By Michael Newman

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September is the month in Illinois high school cross country when the rankings are the most fluid. Sure, coaches send in information in August about their teams. They just don’t know if a freshman runner is going to race like gang busters and help a team’s top five. Coaches also do not know how a runner, who is training with the top group, will have those practices translate into great racing.

 

We will have a good idea by after the September 26^th weekend who the top teams are in each of the classifications. There will be more stability within each of the classification rankings. You won’t see the jumping around that we have seen in the first two weeks.

 

 

3A Boys

 

The 3A race at the First to the Finish Invitational played out close to what the rankings were. There were not that many drastic changes. The only team from that meet that dropped out of the rankings was Glenbard West. The Hilltoppers were ranked #24, but finished 23^rd at Peoria without their #1 runner Eric Neumann. The senior tried to race but has been sick the last week having to drop out.

 

#2 Lyons Township improved on their previous week’s race where they got close to #1 Sandburg on their home course. The Lions lowered their split from 39 seconds down to 34 seconds in winning the FTTF 3A race with 80 points. Vince Zona is emerging as one of the top runners in the state as he led the team with a third place finish. Sophomore Danny Kilrea was a big surprise placing 12^th just ahead of Connor Madell who finished in 14^th. Last week, Madell was only five seconds behind teammate Zona. One thing to watch for from this team other of their five runner split is their split from 2 to 5. Last week, it was only 21 seconds. It is just the beginning of what this school does in getting their runners to pack it up.

 

Hinsdale Central jumps ahead of York into #4 this week after scoring 96 points placing second behind Lyons Township. Blake Evertsen ran a great race running 14:25 to finish second. Chris Brenk did not have a great race but still finished 16^th as their third man. Andrew Irvine ran a PR finishing just ahead of Brenk. Keep an eye on junior Sam Fathizadeh. The 4^th man for the Red Devils in the race only ran 10:26 at EIU’s Race of State at the end of May. His great summer has put him into the mix of Hinsdale’s top five. The team still has a 5 runner split of 55 seconds. The split on their 2 through 5 runners is 25 seconds.

 

Buffalo Grove jumps into the top ten at #9 behind the individual win by Kelvin Salvano and the 13^th place finish by Tom Cleary. #10 New Trier dropped down a spot to #10 but had a fantastic run by Josh Derrick who ran a huge PR 14:46 to place eighth overall. Their split on five was 59 seconds. Whitney Young maintained their position at #12 with a sixth place finish. Clayton Mendez led the way running 15:02 to place 20^th. The Dolphins had a split of 45 seconds on five. That will need to come down if they want to get out of the tough Lake Park Sectional at the end of October.

 

Downers Grove North jumped up five spots to #13 after placing sixth behind the front running of 6^th place Alec Danner (14:43) and 18^th place Robby Prescott. This was thought to be a rebuilding season for John Sipple’s young squad. The two juniors and two sophomores along with senior Prescott are growing up fast. Their split is 71 seconds off of Danner’s front of the pack running. The split from 2 to 5 was 54 seconds. #14 Marmion Academy jumped up five spots as they finished one point behind the Trojans. The Cadets had a tight 1 through 4 split of only 19 seconds with Michael Ronzone leading the way with a 27^th place finish. Their split on five was 55 seconds. They are off this week but will run at Palatine the following Saturday.

 

Two teams that were in the pre-season rankings jumped back into the top 25 after good runs at Peoria. #17 McHenry placed ninth behind Michael Hahndorf’s ninth place finish. Their split of 70 seconds on five needs to come down. But then again, we are only in the middle of September. #23 Waubonsie Valley jumped back in after their 12^th place finish. There are no stars on this team but run a tight pack with only a 23 second five runner split in this meet. Watch for this team especially in October when their pack will start to move up.

 

The showdown between teams and individuals at Lake Park never materialized. Irwin Loud was rested by his Coach Chris Baldwin. Oak Park also was missing their other top two runners because of school / family commitments. It gave Hoffman Estates to jump into the spotlight. The Hawks ran a tight pack throughout their race resulting in a convincing win ahead of now #15 Huntley. Hoffman Estates ran a 43 second split on their first five led by the second place finish of Bryan Gamboa. Second place Huntley was dominant up front with three runners in the top five led by Keagan Smith’s individual win. This team could be a trophy contender but needs to get their four and five runners closer. Their split last Saturday was 68 seconds. The gap between the front three and fourth runner Matt Kapolnek was 41 seconds. St. Charles East jumped six spots to #19 placing six runners within 30 seconds of each other. The Saints were without one of their top five Brent Izzo who was involved with ACT testing.

