A big weekend of some intense racing took place all across the Midwest, especially in Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. Many top ranked teams competed in some solid invitational action, a few of which lost to other ranked rivals, while a few other upsets occurred.
Highlights:
Boys - MW #2 Dexter, MI beat MW #5 Pinckney, MI at the Portage Invitational 62-100. MW #3 Woodridge, OH beat MW #4 LaSalle, OH 46-55 at the Les Eisenhart Invitational. With four of the top five teams in the Midwest squaring off this indicated as to how these teams all really place respectively in the top ten regionally. Also, MW #6 Carmel, IN lost to previously ranked Warren Central, IN and another in-state squad at their conference meet, in what was the stunner of the week on the boys side. None of the Illinois ranked squads competed their varsity teams.
Girls - The top teams always seem to dominate on the girls side, as nearly everyone won. MW #3 Minster, OH was the biggest winner of the weekend, as they traveled to Alabama and easily won the Jesse Owens Invitational over the SE #5 team. However, the two biggest upsets of the week involved MW #2 Waukesha West, WI and MW #7 Carmel, IN. Waukesha West has not lost in Wisconsin in what seems like forever, but reports from Wisconsin have the girls losing a flighted meet by one point to in-state rival Middleton. The Carmel girls also faltered, as they lost their conference meet to another in-state power. Other than those two loses, all of the other teams dominated fairly easily, although both MW #6 Rockford, MI and MW #8 Barrington, IL had to put in a little more effort than the other squads.
Boys
1. York, IL - Did not compete this past weekend.
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: West Suburban Conference, 10/14/06. Once again the Dukes will start their push towards yet another state title.
2. Dexter, MI - The big test of the weekend in the Midwest came on the boys side. Many wanted to see just how good Dexter is. Traveling to the Portage Invitational Saturday, Dexter knew they would have to run flawlessly to beat MW #5 Pinckney, who would surely be gunning for them. Right when the gun went off, Dexter jumped to the front with their guys in the large and talented field. As the runners approached the two mile mark it was obvious that Dexter was going to win, and win big. Dexter scored a mere 62 points, beating Pinckney by 38 points. Averaging 15:50 and placing their top three runners in the top ten, Dexter showed that they are one of the top teams in the nation, not just the Midwest. Once again junior sensation Bobby Aprill led the way, as he won the individual title, while senior Dan Jackson was second for his team in ninth, while nursing a minor injury. The standup star of the day however was Jason Bishop, who ran a huge race to place tenth. Dexter looked strong right from the start and will have to go full speed ahead this next week again as they head to perhaps the biggest Michigan meet of the year outside of state, the Gabriel Richard Invitational.
1. Bobby Aprill - 15:15
9. Dan Jackson - 15:47
10. Jason Bishop - 15:52
17. Ben Steavenson - 16:00
25. Ryan Neely - 16:09
55. Alex Hess - 16:36
59. Andrew Martin - 16:39
Meet Results: http://www.dyestat.com/3state/r4mw/6xc/Portage/D1.html
Next Meet: Gabriel Richard Invitational, 10/14/06. Yet anothe higher profile meet, where Dexter will take on the likes of MW #5 Pinckney, MI.
3. Woodridge, OH - The Les Eisenhart Invitational was a field of intrigue Saturday, as the number three and four teams in the Midwest went head to head once again. Woodridge took on a LaSalle squad that has travelled all around the country this year taking on top competition. In the first mile of the race you could tell this one was going to come down to the last 400 meters. Each team matched up man for man basically, and coming into the finish it was hard to tell just who won. In the end, Woodridge defeated LaSalle 46-55, once again proving they are the top team in Ohio, at least on that day. A nice spread of 64 seconds seperated individual champion Scott Hilditch and fifth man Daniel Petrak. However, from there there was a twenty-two second time drop from 5-6. They will need consistency from their top five the rest of the year, while they march towards the state meet.
1. Scott Hilditch - 15:19
7. Brian Himelright - 15:42
8. David Petrak - 15:46
13. Joey McCoy - 16:10
17. Daniel Petrak - 16:23
31. Tony Marette - 16:45
53. Matthew Weis - 17:13
Meet Results: http://www.dyestat.com/?pg=reg4oh061007EisenhartInv
Next Meet: League Championships, 10/14/06.
