Port boys crack the top three

Port Washington High School’s top three cross country runners posted personal records, and the Pirates nearly finished runner-up in the Glacier Trails Conference Meet on a slow, wet course in Kewaskum on Saturday.

Port scored 75 points and was third in the seven-team meet. West Bend West scored 36 points and Sheboygan South had 73.

Beckett Schuster finished the 5,000-meter course in 17 minutes, 5.3 seconds, good for sixth and a spot on the GTC first team.

Andrew Karrels was ninth in 17:12.2 and got on the second team. Connor Zinuticz was 15th in 17:36.5 and earned honorable mention for the second straight season.

Dylan Helmeid was 21st in 18:01, two seconds off his personal record.

Will Dahmen was 24th in a personal-record 18:15.4 in his varsity debut.

Port was missing Keagan Normile to bronchitis, which may have kept the Pirates out of second place, coach Mark Pasten said.

“Going into the meet, South was a little ahead of us on paper, but I thought we had an opportunity to beat them if everything went great,” he said.

Senior Ellie Knepfel led Port’s girls, taking fifth in 20:02 and earning a spot on the first team.

“It wasn’t exactly the race I wanted, but it was probably my best executed race, at least for this season,” she said. “I know a lot of Port’s team PR’d which was pretty great. I’m incredibly excited for sectionals and can’t wait to see how the race pans out.”

“All five of them ran their season-best,” coach Joe Adamak said. “Some of them their best ever. They ran good times and they raced really well.”

Charlotte O’Brien was 18th in 21:16.9. Ashley Mundt was 19th in 21:23.1. Hannah Dahmen was 21st in 21:31.6 and Lilly Fechner was 31st in 22:31.8.

Kettle Moraine Lutheran won the six-team meet with 24 points. Port was fifth with 93 points.

Port and Grafton run at Hon-E-Kor Golf Course in Kewaskum for the Division 2 sectional on Friday, Oct. 23. Familiarity with the course could be a boost for the Pirates.

“I think that helps a lot,” Adamak said.

Grafton’s Kagamba earns all-NSC

Asher Kagamba led the Grafton boys in the North Shore Conference Meet at Heritage Trails County Park in the Town of Polk on Saturday.

He finished 14th in 17:47.4, earning a spot on the NSC second team. Brayton McCann was 26th in 18:20.9. Alex Bergmann was 32nd in 18:32.4. Zach Swenson was 44th in 19:16.6, and Liam Hoctor was 47th in 18:34.4.

Sixteen of Grafton’s 17 runners finished with personal records.

“Our boys are really starting to come together at the right time,” coach Derek Lindstrom said.

The Hawks scored 159 points, last of seven teams. Whitefish Bay won with 42.

For the girls, Tess Brulla was 27th in 23:08.2. Jasmin Gandee was 40th in 24:57. Amelia Jacobson was 41st in 26:01.8. Leah Swartz was 42nd in 26:20.9, and Abby Widmann was 43rd in 27:11.8.

Grafton was last with 174 points. Slinger won with 37.

“Our girls are also making some great strides. We’re a young team, with underclassmen leading the way, and it’s been exciting watching their confidence and competitiveness grow throughout the season,” Lindstrom said.