By John George
In their first race since finding out they are the No. 1 ranked team in Minnesota Class A cross country, the Yellowjacket boys still felt they had something to prove. They not only proved they deserve their No. 1 ranking, they showed they are hungry enough to stay there.
Perham's top runner, No. 8 ranked Kevin Lachowitzer, had quite a day in leading the Jackets to the team title with 34 points at the Wadena-Deer Creek Invite on Tuesday. Not only did he lap a number of runners down the final stretch as he took medalist honors with a time of 16:51, he beat out the golf cart that was supposed to lead the runners around Whitetail G.C.
"That was kinda fun to get out in front of the cart,"
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Lachowitzer said. "My dad (Tim) always joked that it would be cool if I beat it. Actually, once I got in front of the cart, it helped. I treated it like another runner pushing me."
Besides the golf cart motoring behind him, Lachowitzer had quite a lead, beating teammate and race runner-up, Justin Tellinghuisen, by 42 seconds.
"Coach Morris told me 'go make it your race'." Lachowitzer said.
No. 11 Long Prairie-Grey Eagle finished second to Perham, a distant 40 points behind. Staples-Motley was third with 116.
Both Lachowitzer and Tellinghuisen don't mind wearing the giant target opponents see on your back every race as the No. 1 team in the state.
"You still have to work hard and earn it in each race," Tellinghuisen said.
"It makes me want to push harder to make sure we keep it all year long," Lachowitzer added. "It will mean more to be there at the end of the season than it does now."
Girls cruise
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The Perham girls, with a solid No. 2 State ranking to back them up, also dominated at Wadena. Led by a third place finish by Maddie McClellan, the Jackets scored 39 points for the team title. No. 6 Staples-Motley was second with 73.
Perham had four girls finish in the top-10. McClellan was the first Jacket to cross, followed by No. 11 Brittany Gigstead, who finished fifth despite some heat cramps. Sadie Ellenberg took seventh, followed by Holly Sheets in ninth.
"It's kind of a hot day to run," Jacket coach Jeff Morris said. "This is a slow course and I still thought we ran pretty well."
Morris, convinced the girls are a title worthy team, is preaching the team concept of an individual sport to his team.
"They have to stop thinking about themselves, which don't get me wrong, is an easy thing to do in this sport," Morris said. "Once they get over that and see the big picture as a team, they can do anything."
Both boys and girls will get another chance to show how god their teams can be at the Pelican Rapids Invite on Sept. 11. They follow that with one of the biggest meets of the season, the Northfield Invite, where the State Meet is held, on Sept. 16.
