For a second straight year, Adel-Desoto-Minburn sophomore Nate Mueller closed the Iowa High School Cross Country season as one of the 15 members of the Class 3A All-State squad. Mueller, an 11th place finisher last fall as a freshman, improved eight spots this fall with a third-place finish in the 2018 Iowa State Cross Country Meet in Fort Dodge with a time of 16:12. The Raccoon Valley Radio Network watched the Class 3A boys race on Saturday and witnessed Mueller leading the group for a large chunk of the race. He spoke with RVR about his feelings on his state performance. “I was trying to hold on,” Mueller said, “Telling myself ‘I could do this.’ I gave it my all, I was dead (at the end).”

Mueller, who last year finished the Class 3A race with one shoe partially off, shared he was able to keep both shoes on throughout this year’s competition. Mount Pleasant senior Cody Mertens claimed the Class 3A Individual championship with a time of 16:03. Fellow sophomores Ethan Juergens and Hannah Welch also represented ADM cross country at the state meet. Juergens placed 49th overall at 17:27. Welch, a first-time state qualifier, placed 80th in her initial state-run with a time of 21:14.