Cross Country: All-state honors for runners
Drew Paradis, Jamie Piepenburg and Tess Boucher earned All-State accolades during the State cross country meet
- Piepenburg
- Boucher
- Paradis
RUNNING RAMPANT
•Jamie Piepenburg’s third place finish was the highest ever for an Alexandria girl
•Three runners had season best times - Tess Boucher, Mitch Evink and Zach Hodgson
Senior Drew Paradis, sophomore Tess Boucher and freshman Jamie Piepenburg returned home from the State Class AA cross country meet Saturday will All-State honors as Paradis finished fifth, Boucher 17th and Piepenburg third.
The Cardinal boys finished eighth as a team.
Boys’ results
“Drew did a great job getting out and moving up to lead the pack at the mile,” said Cardinal coach Mark Nelsen. “Luke Gemar of Moorhead put a surge in the middle of the race and the field let him break away. Gemar went on to win the race.
“Drew battled the remaining field for a fifth place individual finish.”
Paradis, who was seventh last year, ran a 15:42.0, just 18.9 seconds off the championship pace.
“Mitch Evink had a great race, running a season best time of 16:52,” he said. “Zach Hodgson put a great end to his first year of cross country, running a season best time of 17:07.
“The entire boys’ team can be very proud of their preparation and intensity that they competed with at the state meet. The coaches were very pleased with their eighth place team finish and realize they were just seconds away from the sixth and seventh place team. In addition, they finished higher than some teams that had defeated them earlier in the season.”
Evink was 44th, Austin McCoy 50th, Hodgson 64th, Josh Hobbs 71st, Will Sieling 77th and Sam Vinje 95th.
“The leadership provided by seniors Drew Paradis and Josh Hobbs was amazing all season,” Nelsen noted. “They will be missed tremendously. They have been a positive example for our underclassmen all season.”
STATE CLASS AA BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY RESULTS
TEAM SCORES – 1. Wayzata 55, 2. Eden Prairie 106, 3. Moorhead 146, 4. Owatonna 153, 5. White Bear Lake 164, 6. Roseville 200, 7. Lakeville South 228, 8. Alexandria 232, 9. Forest Lake 235, 10. Coon Rapids 250, 11. St. Thomas Academy 267, 12. Osseo 275, 13. Chaska 289, 14. Willmar 297, 15. Burnsville 316, 16. Duluth East 391.
INDIVIDUAL CHAMPION – Lukas Gemar, Moorhead, 15:23.1.
ALEXANDRIA RESULTS – 5. Drew Paradis 15:42.0, 44. Mitch Evink 16:52.2, 50. Austin McCoy 16:56.7, 64. Zach Hodgson 17:07.2, 71. Josh Hobbs 17:13.2, 77. Will Sieling 17:20.5, 95. Sam Vinje 17:54.7.
Girls’ results
Jamie Piepenburg kept her cool in a hotly contested girls’ race, finishing third as she ran a 14:35.8, just 11.3 seconds behind champion Cassie Opitz of Eden Prairie. Her teammate, Tess Boucher, finished 17th as she ran a 15:00.9.
“Jamie and Tess were off the line extremely fast, with Jamie leading the field of runners through the 400 and 800-meter marks,” said coach Nelsen. “Jamie continued to lead until the final 1,200, when she was challenged by Opitz and Claire Guidinger of Winona.
“Jamie battled the o the final loop, but Opitz and Guidinger went on to finish 1-2 and Jamie with a third place.
“This is the highest individual finish for an Alexandria girl in the state meet ever.
“Tess was a great competitor and finished up 17th with her personal best time ever,” said Nelsen. “Great seasons and races for both of these young women.”
STATE CLASS AA GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY RESULT
TEAM SCORES – 1. Eden Prairie 48, 2. Lakeville North 111, 3. Woodbury 137, 4. Minnetonka 146, 5. Moorhead 150, 6. Shakopee 204, 7. Coon Rapids 207, 8. White Bear Lake 209, 9. Grand Rapids 220, 10. Prior Lake 234, 11. Becker 258, 12. Centennial 260, 13. Winona 267, 14. Eastview 303, 15. Forest Lake 347, 16. Chaska 350.
INDIVIDUAL CHAMPION – Cassie Opitz, Eden Prairie 14:24.5.
ALEXANDRIA RESULTS – 3. Jamie Piepenburg 14:35.8, 17. Tess Boucher 15:00.9.
Tags: sports, cross, country, alexandria, cardinals, state, class, aa
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