State 2017

MN State CC meet! Such a great day in so many ways. It was sweet to see Erika gather the Section 5A representatives for a "team huddle," which the other girls loved. And this NIGHTHAWK TEAM! Thank you to all who spent their Saturday with us--Erika is proud to represent you all, and it meant the world to her and our family to have your support. She ran a season best time (19:27), faster than State last year and arguably her best-ever cross country performance. Her 20th place overall earned her All State honors (top 25) for a second time. We've been in this sport long enough to recognize that things don't always fall into place when you want them to, so it's extra special when they do. Thanks to all who made this experience possible! (Lower left photo by MN Prep Photo/www.mnprepphoto.com)

Sections 2017

The Northwest Nighthawks capped the season at the Section 5A cross country meet in Mora with their best performances of the year. In each of the varsity races, there were 137 finishers representing 22 teams.

The boys' team ran a team record time and finished 11th--a huge improvement over their 19th place finish last year. 8th grader Luke Swanson (12th place) led with a team record of 17:26, being just one spot away from individual State qualification in a sport otherwise dominated by upperclassmen. Next came sophomore Grant Olson (60th, 18:54), followed by junior captain Phillip Kippley (65th, 19:05), sophomore Jayden Peterman (76th, 19:16), sophomore Josh Gavin (89th, 19:51), 9th grader Isaac Nielsen (99th, 20:06), and junior AJ Ulwelling (107th, 20:26).

The girls' team ran their second fastest-ever team time and finished 9th--up from 10th place last year. Erika Swanson (3rd place) led with a season best of 19:34, qualifying for the State meet for the third time with one of the best performances of her career. Next came sophomore Margaret Myskowski (51st, 22:08), followed by sophomore Marielle Chamberlain (65th, 22:35), sophomore Jerilynn Simmer (71st, 22:57), senior captain Naomi Brenden (72nd, 23:00), sophomore Erin McGowan (89th, 23:42), and senior captain Sienna Chernyavsky (122nd, 26:20).

Erika is the only girl in our Section this year to be making a third trip to the State meet as an individual qualifier, which is a big accomplishment--maintaining solid performances year after year requires new levels of commitment, strength, and perseverance. She is really maturing as an athlete and as a leader. Part of that comes from experience, but it also comes from working hard at sportsmanship. Have fun and have a great race next weekend, Erika!

The Class A State Championship races will be held at St. Olaf College next Saturday, November 4, at 1:00 P.M. (girls) and 2:00 P.M. (boys). Admission is free for spectators. Be sure to leave plenty of time to park and take the shuttles to the race course.

Lefty

The Lefty Wright meet is a grade-level event that divides the races differently than most (vs. the typical Varsity, JV, and Junior High). While the Varsity teams are preparing for Thursday's Section meets, this is an opportunity for teams to give their non-Section runners one last shot at the 5K. It's a huge meet with hundreds of runners per race, but it's a lot of fun.

Conference

Congratulations to the Nighthawks in their first-ever Conference race! The Twin Cities Athletic Conference (TCAC) is comprised mainly of small private, charter, and other non-traditional schools. We were so thankful to have been welcomed into the group this season and enjoyed being in the mix of competition--plus it was an incredibly beautiful day for the event at St. Catherine University in St. Paul.

The girls took home the Runner-Up plaque (team hardware is a Nighthawk first!), and the boys took 3rd with a record combined team time. Congratulations to our 4 girls and 4 boys who earned All-Conference honors by finishing in the top 15: Erika Swanson (2nd place), Margaret Myskowski (6th), Marielle Chamberlain (8th), and Erin McGowan (11th); Luke Swanson (5th place), Phillip Kippley (12th), Grant Olson (14th), and Drake Fraser (15th); and to all who set season and lifetime PR's today. Go Nighthawks!

Huskies Hill Thrill

This was another new meet for us this year. It was basically our Conference competition, minus the bigger varsity teams, which meant our team was more prominent in the results. Having that many Nighthawks up front was a new and slightly awkward experience, but hopefully it gave everyone a little appreciation for those who run alone. It also was fun for those who otherwise don't have a chance at a medal. The hills were memorable, the hosts were gracious and welcoming, and chocolate milk was served after the race!

Litchfield

Because of the heavy rains earlier in the week, the course was creatively rerouted to run partly on the golf course but mostly on the roads. It was a new situation for most of our runners as few had road-racing experience; but the flat, mostly-paved course provided the opportunity to run especially fast. Fast running times aside, what was most exciting to see was the teamwork on the varsity boys' team, where our 2nd through 6th runners held a 16-second spread at the finish. Their JV comrades are closing in, and it's fun to watch. On the girls' side, there were a few major time drops, and we're hoping that boosts their confidence. We've emphasized strength more this year, which is important for these young women in many ways. Nighthawk strong!

CC Junior Championships

 "CC Junior" is an annual tradition where Nighthawk team members host younger siblings for a cross country meet of their own. Nighthawks are assigned jobs such as race directors, "golf carts" (run as fast as you can ahead of the racers), "sag wagons" (make sure no one gets lost), timers, chute organizers, snack wranglers, award presenters, and more. Races include the 400m (ages 3-5 only), 800m (anyone age 8 or younger), and the 1600m (anyone age 11 or younger). This year, we had over 25 siblings participating, accompanied by dozens and dozens of cheering fans. Cutest thing ever.

