MONDAY MORNING FINISH LINE

October 4, 2021

By Michael Newman

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This is the “bridge week” in my eyes.

It is a term that I have used in my head where we progress from the major meets of September and the first week of October and cross into championship season. Yes, we do have some notable meets this weekend. We have the Illini Prairie Conference and the Naperville Twilight Invitational in the next couple of days. My mind has already started to take steps on the bridge already looking ahead.

One thing that I can tell you is that more so in recent years, there are so many questions that are still yet to be answered. It could be because the type of racing we encountered a year ago. There are so many different anomalies statistically speaking that will make the next month heading into the state meet even more exciting than usual. I drove home from Peoria on Saturday and started taking some mental notes on each of the six races that we will see at Detweiller Park in the next month. Here are some of the questions that I had.

1A Girls – Winnebago is still the team to beat in this class. Their last major challenge for the state meet comes up next Monday at the Columbus Day Invitational in Amboy when they will be facing Monticello. The last time that the two teams faced in this meet two years ago, Monticello had the edge. Bago welcomed back one of their top runners Katie Erb who raced last Saturday at the St. Charles North Invitational. They should win their conference, regional, and sectional meets with ease. Tolono Unity finished ahead of Monticello at St. Joseph-Ogden two weeks ago. They will face each other at their conference meet on Tuesday and then regional and sectional meets. I still think there are six teams that are in position to challenge for a trophy. We may get the answer to the question will another team jump into the hunt by the time we get to November.

The individual race in this class could be fascinating. We look back at First to the Finish in the beginning of September and we remember Grace Erb coming toward the finish in that race for the win. I look at it and there are so many runners that could win this race. Anna Perry went out hard in that race and faded. She has been unbeatable since that race including running 17:16 at Metamora on September 25. Eureka know how too peak at the right time. It looks like Perry is on that course. Elena Rybak is not running like a freshman anymore. She as not since her first race. Rybak ran 17:20 on a “sneaky-fast 3-mile course” at Freeburg. I could see her up there. Kate Ahmari and Mabry Bruhn will face each other in regionals and sectionals.

1A Boys – I’m still wrapping my head around the team portion in this class. Latin School edged DePaul Prep at the Richard Spring Invitational. In some eyes, these are the top two teams in the state. Latin did not run Akili Parekh at Lisle, but their gap between Ryan Hardiman and Ben Gibson shrunk to 15 seconds in that race. Latin is going to have that gap after their third runner. The key is getting Gibson closer to Hardiman, and it looks like that is happening. There so many questions. St. Joseph-Ogden is peaking at the right time. Arthur-Lovington has the strength up front. Can they close that gap between their fourth and fifth runner? Hamilton West Hancock ran well in their Peoria experience in September. How will those performances relate when we get to the state series? Elmwood was ranked #1 in the pre-season. They won their own invitational on Saturday and look like they are taking their annual steps up.

All eyes are on Drew Rogers in this class and that is how it should be. His race at El Paso-Gridley and then a tactical race running 15:25 for 5k at Lisle has me convinced that he will take his racing to the next level. Who cares if he has not raced yet at Peoria? I am sure when he steps on that course we could see something magical. He races Wednesday at Naperville Twilight. It will be interesting to see him run for the first time this fall. Ryder James running 14:21 on the road course at St. Joseph-Ogden indicates he is ready for a big state run. He finished close to Rogers in his home invitational on September 11. Gavin Genisio and Miles Sheppard have put in some fast races but have not faced any challenging competition yet. Mason Stoeger has made the next step up finishing second behind Sheppard at First to the Finish Invitational and winning meets at Bureau Valley and then last week at Elmwood. He finished 18 seconds behind Rogers at Herscher on September 25.

2A Girls – Watching Saturday’s race in Peoria made things a little more interesting. It looks like Grayslake Central and Vernon Hills will be the top two teams in this class heading into conference meet weekend. Both teams held runners in their top five last week. Grayslake Central has held two of their top five runners out of races the past two meets. It could be injuries. It could be illness. It could be they realize the gauntlet they will have to travel through in their regional and then the Woodstock North Sectional. Dunlap was ranked #3 heading into last weekend. Then came Peoria where they finished third just eight points behind Crystal Lake South and Chatham-Glenwood. Throw those teams into the trophy chase now. Let us not forget about Latin School. The last time the team raced all their runners together was at Richard Spring. They are a lock to advance to state from the Fenton Sectional and a team that is in the mix for a state trophy.

