Click below to go to FVA schedule & results including FVA All Conference
www.fvasports.net/page/show/1251321-girls-cross-country
2014 FVA All-Conference Selections
1st Team Sr – Megan Buechel > Jr – Annie Moore > Fr – Ally Gietzel
Link below for 2014 FVA All Conference overall selections
assets.ngin.com/attachments/document/0066/0636/gcc2014.pdf
Link below for 2014 FVA Conference Varsity Meet
assets.ngin.com/attachments/document/0063/9925/fvagirlscc2014.pdf
Link below for 2014 FVA Conference JV Meet
assets.ngin.com/attachments/document/0063/9928/fvagirlscc2014jv.pdf
2014 State Cross Country Tournament
WISCONSIN RAPIDS – One had state experience, the other didn’t. One a junior, the other a freshman. Regardless of any differences in age or experience, Fond du Lac’s Annie Moore and Ally Gietzel were both impressive on Saturday at the WIAA cross country meet at The Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
Moore, a junior, finished 21st and freshman teammate Gietzel was 27th in the Division 1 girls race Saturday, scoring top-30 finishes in a loaded field.
Moore came in with a time of 19:14.76, while Gietzel was just behind her at 19:19.30. Both Moore and Gietzel thought they ran well, despite a challenging course at The Ridges.
“It went OK,” Moore said. “It was harder than a lot of our other courses. It was a challenge, but nice weather outside, so that was good.” “It went well,” Gietzel added. “A lot of hills.”
Moore, who competed last year as a sophomore when the girls race was only 4,000 meters, noted that this year the girls ran a complete 5K just like the boys. That made it more challenging the second time around. “We had to add on for the 5K so it was more hills and it was a little longer,” Moore said.
Meanwhile freshman standout Gietzel was running in her first state meet and noted the experience was a positive one. “It was really good,” she said. “Annie has a lot of experience so I kind of followed her.”
River Falls’ Annie Frisbie won the Division 1 girls race with a time of 17:59.14. Eau Claire Memorial won the Division 1 girls team title with 118 points, edging out Stevens Point.
On the boys side, Madison West won the team title with 77 points. West’s Olin Hacker won the individual title with a time of 14:59.10
Fondy’s Moore, Gietzel heading to state
WINNECONNE — Side-by-side, Fond du Lac’s Annie Moore and Ally Gietzel traversed the terrain at Lake Breeze Golf Course on Friday.
Next week, the duo will get to do it again — just at a different golf course. Moore and Gietzel finished second and third, respectively, at the WIAA Division 1 sectional cross country meet to earn spots in the state cross country meet to be held next Saturday at The Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
The Cardinals turned in a strong day overall, but it was the lead tandem that highlighted the effort. “Overall it was a good day for us,” Fond du Lac coach Brad Theyerl said. “They were ready to go and we’ve made so many improvements throughout the season and we just took it into today.”
Moore and Gietzel tucked in behind eventual winner Megan Ludke of West Bend East right from the start and stayed within sight of leader the entire race. The two split briefly around the 1 ½-mile mark but were back in sync shortly thereafter. “We didn’t plan on doing it the entire time but it was nice that it happened,” Moore said. “(The course) was a little wet, which kind of made things tricky but other than that it was nice.” Moore broke away in the final straightaway and finished two seconds ahead of Gietzel, however the fourth-place runner was nearly 30 seconds behind.
“It’s a great position for them to be in and it’s great the two of them can run together,” Theyerl said. “That definitely helps push each other through the race. It keeps their nerves a little calm.”
Megan Buechel ran in the top 10 the entire race and finished seventh overall, narrowly missing one of the individual qualifier spots. Jeanne Bestor came in 28th, while Nicole Gietzel (56th) and Nicole Lord (65th) rounding out the Cardinal runners.
“I thought we did really well,” said Moore, a junior, who qualified as an individual last year as well. “Every one worked really hard and they finished well. It was good.” As a team, Fond du Lac finished third overall behind state qualifiers Kimberly and Neenah, but will be represented at state by its pace-setting duo. “It feels real good. That’s what we trained for the whole year, to get to state,” said the freshman Ally Gietzel. “We ran our hardest and did the best we could.”
The Fond du Lac boys finished 12th among the 12 teams and were led by Bryton Koepke (34th) and Mitchell Van Herwynen (55th).
