News Photo by James Andersen The 2022 Alpena High School cross country team includes: back row, left to right: Alex Gies, Austin Rienhardt, Tyler VanCleave, Elijah Allen, Hunter Hitzelberger, Thurston Imhoff, Kaelyn Heath, Samantha Zolnierek, Emma Dickins, Izzy Szymanski, Kylie Gagnon and Sarah Rabbideau; front row, left to right: Kenan Knight, Alison Borowski, Cailyn Burrone, Abigail Zaborney, Carmen Muller, Claire Mitchell, Amelia Roznowski, Elizabeth Barnhill, and Hayden Bacchus. Missing are Owen Mendel and Braeden Mathis.

ALPENA — With just 23 total runners, the Alpena High cross country team needs everyone to contribute this season.

That’s what second-year coach Joe Donajkowski is counting on as he guides a small, but talented and hard-working group of runners.

Having just 13 girls and 10 boys on the roster should give every runner a chance to compete for a spot in Alpena’s varsity seven and Donajkowski is eager to see how the Wildcats develop during the season.

“The girls that ran track this spring and trained through the summer are fit and will be ready to compete. This is a very talented, hard-working group with great potential,” Donajkowski said. “(For the boys team, our) success depends on the development of the young guys.”

At the top of the lineup for Alpena’s girls team, returning junior Emma Dickins and returning sophomore Kaelyn Heath have picked up right where they left off last season.

Both of them qualified for the state finals last season and have impressed so far this year. Dickins — an all-Big North Conference honoree in 2021 — paced the field at the Dwayne Rau Invite earlier this month and has been Alpena’s top finisher in every race this season.

But Heath has been right on her heels, finishing second at the Rau Invite and two spots behind Dickins in Alpena’s other two meets, including last weekend at the Northwood Invite.

Those two girls working together is just awesome. I think they’re going to make some noise in the Big North and in the region,” Donajkowski said. “Emma had an outstanding track season and Kaelyn has really stepped up.”

Alpena’s girls team also includes freshman Izzy Szymanski, who has improved in every varsity race she’s run so far. Juniors Cailyn Burrone and Allison Borowski and sophomores Amelia Roznowski, Elizabeth Barnhill, Kylie Gagnon, Abigail Zaborney, and Claire Mitchell return from last season and will help round out Alpena’s varsity seven.

Junior Samantha Zolnierek also returns for the Wildcats are a strong spring track season as a distance runner, but she is currently unable to run due to an injury.

Alpena’s newcomers include sophomores Sarah Rabbideau and Carmen Muller.

Alpena’s boys team returns several veteran runners as well as a pack of up-and-coming underclassmen who are ready to take a step forward.

At the top of Alpena’s lineup, senior Eli Allen has had a dominant start to the year. The speedster won the Rau Invite and has finished in the top-20 in every race this season.

“Eli qualified in the state meet as a hurdler this spring so he’s got speed. He’s always had good endurance and he’s really getting strong this year,” Donajkowski said. “He’s going to be right up there in the top of the region battling.”

Running right with him is senior Hunter Hitzelberger who was second at the Rau Invite and gives the Wildcats a talented 1-2 punch.

“Eli and Hunter have been working hard all summer and they were elected as co-captains of the team,” Donajkowski said. “They did a good job of putting group runs together all summer and they’ve been communicating real well.”

Newcomers this season are senior Alex Gies and freshman Braeden Mathis, who has already impressed in early-season races.

Also returning are seniors Owen Mendell and Tyler VanCleve and sophomores Kenan Knight, Hayden Bacchus, Thurston Imhoff, and Austin Reinhart. The sophomore quartet has put on a lot of offseason miles and should be key contributors for the Wildcats for the next several years.

“If that group can stay together and work together as a pack, we definitely can score fewer points. That’s the goal,” Donajkowski said. “It’s going to be tough, but we should have a good year.”

This article has been updated to include Samantha Zolnierek, who was omitted in an earlier version of this story.