It took no thought about the individual runners in this classification. Ava Parekh has the fastest time in this classification by more than 30 seconds with the 16:27 that she ran at Richard Spring. Do we see her get close or under 16-minutes at state meet time? Mary-Grace Hegberg opened her season running 17:08 at Lake Park, then third at Palatine and then winning at Niles West last Saturday. She won by 30 seconds in that race ahead of Elia Ton-That. Parekh and Ton-That both race at Naperville on Wednesday. Both runners could dip under 17-minutes on that fast Naperville North campus course.

2A Boys – Morton will be #1 when the next rankings come on Wednesday. The Potters defeated then #1 Mahomet-Seymour at East Peoria on September 25. It was a two-point win for them ahead of Fenwick last Saturday in Peoria. It was not their best race. It was good enough for Norton to yell out we are one of the favorites for state in November. There are a number of teams that will challenge for a spot in the top three. It is hard to separate Deerfield, Belvidere North, Glenbard South, and Kaneland from each other. You also have Riverside-Brookfield that could have the strongest top four in this class but a re still searching for a fifth runner. Woodstock and Crystal Lake Central have been surprises halfway through the season. Payton Prep could be a team that might challenge for the top five when we get to sectionals and then state.

The individual race at Peoria on Saturday failed to disappoint between Alex Partlow and Wilson Georges. Partlow dropped the hammer early in the race and slowly dissected this race to make it his own winning by 20 seconds in a great 14:23. Georges still ran his best ever at Detweiller Park in 14:43. Partlow left that race with a renewed confidence in his racing skills. Georges leaves the race knowing and preparing for Partlow and the next time that meet on November 6. Who gets close to these two runners? Yusuf Baig would be my first choice after finishing second behind Georges at First to the Finish. He blew away a good field by 30 seconds at Antioch last Saturday. Michael Schumacher ran 14:46 at Richard Spring on September 18 and will be willing to chase after Partlow and Georges.

3A Girls – Complacency is not a problem for York’s Girls team as we head into Championship Season. York has been a class ahead of everyone else in this season. They have not faced Naperville North and Minooka yet. They get that chance at state. The Dukes have that kind of pack that wins state championships. We could get a reshuffle of the deck after Wednesday’s Naperville Twilight Invitational when Naperville North, Minooka, Yorkville, and Lyons Township all face each other. Minooka was 14 points behind Naperville North at First to the Finish. Does Minooka close that gap in this race? It is also the first of five straight races that Minooka and Yorkville will race against each other with final race possibly at the state meet. Prospect is a team that has earned their spot in the rankings. Maine South continues to improve and will be a factor when we get to the state series. Downers Grove South has three runners that could be all-state. Closing their gap between the first three and next two will be something to watch starting on Wednesday in Naperville.

There are several curveballs to look for in the 3A Girls Individual runners. Brooke Johnston moving past Josephine Welin in the final 200-meters to claim the win at Palatine is the biggest one. When most people were declaring that Welin would be the big favorite in this class at the beginning of this year have discovered the narrative has changed. Grace Schager came off a great track season and become stronger this fall finishing only two seconds behind Welin at Richard Spring. We do have to remember that Welin missed most of the summer training due to injury. Her races at Peoria and Palatine are her only two big races in the fall. I’ll put an asterisk next to her last two races. I am sure she is putting the work in between the Palatine race and the next race at the WSC-Silver Meet where she will put herself ahead of the rest of the pack. Aly Negovetich finished second behind Schager Saturday at St. James Farm. I would not count her out when we get to state series time.

3A Boys – I said at the start of the season that 12 teams could challenge for the state title. Not too much has changed as we head into the second week of October. Sandburg has separated themselves with big team wins at Richard Spring and then Saturday in the Peoria Invitational. I doubt the remaining 11 teams separate themselves at conference meets heading into the state series. We could see an interesting team race on Wednesday as Hinsdale Central, Downers Grove North, Waubonsie Valley, Lyons Township, and Neuqua Valley all could be separated by just 25 points in the Naperville Twilight race. York’s finishes at Richard Spring and Palatine outweigh their Indiana race on Saturday. Yet, the Dukes only had a 36 second on their top five. Oswego surprised some early this year. They will also be in the hunt when we get to the state series. The big thing to watch is the Hinsdale Central eliminator race on October 30 where we think we will see teams not advancing being surprises. That sectional will be a meat grinder which is sad seeing great teams not lining up in Peoria.

Don’t ask me about the individuals in 3A. This is so deep in talent. We saw everyone who could contend for a state title except for Daniel Watcke and Ethan Summer last Saturday in Peoria. Nick Falk, Luke Wiley, and Ryan Watts led the charge in the Peoria race with Marcellus Mines, Micah Wilson, and Tim Neumann following. The first mile of the Peoria race was tactical before the fun began. Will we see a change in tactics in the next month after looking back at what we saw on Saturday?