CAMBRIDGE -- When Sam Bluske woke up Thursday morning and saw a steady rain outside, the Pardeeville junior couldn't help but smile.

"I was pretty happy," Bluske said. "Little mud. Little rain. You know, that cross country feeling."

Muddy and rainy it was at Cam-Rock Park, but that didn't stop Bluske from opening the her cross country season in good fashion.

The defending WIAA Division 3 state champion navigated her way through treacherous footing throughout the 4,000-meter course and came out with a second-place finish at the Cam-Rock Invitational.

Hartland University Lake School freshman Molly Seidel won her prep debut, finishing in 15 minutes, 13.76 seconds. Bluske posted a time of 15:47.78, followed by Marshall junior Ashleigh Giese (15:49.52).

"I was pretty cold, and I just wanted to get through this race without getting hurt," Bluske said. "I was thinking while I was running, There are way too many big races at the end of the season to worry about, I just don't want to get hurt.' "

She accomplished that goal, and managed to gain a little confidence, too.

"I didn't expect to win," she said. "You can't go into a race expecting to win, because you're going to get beat. But it was an amazing day."

Giese was thrilled to have finished with Bluske in sight.

"I think this was the closest I ever been to her at the finish," said Giese, whose freshman sister, Sarah, took fourth to help the Cardinals beat Poynette 49-57 for the team title. "(Sam) has been pushing me throughout the years, and I was always like, I have to catch her.'

"But that was hard for a while because there were some spots on the course where you had to slow down when you didn't want to."

Beloit Turner sophomore Jose Perez won the 5,000-meter boys race in 16:51.62, but the Trojans had to settle for second behind Marshall as a team.

"It was really slippery and hard to get through the turns while keeping your pace," said Deerfield-Cambridge's Pat Jenkins, who took second behind Perez. "Someone fell in front of us in the beginning, and we all had to go around them. All the mud just throws you off."

Marshall senior Spud Davis was third -- and had a blast.

"The conditions were really fun," he said. "I really liked it."