The Breckenridge-Wahpeton Storm cross country teams turned in record-setting performances at the Perham Harrier Invitational on Thursday afternoon, racing under ideal fall conditions on the fast and flat Arvig Park course.
Kiera Wiertzema set a school record in the 5K, cruising to a time of 18:59.1 and leading the Storm girls to a fifth place finish out of 21 teams and 154 runners.
Wiertzema’s record-breaking performance was closely followed by teammate Lucie Comstock, whose 19:10.7 also eclipsed the previous school record of 19:25, which Comstock herself set last season.
“To have two girls crush the existing record on the same day is incredible,” Storm coach Larry Lasch said. “They ran more aggressively than any other race this season. They brought some swagger and took command from the start.”
Sophomore Gracie Falck added, “We wanted to take advantage of cooler temps, a flat course and big competition.”
“We’ve been waiting all season for a day like this to race,” Lasch said. “The kids stepped off the bus in a good mindset and it showed on the course. We had a pile of season-best times today.”
Troy Berndt paced the Storm boys with a time of 17:56.1. Berndt’s 61st place finish marked the team’s only finish inside the top 100 for the afternoon.
