Cross country runners in six classes battle for statewide honors

RAPID CITY — Thirty-six teams and 150 individuals earned awards with top performances in the 2026 South Dakota State High School Cross Country Championships at the Hart Ranch Camping Resort.

The meet was held on Saturday, Oct. 24.

The top six teams and 25 individuals in each division — Class AA boys and girls, Class A boys and girls and Class B boys and girls.

Here's a breakdown by division:

Class AA Girls

• Team Scores — 1. Harrisburg 41; 2. Sioux Falls Lincoln 71; 3. O'Gorman 144; 4. Yankton 145; 5. Brookings 148; 6. Watertown 155; 7. Rapid City Stevens 167; 8. Rapid City Central 175; 9. Sioux Falls Washington 253; 10. Spearfish 260; 11. Brandon Valley 304; 12. Aberdeen Central 304; 13. Tea Area 309; 14. Pierre 314; 15. Mitchell 400; 16. Douglas 429; 17. Sioux Falls Roosevelt 432.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Brianna Reilly, Harrisburg, 17:06.5; 2. Hannah Genrich, Harrisburg, 17:20.5; 3. Iris Birnbaum, RC Stevens, 17:21.2; 4. Peyton VanDeest, Spearfish, 17:36.2; 5. Mia Kadi, SF Lincoln, 17:52.6; 6. Kaylie Kuehl, Brookings, 18:06.0; 7. Nora Youmans, Yankton, 18:09.5; 8. Emmeline Murray, SF Lincoln, 18:14.8; 9. Eloise Scharnberg, Harrisburg, 18:16.4; 10. Grace McElroy, Watertown, 18:26.6; 11. Allie Novstrup, Aberdeen Central, 18:34.6; 12. Paige Schweitzer, O'Gorman, 18:37.4; 13. Madison Moore, Harrisburg, 18:38.3; 14. Anna Spanos, SF Lincoln, 18:38.8; 15. Abby Johanneson, Yankton, 18:50.2; 16. Kenley Fritz, Harrisburg, 18:50.7; 17. Avery Wuestewald, Yankton, 18:56.2; 18. Elise Johnson, O'Gorman, 18:58.4; 19. Reagan Ostransky, SF Lincoln, 18:58.5; 20. Alice Gundvaldson, O'Gorman, 19:05.2; 21. Lilly Gerlach, Watertown, 19:11.3; 22. Rylie Rothenberger, SF Washington, 19:11.4; 23. Kaitlyn Harris, Brookings, 19:14.3; 24. Izzy Fischer, RC Central, 19:14.4; 25. Clara Pederson, SF Lincoln, 19:16.7.
• Notes — Reilly won the individual race for the third-straight year and Harrisburg win the team title for the third-straight year.

Class AA Boys

• Team Scores — 1. Sioux Falls Washington 51, 2. Sioux Falls Lincoln 81, 3. Rapid City Stevens 142, 4. Spearfish 149, 5. Rapid City Central 152, 6. Brandon Valley 168, 7. Douglas 261, 8. Harrisburg 263, 9. Pierre 278, 10. Yankton 285, 11. O'Gorman 297, 12. Brookings 321, 13. Sturgis 321, 14. Sioux Falls Roosevelt 332, 15. Aberdeen Central 338, 16. Tea Area 349, 17. Watertown 389, 18. Huron 563, 19. Mitchell 573.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Cole Reilly, SF Washington. 14:53.9; 2. Tyrus Needles, SF Lincoln 15:07.5; 3. Eric Errea, RC Central, 15:15.3; 4. Henry Sayler, SF Lincoln, 15:19.7; 5. Tate DeVries, Aberdeen Central, 15:28.7; 6. Evan Perrigo, RC Stevens, 15:30.7; 7. Dane Stark, Watertown, 15:33.3; 8. Hena Abreham, SF Washington, 15:34.1; 9. Ethan Kyte, Brandon Valley, 15:39.3; 10. Tate Van Beek, RC Stevens, 15:42.0; 11. Rylan VanDeest, Spearfish 15:43.6; 12. Ben Parsons, SF Washington, 15:47.2; 13. Mason Gill, Spearfish, 5:48.2; 14. Jackson Storm, SF Washington, 15:49.1; 15. Reid Groher, SF Lincoln, 15:59.2; 16. Griffin Miller, SF Washington, 16:03.5; 17. Ruben Bokegard, Sturgis, 16:03.9; 18. Wyatt Balliew, Douglas, 16:06.0; 19. Jackson Schema, O'Gorman, 16:12.9; 20. Luke Feimer, Yankton, 16:13.7; 21. Max Nelson, Aberdeen Central, 16:16.2; 22. Ben Dirks, Harrisburg, 16:16.6; 23. Marcus Munsch, Brandon Valley, 16:19.5; 24. Gavin Johnson, SF Jefferson, 16:20.8; 25. Mylan McDaniel, RC Central, 16:22.0.
• Notes — Reilly also won in 2024 before falling to fifth last year. Sioux Falls Washington snapped a three-year winning streak for Sioux Falls Lincoln.

