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Click here for a story and results of the 2010 Wisconsin Valley Conference Cross Country Meet
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
MARSHFIELD – To say Marshfield cross country coach Dan Akin is excited about hosting this year’s Wisconsin Valley Conference Cross Country Meet is an understatement.
The veteran coach and Marshfield High School will be welcoming the other six Wisconsin Valley teams on Saturday to a new site – Frey Field near Spencer – for this year’s meet.
Frey Field is on the farm land of Mark and Christine Frey, which is located on County Trunk C, about five miles west of Highway 97 and three miles east of Spencer.
Akin has been working with the Freys for years to make the course one that could host a meet of this size and magnitude, and he said he is hopeful it will someday host a WIAA sectional meet. Marshfield was to host a meet there in September, but it was wiped out by heavy rains and flooding. Auburndale hosted its invitational there on Oct. 5.
“We are really excited for the chance to host the meet,” Akin said. “We’ve been going out there for about seven years, trying to fine-tune it. We’ve been meeting out there on a couple of Sundays and (Wednesday) everyone on the team got to see it.”
Marshfield is hosting the Wisconsin Valley Conference Meet for the first time since 2003, when it was held at RiverEdge Golf Course.
Akin said he expects the times to be low, and the competition to be fierce on Saturday.\
“It’s going to be fast,” Akin said. “It’s really flat. There are some gradual hills that are kind of deceptive, but nothing real big (like at Wildwood Park).”
Marshfield boasts a group of three boys and three girls that could vie for all-conference spots by finishing in the top 15.
One of the favorites on the girls’ side is Marshfield freshman Rebecca Voss, who has been in the top group in all of the Tigers’ meets this season.
“She’s had a fabulous season,” Akin said. “She looked good at practice and has looked good all season. Rebecca has some good runners to key off of. It will be a chess match.”
Jennifer Kaiser and Lisa Kaiser also should compete for top spots at the meet for Marshfield. Lisa Kaiser was an all-conference runner last year, and Jennifer Kaiser qualified for the state meet.
Akin said the boys team is “really gelling” as it hits the end of the season. The Tigers won a recent meet at Chippewa Falls and had solid performances at the Smiley Invitational in Wausau and at the Eau Claire Memorial Invitational during the last month.
Bryan Zimmerman, Adam Voss and Aaron Anderson all have legitimate chances at earning all-conference accolades, Akin said.
“Bryan has had a real good season,” Akin said. “We are ready for him to take it to the next level. He had been running pretty well and all of a sudden you could see a real improvement heading into these next two meets.
“The last five spots … it’s whoever wants it the most. There are 20 good runners and only 15 get awards. They will have to really dig in.”
The meet kicks off with the JV boys at 10 a.m., followed by the JV girls at 10:30 a.m., the varsity boys at 11 a.m. and the varsity girls at 11:30 a.m. An awards ceremony will begin at approximately 12:15 p.m.