 

There were three schools that just missed making it into the top 25. A team to keep an eye on is Glenbrook South after wins at Crystal Lake South and last Saturday at Wauconda. The Titans are one of those squads that have a tight pack. Last Saturday, South ran a 43 second split behind the 10-11 finish by Jordan Theriault and Alec Sanchez. They run this weekend at Warren and then at Peoria on October 3^rd. We may get an idea then how good this team is.

 

Oswego bounced back from their seventh place at St. Charles on September 5^th by winning the Joliet Central Invitational at Channahon Park ahead of then #14 Plainfield South.  Bennett Peterson led the Panthers with a third place finish. Plainfield South was paced by a 5-7 finish by John Partee and Jake Willison. The Cougars split on five was 54 seconds while Oswego ran a 48 second split off of Peterson.

 

 

3A Girls

 

One thing that was determined at the First to the Finish Invitational is that Yorkville was the best Girls team in the state (on that day). The one thing that I could not a grasp on in my mind was who was the best 3A team in the state after that weekend. It is something that is not that simple. I wish I could have ranked both Batavia and Naperville North at #1 in 3A.  To do that would be a coward’s way to make a decision. I’ve done it a couple of times at #25 in the rankings and did not feel good about it afterwards.

 

Naperville North gets the edge right now but if it is anything, it would be less than a second. Batavia has a tough top four led by Emma Stephens. The Bulldogs have a 49 second split off of Stephens who ran 16:56 in the Peoria race. The big concern for this team is that there is another 44 second split after their fourth came in before their fifth crossed the line. It will be tough to win the state championship with that kind of split. But like I said before, it is only mid-September.

 

Naperville North has the fastest Girls runner for a 3 mile course in the nation as of this week with Judy Pendergast. Coach Dan Iverson admitted after the race that his team did not get out fast enough. A valuable lesson to have as this season progresses. Even without their best race, the split from 2 to 5 was only 15 seconds. The pack moving up makes this team a little more dangerous.

 

There were some people that were speculating that Barrington and Batavia were not as good as their rankings after their performances at St. Charles on September 5. Barrington proved that they belong in trophy consideration with a fourth place finish. The Fillies are very similar to Batavia. They have a strong front four led by sophomore Jocelyn Long. The 1-4 split is big at 66 seconds. The 2-4 split is only 26 seconds.  The split between their fourth and then their fifth runner is 51 seconds. That split will have to come down. Barrington moved three spots up to #4.

 

#5 Minooka has the potential to win state but will need to cut down splits on their fourth and fifth runners. One coach mentioned to me that this team is 1.5 runners away from being the best team in the nation. I can’t argue with that statement. The Indians finished sixth at Peoria by having three runners in the first seven. Ashley Tutt and Emily Shelton came in together at 16:55. Mackenzie Callahan 18 seconds back. The best front three in the state perhaps the nation. The split between the first three and then fourth runner Emily Ellis was 93 seconds. Freshman Vivian Van Eck was their fifth runner only five seconds behind Ellis. Morgan Crouch will be one of the keys for the team. She did not have her best race last week as she was the team’s sixth runner. At Hinsdale the week before she was only 34 seconds behind Callahan.

 

I received several comments from caches that Lake Forest had a nice little pack. The Scouts were one of the big movers in the rankings when they jumped up eight spots to #7.  Their first four runners were within 14 seconds of each other led by the 17^th place finish of Emma Milburn.  Here again, their split from 4 to 5 was 53 seconds. This team will contend for a trophy once the split diminishes on their fifth runner.

 

The biggest mover in the 3A rankings was Lyons Township after they finished eighth in Peoria. They jumped from #25 to #10 this week. One of the reasons why was the only 36 second split on their first six runner. Four of their six runners are seniors. The addition of freshmen Sarah Barcelona and Emily Henkel have given this team a big boost. Lincoln-Way Central, who finished 11^th at Peoria, was the only team from this meet to enter the top 25 at #20.

 

#3 Glenbard West maintained their position in the rankings after a convincing win last Saturday at Lake Park. Sophomore Lindsay Payne ran 16:28 to run the nation’s second fastest time for 3 miles behind Pendergast’s performance at Peoria. One thing to keep an eye on is the gap from Payne and the pack. It was close to 90 seconds last week at Hinsdale. This week, it dipped down as well as their overall split. The gap now on Payne was 80 seconds and a 116 second split on the top five.

 

The same comment came from different coaches before the awards at Lake Park: “Did you see Maine South’s split?”

