Verona Invitational - Varsity = 8th, JV = 3rd

The 2019 season kicked off at the Verona Invitational as the Madison Memorial Spartans took on some of the best competition from the area, the conference, and the state. Middleton (#1), Madison West (#4), Verona (#10), Madison LaFollette (#14), & Sun Prairie (#19) were all in attendance. This meeting is a measuring stick for our team and an opportunity to see what work remains ahead of us this season. We have seven weeks to put in the work to cut down the distance between us and Verona/Sun Prairie in varsity and Middleton/West in JV. I know our team can do it and we look forward to racing this competition throughout the year.

Top 5 JV Finishers - Jake Z & Bobby R

JV was led on the day by Jake Z (2nd) and Bobby R (4th) who both ran PRs for their top 5 performances. Our pack was spread out to big today to be competitive with Middleton and West. We can race better than we did today and look to cut that 1 - 5 gap down to 30 seconds by running as a pack more in future races. Jacob W earned a medal with his 16th place finish and Sam S and Nick B rounded out our scoring 5. Frosh Jack G ran a PR in 19:26 and was followed by Charles ML in 19:27. Other PRs in the JV race were set by Sean S, Alec H, Diego A, Elliot I, Max L, Thomas L, Owen R, Derek R, Alex T, Gio B, Noah D, Elijah E, Devin S, Alvaro S, Nicholas S, Logan S, and Will T. As this group continues to improve each meet will become easier and will continue to lead to more PRs. Keep up the good work in practice and away from the sport to lead to big things.

Top 35 Varsity Finishers - Brett N, Dylan A, & AJ K
AJ was also the top frosh performer

Our varsity got out to good positions in the first lap but stalled out a bit on the second lap. As we continue to do our work at practice that second half of the race will come and we will accomplish big things. We had three runners earn medals with their top 40 performances. Dylan A (17:22) led the way as he was followed by Brett N who ran a PR. AJ K also ran a PR and earned top freshman honors at the meet. Cole W finished in 17:58 as our 4th runner. While Mick S led Avery G and Henry B across the finish line all within a second of each other. Our gap from 1 - 5 is too large and needs to be under :45 in varsity. Also, we need to get a couple guys under 17:00 and put our whole varsity under 18:00. Next year's group should take a look at what LaF/West/Midd did today as they started the season with 5 runners capable of going under 17:20...that is the kind of team that can win state by the end of the year. This year, we will chase the likes of Verona, Sun Prairie, and Monona Grove. I firmly believe we can compete and beat these teams but it will take marked improvement across the board. 

We head back to work this week with a full week of school and training. Take care of business in the classroom. Get plenty of sleep. Come ready to practice at your best every day. I'm excited about what lies ahead for JMM Boys CC this year!

RESULTS
Boys Varsity
Boys JV

NEXT MEET
Saturday September 14th
Hadler Invitational (Menomonee Falls) @ Rotary Park
Bus - 6:30am
9:45am - First Race
10:20am - Boys JV (2018 Results)
11:30am - Boys Varsity (2018 Results)
12:00pm - Awards (varsity - top 15 individuals & team, JV - top 5 individuals)
***Bring $$ to eat....we will stop to eat on the way home***
Approximate return to JMM is 3:30pm

UPCOMING EVENTS
Sept 8th - Ironman Volunteering - Lot 60 (optional) 12 - 4pm or 4 - 8pm
Sept 16th - Team Pictures - 3:45pm (bring your uniform top & bottom)

NEWS & NOTES
- Get ahead on your school work...don't let grades or attendance become an issue
- Take care of your bodies...SLEEP, stretch, hydrate, eat well
- Coach Casey has a limited number of JMM CC bucket hats available for $25...bring $ to practice