By Michael Newman

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This is the second year of our look at the teams that made the top 25 in the ILXCTF rankings in each class. It will give you some idea how teams are slotted into the spots that they are in. It will also give you a view of the team from my eyes.

This is a series that runs until the beginning of October. By that point, we should how good (or bad) some teams are.

There are changes throughout each of the three classifications. More so than on the Boys side. It has to do with the influence of freshmen on Girls teams. When looking at the pre-season rankings, it is hard to determine how much influence that these first-year high school runners will have on their teams. With the changes in the rankings, we are seeing that after the first weekend of meets.

This weekend sets up to be a great one especially in the 2A and 3A classifications. Peoria will the place to be. Although we are approaching the second weekend in September, it will feel like November.

Class 3A

The top four teams in this classification did not change even though that #4 Hinsdale Central edged #2 Glenbard West by two points at Hinsdale. That does not mean that Hinsdale Central moves ahead of the Hilltoppers in the rankings. Let’s use some common sense here. I look at it with more quality teams, more quality runners in the mix. That does not mean that Hinsdale’s race wasn’t powerful. In a bigger field, like state, Glenbard West has the huge edge with Katelynne Hart, Lindsey Payne, and Katie Hohe in the front. The split on their top five was 3:08 in Saturday’s race. Honestly, their fourth and fifth runners were too far back in the race. (5 seconds between three and four is too much. It was something that Glenbard West Coach Paul Hass admitted to. They have plenty of time to work on that starting Saturday at Lake Park where #10 Maine South will be the only ranked team in the field.

Hinsdale Central is good. Really good. It looked like their first race of the season as the Red Devillettes got out too slow. They charged the last mile but it was not enough. The trio of Reilly Revord, McKenna Revord, and Grace McCabe were within 14 seconds of each other. Their split on five was 81 seconds. With more quality runners in meets, that diminishes their split especially against a team like Glenbard West. Their fifth runner Caitlin Chval was one second behind Glenbard West’s fourth runner and seven seconds ahead of West’s fifth runner. The key for Hinsdale Central when we get to the state series is having five runners in before Glenbard West gets four across the finish line.

Top ranked Naperville North defended Illinois pride by defeating the defending state champions in Minnesota (Edina) and Iowa (Johnston) at Pleasant Valley last Saturday. It came down to the power up front that the Lady Huskies have led Saturday by individual race winner Sarah Schmitt. Four runners in the top eight is tough to beat. If you want to compare it to Glenbard West, North matches up even in the front. The emergence of Claire Hill as the team’s #4 runner has been a tremendous help. Their split on five was 109 seconds in Iowa. That will come down this week especially on Detweiller Park’s fast track.

#3 Yorkville has not raced since August 21 when they ran a perfect 15 at their own invitational. They had a 41 second split on their top five that did not include last year’s #1 runner Nicole Greyer who was 34 seconds behind the group. Greyer was slowly coming back from an injury. With two more weeks of training, Greyer could again be in the mix making this team even tougher.

#5 Downers Grove South could surprise some of the above-mentioned teams in Peoria especially after their performance last Saturday at Fenton. Their performance is close to or equal to that of Glenbard West and Hinsdale Central. The Lady Mustangs rely on tight pack running and that showed on Saturday. Brenna Cohoon won the individual race and was 26 seconds ahead of her team’s pack. The split from #2 runner Becky Versaskas and #5 runner Melissa Weidner was only 15 seconds. They are a team to be reckoned with again this fall.

The big mover in the rankings this week was Barrington who went from #24 to #6 after their win at the Leavey Invitational. The addition of freshmen Molly Fitzpatrick and Katherine Shien was a big part of their win. The Fillies will get the low numbers from Jocelyn Long who ran a great 17:50 on the hilly and rough Leroy Oakes Course. FitzPatrick was only 30 seconds back. Their split on five off Long was 96 seconds. The split from Fitzpatrick to #5 runner Eve Hoeltgen was 64 seconds. The split on their pack will need to come down. The thing to watch is how close FitzPatrick is to Long. That makes this team dangerous.

Wheaton-Warrenville South was another mover up the rankings even though they finished sixth at Hinsdale. The Tigers moved from #20 to #13. Some of that had to do with their Frosh/Soph team dominated that race scoring only 24 points. Becca Hauenstein and Haley Ansiel, that finished 2-3 in the F/S race, would have been in the top five on the Varsity level. Their varsity split would have gone from 140 seconds down to only 48 seconds. Maria Rucoba stepped up as the team’s top runner. This squad is young with no seniors in the top seven. They still have plenty of room to grow especially if that pack behind Rucoba stays within 20 seconds of each other.

The team that really impressed me was Edwardsville that dominated Saturday at Granite City. The #7 Tigers put all their scorers in the first 12 led by the second-place finish by Abby Korak. Her time of 17:48 on the Wilson Park course is equivalent to 17:24 at Detweiller. Their split on five was 56 seconds last week. The same kind of effort puts this team in the trophy discussion when we get to the state series.

Four teams enter the 3A rankings this week. Two of those squads was due to the addition of freshmen. The highest team in was #15 Hononegah that finished behind Downers Grove South and Vernon Hills at Fenton. It was the way that they finished third that got our attention. They had Taylor Frommer, freshman Lauren Johnston, and Alicia Repka all finish in the top five and within 14 seconds of each other. It is the 80 second split from the pack to their fourth and fifth runners that is concerning. This team will get small numbers in big invitationals from their first three. It is that 80 second gap that could cause them problems. Nevertheless, this team is on the rise making the Waubonsie Valley Sectional that much tougher.

