Hale XC Week 10 Sectionals!

GMC Recap

Three men took big steps in their journey by finishing as GMC all conference athletes this past weekend!  Elijah Sayeg, John Gruichich and Ethan Plier who have been training together for months were all within 10 seconds of one another, finishing 16th, 21st and 24th respectively.  As expected, the race was tight as championship racing always is!  Less than 10 seconds separated 12 spots.  The battle for individual spots will be paramount as the men head into the sectional meet this week!  These three are ready to do big things the next two weeks and continue running for a bigger purpose as they build in their journey.

Koda Bruner was our 4th man Saturday after a strong race near the front of the emerging varsity race.  We put him in the emerging varsity race to give him a chance to race up front for a win and continue to progress.  He ran a great race and competed well the last mile again to move up a couple of spots.  Joseph Ventura was our 4th scorer on varsity, getting out a bit hotter than we planned but will look to bounce back at sectionals.  The two frosh could make a big impact at sectionals next week.  Eric and Nate finished alongside Joseph as our 5 and 6 men this week, and we will look to move the 4-7 scorers up at sectionals when it matters most.

We were pumped that our emerging varsity placed 5th as well.  We had a smaller group racing this week, and in comparison to many of the other teams number wise, and losing a runner like Brody is a tough blow, but our guys stepped up with their best races of the season.  We have quality in this group!  Preston Plier is developing into a leader for our team and also more into a distance runner each week.  He finished 25th as our second scorer.  Closing the gap in scoring were Damien Sheridan (Dame Time), and Joel Galarza who ran a one minute personal best and moved up the last mile!  Iker Robles rounded out our scoring 5 and finished off a nice freshman campaign.  Deacon rolled another personal best race to end the season and will look to carry momentum into a strong junior season.

A big thanks to our seniors Will Zagzebski and Preston Vahovick who will forever be a part of the Hale program.  It is always awesome to see so many alumni showing up to our meets.  At Viking we had athletes from the 1960s and 1970s teams!!  At conference we saw many recent faces as well as some mid 2010's athletes.  Really shows the strength and meaning of being part of the sport and this program.  We are thankful every day we get to spend together as a family.  The meaning of the daily work together transcends sport and many times you don't realize it until it's over.  Cherish each day, being a part of a team is so special.

The men prepare for sectionals this week!  Conference is always a nice step and competition measure to prepare us for this meet.  Our guys have some great opportunities and we are excited to love these special moments.  Let's go love each other and be great for each other.

​2023 Results Workbook

Sectional Information

​For new families, the sectional works as follows.  Teams are allowed seven entries only to go to the line on race day, in addition some alternates that are entered and train with the team.  The top 2 placing teams at the meet will advance to the state meet the following weekend in Wisconsin Rapids.  The top 5 men not on either of those two teams will also advance as individual qualifiers.  

Sectional Team Info

Alternates listed will practice at a high level to prepare this week as there have been recent seasons an alternate has been used.  
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Only those competing or alternates will practice this week.  We are then encouraging but not requiring any athletes not competing to join on the bus, but make it clear they are there only to support and be positive encouragement to the guys competing!  Be out on the course in tons of areas to be loud for the guys!  We want guys to come support but will hold them to a high standard, as it's different when you don't have your own race to focus on.

They are charging to park in the lot for sectionals, you can order a pass here,
Sectional Parking Pass

The Gruichich family is hosting the Friday pasta party for ALL members of the team.  We will be watching the movie Prefontaine together there.  The address is 11833 W. Lakefield Drive  

And thanks to all the families who have hosted and allowed us to carry on this great tradition for so many years now.

Post Season Banquet/Uniforms
The Banquet for the team will once again be the Thursday following the state meet.  This year it is Thursday, November 2nd at 4:15 p.m.  We are hoping to once again do a potluck where families each bring an item!  Use the sign up below to sign up to bring food and/or utensils/plates/bowls.  We have 22 athletes and can assume around 2 family members per athlete.

​Banquet Sign up

The Monday after state on Monday, October 30th all athletes will need to turn in all issued uniforms (Jerseys, shorts, Jackets) after school in Coach Dewitt's room.  Anything not turned in will be assessed a fee to cover the cost of the item.  I'll touch base on winter sports and running opportunities there as well with a short meeting.  Should be wrapped up by 3:30ish if we can get guys there right after school.

Some freshmen have asked, so as a heads up those not in a winter sport, we have a group of men that meet up daily in Coach Dewitt's room 108 after school dressed to run.  These end earlier than practices since they just go out for runs.  I'll give more information on it at the meeting, we usually start them after the Thanksgiving holiday and leading up to the track season.

Congratulations Coach Dewitt!
We are fortunate to have an amazing coach who also happens to be pretty good at running too.  He raced in New York City on Saturday morning and qualified for the Olympic marathon trials to be held in February.  This is his third Olympic trials he has qualified for!  He ran 2 hours, 17 minutes and 13 seconds which is a 5:14 per mile effort over 26.2 miles!  He will share his experience and lessons to our guys on Monday!