 

The Hawks made their seasonal invitational debut in third just three points behind #9 Schaumburg. Maine South put five runners in between 18^th place finisher Kalina Gardiner and 5^th runner Olivia Niziokek who placed 23^rd. Their split was only 14 seconds. They move into the rankings high at #11. It will be interesting to see how they run this weekend at the Richard Spring Invitational. #19 Prospect moved up three spots after their fourth place finish. Only one of their talented freshman squad ran on the varsity. The other two will be moved up when the time is right according to Prospect Coach Pete Wintermute.

 

#18 Geneva geared up for this weekend’s Peoria meet winning at Wauconda 58-64 ahead of 2A #4 Crystal Lake Central. The addition of freshman Sophia McDonnell to the varsity squad will help. McKenzie Altmayer ran a fast 17:38 at Lakewood Forest Preserve while McDonnell placed third running 18:10. #23 Glenbrook South was at the meet but ran their squad in the Frosh/Soph race. The Titans placed 5 in the first 8 with a 66 second split.

 

#12 Neuqua Valley edged #17 Oswego 30-37 at the Joliet Central Invitational. Caitlin Horn was the individual winner and led a 37 second split for the Wildcats. Oswego bounced back after a sub-par race at St. Charles. The Panthers were missing one of their top five as Kayla Wooten sat out last week due to a fall she had at the beginning of the St. Charles race. The addition of freshman Isabelle Christiansen could be the missing piece for Oswego’s top five. Their split on four was only 28 seconds.

 

 

2A Boys

 

#2 Grayslake Central proved they have the talent to challenge for a state championship winning by 64 points last Saturday at Peoria’s First to the Finish Invitational. The Rams are strong up front led by the individual win of Jack Aho (14:35) and his brother Matt who placed ninth (15:16). Their first four runners had a 52 second split off of Jack Aho. The 2-4 split off of Matt Aho was only 11 seconds. The 71 second five runner split could be an issue if it stays that way into the state series. I doubt that will happen.

 

Yorkville Coach Chris Muth said his squad looked flat after they finished second behind Grayslake Central. That would be understandable since they had only raced once this season and that was on August 24. The Foxes are a team to watch as they do have a good pack. Their split on five was only 19 seconds led by the 19^th place finish by Trevor Willis. This team will go after their third straight state championship if the pack can move up. #5 Belvidere North placed third with top 20 finishes by Eryk Yunk (4^th) and Eli Walker (18^th).  The split on five is 98 seconds. #8 Vernon Hills is in the same predicament as Belvidere North as they also had two runners in the first 20. The Cougars scored 217 points to place fourth. Shane Williamson finished six seconds behind Aho in the individual race as placed second. Tim Krashevsky placed 20^th 48 seconds behind his teammate. Caleb Ju, who placed 26^th, gives Vernon Hills a big boost. The 114 second five runner split needs to come down.

 

Rock Island Alleman made the biggest move up the rankings up ten to #11 after they finished fifth. The Pioneers had an 80 second five runner split off of the 16^th place finish by Aaron Golding. #12 Rockford Christian made their 2A debut 33 points behind Alleman placing sixth. Nick Monkemeyer finished 6^th overall running 15:02.  Their split on five was 94 seconds. The split from #2 runner Riley Wells and #5 runner Noah Wells was only 34 seconds.

 

Two teams from the Peoria meet make their debut into the 2A rankings. Charleston, who finished 11^th, enter the rankings at #21, Sycamore enters at #25 placing 13^th at Peoria behind a top ten finish by sophomore Stephen Poorten.

 

#1 Mahomet-Seymour tuned up for this week’s Richard Spring Invitational with an easy win at Springfield. They were missing a couple of their top five, but was still strong led by the individual win by Alex Keeble. He became the seventh individual to ever go under 15 on Springfield’s Lincoln Park Course. Their split on five was 71 seconds. The 2-4 split was only 7 seconds. Chatham-Glenwood climbed into the top ten at #10 after the Titans finished second. Top runners Landon Skelly (7^th) and Chris Durr (8^th) finished within four seconds of each other. Their split was only 38 seconds helped by the addition of freshmen twins Dathan and Drey Maton. #6 Springfield finished third but again was without Heath Warren who was on a college visit. He will make his seasonal debut this Saturday at Peoria. The Senators packed it up with only a 156 second split on their first five in this race.

 

#7 Crystal Lake Central’s first invitational of the year resulted in a second place finish eight points behind 3A unranked Glenbrook South at the Wauconda Invitational.  The Tigers will have a strong presence up front this year if their first race is any indication. In this race, Cole Barony (2^nd) and Weston Starchy were within nine seconds of each other. Their overall split on five was 101 seconds. The split off of #3 runner Steven Hillier to #5 runner Ryan Hillier was 58 seconds.