Rocori

Another unseasonably hot September day. The weather this season has been a surprise for everyone, but spirits remain positive and we roll with it. This was also a tough meet competitionwise, with almost all teams coming from AA schools. Still, the Nighthawks hung in there and gave their all.

Mora

Hot! That's the best way to describe this meet. Since this is the location of the Section 5A meet this year, we wanted to check it out. This meet's novelty was cookies (instead of medals or ribbons) for top finishers. Lots of good work out there, and now we know what to expect at the end of October!

Rocket Run

Beautiful day for our first official cross country meet of the season! We're very excited to see more of our runners working together out there on the race course, but don't get me wrong: they'll battle it out for the finish. Congrats to many who ran their first CC 5K ever! And thanks so much to Rockford High School for hosting a great invitational.

Catching Up

Catching up on some recently published articles--just had to share. :)

http://pressnews.com/2017/06/08/nighthawk-runner-gains-ground-at-sections/

http://pressnews.com/2017/06/05/nighthawk-runners-place-at-sub-section-track-meet/

http://pressnews.com/2017/05/06/nighthawk-runners-place-at-maple-lake-track-meet/

Season Finale

Congratulations to Erika Swanson for a great Section meet, and thanks to the team for coming to cheer her on! Erika represented the Nighthawks well as she improved her standings over last year's event, taking 7th in the 1600m (5:30.71) and 4th in the 3200m (12:05.41).

Being the only competitor from your team at a big meet like this is tough. But you couldn't ask for a better support crew--several carpools made the trek out to St. John's--which says a lot about the team. We're hoping to develop more Section qualifiers by next year, which will make the experience that much better for everyone. (The enthusiasm for summer running and cross country will certainly help!) We've had a great season of improvement in many ways and are pleased with all that these student-athletes have accomplished on both personal and performance levels.

One of the best things about this sport is how generous the other teams' coaches and athletes have been in helping us in these program-building seasons. Rockford has been especially supportive of our bringing more participants to the sport, and our athletes have made new friends through regular competition. It's been a lot of fun.

Steeple

Rockford's Last Chance Meet is an annual favorite (do it twice and it becomes a tradition, right?)--an opportunity for one more try at that PR or to enter something new and different. This time the hosts kicked up the fun a notch by introducing the steeplechase. It was supposed to be 2000m; but official lap counting was a bit lost in the fun, so some ran 2400-ish meters when it was all said and done. A great memory for our seniors as they finish their Nighthawk careers, too. Congrats to all who gave it a try!

2017 T&F Subsection Championships

Congratulations to all of the JV/Varsity Nighthawks who competed at the Subsection 17A Championships yesterday at Maple Lake! Both the men's and women's teams scored more points than last year. Point scorers include Erika Swanson (2nd place women's 1600 - 5:32; 3rd place 3200 - 12:01) advancing to the Section 5A Championships in both events; Jerilynn Simmer (5th women's 800 - 2:38; 7th 1600, 5:47); captain Gus Spencer (5th men's 400 - 0:57.37); Luke Swanson (5th men's 3200 - 10:44) with a new team record; Drake Fraser (7th men's 1600 - 5:09); Peter Weber (8th men's 400 - 0:59.38); Gus Spencer, Phillip Kippley, Peter Weber, Jake Bendickson (6th men's' 4x400 relay - 4:06). Congratulations also to Josh Springfield for throwing team records in the shot put (34' 10") and discus (99' 9"). Hard work paid off with several other personal records, season bests, and gutsy performances. We are proud of all our athletes and the sportsmanship they show at these events as we get to know the other teams. Fun times!

Early-season Meets

Just a few of the favorite pics from last week's meets. Team records and PR's continue to fall! So proud of our Nighthawks for all the new events they're trying this season. Love this crew and the great people we get to work with. (BTW holding a competitor's blocks is high-class sportsmanship...)

Second Season, First Meet

Special congratulations to the following for setting Nighthawk team records: Josh Springfield (both shot put and discus), Maria Lundy (100m), Jacob Binsfeld (100m), Gus Spencer (200m), and Drake Fraser (3200m). Also congratulations to Erika Swanson for meeting the State Honor Roll standard in the 3200m. Lots of PR's out there, too. Looking forward to a great season!

One More

Another nice article in the local paper, this one covering Nighthawks Erika Swanson and Jerilynn Simmer's trip to the 2016 State CC meet. You can also find it online.

Box Buddies

A favorite moment at the State meet: the Section 5A representatives in a "team huddle"--all worthy competitors and a beautiful demonstration of the sport of cross country.

State CC 2016

(click to view larger)

Congratulations to Erika Swanson and Jerilynn Simmer for running at the Class A State Cross Country Championship this weekend, and thanks to the throngs of Nighthawks (teammates, families, and friends--dozens of them!) who drove down on a beautiful day to support and cheer them on! Erika, a sophomore, earned All State honors by taking 18th place (19:36) in her second State meet appearance; Jerilynn, a 9th-grader, took 75th (20:36) in her first trip to the event, out of 176 runners who qualified at their respective Sections statewide.

We coaches can try to describe the scene to our athletes before the event, but the level and depth of competition here is something that cannot be taught--only experienced. Coaching these young women--and all their teammates--is an awesome privilege. When we started the program, State was a very big "someday." We had no idea. These two earned this special weekend through their dedication, discipline, and coachability; and they were excellent ambassadors as they represented their team.

Thanks again to all the team families and sponsors who have supported the program at all levels and steps along the way. Every season is a gift.

Article

Nice article in this week's paper--lots of Nighthawks mentioned for a great Section meet!