Fond du Lac girls 3rd at FVA meet
FVA Meet: The Fond du Lac girls cross country team finished third at the Fox Valley Association meet, hosted by Kaukauna at Countryside Golf Course.
The Cardinals finished with a team score of 108 points, six points behind second-place finisher Kimberly. Appleton North won the meet with 55 points.
Annie Moore led Fond du Lac with a second-place finish, coming in with a time of 19:13. Ally Gietzel was third with a time of 19:19. Megan Buechel finished seventh.
Hortonville’s Hannah Lohrenz just beat out Moore for the FVA title with a time of 19:12.
On the boys side, Fond du Lac came in 10th with a score of 281. Bryton Koepke was 19th with a time of 18:00 to lead the Cardinals.
Neenah won the boys team title with a score of 33 points. Kimberly’s Nicholas Rink took first individually with a time of 16:42.
Gietzel leads Fondy at Midwest Invite
Midwest Invitational: Freshman Ally Gietzel continued the remarkable start to her career with a fifth-place finish at the Midwest Invite, hosted by Janesville Craig.
Gietzel ended up with a time of 19 minutes, 3 seconds as the Cardinals finished 10th as a team with 293 points. Annie Moore was seventh for Fond du Lac, while Megan Buechel was 27th. Dodgeville/Mineral Point won the 30-team invite with 125 points.
Fond du Lac did not compete as a team in the boys race. Bryton Koepke finished 118th individually to pace the Cards.
Gietzel off to hot start
Fond du Lac freshman Ally Gietzel is only a month into her high school cross country career, but has already shown she has the potential to be one of the top runners in the area. Gietzel finished second at the Bulldog Invitational in New London last Saturday and also finished second at the Menomonee Falls Invitational on Sept. 13. She finished 6th at the West Bend West Invitational on Aug. 30 Gietzel will have another chance to show what she’s got when the Cardinals head to Janesville this Saturday for the Midwest Invitational.
The Reporter caught up with Gietzel Monday afternoon to talk about her early success as well as her hopes for the rest of the season.
The Reporter: You’ve finished highly in a number of events so far. What’s been key to your early success?
Ally Gietzel: I have a lot of good role models to follow. Megan (Buechel) and Annie (Moore), they’ve competed in the state meet. They teach me what it takes to compete at that level and I’ve got a really good coach (Brad Theyerl), who knows how to prepare us.
TR: You finished second at the Bulldog Invite last weekend. Was there anything special about that race or were you just feeling well coming into it?
AG: I was feeling good, but my time was really slow because of the course. It was muddy and slippery.
TR: Did you ever expect to do this well this early in your high school career? What were your expectations?
AG: Not really. I thought I’d do well, but not this well. I was expecting to maybe be the No. 3 runner, not No. 1.
TR: How have you gotten to this point in your running career, where you’re one of the top athletes? What got you into running?
AG: I ran my first race when I was two years old. I’ve just always liked running. My dad used to always run and I just caught on and loved it.
TR: What are some things you’ve learned from your older teammates this year?
AG: It takes a lot of hard work and determination to do well.
TR: In what ways can you improve as a runner?
AG: Keep working hard and it’s all in my head. I’ve got to think positive.
TR: What are your goals for the rest of the season?
AG: I’d really like to make it to state as a team and hopefully as an individual, too.
TR: What would it mean to you to make it to state?
AG: It would be the biggest running accomplishment of my career.
TR: What’s it been like to run on the same team with your sister (Nicole Gietzel)?
AG: Great. I love it. Ever since I was little, I always wanted to be on the same team as her and I’m happy that I can.
TR: Do you play any other sports? What’s your favorite?
AG: Track and basketball. Basketball.
TR: What’s your dream sporting event to attend?
AG: NBA Finals (with LeBron James playing
Fondy’s Gietzel 2nd at Menomonee Falls
Menomonee Falls Invitational: Although Fond du Lac didn’t run as a complete varsity team in either the boys or girls races, the Cardinals who did run in the varsity race finished with impressive times.
In the girls race, freshman Ally Gietzel finished second with a time of 19:10.20, while Megan Buechel and Annie Moore were fifth and sixth, respectively.
On the boys side, Fond du Lac’s Bryton Koepke came in 12th place with a time of 17:27.52, while Mitchell Vanherwyn was 26th.