MARSHALL INDEPENDENT (© 2002 story reprinted with permission)
9-10-2002
-C/M/L Girls Top TMB, Marshall to Win Invitational
By Wayne Cook
Independent Sports Writer
MARSHALL � One point. That�s the margin that separated the girls� cross country teams from Canby-Minneota/Lincoln HI and Tracy-Milroy-Balaton Monday afternoon at the Tiger Invitational.
C-M/L won the meet with 67 points, while TMB was second with 68 points. �I told Brian (Michelson, TMB coach) that it�s good for the girls ... the competition,� C-M/L coach Patti Merritt said. Sophomore Katie Stoks of the Lancers was second overall behind Windom�s Jenna Stordsom. They were separated by 18 seconds. Toni Christianson, a sophomore and first-year runner, was third for the Lancers. Stoks was timed in 16:22 and Christianson was timed in 16:35. For the entire 2 1/2 miles on a hot, muggy day, it was a battle between Stordsom and Stoks.
�She beat me in Tracy ... it was closer,� said Stoks, who qualified for the state meet last year. �I just ran; I didn�t run any differently. I could have done better.� Christianson has played volleyball until this year. �She�s amazing,� Merritt said. �She has a lot of natural ability and she�s showing it.� For a first-year runner, Christianson has indeed been a pleasant surprise. �I try to run with Katie,� she said. �It�s kind of hard, but I try my best. I was pleased. Our goal was to get first, and (my goal was) be there with my teammates.�
Merritt said the closeness of the team score proved that every runner counted. �We have a lot of depth and so does Tracy,� she said. �We were pretty even. I�m juggling around (our lineup), and it�s tough on the girls.� Amanda Deslauriers of the Lancers finished seventh (16:44). �I thought we ran better in the last race,� Deslauriers said. �We had five (runners) in the top 15 at Tracy.� The Lancers were again challenged by TMB, which lost by a 32-point margin in Tracy. It was the third straight meet that C-M/L has won. Kristine Sweetman led the Panthers, finishing fifth in 16:40. Jillian Tholen was eighth, Rebecca Gervais 15th and Stephanie Kaup 17th. TMB�s fifth runner, Kelly Laleman, was 23rd. That compares to C-M/L�s fifth runner, Jana Merritt, who placed 31st. TMB coach Brian Michelson said it came down to the start of the race.
�We got boxed at the start,� he said. �We didn�t get out fast. Then you have to fight from behind. The girls did a good job in overcoming that. �We knew we were competitive last Thursday. We had a questionable ruling if Kristen could finish (barefooted). Steph has had a learning experience. She got the monkey off her back today.� n
Paced by Julia Schultz�s sixth-place finish, the Tigers placed third. �Wow! It was really hot ... the hottest meet of the season,� Schultz said. �You definitely drink more water. You try to stay focused and not doze off. I was happy.� The Tiger freshman was battling for fifth. Schultz said. �I had a good start. Usually, that�s not my best thing; that�s not my favorite. I was smoother today. I got a good warm-up. I was more stretched out.�
Marshall coach Mike Jacobs was pleased with the girls� performance, especially Breha Holcomb, who finished 14th overall. �We had Breha, and she gave us more spark,� Jacobs said. �That allowed us to close the gap between Canby and TMB. I think we closed the gap between Canby quite a bit. In the last two weeks, we�ve had depth in our pack.� Running her first race of the year, Holcomb was timed in 17:14, 40 seconds behind Schultz. �Julia never practiced since Thursday�s meet (due to a pinched nerve in her back). That injury made running impossible. The edge that she was building, she may have lost that,� Jacobs said. �The thing that impresses me, she�s willing to challenge the leaders in the race. She positions herself in an excellent spot. That plan she has of attacking and being aggressive, I think it will pay off.� Jacobs said Traci Pagel, who was bothered by the excessive heat, and Laura Johnson had good efforts. �The heat got to Traci,� Jacobs said. �That speaks for her pushing herself to the end. I see the girls headed in the right direction. They�re believing in themselves and practicing better. They�ll get better.�
TIGER INVITATIONAL
Varsity Team scores � Canby-Minneota/Lincoln HI 64, Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 68, Marshall 90, Jackson County Central 97, Luverne 160, Redwood Valley 185, Edgerton SWC 192, Murray County Central 195, Windom 197, Springfield-Cedar Mountain-Comfrey 204, Worthington 252, Renville County West, Yellow Medicine East and Adrian incomplete
Tiger placings: 6. Julia Schultz, 16:44; 14. Breha Holcomb, 17:14; 21. Traci Pagel, 17:32; 22. Laura Johnson, 17:33; 29. Samantha Tauer, 18:00; 38. Haley Meyer, 18:16; 50. Lindsay Baun, 19:14
C-M/L placings: 2. Katie Stoks, 16:22; 3. Toni Christianson, 16:35; 7. Amanda Deslauriers, 16:44; 24. Betsy Dyce, 17:43; 31. Jana Merritt, 18:04; 33. Sara Doom, 18:08; 38. Kelly Horgan, 18:17
T-M-B placings: 5. Kristin Sweetman, 16:40; 8. Jillian Tholen, 16:45; 15. Rebecca Gervais, 17:15; 17. Stephanie Kaup, 17:17; 23. Kelly Laleman, 17:36; 47. Megan Pool, 19:02; 64. Julia Olson, 20:17 Tiger Junior varsity 9. Stephanie Musser, 19:33; 19. Cassie VanOverbeke, 20:33; 28. Krista Kaiser, 21:18; 31. Nichole Bergstrom, 21:38 Tiger Junior high 3. Kate Geraets, 8:21; 4. Allison Schultz, 8:26; 22. Shannon French, 9:06
-Courtesy Marshall Independent