 

Riverside-Brookfield, who finished 15^th at Peoria, and Taylorville, who finished 4^th at Springfield were other schools that were considered for the top 25.

 

 

2A Girls

 

The moving of Yorkville up to 3A for the First to the Finish Invitational last Saturday proved two things. The first is that they have the best team in Illinois winning the 3A race defeating Batavia and defending 3A state champion Naperville North. The second thing is that Yorkville is untouchable in this classification. Yorkville and Naperville North should be in the top five nationally. That is just my opinion. The Lady Foxes had six runners under 18 minutes in that race led by Alexis Grandys’ ninth place finish. Yorkville had 12 runners under 19 minutes in the race. That is hard for anyone to match.

 

In the 2A race at Peoria, #2 Dunlap packed it up putting their first four runners in the top 32 to win the team championship 163-167. Frannie Verville and Miranda Kruiswyk led the pack finishing 10^th and 12^th.  Their first four split was only 36 seconds.  A split of 79 seconds could be enough to get the Eagles another trophy. #3 Vernon Hills continues to jump up the rankings. They were #9 a week ago. Vivian Overbeck finished 2^nd overall running 17:18. She will be in contention for the individual state championship. Concentrate on the 2 through 5 split for this team. Right now the gap between those runners is 71 seconds. This team could vie for a trophy but that split needs to come down.

 

Rochester made believers of those who doubted them with their strong third place finish in this race. Freshman Katherine Petty has emerged as the top runner for the Rockets. Their split of 69 seconds is encouraging. They will need to stay healthy. Their gap between 5 and 6 in this race was over two minutes. #6 Washington made their seasonal debut with a fourth place finish led by the 23^rd place finish of Kassidy Dexheimer.  This team could be dangerous in the state series. Their five runner split was only 44 seconds. #7 Lemont was twenty points behind Washington placing fifth. Their pack was good through four with only 23 seconds separating them. The split between four and five was 51 seconds. Lemont got their split down at the end of last year. I can expect nothing different from happening to this year’s squad.

 

This was a crazy week in the rankings as six new schools entered the top 25 including five from the Peoria meet. Grayskale Central was the highest team to enter the rankings (at #14) after they finished eighth in the meet behind Megan Girmscheid’s 13^th place finish. #16 Highland was the next in after they finished ninth in the meet running a 64 second five runner split. Lakes tenth place finish put them into the top 25 at #20 led by the 4^th place finish of Kortney Schardt. Woodstock was six points behind in 11^th. That finish moved them into #21. Kate Jacobs led her team with a ninth place finish. Rockford Boylan, led by top five finishes by Delaney Appino (3^rd) and Grace McLaughlin (5^th), made them the final team from the meet into the rankings at #23. Boylan finished 12^th in the meet.

 

Decatur St. Teresa dropped to #23 after finishing 16^th in the meet. The Bulldogs were without top runner Lauren Evelti who was taking part in ACT testing. Aurora Central Catholic dropped to #24 from #11 even though Abby Fioresi was in the top ten placing 6^th. Karina Liz, who normally is up with her teammate in races, finished 49^th. Liz has been slowed down recovering from walking pneumonia. She is expected to be back at full strength in a couple of weeks.

 

Crystal Lake Central showed their strength in their first invitational of the year finishing second only six points behind 3A ranked Geneva at the Wauconda Invitational. The Tigers put all five runners in the first twenty led by the 7^th place finish by Janine Orvis. Their split on five was only 51 seconds. Richmond-Burton finished fifth in the meet behind Breanne Retherford’s 10^th place finish. They re-enter the top 25 at #18 with their meet performance.

 

 

1A Boys

 

The top two teams in 1A Tolono Unity and Shelbyville tuned up for this week’s showdown at the Tuscola Classic with dominating wins in their meets last Saturday. #1 Tolono Unity placed five runners in the first seven to win at the Paxton-Buckley-Loda Invitational with only 19 points. Andrew Warnes led Unity High’s 43 second split on five with his 15:20 individual win.  #4 St. Joseph-Ogden was a distant second with 69 points. Their split on their first five led by Brennan Guido’s eighth place finish was 51 seconds. Host #12 Paxton-Buckley-Loda finished third led by Nick Porter’s third place finish. Their split on five at 129 seconds needs to come down if they want to get out of the tough St. Teresa Sectional.

 

#2 Shelbyville took four of the first five places to easily win their own invitational with only 20 points. Marcus Skinner ran 15:12 to win by 49 seconds ahead of teammate Ryan Skowronski. The Rams were without #5 runner Preston Henze who was held out of his second straight meet. Their split on the first four runners was 73 seconds. Unranked Marshall scored 73 points to place second.

