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 | 11/15/09 at Lavern Gibson Course, Terre Haute IN
Indiana - Illinois - Ohio - Michigan - Missouri
Preview - Boys
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Illinois stranglehold part deux?
By Tony Jones
DyeStat Illinois
Will the state of Illinois run over the competition like they did in 2008? It’s going be hard to bet against a state sending eight of their top ten big league schools. Even 2A champion Belvidere North is coming to the party.
The top three ranked teams in the region: Loyola XC (Loyola Academy), Kroy (York Elmhurst), and Naperville South XC (Neuqua Valley) will wage a double or nothing battle for a second consecutive week. Naperville South won the Illinois title over then US #1 Loyola 99-111. Kroy rebounded from a horrendous sectional performance to nab the third place plaque with 118 pts. Kroy actually led going into the last mile until Naperville South rallied.
The public sentiment back home in the Land of the Lincoln during the past week is another tight battle with slightly different outcomes. Naperville South may have a slight advantage and/or momentum advantage followed by Kroy and then Loyola. According to Kroy’s #2 runner Jack Driggs, the team confidence is very high going into the weekend. “We felt great leading after two miles at state, but we fell apart at the #5 spot. We will be OK [at regionals].”
Other top Illinois squads to watch are Oak Park Ghost Riders (Oak Park-River Forest), LTRC (Lyons Twp), Dark Force XC (Prospect), and Palatine XC (Palatine).
IL against the field
Indiana - It has to be unimaginable or downright insulting for one state to collect all the kudos while omitting the others. But for the home state, the MW #4 Columbus Thorn (Columbus North HS) played tough guys and roughed up the Dunelnad Runners (Chesterton HS) at state 63-131. This team may be able to split up the Illinois trio if they can produce another 25-second 1-5 split like they did at state. A frontrunner or two would help increase their chances of advancing to Portland.
Ohio - From the Buckeye state is MW#7 Coach XC Club (Cleveland St. Ignatius), they won the D1 (biggest classification) state championship over Cincinnati St. Xavier 82-118. The Wildcats will be entered as Ohio’s top choice.
Missouri - St. Louis XC Club (St. Louis University) is one of two teams from the Show Me state entered, but one of the top bubble teams. They will be seeking more than state respect in this affair. They are Missouri’s big class state champions.
The individual story
Let’s see, there is no US #3 Lukas Verzbicas (So.) (Orland Park Sandburg, IL). He is resting a sore Achilles until the Midwest Footlocker Regional meet. How about Harrisonville, MO Senior Maksim Korolev? The 3A state champ has opted out for MW Footlocker. Indianapolis North Central super sophomore Futsum Zeinasellassie appears to have chosen MW Footlocker as well.
But hold on. There is enough star power available to suffice those who like big names. For starters, there are US #2 Zach Wills (Mason, Ohio) and US #24 Caleb Hoover (Jr.) from College Heights Christian H.S., MO. Wills is the top returnee in the US in the two-mile after placing second at NON (8:55.18). He has had a wonderful fall campaign with a blazing 14:54 5k win at the Culver Military Academy Invite- coming within an eyelash of Chris Derrick’s (Neuqua Valley, IL) ’07 record. He will be running with his teammates but perhaps gunning for the meet record of 14:55 by Chris Derrick back in ‘07. Hoover won the big Chili Pepper Invite in Arkansas in 15:01 earlier this season setting the stage for the highly anticipated match up against Wills.
Others to watch are Kroy’s Andrew Smith and Jack Driggs. They ran both 14:28 (3m) at state. Loyola XC ace Nico Composto is certainly capable of a top 5 finish based on his 14:35- 3mile season best. Naperville South harrier Aaron Beattie ran 14:30 for 3m at his state meet.
Top team capsules
Naperville South XC (Naperville Neuqua Valley, IL)-
State finish: state champion- Class 3A (largest classification)
Previous NXN experience: MW- 8th in ’08; 2007 NXN champion
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 3/12
Probable starting line up: Aaron Beattie (Sr.), David Wing (Sr.), Carlton Folster (Sr.), Luke Verbus (Sr.), Billy Klimczak (Sr.), Jaffar Mahmoud (Sr.), Josh Antonson (Jr.).
