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The Paynesville girls took second behind Brainerd, trailing the large school by seven points, 67-74. The Bulldogs did, however, defeat Sauk Centre, who had beaten Paynesville previously at the BBE meet.

The hilly course at LPGE made for some slower race times. Individual running times were, on average, about 45 seconds slower than usual due to these conditions. Unfortunately, Paynesville needs to return to the hilly LPGE course for the conference meet this year.

Ninth grader Brooke Schmitz took second overall behind Rachel Stangler of Albany, who won by a larger margin than the last time they faced each other. Schmitz said she likes running with Stangler, because Stangler paces her and forces her to go faster.

Next in for the Bulldogs were eighth grader Kacy Nehowig in fifth place and seventh grader Brittni Schmitz in 15th place. Both of them found the course very challenging.

The last three Bulldogs runners ran in a pack for the majority of the race. Seventh grader Kaitlyn Frenchick, eighth grader Tanis Beireis, and senior Nicole Flint all placed in the top 40, placing 32nd, 35th and 37th respectively.

The Bulldogs seem to run well on hilly courses, but prefer the flat ones.

On Thursday, the Dogs competed in the New London-Spicer Invitational, taking fourth behind St. Cloud Cathedral, Willmar, and New London-Spicer.

Despite what it may seem, the fourth-place finish wasnÕt at all disappointing. ÒThis was a top-rated meet,Ó explained coach Darrel Carstens. NL-S is the two-time defending state champion and ranked #1 in the state. Cathedral placed sixth at state a year ago and is currently ranked #5. Willmar is the defending champion in the Central Lakes Conference.

St. Cloud Cathedral is the only one of these schools that is in the same section as Paynesville, which is currently ranked #6 in the state. Since the top two teams in each section go to state, the girls still hope they will be taking a trip the Northfield for the state competition for the second year in a row.

At the NL-S meet Ð on the Little Crow Golf Course Ð Brooke Schmitz and Nehowig both placed in the top ten, which they have done in all four meets this season. Schmitz placed fifth and Nehowig placed seventh in the stiff competition.

The next three runners for Paynesville, who finished the team score, all finished in the top half of the race. Placing 14th was Brittni Schmitz, placing 31st was Nicole Flint, and placing 38th was Tanis Beireis.

Ninth grader Sheena Hoekstra also finished 54th for Paynesville.

Seventh grader Melanie Koerner won the junior high race for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs will run on Saturday at the Milaca Invitational (formally known as the Princeton Invitational) in what is said to be Òthe largest meet in the world.Ó The meet starts at 10 a.m. in Milaca.

LPGE Meet Team Scores
1. Brainerd 67
2. Paynesville 74
3. Little Falls 82
4. Sauk Centre 86
5. Pierz 96
6. Albany 116
7. Litchfield 174
8. Royalton 198
9. LPGE 223

Individual Results
2. Brooke Schmitz 16:24
5. Kacy Nehowig 16:35
15. Brittni Schmitz 18:11
23. Kaitlyn Frenchick 18:25
29. Tanis Beireis 18:42
31. Nicole Flint 18:51

NL-S Meet Team Scores
1. Cathedral 43
2. Willmar 61
3. NL-S 73
4. Paynesville 95
5. BOLD 182
6. Minnewaska 204
7. Morris 206
8. Litchfield 225
9. Redwood Valley 261
10. Howard Lake-Waverly 284
11. ACGC 296
12. BBE Inc.
13. LQPV Inc.
14. Renville County West Inc.

Individual Results
5. Brooke Schmitz 15:49
7. Kacy Nehowig 16:03
14. Brittni Schmitz 16:49
31. Nicole Flint 18:08
38. Tanis Beireis 18:26
54. Sheena Hoekstra 19:17