By Chris Bennett
Correspondent
The Elkhorn Area High School boys and girls cross country teams are gearing up for a healthy dose of change this season.
The Elkhorn girls are dealing with the loss of four of the squad’s top five runners, and will struggle to maintain last season’s third-place finish in the Southern Lakes Conference as younger competitors earn their legs on varsity.
The Elks boys squad is about to enjoy the talent of some solid additions to the program, and head coach Randi Wulf said he expects the team to be one of the SLC’s best.
The Elks opened practice on Aug. 15, and will hold their alumni fun run Saturday. Elkhorn opens competition Aug. 25 in an invitational at Carlin Weld Park in Palmyra. Palmyra Eagle High School is playing host.
The Elks compete Sept. 3 in the Rebel Invitational at the Wayne E. Dannehl National Cross Country Course on the UW-Parkside campus in Kenosha. Racine Horlick is the host school.
The Elks ended the 2015 season with a runner in the WIAA Division 1 State Cross Country Championships at Oct. 31 Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
Taylor Mair finished the five-kilometer course 130th out of 190 runners in 20 minutes, 54 seconds. Eau Claire Memorial’s Aubrey Roberts won the Division 1 girls race in 17:49. The now-graduated Mair also qualified for state in 2014.
The Elkhorn boys finished 12th in team standings at Oct. 24 in a Division 1 sectional tournament at Watertown with a total of 361 points. Arandu Huerta led the Elks, finishing 55th in 18:53. No one from the Elks’ boys squad advanced from the sectional to state.
Huerta and fellow senior Sam DiVarco, juniors Colin Passler, Logan Radlein and Peyton Sanders and sophomore Spencer Ingersol are key returnees this season for a deep Elkhorn boys squad.
“We have three big additions to our boys team that should really improve our team,” coach Randi Wulf said. “They are freshman Ben Tuescher, junior Derek Davey and junior Caleb Hembree-Jacques.
“All three have put in a lot of work over the summer, and will have an immediate impact on the varsity team.”
Wulf said he expects freshmen Gwen Richardson and Piper Sleider to contribute immediately. Senior Alexandria Gonzalez, junior Elizabeth Gottschalk and sophomores Kassie Thompson and Alex Moreno are holdovers from last season that will help anchor the Elks’ lineup.
“There are big opportunities on the girls’ side,” Wulf said. “With the loss of these varsity runners, it will be hard to match last year’s third-place finish (in the SLC).”
Wulf said he expects Lake Geneva Badger to field tough boys and girls teams, and said the Waterford and Westosha Central girls squads will also be strong.
