Photos by Sam Thiel Left: Pictured is the 2020 LQPV/DB boys cross country team. Right: Pictured is the 2020 LQPV/DB girls cross country team. No photo identification was available at press time.

DAWSON — Consistency has been a key factor for the Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd boys and girls cross country team over the past few seasons. LQPV/DB has been represented at the state meet as a team for five straight years on the boys side while the girls team made six consecutive trips before missing the cut in 2019.

This season, LQPV/DB will look to make another push towards the postseason under head coach John Shurb. LQPV/DB started the season with first-place finishes at its home invite on Sept. 3.

Girls

On the girls side, LQPV/DB will be led by Anika Fernholz, along with Taylor Shelstad and Alex Stitt. Shurb said they’ll look to those runners who have had state experience to help guide the younger class throughout the season.

“On the girls side, Anika is our top runner; She was a little up-and-down last year and I think that was being on the front side without having the kind of mentorship over the years she’s seen before because she has run in the state meet a few times and the same thing goes with Taylor and Alex,” Shurb said. “We’ve got a nice nucleus and we’re rebuilding on the back side. We just don’t have that big crew like we’ve had with our girls teams in the past.”

Shurb added while they have lots of experience on the girls side, they don’t have enough depth, which is something they’re hoping to build on in the immediate future.

“For the girls, we’ve got the experience, but we just don’t have the depth right now,” Shurb said. “Maybe over time that will change but we’re going to have to bring some of these kids around a little slower just to get them experience.”

Boys

On the boys side, LQPV/DB will have several key returners, led by Zeke Sather, Kaiden Allpress, Payton Sterud and Mason Brehmer. Shurb said the experience from the boys group, especially from the state level, will be key for their success this season.

“Experience on the boys side will be huge because we’ve been fortunate to go to state and do well there as well as our depth,” Shurb said. “We graduated three seniors that were on our seven-man roster and two of them were in our top three so we’ve got to replace them and I think we’ve got a few kids that can do that.”