There was no denying Cashton freshman June Jacobson from a top three finish at Saturday's Scenic Bluffs Conference championship race.
By the first mile of the race, Jacobson had nestled into third among the 32 runners that were part of the league's premiere event.
Jacobson followed Bangor's Kenli Gollnick and eventual race winner Katie Field (Royall) with a steady pace throughout the race. Hillsboro's Olivia McCauley was in pursuit for nearly the entirety of the 5000 meter course, hovering just paces behind Cashton's lead runner at several points.
Jacobson maintained a seven minute mile pace and managed to hold off McCauley for place third overall with a time of 21:42.2, which allowed the team to climb into second place ahead of rival Brookwood.
Confidence was key for the Eagles as they bested the Falcons for a second-straight week and put the team in good position heading into this coming weekend's sectional at Boscobel.
Cashton head coach Jim Herricks said, "Coming into the race, the ladies had great confidence after the Riverdale meet. Seeing that they had beat Brookwood there, it definitely helped keep the momentum going."
There was one wrinkle the Eagle harriers had to straighten out at the conference clash - the brand-new course at Justin Trails. Saturday marked the first time the resort had hosted a cross country race. The raceway included some rough and uneven terrain, challenging inclines and gradual declines.
"After walking the course the kids didn't think it was that bad," said Herricks. "We definitely trained for hills and a rougher course. As a whole, this group has definitely embraced the challenging courses."
Senior Audrina Schwarz trailed about 10 spots back from Jacbson for most of the five kilometer course. Schwarz ran neck-and-neck with Bangor's Lily Mercer for the back half of the race before narrowly losing the final sprint to the finish line by two-tenths of a second. The senior's time of 23:31.5 was good enough for 11th place overall.
Lynae McGinnis finished 13th overall with a time of 24:14.8 followed by Makalya Herricks (16, 25:01) and Adeline Doll (21, 28:03.2). Peyton Brueggen was 23rd overall and Ruby Schmitz 26th.
Cashton posted a second place team score of 47 - just four points in front of Brookwood.
BOYS
The Cashton boys placed fourth after scoring 110 points Saturday.
Klay Pedretti took point for the flock and raced to a 19th place finish in a time of 21:12.4. Kevin Cuenca Romero cruised to a 26th place finish in a time of 11:40.4. Other scoring runners included Nathan Oleson (31, 24:32), Kaya Yeloglu (32, 24:32.7) and Kolton Johnson (33, 25:21.2).
SECTIONALS
The Cashton teams will travel to Boscobel this Saturday for a Division 3 sectional and a chance at qualifying for the state meet.
"They are excited to run again at Boscobel for sectional this Saturday," said Herricks. "As a coach I'm trying to keep it simple and fun at practice with keeping the confidence going into the meet. In the end. I want this group to have fun, enjoy the moment and know at the end of that race whatever happens, that they have accomplished great things this season."
The girls will run at 11:00 a.m. and the boys at 11:45. The course will be in Kronshage Park next to the high school. Live results can be accessed via Accurace Timing at accuracetiming.com. The top two teams and the top four individuals not on qualifying teams will advance to the WIAA state meet in Wisconsin Rapids on Saturday, Oct. 31.
