By: Ellie Moore

3 races took place in Bathurst, Australia on the 18th of February. The first was the mixed relay: 2 girls and 2 boys would run 2k each for a total of 8k. The boys were required to start and run the third leg. The girls would run the second leg and the final leg.

The course was extremely hilly and swampy. As the runners came into the handoff zone and finish, they had to weave between stacks of tires.

The boys started the race. South Africa and Kenya coming into the handoff zone 6 seconds ahead of everyone else. Australia, Ethiopia, New Zealand, Great Britain, Morocco, and Canada had a tight chase pack, all handing off to the girls only 2 seconds off of each other.

Australia had a strong second leg, and after the lap handed off in first with a time of 11:34. Kenya close behind at 11:39. Ethiopia and South Africa chasing only 8 seconds behind Kenya. The United States moved up 5 places to lead the second chase pack.

When the third lap started, Kenya took the early lead over Australia. South Africa and Ethiopia stuck together in the chase pack. The United States still in 5th. Kenya handed off 8 seconds ahead of Australia. South Africa and Ethiopia gaining on the lead, only 3 seconds behind.

Kenya ended up making a gap at the start of the 4th lap that was too big to make up, so the race was really for second and third. Australia stayed in front of Ethiopia, but Ethiopia caught up quickly. They ran together until the end when Ethiopia made a big kick, making a gap on Australia.

Kenya ended up winning the race by 7 seconds. Ethiopia got second and Australia got third. South Africa was 24 seconds behind for fourth, and the United States got fifth.

The next race was the women’s U20 8k. The race was a very close race with the top three finishers coming in less than 10 second apart. For the first lap the top 17 runners ran together coming through the lap within 7 seconds of each other. After the second lap the race spread out a bit. The top 11 created a pack running 7 seconds apart from each other. United States, Irene Riggs and Ellie Shea lead the chase pack.

By the end, the race became a lot more spread out. Senayet Getachew from Ethiopia won the race with a time of 20:53. Her teammate, Medina Eisa, 7 seconds behind. Kenya’s Pamela Kosgei came in third with a time of 21:01.

The men’s 12k had a very close finish. The top 3 finished just 2 seconds apart. Like the women, the men’s race started out very close with the 60 in a tight pack. After the second lap they spread out with the top 15 creating a smaller pack.

In the end, Ishmael Kipkurui and Reynold Kipkorir Cheruiyot from Kenya finished first and second only 1 second apart. Ethiopia’s, Baki Diriba came in third just one second off Cheruiyot.

Overall, in the women’s race, Ethiopia won with 15 points. Kenya and the United State in second and third with 22 and 54 points.

In the men’s race, Kenya took first as a team with 22 points. Ethiopia close behind with 23. The United States got 81 points to lead them to third.

By: Abby Altman

On Monday afternoon, teams from 7 Saint Paul high schools showed up to the Highland Golf Course to compete for the conference title. 

Como Park, Harding, Humboldt, Central, Johnson, and Washington Tech all put their best runners forward to try and compete with the reigning champions, Highland Park. The Highland Park girls team has won 11 straight city conference titles, while the boys team has won 3 straight. 

For the Boys race, there was a lot of pressure on many runners. Highland Park and Como Park were both section champions and state qualifiers in 2021, and the conference title would not be an easy one to win for either team. Como’s number 1 runner, Charlie Power Theisen, is ranked 11 overall in class AA for the state of Minnesota. 

Power Theisen was expected to win the boys race, and he did just that. He finished with a time of 15:40, which was 22 seconds ahead of 2nd place, who happened to be Charlie’s teammate, Mason Aarness.

Highland Park’s first runner, Gavin Roberts, crossed the finish line right behind Aarness, and was soon followed by teammate Ben Martin. Highland Park had runners finish in places 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9, while Como had runners finish 1, 2, 5, 13, and 14. 

“It feels great to represent Como in the conference,” said Power Theisen after winning his 3rd straight conference title. 

Highland Park beat Como by 4 points. In comparison, there was a 28 point difference between Como Park and 3rd place, Central. 

The results for the Varsity boys race were 1) Highland Park, 2) Como Park, 3) Central, 4) Humboldt, 5) Washington, 6) Johnson, and 7) Harding. 

Highland Park is ranked number 5 overall in Class AA. 

Highland’s Boys Varsity team consists of 5 seniors out of 7 runners. Graduation will likely take a toll on the future of the boys team. 

For the girls, this meet was not as stressful as previous meets they’ve attended. “The pre-race atmosphere contributed to so many amazing races,” said senior Delia Johnson. “There was no nervous energy. We were all confident, calm, and energized with team spirit.” 

The Highland Park girls team won the conference title by a wide margin. Junior Luna Scorzelli cruised to the finish line with a new school record of 17:25. Senior Delia Johnson followed in 2nd place with a time of 18:17. Highland finished just shy of a perfect score, with runners coming in at 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7, with Laura McClary from Central finishing in 4th. 

Only 4 teams were able to fill a lineup for the girls varsity meet. Highland Park, Central, Humboldt, and Washington, (finishing in that order), filled out full rosters and competed for the conference title. 

The Highland Park girls are ranked number 1 in Class AA state. The reigning state champions do not appear to have lost any of their fire or determination over the past year. 

“There is mostly excitement in terms of results,” says senior Chloe Koch. “Everyone just wants to see how fast they can race and have fun at the same time.” Koch also said that “There is some pressure to perform well but that isn’t being pushed by the coaches or the team. We know everyone will run super well.” 

Confidence is exuding from the Highland Park girls as they look ahead to sections next week. 

Unlike the boys team, the girls team will likely not be as affected by graduating seniors. Only 2 seniors currently hold varsity roster spots, and the girls JV team is on fire this season and has many girls ready to fill those spots. 

Highland Park also took home the JV trophies, as JV boys and girls took the number 1 spot in their races. 

Junior Will Pinto won the JV boys race, and sophomore Sam Palm took home the JV girls victory. 

The HP JV girls have been undefeated in races this season, and dominated the playing field at Conference. Highland put 35 girls into the JV race, and in the top 30 finishers out of 60, only 3 were not from Highland. 

All teams will be looking ahead to their section meets next week.