Hastings cross country runners turned in a pair of solid varsity performances Thursday, Sept. 10, at the Dewey Minnaert Cross Country Invitational at St. Croix Bluffs Regional Park, with the Raider girls finishing fourth and the boys placing fifth.
The Hastings girls scored 88 points to finish fourth in a six-team field. Osseo won the meet with 23 points, followed by East Ridge with 54 and Park with 85. Hastings finished just three points behind Park for third place, while Tartan was fifth with 130 and St. Croix Preparatory Academy finished sixth with 166.
Sophomore Clara Hochmuth led Hastings, completing the 5,000-meter course in 21 minutes, 26 seconds to finish sixth overall. Eighth-grader Elliana Lucking was right behind her in seventh place, crossing the line in 21:48. The two gave Hastings a pair of runners among the first seven finishers in the varsity field.
Freshman Annika Hauck was the third Hastings runner across the line, placing 21st in 23:57. Sophomore Paisley Grunzke finished 31st with a time of 25:34, and freshman Taylor Johnson followed in 36th at 26:00.
Sophomore Savannah Barlow finished 40th in 26:54, while sophomore Emily Beaudet was 41st in 27:19. The Hastings girls had seven runners complete the varsity race.
East Ridge senior Erin Royer won the girls race with a time of 19:40. Osseo then placed three runners among the next four finishers, helping the Orioles build the team score that carried them to the meet championship.
The Hastings boys finished fifth among eight teams with 130 points. East Ridge won the boys team title with 32 points, followed by Park with 83, Osseo with 86 and Burnsville with 90. St. Croix Preparatory Academy finished sixth at 141, Tartan was seventh with 174 and Cretin-Derham Hall finished eighth with 184.
Senior David Tireman led the Raiders with a top-10 finish. Tireman placed ninth overall with a time of 17:54. Junior Benjamin Schwanke gave Hastings another runner near the front, finishing 11th in 18:00.
Junior Landon Zajac was the next Raider across the finish line, placing 32nd with a time of 19:50. Freshman Owen Tireman followed in 33rd place at 20:19.
Freshman Roman Matsch placed 47th with a time of 23:01, and freshman George Jensen finished 50th in 24:48.
Park senior Henry Joa won the boys varsity race in 16:00, edging East Ridge junior Jack Sales, who finished second in 16:03. East Ridge placed five runners among the first 15 finishers, helping it secure the team championship.
For Hastings, the meet provided another opportunity for both squads to compete on the St. Croix Bluffs Regional Park course. The Raiders are scheduled to return there Tuesday, Sept. 15, for the Conference Preview.
After that meet, the varsity schedule moves into a series of Saturday competitions. Hastings is scheduled to compete in the Roy Griak Invitational Saturday, Sept. 19, at Fort Snelling Golf Course. The Raiders then travel to the Under the Lights Metro Invitational Saturday, Sept. 26, at Flying Cloud Fields, before competing at the Simley Invite Saturday, Oct. 10, at Simley High School.