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Class A Girls

• Team Scores — 1. Sioux Falls Christian 22, 2. West Central 61, 3. Belle Fourche 80, 4. Aberdeen Roncalli 87, 5. Chamberlain 108, 6. Lennox 114, 7. Milbank 122, 8. Sioux Valley 130, 9. Hill City 140, 10. Platte-Geddes 149, 11. Dakota Valley 149, 12. Beresford 150, 13. Custer 177, 14. Mount Vernon-Plankinton 286.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Sadie Pettengill, SF Christian, 17:26.7, Sioux Falls Christian; 2. Alex McCullough, Dakota Valley, 18:07.3; 3. Grace Phillips, Chamberlain18:46.9; 4. Elia Peterson, SF Christian, 19:00.9; 5. Hope Rohe, SF Christian, 19:02.5, Sioux Falls Christian; 6. Sierra Keller, Florence-Henry, 19:11.2; 7. Sarah Johnson, West Central, 19:11.4; 8. Mikayla Dennis, Custer, 19:16.6; 9. Brooklyn Sundermann, West Central, 19:22.6; 10. Ella Koplin, Milbank, 19:23.6; 11. Addison Cassady, Aberdeen Roncalli, 19:26.6; 12. Evelyn Ostrem, Sioux Valley, 19:32.7; 13. Layla Kvaale, SF Christian, 19:33.5; 14. Bryn Barker, SF Christian, 19:39.1; 15. Rorie Thoreson, Dell Rapids, 19:43.9; 16. Emma Wermers, St. Thomas More, 19:45.6; 17. Rhys Pearson, Belle Fourche, 19:47.4; 18. Aubyn Hartman, Belle Fourche, 19:48.5; 19. Willow Stephens, Flandreau, 19:48.5; 20. Molly O'Neil, Beresford, 19:50.1; 21. Tahca Zephier, Mahpiya Luta, 19:53.6; 22. Sophia Satterfield, RC Christian, 19:53.7; 23. Macy Mueller, Milbank, 19:58.4; 24. Sadie Wuebben, West Central, 20:02.7; 25. Taylor Harrelson, RC Christian, 20:03.1.
• Notes — Sioux Falls Christian won its fifth-straight team title. Pettengill finished third in 2025.

Class A Boys

• Team Scores — 1. Sioux Falls Christian 24, 2. Custer 49, 3. Vermillion 71, 4. Cheyenne-Eagle Butte 93, 5. Lennox 119, 6. Belle Fourche 133, 7. Deuel 133, 8. Flandreau 144, 9. Elk Point-Jefferson 145, 10. Chamberlain 155, 11. West Central 161, 12. Hill City 161, 13. Sisseton 185, 14. Platte-Geddes 226, 15. Aberdeen Roncalli 236.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Levi Vander Leest, SF Christian, 15:50.5; 2. Wesley Lyon, SF Christian, 15:59.8;3. Jaxton Rinehart, Tri-Valley, 16:00.6; 4. Carter Cooper, Custer, 16:03.4; 5. Jamison Gould, Dakota Valley,16:10.2; 6. Gage Beverly, Vermillion, 16:16.5; 7. Jeter Scoular, Milbank, 16:19.5;; 8. Oscar Edelen, Vermillion, 16:20.4; 9. Zachary Cooper, Custer, 16:25.6; 10. J.T. Isakson, Hill City, 16:30.0; 11. Xavier Sanchez-Gonzalez, Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, 16:31.6; 12. Isaak Booker, Lennox, 16:32.8; 13. Sawyer Pettengill, SF Christian, 16:41.2; 14. Sam VanRaalte, SF Christian, 16:45.5; 15. Rylan Cuny, Mahpiya Luta, 16:45.8; 16. Landon Strasser, Lennox, 16:47.3; 17. Walter Graesser, Platte-Geddes, 16:47.8; 18. Lennon Clarkson, Belle Fourche, 16:48.9; 19. Zach Nielsen, West Central, 16:49.2; 20. Lindy Cosgrove, Chamberlain, 16:49.3; 21. Jackson Taken Alive, Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, 16:49.4; 22. Sutton Benck, Deuel, 16:49.6; 23. Peyton Krueger, Custer, 16:49.8; 24. Demetrius Sanchez-Gonzalez, Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, 16:51.4; 25. Adam Hohn, Custer, 16:52.3.
• Notes — Sioux Falls Christian won for the third-straight year. Vander Leest moved up from 11th in 2025.