4. LaSalle, OH - Time and time again LaSalle has taken on the best in the nation, Midwest and Ohio. On Saturday, at the Les Eisenhart Invitational, LaSalle once again had to run their best in order to win, as they took on MW #3 Woodridge, OH. LaSalle got out fast and tried to match-up man for man with Woodridge. Running off of solid momentum from the weekend before, where they took on some of the top teams in the nation out in California at the Stanford Invitational, LaSalle ran one of their best races of the year. Despite that, LaSalle was nipped by Woodridge losing 46-55. Once again LaSalle ran a tight spread, this time of 49 seconds. Frontmen Jake Nusekabel and Kyle Lang again ran strong races, but it was not enough. LaSalle will get their shot again however as the state meet approaches.
3. Jake Nusekabel - 15:35
6. Kyle Lang - 15:40
10. Corey Spriggs - 15:59
15. Ricky Lupp - 16:14
18. Mitchell Huesman - 16:24
28. Michael Inderhees - 16:36
42. Sean Comer - 16:54
Meet Results: http://www.dyestat.com/?pg=reg4oh061007EisenhartInv
Next Meet: GCL Championship, 10/14/06.
5. Pinckney, MI - Everyone in the Midwest was speculating how good MW #2 Dexter really was, including Pinckney, who thought that if they ran their best race they had a great shot at beating Dexter. Well this past weekend at the Portage Invitational, Pinckney finally got their shot. Right from the start of the race things were not perfect for Pinckney. Their runners did not get out fast enough in the huge field of competition. This hurt them as Dexter got out great and moved forward the entire race. Pinckney simply could not make up ground and did not run their best race, as they lost to Dexter 62-100. However, Pinckney will get their chance once again next weekend to prove they can beat Dexter, as they face them and hope to bring their 1-5 split closer than the 35 seconds it was this week, where they averaged 16:03 per man.
8. David Emery - 15:43
15. Brian Hankins - 16:00
16. Brenden Marcum - 16:00
29. Jake Hohl - 16:13
32. Mike Katsefaras - 16:19
45. Matt Wines - 16:29
77. Erik Poyhonen - 16:55
Meet Results: http://www.dyestat.com/3state/r4mw/6xc/Portage/D1.html
Next Meet: Gabriel Richard Invitational, 10/14/06. Despite their loss to Dexter last weekend at the Portage Invitational, Pinckney should once again be looking to challenge the favorite MW #2 Dexter, MI.
6. Carmel, IN - Carmel went into their conference meet this past week in hopes of making a statement that they will not be beaten the rest of the year. However, despite whatever reasons, Carmel had one of the their worst races of the year, while a few other teams had some of their best racing. Carmel scored 68 points and finishing third, behind IN #3 Warren Central (42 points) and IN #13 Center Grove (61 points). Both teams were strong competition and Carmel simply did not step up. Jacob Rich ran a great race to finish second, but the 32 second gap from him to number two man was too big and the 75 second split to number five man was what put them under. Carmel will have their chance to make that up in the coming weeks as they will be facing all of the great Indianapolis area teams in the state series events.
2. Jacob Rich - 16:03
9. Chad Bowman - 16:35
13. Kevin Courtney - 16:47
20. J.D. Smith - 17:09
24. Zach Morris - 17:18
26. Logan Rosenberg - 17:21
37. David Pison - 17:43
Meet Results: http://hoosierauthority.com/Boys_Cross_Country/articles.php?spid=19&spmid=21&id=2036
Next Meet: Sectional Meet, 10/10/06 and Regional Meet, 10/14/06. Two huge meets in four days should be a good test for Carmel and a good way to show that their loss last weekend wasn't a trend.
7. St. John's Jesuit, OH - Did not compete this past weekend.
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: City Championships, 10/14/06.
8. Palatine, IL - Did not compete with the majority of their varsity squad this past weekend.
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: Mid-Suburban League Conference Meet, 10/14/06. They will face a strong challenge from a mighty top 5 IL team in Schaumburg.
9. Sandburg, IL - Did not compete this past weekend, as they prepare for their conference meet.
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: Conference Meet, 10/14/06.
