The Valders Boys Cross Country program has achieved a level of excellence that is seldom seen.
The running Vikings of Coach Bill Dietrich have earned State championships from 2017-to-2019, a 4th at state in 2020 and another 1st place finish last Fall., and with that team success comes individual accolades and, in this case, college scholarships.
Shane Griepentrog recently signed with the University of Minnesota while his classmate, Clay Taylor, will be signing later this month with UW-Green Bay.
Coach Dietrich expressed his joy with their accomplishments.
“It’s a coach’s dream…to see the kids run in college,” Dietrich said. “It’s an amazing feeling.”
Shane and Clay have literally followed in the footsteps of past Viking runners Shane Wenzel and Nate Griepentrog who are running collegiately at UW-Milwaukee.
Dietrich, who completed his 22nd year as head coach said it all begins with a strong work ethic.
“It’s a neat thing to see,” the Coach said. “You get out to Valders and you get that hard work ethic…in a lot of the sports, and that translates to excellence.”
While standouts in their running ability, both young men are also excellent in the classroom.
Clay has a 4.0 grade point average and Shane is currently carrying a 3.91 GPA.