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Class B Girls

• Team Scores — 1. Ipswich 10, 2. Northwestern 33, 3. Deubrook Area 42, 4. Herreid-Selby Area 63, 5. Philip 64, 6. Kimball/White Lake 65, 7. Irene-Wakonda 69, 8. Lemmon 70, 9. Mitchell Christian 76, 10. Warner 80, 11. Burke 109, 12. Miller 127, 13. Newell 131, 14. Centerville 162, 15. Colman-Egan 163; 16. Gettysburg, 168; 17. North Central, 169; 18. Arlington, 173; 19. Jones County, 184; 20. Highmore-Harrold 195.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Nora Olsen, Deubrook Area, 18:27.3; 2. sabella Galbraith, Ipswich, 18:49.9; 3. Kalynn Oban, Ipswich, 19:06.1; 4. Della Ernst, Herreid-Selby Area, 19:20.7; 5. Jayla Stiles, Ipswich, 19:28.8; 6. Brenna Halvorson, Northwestern, 19:32.9; 7. Laura Nemec, Mitchell Christian, 19:35.3; 8. Rachel Melius, Northwestern, 19:42.6; 9. Jennay Gisi, Ipswich, 19:46.0; 10. Kaylee Brown, Deubrook Area, 19:47.0; 11. Alli McCord, Kimball-White Lake, 19:47.6; 12. Ivy Albrecht, De Smet, 19:48.0; 13. Ava George, Irene-Wakonda, 19:54.7; 14. Lyndsey Chessmore, Tripp-Delmont/Armour, 19:54.8; 15. Jetta McDaniel, Philip, 19:56.3; 16. Sloan Thompson, Harding County, 19:57.4; 17. Addison Galbraith, Ipswich, 19:59.4; 18. Karlie Eisenbraun, Philip, 20:00.4; 19. Evelyn Shearer, Herreid-Selby Area, 20:00.5; 20. Hadasah Olson, James Valley Christian, 20:01.9; 21. June Abbey, Hanson, 20:02.4; 22. Jordan Chessmore, Tripp-Delmont/Armour, 20:04.5; 23. Briley Gebhart, Lemmon, 20:06.7; 24. Olivia Carmichael, New Underwood, 20:12.1; 25. Emrie VonEye, Sanborn Central-Woonsocket, 20:13.7.
• Notes — Ipswich repeated as the team champion. Olsen won after finishing second in 2025.

Class B Boys

• Team Scores — 1. Mitchell Christian 14, 2. Freeman 36, 3. White River 40, 4. Lemmon 58, 5. James Valley Christian 64, 6. North Central 66, 7. Sioux Falls Lutheran 78, 8. Philip 85, 9. Leola/Frederick Area 87, 10. Northwestern 90, 11. Canistota 111, 12. Dell Rapids St. Mary 113, 13. Crow Creek 114, 14. Highmore-Harrold 118, 15. Avon 128; 16. Irene-Wakonda, 156; 17. Arlington, 157.
• Top 25 Individuals (5,000 Meters) — 1. Silas Holdeman, Mitchell Christian, 16:07.7; 2. Luke Mentele, Mitchell Christian, 16:18.6; 3. Kaden Ober, James Valley Christian, 16:25.8; 4. Carson Clements, Wessington Springs, 16:33.3; 5. Nolan Eidson, Castlewood, 16:40.2; 6. Elijah Haukaas, White River, 16:50.9; 7. Micah Reede, Lemmon, 16:53.1; 8. Justin Burkhalter, Bison, 16:54.6; 9. Jackson Wolter, Sanborn Central-Woonsocket, 16:59.3; 10. Lane McCune, Freeman, 16:59.8; 11. Drew Arbach, North Central, 17:00.5; 12. Aidan Craven, Philip, 17:03.2; 13. Korbin Stark, Faulkton Area, 17:04.9; 14. Luke Miller, Freeman, 17:13.4; 15. Case Carlson, Iroquois-Lake Preston, 17:14.0; 16. Noah Baumbach, Sioux Falls Lutheran, 17:15.7; 17. Sawyer Holdeman, Mitchell Christian, 17:17.2; 18. Josiah Newell, Sioux Falls Lutheran, 17:20.5; 19. Jace Bender, Leola-Frederick Area, 17:20.6; 20. Justin St. John, Crow Creek, 17:21.2; 21. Caleb Schroeder, Canistota, 17:28.8; 22. Joshua Mitchell, Deubrook Area, 17:30.4; 23. Ty Boekelheide, Northwestern, 17:31.3; 24. Kaden Running Horse, White River, 17:31.5; 25. Sutton Peterson, Lemmon, 17:31.6.
• Notes — Holderman repeated as the state champion. He also won in 2023 and finished second in 2024. The team title was Mitchell Christian's first.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Cross country runners in six classes battle for statewide honors