10. Bloomington North, IN - Bloomington North headed into this past weeks conference meet knowing full well that they needed to run as close to a perfect race as possible if they were going to defeat previously Midwest ranked and IN #4 Franklin Central, IN. North indeed came out and competed and made a statement that they were going to be a force come the state meet. Placing their top two runners in the top three spots, and having a nice strong pack behind frontrunners Tim Schoch and Michael Hoffman, BN beat FC 46-58, while also beating IN #9 Columbus North (74 points). This team has been running strong and gained a lot of momentum a few weeks back at the Culver Invitational.
2. Michael Hoffman - 16:03
3. Tim Schoch - 16:05
11. Will Autio - 16:34
13. Andrew Buzzelli - 16:35
17. Ryan Jackson - 16:53
30. Wes Drake - 17:29
40. Trent Downey - 17:58
Meet Results: http://www.hoosierauthority.com/Boys_Cross_Country/articles.php?spid=19&spmid=21&id=2096
Next Meet: Sectional Meet, 10/10/06 and Regional Meet, 10/14/06. They should not have a rough time making it through each meet and advancing that much closer to state.
Girls
1. Westfield, IN - Not a whole lot needs to be said about Westfield's performance this past week at their conference meet. As they prepare for their state series this week, the team simply went out and dominated their competition, running strong up front and having a nice pack behind their lead runners. The course was a big long of the normal 4k distance in Indiana, as it measured 4102 meters, over the flat course. Overall it was a solid performance and a brief glimpse of what is to come from this squad.
Maggie Bingham - 14:39
Kristina Krasich - 14:39
Kaitlyn Love - 14:57
Breanne Ehrman - 15:10
Brittany Rutledge - 15:41
Dana Christie - 15:59
Kimmy Robertson - 16:10
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: Sectional Meet, 10/10/06 and Regional Meet, 10/14/06. They will have their chance to square off against MW #7 Carmel, IN. However, they will be sitting out a few top runners in at least the sectional competition.
2. Waukesha West, WI - Lost to Middleton 23-24 in the flighted meet. More information forthcoming.
Meet Results: http://www.wisconsinrunner.com/wccca/individual_result06.php?id=247
Next Meet: Classic Eight Conference Meet, 10/14/06. WW will get their chance to continue to dominate at their conference meet.
3. Minster, OH - Traveling a bit is always fun for teams. You get to see some different parts of the nation, you get to race some fast teams, it really is a memorable experience that should be shared by all teams. This past Saturday Minster finally traveled to a top flight meet, as they ran in the Jesse Owens Invitational in Alabama, which had a few ranked teams. At the end of the day Minster dominated the field, scoring a mere 68 points and crushing runner-up SE #5 Lake Braddock by nearly 30 points. Minster ran a great team race, with frontrunner Bernadette Burke leading the way up front in fourth, while their 2-3 runners ran together the entire way and their 4-7 runners ran within 30 seconds of one another. A wonderful 61 second spread was all this team needed to beat some of the best teams in the nation in one of the best meets of the weekend.
4. Bernadette Burke - 18:28
10. Katie Dahlinghaus - 18:56
11. Brigitte Sherman - 18:59
20. Jenna Fausey - 19:19
23. Lei Bornhorst - 19:29
26. Jessica Albers - 19:38
33. Lauren Fausey - 19:49
Meet Results: http://www.cfpitiming.com/2006%20Cross%20Country%20Season/Jesse%20Owens%20xc%202006/JO%20Girls%20gold%20results%202006.pdf
Next Meet: MAC Championships, 10/14/06.
4. Bowling Green, OH - Despite facing some of the best competition they have seen all year, Bowling Green was triumphant, as they won the Centerville Invitational 69-119 over a strong Turpin team. With a handful of elite type runners up front, frontrunner Christy Titus placed fifth, her lowest finish of the season, but still led her squad with a great effort of 18:46. Number two runner Barbara Powers ran a great race finishing in seventh, while BG's pack (3-5 runners) ran a strong race and had a fantastic eight second spread between them. It was also great because the spread from Christy Titus to fifth runner Anne-Marie Simon was almost a minute, one of the best spreads they have had all year, especially on this tougher 5k course.
5. Christy Titus - 18:46
7. Barbara Powers - 19:11
16. Shannon Titus - 19:43
20. Alyssa Glenn - 19:50
21. Anne-Marie Simon - 19:51
78. Tayler Worthington - 21:23
81. Andrea Renny - 21:27
Meet Results:
Individual Results: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/centerville/stampede/2006/ggover.htm
Team Results: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/centerville/stampede/2006/ggteam.htm
Next Meet: N.L. League Meet, 10/14/06.
