Appleton North girls team, Appleton East’s Mandich lock down state berths at Division 1 cross country sectional
AppletonSportsPage.com
GREEN BAY – Sophomore Eva Busch won the girls race and senior teammate Ava Helmbrecht finished second to lead the Appleton North girls cross country team to the team title at a WIAA Division 1 sectional at Shorewood Cross Country Course on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay on Saturday.
Appleton North finished with 50 points and will be joined by Fox Valley Association rival Kimberly at the 2025 WIAA State Cross Country Championships next Saturday, Nov. 1, at the Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
The top two teams and top five individuals not on those teams qualify for the state meet.
Busch won the girls 5-kilometer race in 18:03.1, nearly 29 seconds in front of Helmbrecht, while North’s Sophia Scherwinski took 10th (19:35.2), Audry Dehlinger finished 14th (20:11.5) and Amber Ziemer was 23rd (20:39.4) to round out the Lightning’s five scoring runners.
The Appleton East girls placed eighth among the 12 teams as Rosemarie Butler led the Patriots with an 11th-place finish in 19:41.9. Evie Eidemiller was 45th (21:46.1) and Olive Crownhart 53rd (22:12.2) as well for the Patriots.
Appleton East’s Louie Mandich will also be going to state after he finished sixth in the boys 5k in 16:35.3 to grab the third of the five individual berths.
De Pere won the boys team title as Grady Lenn won the race in 15:15.4 for the Redbirds, while Green Bay Preble finished second as Jacob Nuthals was the runner-up in 16:09.6. Appleton North placed fourth and Appleton East was 10th.
Spencer Gremban took 12th in 16:54.0 and Braden Walters finished 14th in 16:54.7 for the Appleton North boys.
In addition to Mandich, Liam Krainik took 53rd (18:43.5) and Evan Marks was 55th (18:44.5) for Appleton East.
The Division 1 boys race will begin at 1:10 p.m. and the girls race will start at 3:05 p.m. at the state meet.
WIAA Division 1 Cross Country Sectional
Oct. 25, at Shorewood Cross Country Course, UW-Green Bay
(*denotes state meet qualifier)
Boys
Team scores: 1. *De Pere 46; 2. *Green Bay Preble 86; 3. Kimberly 86; 4. Appleton North 103; 5. Pulaski 108; 6. Kaukauna 112; 7. Ashwaubenon 207; 8. Bay Port 209; 9. West De Pere 216; 10. Appleton East 240; 11. Green Bay Southwest 325; 12. Green Bay East 391.
Top 10, and Appleton East and Appleton North finishers: 1. Grady Lenn (DP) 15:15.4; 2. Jacob Nuthals (GBP) 16:09.6; 3. *Brayden Michaels (GBP) 16:10.7; 4. Noah Zhang (DP) 16:19.5; 5. *Parker Marshall (PUL) 16:33.6; 6. *Louie Mandich (AE) 16:35.3; 7. *Turner Behm (KIM) 16:35.7; 8. *Gavin Salzmann (KIM) 16:35.8; 9. *Arden Gillen (PUL) 16:38.7; 10. Maxwell Hoffer (KAU) 16:39.3; 12. Spencer Gremban (AN) 16:54.0; 14. Braden Walters (AN) 16:54.7; 24. Jacob McGinn (AN) 17:23.7; 25. Aiden Sanders (AN) 17:24.8; 28. Marek Danelski (AN) 17:31.2; 40. Nolan Moscinski (AN) 18:04.3; 53. Liam Krainik (AE) 18:43.5; 55. Evan Marks (AE) 18:44.5; 59. Lukas Nahm (AN) 18:51.4; 60. Auden Winkel (AE) 18:52.3; 66. Zachary Gaschler (AE) 19:26.1; 67. Alex Beck (AE) 19:34.1; 69. Holden Poole (AE) 19:46.1.
Girls
Team scores: 1. *Appleton North 50; 2. *Kimberly 71; 3. Green Bay Preble 106; 4. Pulaski 113; 5. Bay Port 114; 6. De Pere 120; 7. Kaukauna 149; 8. Appleton East 229; 9. Ashwaubenon 230; 10. West De Pere 268; 11. Green Bay East 337; 12. Green Bay Southwest 343.
Top 10, and Appleton East and Appleton North finishers: 1. Eva Busch (AN) 18:03.1; 2. Ava Helmbrecht (AN) 18:31.9; 3. *Maggie Gerth (PUL) 18:48.4; 4. *Emerson Fabry (PUL) 18:59.9; 5. *Bella Heideman (DP) 19:01.3; 6. *Arya Shefchik (GBP) 19:13.6; 7. *Reese Fauske (KAU) 19:26.2; 8. Camille Haller (GBP) 19:28.6; 9. Elie Volheim (KIM) 19:30.7; 10. Sophia Scherwinski (AN) 19:35.2; 11. Rosemarie Butler (AE) 19:41.9; 14. Audry Dehlinger (AN) 20:11.5; 23. Amber Ziemer (AN) 20:39.4; 38. Addy Campbell (AN) 21:24.6; 45. Evie Eidemiller (AE) 21:46.1; 47. Audra Roe (AN) 21:49.0; 53. Olive Crownhart (AE) 22:12.2; 59. Molly Peterson (AE) 22:40.0; 61. Anika Prefasky (AE) 23:40.4; 65. Madelynn Schweitzer (AE) 24:11.3; 67. Lyla Pingel (AE) 24:30.9.