By Michael Newman

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This year was unlike any other year that we have experienced in Class 3A. The bar was raised time and time again during the season.

It started with Danny Kilrea of Lyons Township running 14:02 to win in the First to the Finish Invitational by 45 seconds ahead of St. Ignatius Prep’s Michael Obroin and Clayton Mendez of Whitney Young. A week later, on the same Detweiller Park course, Sandburg’s Dylan Jacobs was on Kilrea’s pace through 2-miles. The oppressive heat got to Jacobs as he crossed the line in 14:23. Jacobs was back at Detweiller two weeks later to run the fifth fastest time ever on the course (13:57.5) in winning the Peoria Invitational.

The end of the regular season did not turn out how most of the fans expected. It was projected to be a one on one battle between Jacobs and Kilrea in the state race. It was like that for the first half of the race as the two were side by side. Kilrea pulled away in the second half of the race to win the state title by 14 seconds ahead of Whitney Young’s Mendez. Jacobs finished sixth in the race.

It was disclosed after the race that Jacobs had come down with a viral infection the Tuesday before the race. In the sectional race the Saturday before, Jacobs opened an early lead over Kilrea in winning by eight seconds. Kilrea was ahead of Jacobs by 24 seconds in the first race of the season on his home close.

They raced against each other three times during the IHSA Regular Season. Kilrea’s win at the state meet broke that tie. Jacobs refused to use his illness as an excuse in that state race. When deciding who should be named the 3A Boys runner of the year, neither did we.

Congratulations to Danny Kilrea of Lyons Township High School in LaGrange as the 2017 ILXCTF.com 3A Boys Cross-Country Runner of the Year.