MONROE - Patrick Klein started his standout running career in Monroe. Now that Klein has graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, he is not giving up on running.
Klein, a 2007 Monroe graduate, returned to his hometown and won the 4,800-meter alumni race Tuesday at Twining Park with a time of 15 minutes, 17 seconds, which was seven seconds ahead of Matt Barrett, a former Minnesota runner and 2005 Monroe graduate, who finished second.
The alumni team beat the Monroe boys cross country team 21-35. The alumni, led by Klein and Barrett, swept the top three spots. Thomas Wells, a 2006 graduate who ran at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, finished third (15:41).
Klein, who is working at the Monroe Clinic and part-time at the Green County YMCA, is a member of the semi-pro Wisconsin Runner Racing Team. He is also planning on running in the Nike Elite Cross Country Championships Dec. 8 in Louisville, Ky.
"I still have some goals I want to break on the track," Klein said. "I want to break a 4-minute mile before I stop running. I thought if my legs still work, I would keep on running."
Even with his sights set on future goals, Klein enjoyed the reunion of runners.
"It was just fun and a little nostalgic," he said. "It's fun coming back catching up and running with guys I did during high school. Since we are all in Monroe we have been running together all summer."
The top finisher for the Cheesemakers was junior Ethan Moehn who finished fourth with a time of 16:00. Moehn was just excited to run a time trial that would set the tone for the season-opening Bruess Invitational on Aug. 28.
"I just wanted to get a good workout in to see where I was at, as far as fitness goes," Moehn said. "I wanted to see how I could do in this race in preparation for next week."
The Cheesemakers suffered a little setback when senior Payton Hoesly was bothered by a shin injury and didn't finish the race. Hoesly's availability for the Bruess Invite is unclear.
"We don't know yet," Hirsbrunner said. "It will be a game time decision. We just want to see how it feels tomorrow."
In the girls 3,200-meter run, Monroe freshman Maddie Kallgren won the race with a time of 13:33. Sophomore Elise Rossing took second (13:36) and sophomore Alyssa Dale finished third (13:38), followed by sophomore Kelley Baumann (13:55) and junior Nicole Witt (14:08) to lead the Cheesemakers to a 15-50 win over the alumni team.
"It was an outstanding way to start the season," Hirsbrunner said. "They (Kallgren and Rossing) aren't even familiar with the course, and they were leading the race. Our main goals were to get some racing experience, get acclimated to the course and stay healthy."
Kallgren, who lives in Albany, opened enrolled at Monroe for the school year.
"I would have loved to stay in Albany to run," Kallgren said. "My favorite sport is soccer, and Albany is too small to have a soccer team."
Kallgren said she took it easy during the race, but felt good like she had more to give.
"I think I know now what I can do," Kallgren said. "I think I can go off of this and go a little faster."
Klein, a 2007 Monroe graduate, returned to his hometown and won the 4,800-meter alumni race Tuesday at Twining Park with a time of 15 minutes, 17 seconds, which was seven seconds ahead of Matt Barrett, a former Minnesota runner and 2005 Monroe graduate, who finished second.
The alumni team beat the Monroe boys cross country team 21-35. The alumni, led by Klein and Barrett, swept the top three spots. Thomas Wells, a 2006 graduate who ran at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, finished third (15:41).
Klein, who is working at the Monroe Clinic and part-time at the Green County YMCA, is a member of the semi-pro Wisconsin Runner Racing Team. He is also planning on running in the Nike Elite Cross Country Championships Dec. 8 in Louisville, Ky.
"I still have some goals I want to break on the track," Klein said. "I want to break a 4-minute mile before I stop running. I thought if my legs still work, I would keep on running."
Even with his sights set on future goals, Klein enjoyed the reunion of runners.
"It was just fun and a little nostalgic," he said. "It's fun coming back catching up and running with guys I did during high school. Since we are all in Monroe we have been running together all summer."
The top finisher for the Cheesemakers was junior Ethan Moehn who finished fourth with a time of 16:00. Moehn was just excited to run a time trial that would set the tone for the season-opening Bruess Invitational on Aug. 28.
"I just wanted to get a good workout in to see where I was at, as far as fitness goes," Moehn said. "I wanted to see how I could do in this race in preparation for next week."
The Cheesemakers suffered a little setback when senior Payton Hoesly was bothered by a shin injury and didn't finish the race. Hoesly's availability for the Bruess Invite is unclear.
"We don't know yet," Hirsbrunner said. "It will be a game time decision. We just want to see how it feels tomorrow."
In the girls 3,200-meter run, Monroe freshman Maddie Kallgren won the race with a time of 13:33. Sophomore Elise Rossing took second (13:36) and sophomore Alyssa Dale finished third (13:38), followed by sophomore Kelley Baumann (13:55) and junior Nicole Witt (14:08) to lead the Cheesemakers to a 15-50 win over the alumni team.
"It was an outstanding way to start the season," Hirsbrunner said. "They (Kallgren and Rossing) aren't even familiar with the course, and they were leading the race. Our main goals were to get some racing experience, get acclimated to the course and stay healthy."
Kallgren, who lives in Albany, opened enrolled at Monroe for the school year.
"I would have loved to stay in Albany to run," Kallgren said. "My favorite sport is soccer, and Albany is too small to have a soccer team."
Kallgren said she took it easy during the race, but felt good like she had more to give.
"I think I know now what I can do," Kallgren said. "I think I can go off of this and go a little faster."
