Coach Townsend Presents End-of-Season Cross Country Awards

Eric Townsend, head coach of the MHS cross country teams, announced the 2023 End-of-the-Season awards for the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs on November 3 at the high school :

MOST VALUABLE RUNNER BOYS—Payton Brown GIRLS—Ashlynn Batchelor 
MOST IMPROVED RUNNER BOYS—Isaac Graham GIRLS—Bree Townsend 
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR BOYS—Bennett Graham GIRLS—Ella Koplin 
PRIDE OF THE PAW BOYS—James Batchelor GIRL—Stella Wendland 
SENIOR AWARDS  James Batchelor, Payton Brown, Isaac Graham, Jose Ramirez, Grant Van Peursem, Sophia Gastineau, Kynlee Speidel, Nadia Thue, Stella Wendland, and Jaclyn Wiik 
VARSITY LETTER WINNERS  James Batchelor, Sophia Gastineau, Payton Brown, Kynlee Speidel, Isaac Graham, Nadia Thue (MGR), Jose Ramirez, Stella Wendland, Grant Van Peursem, Jaclyn Wiik, Bryan Meyer, Tyra Berry, Beckham Berry, Ashlynn Batchelor, Liam Heller, Zayda Townsend, Bennett Graham, Bianca Berry, and Ella Koplin 
MINOR LETTER WINNERS  Jacob Johnson, Leah Meyer, Armando Chan, Yanderyn Olivares, Franco Flores, Elexia Quintanilla, Tate Pew, Camryn Sovell, Rylan Wendland, Macy Mueller, Jazymynne Ronke, Bree Townsend, Raina Untalan, Bailee Hendricks, Zoee Henrich, Aria Prasnicki, and Kylynn Schwandt 
ALL-CONFERENCE RUNNERS  Payton Brown–1st, Ashlynn Batchelor–2nd, Isaac Graham–2nd, Ella Koplin–5th, Bryan Meyer–3rd, Bianca Berry—6th, Beckham Berry–8th, Kynlee Speidel–11th, Grant Van Peursem–12th, Tyra Berry–16th, Bennett Graham–16th, and Zayda Townsend–18th 

Coach Townsend gave a shout out to the many supporters of the Cross Country program. “Thanks to the following individuals and groups:  Whetstone Creek Golf Course for allowing us to host our home meets, the Milbank Fire Department for helping lead us out of town heading to the State meet, Abbey of the Hills for hosting our team retreat, KMSD radio for the coverage and Coach’s Corner, The Valley Express for the excellent online coverage, Big Stone Therapies for the prevention and care of our injuries, the Grant County Review for their great weekly results coverage, GrandStay Hotel and Suites for sponsoring our home CC meet, and DeFea Transportation for transporting us safely to and from the meets.  

He gave another huge thanks to all the parents for their great support throughout the season. He thanked Coach Josh Schmeichel, Coach Brady Femling, and Coach Laurie Batchelor for all their hard work and extra efforts throughout the season. “And finally,” he said, “thanks to the athletes for all their efforts and hard work throughout the season, especially to the seniors this year – James Batchelor, Payton Brown, Isaac Graham, Jose Ramirez, Grant Van Peursem, Sophia Gastineau, Kynlee Speidel, Nadia Thue, Stella Wendland, and Jaclyn Wiik. Your leadership will be greatly missed, and we wish each of you good luck in the future.”  

Congratulations to Coach Townsend on a very successful season!

Submitted Photo: Back Row (left to right):  Isaac Graham, Payton Brown, James Batchelor, Jose Ramirez, Grant Van Peursem, Bennett Graham
Front Row:  Kynlee Speidel, Jaclyn Wiik, Nadia Thue, Sophia Gastineau, Stella Wendland, Ashlynn Batchelor, Bree Townsend 
NOT PICTURED:  Jacob Johnson and Ella Koplin