 

The 1A field was not as strong as it was a year ago in the First to the Finish Invitational. It did not matter to #3 Elmwood-Brimfield who scored 123 points to win the competition. The Trojans used top 15 finishes by Matt Osmulski (4^th) and Derek McCoy (11^th) to achieve this win. Their split off of Osmulski was 92 seconds on the five scoring runners. This should improve as the season progresses.

 

Carlinville continues to impress after they jumped up three spots to #7 after they finished a strong second (with 162 points) in this meet. The Cavaliers have a strong front three as showed in this meet. Cory Landon led the way for Carlinville with the individual win. Nolan Kriepe (10^th) and Jason Landon (20^th) rounded out the top three for this team. The split on that group was 55 seconds. The thing to watch is the 56 second split between the group and their fourth runner. The overall split was 122 seconds from this meet. It needs to come down if they want to advance to state.

 

#8 El-Paso Gridley was only eight points behind Carlinville in third and still has the talent to challenge for a trophy at state. Hunter Cobbley (5^th) and Andy Layden (10^th) led the team to a 105 second five runner split. Their up-front running will be the difference of this team being a top five team this fall.

 

Five teams enter into the top 25. Four of the schools came from performances in Peoria. The most surprising performance came from the fourth place finish by Eureka who enters the rankings up at #11. The Hornets do not have any “superstar runners” up front. They rely on a tight pack. Their five runner split off of Travis Dietrich’s 44^th place finish was only 14 seconds. Mt. Zion finished fifth at Peoria but almost 90 points behind Eureka. They enter at #15 led by the 16^th place race finish by Alex Cutler. Galva-Mid County (#20) and Winnebago (#23) were the other two teams from FTTF that made it into the top 25 for the first time this year.

 

Mercer County finished third behind 2A schools LaSalle-Peru and Morris at the Princeton Invitational. Ethan Morrow finished sixth to lead his team. Mercer County enters into the rankings at #14.

 

 

1A Girls

 

This classification had the most changes up front as the top eight teams flipped around positions. For the time being, Urbana University climbs to the top of the rankings after an impressive performance to win the First to the Finish Invitational. The Illineks were led by top ten finishes by Arielle Summitt (2^nd) and Annemarie Michael (6^th). One of the reasons U-High was moved to the top was from their 3-5 split was only 13 seconds. The pack was only 90 seconds behind Michael. They could win state if that gap closes by another 35 seconds.

 

#7 Seneca was 63 points behind U-High in second place. Eva Bruno is capable of placing in the top five at state. She ran 18:19 to finish fifth at Peoria.  Seneca’s split on five is almost three minutes. 

 

#2 Tolono Unity moves up four spots after winning the Paxton-Buckley-Loda Invitational ahead of then #1 St. Joseph-Ogden. It is the second time in this young season that Unity has defeated the defending 1A champs. The Rockets had five runners in the first twelve led by Jordan Harmon’s individual win. They have two other runner (Nicole Bagwell, Taylor Renfore) that could place in the top 25 at state. The 93 second split will come down during the year. #4 St. Joseph-Ogden has started out slow this year similar to a year ago. Faith Houston was seven seconds behind Harmon in the race finishing second. The split between Houston and #2 Abby Gawthorp was 56 seconds. The split of 130 seconds needs to come down in order to find themselves in the top three.

 

The other big 1A meet of the weekend was at PORTA. #5 Liberty, without #2 runner Katelyn Obert, still continues to run down their opponents. They defeated #6 Litchfield and #3 PORTA. Freshman Katelyn Robbins could be one of the top runners this fall. She ran 17:33 on the 2.9 mile course to break Maria Brauer’s course record by 19 seconds. Their split on 2 through 5 is 92 seconds. With Obert in there, that split will come down. #6 Litchfield has a solid pack led by Alexandra Quarton who finished eleventh in the race. Their split on five was 81 seconds in this meet. PORTA was without #3 runner Anna Tambroski who is out with a minor injury. She could be back when PORTA runs at Springfield on September 26.

 

The one team to watch out of the above meet is Springfield Lutheran. They put four runners in the first ten with a 30 second split. The problem is they only have four runners on the team. If they find a fifth solid runner, they would be ranked in the top five. Until that time, we cannot rank them.

 

Four teams, all from the First to the Finish Invitational, moved into the top 25. Just like the 1A Boys ranking, Eureka was the highest entering team at #15 after they finished sixth at Peoria. Rockford Christian enters the rankings at #17 after finishing seventh. Ottawa Marquette (#19) and Stanford Olympia (#20) are the other two teams to move into the rankings.