DASH Middle School Cross Country 2015 Lake Denoon Meet Report

September 15, 2015 in Cross Country, Middle School Cross Country, Middle School Cross Country Meet Reports

Hello DASH families,

The 2015 DASH middle school cross country team was on full display for the first time yesterday at Lake Denoon Middle School in Muskego. Unfortunately, we did have a few athletes miss their start because of traffic and parking issues, but we still had 33 athletes donning DASH yellow, ready to compete against a field of more than 900 athletes. We now know how we stack up against some of the biggest teams in the area, and I think the DASH fans were happy with what transpired.

The 7th and under girls got the day started. Stephanie Chu raced to the front early with Julianna Caspers giving chase. Julianna eventually got ahead of Stephanie, and then the girls stayed close the rest of the way with Julianna earning the 36th place ribbon, and Stephanie the 43rd. It was good to see Stephanie staying up with Julianna and have two girls in the top-50. Third grader Julia Kowalinski had a great first race, finishing in the top half. Another of our amazing 3rd graders was next. Grace Caspers kept up a nice steady pace in her first race at Lake Denoon. Savanna Bruton ran well again and finished with a respectable 16:24 time. The Walters girls showed us why practicing hard is important as Jenna and Angela both finished in the 18 minute range. They have the coach’s attention.

We ran 17 athletes in the 7th and under boys race, a DASH record. Believe it or not, that is the average team size at this meet, so it may be a little too soon to call us a big team while running here. Leif Kostrzewa led the DASH boys from the start. Leif cracked the top-50 for the first time at this meet. It took a fast time of 11:20 to earn the 36th place ribbon. Joshua LeSac kept Leif in his site the whole way. His hard work through the years is paying off. Alexander Taylor, in just his first DASH race, broke 12 minutes and looked especially good at the end. I get excited just thinking about how good he has gotten in such a short time. Jeffrey Breiling cracked the top-100 despite not running his best. His best races are coming up. Kaden Hacker also inched his way into the top-100 with a great finish. He is new to the DASH team this year and will be very good. Daniel Caspers is running much better right now, and will be looking to stay up with our top athletes this year. Nathanael Chu was turning heads with his performance. He is deceptively fast, and never tires. Salim Lubbad kept his time under 13 minutes. He faded some in the second half of the race, but will be one to watch as the season goes on. Seka Kostrzewa was slowed by a bad choice of running shorts. He is the youngest member of the team, but always stays with the big guys. Joshua Lipski rounded out our top-10. He is turning into a very good runner. There was over a minute gap after Joshua before the rest of our team finished up. These are our more inexperienced athletes that we will want to keep our eyes on to see who it will be that puts in the work and starts getting really fast. Ben Breitbach showed the most promise coming in with a 15:12 time. Micah Chan was just 5 seconds behind Ben and had a great finish. Bryant Farrell proved his first race in Mayville was no fluke. He is moving up. Matthew Kowalinski got out fast, but then had troubles. Jacob LaBonte was not at his best. He will be better in the meets coming up. Jose Rosario toughed out his first race, and Ethan Lindberg enjoyed his race despite being in the back. The boys team is big, and hopefully this report will help the DASH fans sort them all out. There is a lot of talent here, and the boys natural competitiveness will hopefully have them running faster each meet.

We fielded two 8th grade girls. Emma Taylor paced her way through her first cross country race until the end where she showed off her speed with a spectacular finish. It especially impressed Mr. Beck. Naomi Zhou has been looking good in practice. Naomi stayed steady throughout, but her racing here will not end up being her best.

We ended up with seven athletes in the 8th grade boys race. Vincent Mauer proved he is our number 1 guy this year. His 10:06 time earned himself the 9th place medal and a date at the award ceremony. Caleb Schaber looked good as he raced to an 11:43 time, good for 59th place. 7th grader Tikvah Schlissel was in the 8th grade race because of traffic issues, and posted a very good time coming off of a recent foot injury. His time would have put him running with a big group of our fast 7th and under boys. Noah LaBonte has never run as well as he did yesterday. He is obviously working hard. Luis Rosario ran a strong first race. Peter Chan also ran well. He is a fan favorite. Sean Seraphine worked hard, and had a good finish to his first race.

Thanks to Mr. Beck and Zipporah Caspers for getting the times. Thanks to Faith Caspers, Kayla Walters, and Katrina Lipski for collecting the cards. Thanks to Drake Hacker, Will Farrell, and Joshua Schaber for helping get the boys to the start which has been a problem for me in the past. Thanks to the parents for getting the athletes to the race. Sorry about the parking for those who arrived a little late. And thanks to the camera lady for getting the photos. This meet has gotten so big, yet everything ran very smooth this time. The season is becoming a lot of fun, and next week we get to do it again in a smaller race setting. I hope to see you there.

Take care,
Jim Caspers

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