this today on a tough course and against tough competition,” Haney said. “Elle continued to push the pace and pushed herself to a strong finish.

Elle had a great summer and track season. She is ready to take the next step in her running career. The coaching staff are excited to see her continue to improve.”

Rounding out the top five for the girls were freshman Alizay Kratz in 13th with a time of 23:02, senior Mya Hanke in 21st with a time of 23:53, freshman Lola Hanson in 37th with a time of 26:04 and senior Lauren Raleigh in 50th with a time of 28:49.

The team finished in third place with a final score of 88. Faribault won the meet with a score of 30. There were a total of 67 girls who competed in the varsity race.

The Tigers will be back in action Friday, Sept. 6, when they travel to Faribault.