When the dust settled on Saturday’s WIAA Waupaca Sectional a single point stood between the Hatchet girls and a state berth.
But the Tomahawk squads received a second chance when Bryan Tomek and Dani Whiting both ran well enough to make it individually.
Tomek raced third in the boys race in 16:39, while Whiting placed seventh in 16:36 in the girls event to snag the fifth and final qualifying spot available to a member of a non-qualifying team.
“For our girls to be in the thick of things for a berth at Rapids was awesome,” THS coach John Zuelsdorf said. “The girls were determined today and sent a message that they were there to compete and advance and they nearly accomplished both.
“We knew Clintonville and Freedom were solid on paper, but hadn’t raced