Benet Academy shocked me with their third-place finish at the Leavey Invitational and only four points behind a good #11 Batavia squad. Benet enters the rankings at #16. Coach Scott Brooks did it with the addition of six freshmen to the top seven. This team may have growing pains this season which could be expected especially with the youth on their squad. They did not run like freshmen with a 53 second split on their top five.

#21 Naperville Central and #24 Lockport Township both entered the rankings with good pack running pushing them in. Naperville Central finished fourth at Hinsdale and only had a 25 second split on five to accomplish that. Lockport rolled to an easy win at Plainfield Central with 19 seconds separating their first five.

Geneva, Metea Valley, Glenbrook South, and Grant were the teams that dropped out of the top 25.

Class 2A

The top three teams are close still like I said in the season previews. After the first week of meets, Belvidere North has a slight edge ahead of Dunlap. It is razor close.

Top ranked Belvidere North had a great race opening at Sycamore scoring only 26 points. Madison Diercks, Gianna Sagona, and Sabrina Elder give the Blue Thunder a solid first three. The split on their top five in that meet was 93 seconds. The hills took their toll at Crystal Lake South as their split jumped over two minutes. I think we will see a race from North on Saturday like what we saw at Sycamore.

#2 Dunlap has been consistent in their first two races with speed ratings team numbers at 562 at Normal West and 559 last week at Galesburg. The Eagles put the first five runners in at Galesburg but did that without freshmen Campbell Petersen who was the team’s #1 runner at Normal West two weeks ago. The split on their top five last week was 35 seconds. What gives Belvidere North the slight edge is their numbers up front. But like I said, it is extremely close.

#3 Vernon Hills is just a step behind these two teams. Lauren Katz has been the top runner in their first two meets. Their split at Fenton was 56 seconds on their top five. Four days earlier at the Lake County Invitational, it was only 45 seconds. The Cougars have a solid six runners that could pose problems for both Dunlap and Belvidere North.

The big mover in the 2A rankings this week was Waterloo who moved from #20 to #4 after their second-place opener at Granite City. Jenna Schwartz has emerged as one of the top runners in this classification. Rachel Patterson and Ella King finished in the top ten in that race and within 57 seconds of Schwartz. Their overall split at Granite City was 144 seconds off Schwartz. The pack behind their top three was 45 seconds back. In a big meet, that could cause the Bulldogs some problems.

Latin School moved from #17 to #11 last week based on their performances on the Varsity and Frosh/Soph levels at Hinsdale. Marianne Mihas won the Frosh/Soph race and would be the top runner on this squad by one minute. Fellow freshman Olivia Syftestad and sophomore Claire Hardiman also would be among their top five. It will be interesting to see how they compare this Saturday in Peoria. They do have the potential to be a top ten team.

Three teams enter the top 25 this week. Canton was the surprise for me as they were not even on my pre-season radar. The addition of two freshmen at the front of the pack was one of the reasons why they won their own invitational by two points ahead of #17 Peoria Notre Dame. Claire Wheelwright and Eleanor Fournier led the team that had a 33 second split on their top four. The split from four to five was 36 seconds. If they can lower that number, this team could be among the top ten.

The finishes by Troy Triad and Mascoutah at Granite City moved both teams into the top 25. #16 Triad has improved from last year with the addition of (you guessed it) two freshmen. Alyssa Kowalski finished 17^th on Saturday with the rest of their pack 52 seconds behind her. Their split from their second through fifth runners was only 26 seconds. They are a team that I would keep an eye on this fall. Mascoutah moves in at #25 from their sixth-place finish as well as their win at SIU-Edwardsville on August 26. The split on their top four at Granite City was only 25 seconds. Their overall split on the scorers was 53 seconds.

Class 1A

This is basically a repeat from last year. Tolono Unity and St. Joseph-Ogden have separated themselves from the rest of the pack in this classification. It is top ranked Tolono Unity that has the edge as they have been ahead of the Spartans in both meets.

We won’t compare times from the Cowchip Classic since it is a flighted meet. At the Kickapoo Kickoff Classic on August 29, Tolono had the edge putting 5 runners in the top 15. Caroline Bachert and Evelyn Adkins were the two freshmen that have given the Rockets a boost. St. Joseph-Ogden put their 5 runners in the first 25 in that meet led by the sixth-place finish by Faith Houston. Unity has the edge with three runners ahead of SJO’s second runner. Those dynamics will be some of the things to watch throughout the season since these two teams will face each other in every week except one.

I will be interesting to see how #4 Illiana Christian runs in Peoria on Saturday. Gillian Fiene did not run at TF South on Saturday. She did run at the Irish Conditioner last Wednesday where her duo was in the top spot. Their split without her at TF South was close to two minutes. We will see how they compare on Saturday. #3 Williamsville won at Rochester last Saturday with a 98 second split on their top five. What will be a difference maker for this team is that only 26 seconds separated the first three led by Caroline Gwaltney.

Only two teams moved into the rankings in this classification this week. Springfield Lutheran jumps in at #13 based on their second-place finish at SIU Edwardsville on August 26. Their problem the past few years has been finding a fifth runner to push them to state. The addition of freshmen Elizabeth Eck and Kylie Goldstein could help. Maddy Eck as well as Brigid and Bernadette Tournoux all finished in the top ten in that race. Their split on the top five was close to four minutes. The Tournouxs and Maddy Eck give the team strength up front. It is their split on five that will need to be worked on.

Rock Falls is the other team to enter the rankings at #15. Their third-place finish at Sycamore was the performance that convinced me. In that race, Bailee Fortney and Alex Gomez ran side-by-side. Their overall split though was over two minutes which should come down as the season progresses.