Eagles finish season with two all-conference runners

Northland Pines cross country seniors Jason Linn and Abigayle Congleton finished with second-team and honorable mention all-conference honors with their finishes at the Great Northern Conference Championships in Eagle River last Saturday. 

Although both teams didn’t finish where they wanted to as a group over the weekend, some strong performances can propel the Eagles into sectionals. 

The boys finished in sixth place out of six GNC teams, while the girls took fifth place. 

For the boys, Linn ran a strong season and led Pines for most of the fall. He finished his conference championship race as the first Eagle across the finish line, with a time of 18:07 and a 10th-place finish. 

“Jason had another great run. He came in 10th out of 44 to earn second team all-GNC,” said Pines coach Patrick Gauthier.

Griffin Beyer and Cole Wiedenbeck finished a few minutes after Linn at 20:03 and 20:06, respectively. Beyer’s 20:03 time was a season-best as this was his first season in the sport. 

Ethan Miller, Kaemyn Heritage and Owen Grassl all finished under 21 minutes, with race times of 20:18, 20:41 and 20:45. 

“Griffin and Owen each had a very good day setting personal records. They are having a great first year as cross country runners,” stated Gauthier.

For the girls, Congleton led the girls team for most of 2024. As an honorable mention selection, she finished the championships in 20th place with a time of 22:38. Emily Ritter and Aubrey White finished a couple of minutes later with times of 24:37 and 24:48 and in 31st and 32nd place, respectively. 

“Aubrey and Emily did a great job of leading the girls at the GNC. They both set personal records,” said Gauthier. 

Other finishes for the Lady Eagles were Sophie Hoffman, Jessica Linn and Ava Gaetano with finishing times of 25:05, 25:24 and 25:37. 

Northland Pines will look ahead to sectionals in Colby, which is scheduled for this Friday, Oct. 25. The girls race will begin at 4:15, with the boys race starting at 5 p.m.