MENOMONIE, Wis. (WEAU) – Menomonie girls cross country has been a model of consistency on the course of the past decade. The Mustangs have claimed five Big Rivers Conference titles and booked a ticket to the state championship meet in Wisconsin Rapids six times. Even with all that success, this year’s Menomonie squad might be its strongest yet.
“We look at progressing,” said Head Coach Craig Olson. “We had an outstanding state meet and track. I think our girls scored more points than any other distance squad in the state. And we thought we could maybe use that to carry on to a really good cross-country season this year, and the girls are in great shape.”
Menomonie finished seventh last year at the state meet, but according to the Mustangs, that was not where they envisioned themselves. Now, they return to the course in 2025 with a key factor providing confidence for this season.
“None of our top seven from last year have graduated,” said senior captain Sara Palmer. “So we’re all returning, and we’ve even got some new recruits, some new rookies this year, which has been a lot of fun.”
When you watch a Menomonie race, it is apparent the bond the Mustangs have on and off the course.
“We have something special that not many other sports have,” says sophomore Bree Barfknecht. “We get to run together every single day, and we can talk the whole time on our runs if it’s not a workout. So I think that really just helps to keep things personal.”
“We all trust each other so much, which I think is important with all like our relationships with each other,” added senior captain Bennett Schmitt. “And I just think that like makes our team super strong.”
Now, Menomonie has set a big target for themselves.
“The goal is to win state this year,” said senior Lauren McCalla. “That’s a big goal. We know that it’s not going to be easy. We have insane amount of competition within this state.”
“Now that we’re all like focused on the main goal and that we know what we want, it’s easier to work for when you know that you have a bunch of people who are willing to go the same lengths as you and support you,” added junior Isabella Drake.
McCalla also comes into the season with big personal goals after pacing Menomonie with a 6th place individual finish at last year’s state meet. She backed that up with two runner-up finishes at the state track and field championships in June.
“The goal is to win state. I mean, who doesn’t want to win state?” said McCalla. “I want our team to succeed. And so I know that the better I do, the better my team will do, as well as my other teammates. So pushing that on to them and like making sure that they understand like, you know, ‘We’re here to do something big, and this is not going to be easy.’”
The state meet is still over a month away on November 1st. Until then, the Mustangs will be working hard to make sure their dreams come true in Wisconsin Rapids.