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Minnesota, Wisconsin Both Get Two Team Qualifiers At NXR HeartlandPublished by
Minnesota Champions Win Boys and Girls Team Titles in Heartland; Wisconsin Teams Earn Second Auto Qualifier Spots By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor The Edina girls used a 23-second compression and had a big advantage at No. 5 to win the NXR Heartland team title on Sunday at Yankton Trails in South Dakota. Edina's five-deep pack moved through the NXR Heartland just as well as it did eight days ago to win the Minneosta AA title by 54 points. On Sunday, Edina earned a return trip to Nike Cross Nationals with 97 points, securing its regional record fifth consecutive trip to compete in Portland, Ore., matching the success of the Wayzata MN boys from 2013-17. Muskego WI, the Wisconsin Division 1 champion, was sixth after one mile but pushed through the field and was second at the two-mile split. From there, Muskego held off Wayzata by a 121-145 margin for the second automatic qualifying spot for nationals, earning the first berth for a Wisconsin girls team since Neenah in 2011. Meghan Ford from Jamestown, N.D., the North Dakota Class A champion, took control of the race by two miles and ran to the individual title in 17:19.1 Kate Sperka of Muskego was second in 17:26.9. Marie Hostetler, the Iowa 2A champion from Mid-Prairie Community was third in 17:27.4. In the boys race, Mounds View MN wove together a 14-second compression for its top five and won the regional title with 125 points. Steven Point of Wisconsin, the Division 1 runner-up a week ago, rallied past Eden Prairie in the final mile to prevail by a 177-188 margin and grab the second automatic team berth to nationals. Nicholas Scheller from Chanhassen MN, second at the state meet a week ago, rallied from eighth to first over the final third of the race and clocked a time of 15:17.8. Oliver Paleen of St. Paul Highland Park, who beat Scheller by five seconds at state, finished second in 15:19.1. Ryan Kinnane from Andover KS, the Kansas 5A champion, placed third. NXR Heartland Automatic Qualifiers - RESULTS Teams - Edina MN and Muskego WI Individuals - Meghan Ford ND, Marie Hostetler IA, Analee Weaver MN, Anna Fenske MN, Kora Malecek WI Boys Teams - Mounds View MN and Stevens Point WI Individuals - Nicholas Scheller MN, Oliver Paleen MN, Ryan Kinnane KS, Max Murphy IA, Shuayb Hussein MN |
