St. Joseph Westphalia’s cross country teams have put together a strong season, with the Bulldogs winning each of their four scored meets and the Lady Bulldogs collecting one victory and three runner-up finishes.

Coach Wes Kampeter said the Bulldogs have a larger roster this season with several new runners, but the group has quickly developed into a competitive team.

“Our boys have been battling for the top spot all year and are doing an awesome job,” Kampeter said. “Our girls team has been doing the same, missing first by just a couple points on two races.”

At Binder Park on Thursday, Oct. 1, the Bulldogs scored 42 points to win the boys’ team championship, while the Lady Bulldogs finished second with 59.

Beckham Stuckenschneider led the boys with a second-place finish in 9:00, followed by Carter Orscheln in third at 9:08 and Wyatt Dorge in eighth at 9:47.

Emmett Dake finished 11th in 10:04, followed by Beckett Wieberg (18, 10:29), Nate Rehagen (23, 10:46), Arus Heckman (24, 10:56), Matthew Kloeppel (50, 12:23), Gage Voss (62, 13:09), Dawson Berhorst (64, 13:27), Colt Roark (70, 13:39), Easton Heckman (72, 13:40), and Henry Kell (86, 14:28).

Jocelyn Schmitz paced the girls with a sixth-place finish in 11:12, while Vayda Dorge was eighth in 11:20.

Brooklyn Stuckenschneider finished 12th in 11:28, followed by Cora Berhorst (15, 11:42), Sophia Dake (18, 11:56), Brooklyn Kampeter (19, 11:56), Emersyn Scheulen (22, 12:05), Raylynn Simmons (23, 12:11), Jessa Orscheln (26, 12:25), Ashton Berhorst (30, 12:32), Allie Voss (39, 13:14), Katie Voss (44, 13:40), and Addilynn Brendel (60, 15:34).

St. Joseph hosted the Westphalia Knights of Columbus meet Sept. 24, where the Bulldogs again took first with 42 points and the Lady Bulldogs finished second with 43.

B. Stuckenschneider placed second in 9:00, and C. Orscheln followed in third at 9:17. E. Dake finished eighth in 9:51.

W. Dorge was 13th in 10:19, followed by N. Rehagen (16, 10:35), B. Wieberg (22, 10:47), A. Heckman (26, 10:51), E. Heckman (32, 11:12), M. Kloeppel (44, 12:01), G. Voss (60, 12:36), D. Berhorst (75, 13:34), C. Roark (81, 13:54), and H. Kell (92, 14:31).

V. Dorge led the Lady Bulldogs with a fifth-place finish in 10:59, while B. Stuckenschneider was eighth in 11:09, S. Dake placed ninth in 11:10, and Schmitz finished 10th in 11:18.

B. Kampeter was 11th in 11:22, followed by J. Orscheln (13, 11:26), C. Berhorst (18, 11:35), R. Simmons (19, 11:36), A. Berhorst (27, 12:04), E. Scheulen (28, 12:05), A. Voss (31, 12:12), K. Voss (43, 13:06), and A. Brendel (58, 14:37).

The Bulldogs made it another team victory Sept. 17 at the Linn Sports Complex, scoring 35 points, while the Lady Bulldogs were second with 51.

B. Stuckenschneider finished second in 9:05, C. Orscheln was third in 9:16, E. Dake placed sixth in 9:50, and W. Dorge was seventh in 9:55.

N. Rehagen finished 17th in 10:35, followed by B. Wieberg (21, 10:45), A. Heckman (25, 10:51), E. Heckman (31, 11:08), M. Kloeppel (45, 11:51), G. Voss (63, 12:46), H. Kell (86, 14:32), C. Roark (87, 14:40), and D. Berhorst (88, 14:49).

B. Stuckenschneider led the girls with a fourth-place finish in 10:45, while Schmitz was ninth in 11:06 and S. Dake placed 10th in 11:10.

B. Kampeter finished 12th in 11:21, followed by V. Dorge (16, 11:33), C. Berhorst (17, 11:34), R. Simmons (30, 12:04), J. Orscheln (32, 12:08), A. Voss (33, 12:10), A. Berhorst (34, 12:10), E. Scheulen (40, 12:59), K. Voss (47, 13:39), and A. Brendel (56, 14:49).

St. Joseph opened its competitive schedule Sept. 9 at Taos Countryside Park after excessive heat forced changes to the early-season schedule. Both teams came away with victories, with the Bulldogs scoring 36 points and the Lady Bulldogs finishing with 42.

B. Stuckenschneider led the boys in second place at 9:10, followed by C. Orscheln in third at 9:17 and E. Dake in sixth at 10:10.

W. Dorge finished 11th in 10:23, followed by N. Rehagen (14, 10:35), B. Wieberg (17, 10:48), A. Heckman (26, 11:05), E. Heckman (32, 11:32), M. Kloeppel (49, 12:10), G. Voss (52, 12:33), D. Berhorst (56, 12:37), and H. Kell (82, 14:12).

B. Stuckenschneider finished second in 10:55 to lead the Lady Bulldogs. S. Dake placed seventh in 11:18, Schmitz was eighth in 11:20, and B. Kampeter finished ninth in 11:23.

V. Dorge was 16th in 11:40, followed by C. Berhorst (18, 11:41), R. Simmons (20, 11:48), J. Orscheln (24, 11:54), E. Scheulen (32, 12:29), A. Berhorst (35, 12:37), A. Voss (41, 12:58), K. Voss (43, 13:12), and A. Brendel (57, 15:16).

St. Joseph had originally been scheduled to begin the season Sept. 2 at Cole County Park, but Kampeter said extreme heat forced the meet to be canceled. The Taos meet was also moved to a cooler day because of the conditions.

Kampeter said the group has continued to respond despite the challenging start and the number of new runners on the roster.

“These runners are a tough and fun group, bringing lots of spirit, emotion, and drive to each race,” he said. “They may complain about running in practice and say they are not ready to race, but they go out and give it their best every time. I’m very proud of all of them.”