PREP CROSS-COUNTRY

DeMaris takes 4th, Steele 5th at

Section 2A meet

NORWOOD YOUNG AMERICA — Madelia/Truman/Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Martin Luther’s Josiah DeMaris qualified for the State Cross-Country Meet next week after a fourth-place finish at the Section 2A meet on Thursday at Baylor Park.

DeMaris finished his section run a time of 16:31.59.

While they didn’t qualify for state, Madelia/T/GHEC/ML had two other runners in the top 25 in Kaydon Firchau (17:52.44, 20th) and Carson Meraz (17:57.74, 22nd). St. Mary’s/Sleepy Eye/New Ulm Cathedral’s Noah Christenson finished 25th overall at the meet with a time of 18:04.21, while teammate Levi Hagen took 35th with a time of 18:20.37.

Minnesota Valley Lutheran’s top boys runner was Jeremy Feistner, who took 56th with a time of 19:14.23.

The Mountain Lake Area boys took first to qualify for state with 60 points, while St. James joins them with a second-place finish (70).

On the girls side of the meet from the area, Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop’s Madyson Steele will return to the state meet after a fifth-place finish (20:06.45) on Thursday. Also for GFW, Ashley Vos finished 18th with a time of 21:26.72, while Kelly Willegal took 26th (22:02.76), Kelby Bruns took 34th (22:24.94) and Abigail Willegal took 42nd (22:48.86).

For SM/SE/NUC, Emma Hagen was the top girls runner with a 45th-place finish (22:52.77), while Millie Lax took 47th with a time of 22:57.34.

MVL’s top girls runner Pricilla Bauer took 57th (23:30.24).

MLA also advanced as a team on the girls side with 82 points, while Mankato Loyola took second to advance to state with 85 points. The GFW girls took third (125).

Springfield/CM girls

finish 8th at

Section 3A meet

MADISON — The Springfield/Cedar Mountain girls team placed eighth, while the boys’ team took ninth on Thursday at the Section 3A Cross-Country Meet at the Madison Golf Club.

Emmie McCone took 24th to lead the Springfield/CM girls (21:42), while Marissa Pabst took 27th (22:05), Lydia Dauer took 52nd (22:52) and Sylvia Hovland took 69th (23:39).

The boys’ team was led by Matt Groebner’s 23rd-place finish (18:00), while Ben Potter took 49th (19:01), Bryan Buerkle took 54th (19:19) and Lucas Hensch took 68th (20:03).