Outlook: there are still some doubters and pundits out there despite winning the Illinois state title and remaining undefeated. The Wildcats are a true TEAM that will stick together throughout most of the race. Top runner Beattie will run with the leaders though. Since this is squad is built on strength and not flatland speedsters, the unforgiving rolling hills will suit them just fine.
Loyola XC Club (Wilmette Loyola Academy, IL)
State finish: state runner-up- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: MW- 11th in ‘08
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 1/1
Probable starting line up: Nico Composto (Sr.), Jack Seeburg (Sr.), Mark Donohue (Sr.), Patrick Smith (Sr.), Mac Ford (Jr.), Tom Beddome (Jr.), William Hague (So.)
Outlook: despite losing the state championship outright to state foe Naperville South last week, the Ramblers won’t be down when they line up in Terre Haute on Sunday. “Losing” the state championship taught them they can have a bad day and still be successful. Composto, the team’s number one runner, had a bad day when he finished as the squad’s fourth man. His teammates rallied for him late with three solid finishes. There is a realistic chance that Loyola could win this race if 5th man Ford or Beddome can close the gap a little more on 4th man Smith.
Kroy XC (Elmhurst York)-
State finish: 3rd place- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: MW- 1st in ’08; 2nd- NXN (’08)
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 2/25
Probable starting line up: Andrew Smith (Sr.), Jack Driggs (Jr.), Kushpal Sangha (Sr.), Ron Hedman (Jr.), Tom Hedman (Jr.), Nick Gornick (Jr.), Alex Mimlitz (Fr.).
Outlook: folks were told not to overlook the Dukes and they did. The result was a rebounding third place at state. It was perhaps in the first time in York history they were excited about anything other than winning another championship. The program has 26 of them. But the significance of third was they lost two of their top runners during the season, which created some doubt among themselves. Secondly, they finished just seven points in back of Loyola, the nation’s top unit. Smith and Driggs put the team on their back. Kroy is not done. They have another week to shore things up. It is plausible that the varsity debut of super talented freshman Mimlitz is forthcoming. He would be replacing Matt Schacht. Schacht is out with a stress fracture in his leg. Don’t be surprised if the Dukesters put it all together and win the regional title outright.
Columbus Thorn (Columbus North H.S., IN)-
State finish: Indiana State Champion (single-class)
Previous NXN experience: 25th- ’08 MW Regional
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 4/14
Probable starting line up: Andrew Diehn (So.), Evan Scruton (Sr.), Christopher Kelsey (So.), Corbin Brooks (Sr.), Gabe Ocasio (Jr.), Andrew Beiriger (Jr.), Michael Sublette (So.).
Outlook: the pre-season #6 team in Hoosierland quickly jumped to #1 after the first full week and never let up. They dominated their state championship by blasting a very good Chesterton team by nearly 70 pts. The Thorn ran on some pretty tough courses this season and still had its top 5 under 16:00 for 5k. The team 1-5 was under 45 seconds on a regular basis. This trait should continue. The only problem is there is no great frontrunner here but they have the experience of running on the rugged LaVern Gibson course. Columbus may be the only team to break up the Illinois dominance. At the very least, they will finish better than the 25th place effort in ’08.
Dark Force XC (Mt. Prospect [Prospect H.S.], IL)-
State finish: 4th place- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: none
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 9/none
Probable starting line up: Chris Spudic (Sr.), Vince Tagare (Sr.), Pat Ford (Sr.), Josh Campos (So.), Albert Ciolek (Sr.), Kenny Halloran (Sr.), Kellan Strobel (Jr.)
Outlook: always a solid team from the Mid-Suburban League and a step behind Palatine. But by no means is this a team that is second tier. It’s just that not many people outside of Illinois has heard of them or unless you know the name Ryan Craven. Craven placed 8th in the ’05 Footlocker national championship race before heading off to the University of Wisconsin (Madison). Now, this new wave group from the Northwest suburb of Chicago is capable of finishing in the top 5. Though, it was a surprise to many that the Knights placed 4th at state, but not to coach Mike Stokes. He expects the boys to do well in Indiana. Team ace Spudic has the talent to be among the leaders if he chooses but may hold back in the early going to help his team. Still, tight pack running is going to determine this team’s success.
Palatine XC Club (Palatine H.S., IL)-
State finish: 6th place- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: none
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 6/not available
Probable starting line up: Chano Bernardo (Sr.), A.J. Laskowske (Jr.), Alec Bollman (Sr.), Ryan Wojdyla (Sr.), Anthony Gregorio (So.), Marcus Garcia (So.), Jeff Larson (Sr.)
