5 high school boys cross country stars of the week: Sept. 13 edition (2024)

WiscNews will recognize the accomplishments of five boys cross country runners from our coverage area each week.

The efforts may not be the greatest statistically but are notable. We then invite readers to vote for the Supernova, the performance that most stood out to you.

Here are this week’s honorees.

Dodgeland’s Nolan Wieneke takes Dodge County Invitational

Nolan Wieneke had a breakthrough track and field season in the spring after piggybacking off afirst WIAA state cross country appearance last fall.

The Dodgeland senior has turned that into more success in his return to cross country this fall, including winning the boys varsity race in the Dodge County Invitational at River Bend Park in Horicon.

“Nolan put in the miles this summer and it has taken him to that next level,” coach Barry Smanz said.

Wieneke beat out a tight field, crossing the finish line in a winning time of 17 minutes, 23.42 seconds. According to Smanz, Wieneke turned on things midway through the race, breaking from the lead pack to win by nearly 18 seconds. The top five finishers all cracked 18 minutes.

“Qualifying for state last season in cross country and placing at state last track season in 3,200 relay has given him so much more confidence in his abilities,” Smanz said.

The Trojans finished runner-up as a team with 45 points, but Smanz is confident bigger things could be in store for Wieneke and company with four of the team’s top five runners from last year’s state team back this fall.

Efrain Guardiola powers Waupun

Waupun came out ontop of the seven-team Dodge County Invitational as the Warriors won the team championship with 37 points ahead of Dodgeland.

Leading the way for the Warriors team title was Efrain Guardiola.

The junior finished runner-up behind Wieneke, crossing the finish line in second place with a time of 17:41.39. Guardiola was the lone Waupun runner to break 18 minutes, but he helped set the pace for a balanced team effort as all five scorers for the Warriors finished sub-20.

Sport switch helps fuel Baraboo’s Will Boettcher

Will Boettcher opted to play for the Baraboo boys soccer team as a freshman last fall despite runningcross country in middle school.

He made the decision to return to cross country this fall, much to the delight of coach Jacob Boll.

The return to runninghas vaulted Boettcher into the top of the Thunderbirds' varsity lineup. It showed as the sophom*ore more than held his own at the loaded Verona Invitational.

Facing a stacked field, including some of the area’s top runners, Boettcher finished 41st out of 222 competitors, crossing the finish line in 17:16.4. He was one of just 11 underclassmen to finish inside the top 50 and helped the T-Birds finish 12th as a team with 364 points.

He was side-by-side with varsity No. 1 runner Brody Bjorklund throughout, with the latter finishing 39th with a time of 17:15.

“You can expect Will to contend for all-conference honors and remain a leader among a strong Baraboo team this year,” coach Jake Boll said.

Will Becker paces Pardeeville to runner-up finish at Cam Rock Invite

Pardeeville, which was coming off itssecond consecutive Division 3 state cross country appearance last fall, started its season strong at the Deerfield/Cambridge Cam Rock Invite.

The Bulldogs finished runner-up as team, scoring 100 points to finish second behind champion Dodgeville/Mineral Point (50) at the 19-team invitational.

Powering Pardeeville was Will Becker, with the senior finishing fourth with a time of 16:35.9. Becker was one of six runners to finish in less than 17 minutes and finished nearly 25 seconds better than his 23rd-place time at state last season of 17:00.5.

Poynette’s Wyatt See starts season with massive drop

Becker wasn’t alone in dropping time at the highly competitive invitational, which also featured Lakeside Lutheran, last year’s Division 2 state team champion.

Poynette’s Wyatt See rounded out the top five as he finished fifth in 16:44.8. It was a massive personal record time for the Pumas junior, who ran 17:27.4 to finish 45th in his state debut last season.

See was one of two Poynette runners to finish in the top 20, joined by freshman Paceler Moll in 20th place, as the Pumas finished seventh as a team with 202 points.

Supernova voting

Vote for your favorite performance to be the WiscNews supernova below. Check back next week to find out who won.