Arlington girls win home meet; boys finish third
Published 4:52 pm Thursday, September 24, 2026
Despite a last-minute course change due to heavy rainfall, the Arlington Eagle cross-country team dominated its seven-team home meet, highlighted by a first-place finish for the girls’ varsity squad and a podium finish for the boys.
The meet, which normally kicks off at the Washington County Fairgrounds, was forced to relocate its starting line to the softball complex after recent storms left the original course drenched. The adjustment did little to slow down the Eagles, who hosted competitive teams from Blair, College View Academy, DC West, Concordia, Tekamah-Herman and Fort Calhoun.
The Lady Eagles captured the team title in the varsity division, propelled by a stellar individual performance from meet champion Neva Bauer, who crossed the finish line in first place. Arlington packed the top 10, with Stella Stratman securing sixth place and Willa Wollberg following closely in seventh.
The dominance extended into the younger ranks. In the junior varsity race, Arlington secured a powerful one-two finish, with Ainsley Wolf taking first place and Ariana Nicholson earning the runner-up spot. The middle school girls also turned heads as Ashlyn DeVries claimed the individual championship, backed by Allie Larsen in third and Jayla Dowty in 15th.
The boys’ varsity team put together a strong collective effort to land on the podium with a third-place finish. Dominic Morrison led the varsity Eagles with a sharp seventh-place individual performance, while teammate Eli Hansen fought his way to 12th.
In the junior varsity division, Graham Shearer cracked the top 10 with a ninth-place finish. Meanwhile, the future of the program looked bright in the middle school boys’ race, where the Eagles placed four runners in the top 15: Tristin Shakat (sixth), Mark Adler (seventh), Kellen Jensen (14th) and Sean Wyatt (15th).
Beyond the competitive triumphs, the day held emotional significance for the Eagles as the program honored its two departing seniors. Ethan Hilgenkamp and Rafaele Magnino were recognized, receiving praise from coaches and teammates for their leadership, dedication and contributions to the program over the years.
The Eagles will look to carry this home-meet momentum into the next week. The team returns to action on Tuesday, Sept. 22, when it travels to Fort Calhoun.