Outlook: although they have never competed at NXN, the face of qualifying through regional meets is partially due to what happened to Palatine several years ago. The Pirates were ranked third going into the final week of the then Nike Team National selection week. They were trumped by Cincinnati LaSalle, Ohio, who was 4th, to go to nationals. The reason was LaSalle made a stronger case because of strength of schedule. Palatine had no way in which they could compete against the best teams out of state because district rules prohibiting it. Ultimately, the controversy subsided and the regional qualifying format was born. The Pirates are better than the 6th place they displayed at state last weekend. They had a bad race and do not want to end the season like this. Look for the Bernardo and Bollman duo to step up and really run well this weekend. Seriously, the Pirates have a chance to place among to be among the elite here and make it a top 4 finish with Illinois. Gregorio and Laskowski sandwiched themselves between Bollman and Bernardo. Can they do it again?
St. Louis XC Club (St. Louis University H.S., MO)-
State finish: State champions- Class 4A (largest classification)
Previous NXN experience: MW- 7th place in ‘08
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: bubble team/n.a.
Probable starting line up: Caleb Ford (Sr.), Tim Rackers (Jr.), Tim McLaughlin (Sr.), Emmett Cookson (Sr.), Tony Minnick (Sr.), Alex Ratermann (Jr.), Joe Meier (Jr.)
Outlook: coach Jim Linares’ bunch travel to Terre Haute with serious intentions of improving on a solid 7th place in ’08. With experience usually come a ton of upperclassmen and the SLUH crew covers that with a line up of juniors and seniors. The front running Ford led his team in second overall last weekend at state. It’s possible a top 5 finish is in the cards if Ford, Rackers, and McLaughlin can continue to push hard and finish in the upper pack.
Coach XC Club (Cleveland St. Ignatius H.S., OH)-
State finish: State champions- Division 1 (largest classification)
Previous NXN experience: none
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 7/n.a.
Probable starting line up: Evan Baum (Sr.), John Sweeney (Jr.), Nick Kobunski (Sr.), Jordan Tropf (Sr.), Chris Manuszak (Sr.), Mitch Baum (So.), Nick Bartram (Jr.)
Outlook: Ohio’s top team will come to compete in Terre Haute for the first time looking for more than respect. The question will be can they crack the top 5. This group ran an impressive 1-6 of 36 seconds at state. There is no question of great pack running involved here no matter what level of the competition. Evan Baum is the #1 runner that will need to move up and his teammates follow pursuit if a top 5 finish or better is desired.
LT RC (LaGrange Lyons Twp H.S., IL)-
State finish: 5th place- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: 15th- MW in ‘08
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 8/45
Probable starting line up: Sam Telfer (Jr.), Mark Holt (Jr.), Mike Kokoris (Jr.), Mike Moore (Sr.), Andrew Allabastro (Sr.), Robbie Kucera (Jr.), Stu Newstat (Sr.).
Outlook: always a solid squad every year but is forever overlooked by York because they share the same conference (WSC Silver). LT actually finished third to Oak Park Ghost Riders in the conference meet before rebounding to beat them at state. Telfer had some issues earlier in the season but appeared to correct them just in time for the post-season. His mates will be shooting for a top 5 spot along with state foes Prospect and Palatine.
Oak Park Ghost Riders (Oak Park-River Forest H.S., IL)-
State finish: 9th place- Class 3A
Previous NXN experience: None
NXN Region/Dyestat national ranking: 10/48
Probable starting line up: Malachy Schrobilgen (So.), Nick Reyes (So.), Clayton Kirk (Sr.), Sam Fourman (Jr.), Peter Hogenson (Jr.), Eunhwan Yoo (Jr.), Jack Stapleton (Jr.)
Outlook: you heard it here first. This is the team of the future for Illnois along with Kroy. They will probably be pre-season #1 or #2 for fall 2010 so get ready. The Huskies hail from the same conference as the mighty Dukes. Although the Ghost Riders have given York fits for most of the season, they will be using this meet experience for the future. Schrobilgen quit the soccer team after blazing 9:31 for 3200m last spring. He is not afraid to challenge the top runners. Look for Oak Park to possibly finish in the top 7. |
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