Esko’s Shady State Cross Country Champion

Nov
6

Dwight Cadwell-NSO

Marisa Shady has been running at the state cross country meet for the past four seasons. Each year Marisa improved her placement until Saturday when she could not place any higher than where she finished, and that was as the Minnesota State Girl’s Cross Country Champion for 2010. In doing so she also helped lead her team to a 5th place finish overall.

Shady started competing at the state tournament in 2007 where she finished 41st overall as a seventh grader. In 2008 she placed 25th overall and in 2009 she was 15th as a ninth grader, so it seemed only natural her progression would be a placement atop the girls Class A champions. Shady finished with an overall time of 14:45, a full six seconds in front of Lauren Friese of Fairmont.

Shady helped pace her team to a 5th place finish, as her sister Erika finished 29th overall, Kailee Kiminski was 56th, Kallyn Knutson placed 64th overall, Molly Meysembourg and Rachel Mills rounded out the Eskomos state tournament team. Other local finishers included Gracie Otis of AlBrook who placed 90th overall.

In Class AA, senior Halee Peterson of Cloquet finished 72nd with a time of15:38.50.

The Esko boys cross country team finished sixth overall with Jackson Lindquist pacing the way for the Eskomos with a 17th place finish in the boys meet. Teammate Joey Johnson was 66th, Adam Eskuri placed 76th, and Matt Rengo and Ben Hanson also completed for the Eskomos squad. Mason Ferlic of Mounds Park Academy was first overall in the boys Class A meet.

The top local finisher was sophomore Matt Welch of Proctor, who finished 13th overall, turning in a time of 16:31.30.

Dwight Cadwell can be reached at dwight@northlandsportsonline.com