5. Hinsdale Central, IL - Won a close tri-meet versus IL #4 York 27-29, but did not compete in any weekend invitationals, as they prepare for their intense conference championship next weekend.
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: West Suburban Conference, 10/14/06.
6. Rockford, MI - Despite running one of their normal races with their top three in the top ten, Rockford won a close one over previously ranked Okemos 92-110, at the Portage Invitational. Unlike the boys race, this one was a barn burner right from the gun, as the two teams battled both up front and with their packs. Rockford won because they placed their top three in the top ten. If it wasn't for that they would have lost, as Okemos ran a great pack race. Both squads are worthy of top ten rankings in the Midwest.
5. Rachel Wittum - 18:30
7. Brittany Dixon - 18:38
10. Katie Haines - 18:56
22. Kelly Brown - 19:28
48. Emma Crosby - 20:00
55. Chelsea Shibler - 20:10
96. Ashley Stebbins - 21:06
Meet Results: http://www.dyestat.com/3state/r4mw/6xc/Portage/D1.html
Next Meet: They do not compete in any weekend invitationals this coming weekend.
7. Carmel, IN -
Lost to IN #3 Center Grove 45-56 in a close battle at the MIC Championships. More information to come.
Meet Results: Results Forthcoming.
Next Meet: Sectional Meet, 10/10/06 and Regional Meet, 10/14/06. If they run their top squad, they will have their chance to take down MW #1 Westfield, IN, even though Westfield will be running their sectional meet without a few of their top runners.
8. Barrington, IL - Despite running without their star freshman (#4 runner) on varsity, Barrington prevailed over a very, very strong Lake Park squad 31-40 at the Wheeling Invitational on Saturday. Packing up their top three runners into the top four sports helped considerably. #4 runner on the day, Molly Glantz, ran her best race of the season perhaps, as she was only 14 seconds off of #3 runner Samantha Learch. This was a big time win for the Fillies on the flat, three mile spread, as they head toward a tough battle next weekend at their conference meet.
1. Danielle Locascio - 18:03
3. Rebecca Tracy - 18:11
4. Samantha Learch - 18:16
6. Molly Glantz - 18:30
18. Valery Taylor - 19:15
23. Riehle - 19:20
27. Kala Bingham - 19:32
Meet Results: NA
Next Meet: Mid-Suburban League Conference Meet, 10/14/06. They will face a strong challenge from top six Illinois team Palatine.
9. Livonia Churchill, MI - An easy weekend meet at the Wayne County CC Championships bod well for LC, as they easily won 33-104 over runner-up Grosse Pointe South. Packing it up a big, LC placed their top four in the top six and looked like a Midwest top ten team right from the start. This meet was more of a tune-up race for next weekend, when they travel to the Gabriel Richard Invitational, and take on some of the best teams in the state.
2. Rachel McFarlane - 18:52
3. Megan MacEratini - 18:57
5. Sara Kroll - 19:07
6. Alyssa Mira - 19:14
17. Lindsey Marlow - 20:21
39. Lindsay McMullen - 21:30
41. Hannah Otto - 21:30
Meet Results: http://www.salemcrosscountry.org/mens/media/files_autogen/WayneCountyCCMeetGirlsVarsityResults06.htm
Next Meet: Gabriel Richard Invitational, 10/14/06. They will get their chance to face some impressive competition from in-state at this high profile invitational.
10. Magnificat, OH - The Strongsville Invitational provided some solid racing for Magnificat, as they took home the team title with a score of 64-72 over Hudson. The girls had a chance to pack it up a bit and run together, as they placed their top three runners in the top eight spots and ran a smart and strategic race to win on the difficult 5k course. A nice split of 56 seconds helped them take home the team title, but they will need to run a lot better over the coming weeks as the best meets of the season approach.
6. Katherine McHenry - 19:30
7. Madeline Chambers - 19:31
8. Karen Sovacool - 19:34
18. Mary Whitmore - 20:00
25. Abby Fischer - 20:26
35. Erin Riley - 20:27
44. Emily Ohliger - 20:34
Meet Results:
Team Results: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/strongsville/2006/gv-t.htm
Individual Results: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/strongsville/2006/gv-o.htm
Next Meet: Sim Earich Invitational, County Fairgrounds, 10/14/06. Midwest Region Index Page |
