Grafton’s Baker saves his best for last

Grafton High School senior Nathan Baker picked a good time to run his fastest race.

He was up against better competition than ever during Saturday’s state cross country meet at Arrowhead High School.

The Covid-19 pandemic caused divisions to shuffle, with some teams choosing to participate in an alternate spring season. Grafton was moved from Division 2 into Division 1, which includes the largest schools in the state.

That didn’t much matter to Baker. Holding a state meet wasn’t even on the table until halfway through the season, and Baker said he used the uncertainty as motivation rather than a distraction, which culminated in his best performance ever.

“I left it all out there. I think that was the hardest I’ve ever pushed in a race,” Baker said.

The only Grafton boy to qualify for the state meet all four years in school history ran the 5,000-meter course in a personal-record 16 minutes, 30.7 seconds, good for 24th place.

Baker, who set a couple of different goals for times, didn’t meet his “A goal” because of the wind, but he still ran his fastest race ever by three seconds.

Another oddity was that the state races in all three divisions were split into three sessions to keep crowds down, with times and places compiled afterward.

But only running against a portion of the competition, Baker said, didn’t make much of an impact.

“I had pretty much given it my all, regardless,” he said.

Joshua Truchon of West Allis Hale won the 114-runner race by 20 seconds in 15:18.3.

Baker was five seconds from the top 20. His time would have put him in second place in Division 2.

Baker took 10th in last season’s Division 2 race in 16:42. In 2018, he was 77th in 17:36. In 2017, he was 99th in 18:09.75.

Four years of cross country have produced lifetime memories.

“It’s been amazing. Just being part of those two teams as a freshman and sophomore were both phenomenal experiences,” he said.

Baker said his coaches have long-term visions in mind for their runners, “which shows how much they care about the athlete. There’s not another team I would have rather run for than Grafton.”

Coach Celia Shaughnessy said Baker had an incredible high school journey.

“He is a great example of where persistence, consistency and mental toughness can take you,” she said.

“He ran a smart and incredibly tough race Saturday. To move into Division 1 with a competitive field and place in the top 25 is pretty amazing.”

Baker plans to run in track in spring and run in college. He hasn’t decided which school he will attend.

Raasch finishes better than expected

Port Washington junior Mason Raasch faced the same challenge as Baker in getting bumped up to the Division 1 race.

He developed a specific plan in his first trip to state.

“My main strategy was just to have fun and enjoy it while I was there. It really worked for me. It definitely helped relieve the nerves,” he said.

As a result, Raasch ran a personal-best time of 16:47.6, which put him in 37th place of 114 runners.

His time, which would have put him seventh in Division 2, was about where Raasch wanted it, in the 16:40s. His place was another story.

“It was crazy. I didn’t expect it at all,” he said. “I was hoping to be in the top half of the field.”

Coach Mark Pasten was proud of his only qualifier.

“Mason ran his race and did not get overwhelmed by the moment. He placed himself in the middle of the pack on the first 800 meters and continued to move up through the field throughout the race,” he said.

“In the final 100 meters, he was able to pass three runners in his session. He also managed to finish ahead of the two runners that just edged him out at our sectional. I thought he ran an outstanding race, and I’m extremely proud of his accomplishment.”

Raasch said the experience of running in Division 1 inspired him.

“It was tough. It really made me work and made me want to work even more to make it to state,” he said.

Hoopman takes 33rd in Division 2

Cedar Grove-Belgium’s only state qualifier, sophomore Mason Hoopman, nearly ran a personal best at the Division 2 state meet at Colby High School.

He finished in 17:30.18, eight seconds off his personal record, and in 33rd place of 113 runners. It was his first trip to the state meet.

“I was happy with how things went, but I wasn’t quite satisfied,” Hoopman said.

His goal was to set a personal record and beat Oostburg’s Josh Staggs, who finished 25th in 17:21.82 — just about Hoopman’s best time.

Leo Richardson of Edgewood won in 15:47.05.

Hoopman said he liked that the course was pretty flat and it had woods to shield runners from the strong wind.

The reshuffling of divisions had Cedar Grove-Belgium moving from Division 3 to faster competition in Division 2. Hoopman’s time in Division 3 would have put him in 25th.

Coach Brandon Langer said Hoopman went out with a fast group of 10 runners early in the race before settling into the middle of the pack. He was five seconds behind Staggs and couldn’t quite close on him in the final 1,000 meters.

Langer said he was proud of how Hoopman competed all year, adding his attitude will serve him well in the next two years.

“As a sophomore, to be able to qualify for the state meet as an individual is quite an accomplishment. Most of the individual qualifiers, for boys, are upperclassmen,” Langer said.

“I stressed this to him, and for him to finish fifth in terms of underclassmen at the state meet means he has a chance to end up on the podium the next two years if he continues to put in the work and improve like he did this year.”

Hoopman said he was happy with where he placed and thankful to teammate Cole Ketterhagen, who ran with him all week. He plans to move up the list at state.

“I definitely want to make it back again next year and do a little bit better,” he said.

McKee makes top 25 in Division 3

Ozaukee junior Calvin McKee ran against familiar competition to finish 23rd in 17:27 in the Division 3 race.

McKee’s session was with St. Joe’s the Prairie School, Manitowoc Lutheran and Sheboygan Lutheran.

“I liked the competition because I’ve raced against most of them before. But I would’ve liked all of the sessions to be put together because there would’ve been a little bit more competition,” McKee said.

“We knew 90% of his competition going into the meet, and it made it easier to plan where we wanted him to be in the race,” coach Andrew Pfeuffer said.

“He was not complacent to just make it to state and take a victory lap. He went for a phenomenal race and almost pulled it off against some tough competition.”

McKee said the flat course and mild weather helped. He hopes to return next season and bring the team with him.