Travis Houslet / Daily Register
Rio/Fall River senior Derek Johnsrud runs near the lead pack during the WIAA State Cross Country Meet on Saturday in Wisconsin Rapids.

WISCONSIN RAPIDS - After finishing 71st as a sophomore in 2007 and then 30th as a junior in 2008, Rio/Fall River's Derek Johnsrud knew he had just one last chance at making it to the medal stand at the WIAA State Cross Country Meet.

The senior made the best of his final opportunity to run at the Ridges Country Club in Wisconsin Rapids on Saturday, making the medal stand with a fourth place finish and a time of 16 minutes, 34 seconds in the Division 3 boys race. After crossing the finish line with a time that was 44 seconds better than last year's performance at the state meet, Johnsrud said he learned a lot from his two previous trips to Wisconsin Rapids.

"I just knew, because my first year, I was kind of put back in the pack, you got to be towards the front, otherwise you won't be able to make your move soon enough," Johnsrud said. "So to get up there now and be able to move up like that, I was really glad."

Cedar Grove-Belgium senior Josh Mulloy won the race with a time of 16:15. Johnsrud said he entered the race knowing Mulloy was likely the favorite to win, so his strategy to keep Mulloy in his sights helped keep him with the race leaders. Running with the lead dogs was also something that helped Johnsrud feel stronger towards the end of the race.

"Start to finish I felt really good. If I could run every race like that, I would be very happy," Johnsrud said. "I could feel the momentum moving in me. I wanted to win."

VANGEN, HAYES ENCOURAGE EACH OTHER

In the Division 3 girls race, two local runners were making their state debut, and for much of the race on Saturday, Pardeeville freshman Taylor Hayes and Rio/Fall River sophomore Hansena Vangen ran together on the course in Wisconsin Rapids.

Vangen finished in 60th place with a time of 16:56, while Hayes was in 66th with a time of 17:03.

Vangen was hoping good friends Anne Ritter and Brooke Jarchow of Pardeeville would be joining her at state, but when they both came up short at last week's sectional, and Hayes ended up earning a spot at the state meet instead, she was happy to help her along on Saturday.

"I was hoping that (Ritter and Jarchow) would be here so I would have another couple people where I would know where they were," Vangen said. "But, I saw Taylor and we kept on going back and forth. I'm like, 'come on, come on.' She's a freshman and I really wanted her to have a good experience up here, so I really wanted to encourage her. ... It's fun having a person from your conference who you can talk with and run with sometimes."

Pardeeville and Rio/Fall River both run in the Trailways Conference, and both programs often see each other at area invites during the season. Hayes said it did help having a familiar face near her when she was competing with the huge mass of runners on Saturday.

"We would like run past each other and tell each other good job and keep it up," Hayes said. "It's always good to encourage other people on and tell them to do their best."

While Hayes was able to use Vangen's presence to help get her through the race, Vangen took encouragement from the many people cheering for her on Saturday.

"The enthusiasm sort of got to me and I went out a little too fast I think, and I started to die, but so many people came here to encourage me and I kept on hearing them yell for me," Vangen said. "Not many people have the name Hansena, so I can pick out my name pretty easily. It really helped me along just to know everybody was here to watch me, because it's not everyday a cross country runner goes to state in our school."