There's still a tinge of disappointment for how the team portion of the cross country season went in Westby a year ago.
In spite of putting together a historically sound performance at the WIAA Division 3 sectional race in Prairie du Chien last October, the running Norsemen found themselves part of a long list of schools who
wrapped up team competition that day.
One lone runner - Elizabeth Curtis - advanced to the state meet one final time. However, the departure of Curtis due to graduation left this year's squad in a bit of a quandry in terms of how they would perform without their highly-decorated lead runner.
Race by race, though, this year's current pack of runners has proven to be one of the strongest teams in the state of Wisconsin. This week, in the cross country coaches poll, the Norsemen ascended to become the top-ranked team in Division 3.
"I do think it means more to this year’s group due to our experience at sectionals last season," said Westby head coach Brian Huebner. "What I mean is, we lost by four points to Fennimore and did not advance to state, although we had a program historically best performance."
Huebner said there was an expectation that the Norsemen's team would struggle without their former standout to lead. However, this year's group has upended those expectations with individual work and improvement.
"Our runners so far are much better - many girls by one whole minute - from their times of a year ago. The rankings, I think, help our kids recognize what they have done so far."
Westby passed Southwestern for the first time in the polls this year. The Wildcats' co-op, which will face Westby at the Boscobel sectional near the end of October, had held the top spot the last several weeks. Fennimore and Viroqua, two other teams in the Boscobel sectional, are ranked sixth and 15th overall.
"I think we have managed it well," said Huebner in regards to the extra exposure that comes with being at the top of the coaches poll, "although the girls are regulating how much media they are taking in to cope with pressure of expectations."
Westby's girls tasted the air of a number one ranking off and on in both the 2015 and 2016 seasons. The Norsemen and Oshkosh Lourdes traded bouts atop the polls in that time. The Norsemen collected back-to-back state runners-up finishes in both years.
Huebner says the strength of his team lies in their pack-running ability.
"That is what we hope carries us through the state meet. We do run together and we are stronger as six girls than other team's second or third runner running alone."
OF NOTE
Other area teams to appear in this week's rankings include Brookwood and Fennimore's boys in Division 3. The Falcons are second and the Golden Eagles third. In Division 2, the Aquinas girls are fourth and West Salem eighth. La Crosse Logan is sixth in the D2 boys poll and Richland Center 13th.
