DyeStat News
NTN Finals
Portland Meadows Race Track, Portland OR
December 1, 2007
Boys Championship
| |
Results |
Naperville IL 125 (Los Alamos 127), Chris Derrick 15:39.8
photo by John Nepolitan
Naperville boys want to have fun --
and nothing is more fun than winning
By Rich Gonzalez in Portland
Showing up to the course run-through wearing corduroy pants rather than sweats, tights or running shorts. ...
Arrriving at the run-through donning laceless wooden clogs rather than spikes or trainers. ...
Spending the championship eve hours with slobbery lips pressed firmly against bedroom windows in trying to get the attention of their female hotel floor neighbors. ...
This is how true national team champions prepare.
"We're definitely about having fun," said Neuqua Valley HS senior Chris Derrick, reflecting on the behind-the-scenes characterisitcs that helped lay a firm foundation for his Naperville XC Club's success in winning the tightest NTN battle in the brief but illustrious four-year history of the meet.
"We had a lot of teams coming in telling us about how we need to be serious and how this is not a meet to screw around at if we want to win," added Derrick, the Illinois state meet course recordholder. "But we know that we're all about fun. We're here obviously to run, but really the best way we prepare is to stay loose and have fun."
And as Nike pro athlete Dan Lincoln emphasized on the day-before-the-race address to NTN teams: "My college coach always said cross-country is about having fun ... there's nothing more fun than winning!"
With Derrick picking off fellow elite-level frontrunner Colby Lowe of Texas and teammate James Riddle reeling in roughly six to eight rivals over the last 1200 meters of the mud-mucked Portland Meadows course, Naperville rallied to nip Los Alamos of New Mexico as the top three team placers were separated by a mere nine points. The championship was sealed when fifth scorer Kevin Grady crossed the line in 67th place, the third-fastest #5 scorer in the entire 22-team field. Grady's time of 17:17 was only 27 seconds behind sophomore Aaron Beattie, a considerable reduction in time gap between the two over previous weeks and it provided the final nail in the coffin for the rest of the team title hopefuls.
Naperville, which boasted the best lead quartet in the national field and entered the meet ranked #1 by The Harrier Magazine, totaled 125 points to overtake Los Alamos NM (127 points) down the stretch while Albuquerque Academy -- also of New Mexico -- finished a close third with 134. The Woodlands XC Club of Texas, considered the deepest program in the nation this fall, earned the final podium position in the championship race with 197 points. For extra good measure, The Woodlands' second unit also placed fourth among American teams in the Open Race earlier in the day, which also featured the #8 runners (the roster alternates from the Championship Race) from each NTN team. The Woodlands also had the fastest #8 man there.
"They really all came together and did their job," said Naperville XC Club coach James Dickerson, who coached the team in the absence of Neuqua Valley HS coach Paul Vandersteen (under Illinois HS state association rules, HS coaches are prohibited from coaching their athletes in competitions outside the season). "The NTN slogan is 'Every Teammate Counts' and today the guys went out and proved that. Chris ran the perfect race up front and all the guys won their own battles in their finishing kicks as we picked up pretty big points here and there at the end."
Albuquerque's Ben Johnson, Carroll's Lowe and Naperville's Derrick were all in the lead pack for much of the race, with Lowe eventually beginning to gap the field down along the fourth kilometer, although Derrick always left himself within striking distance.
Every point would count
"I was just trying to drift behind Colby, trying to choose my route pretty carefully, then kind of save up for that last (kilometer)," said Derrick who has yet to make a college choice but does plan to major in political science (he reportedly recorded a perfect score on the writing portion of the standardized college entrance exam). "That back area of the course, the swamp area. ... I was losing ground the whole way there beause I guess I'm just not a good mud runner. But I was able to make up ground elsewhere. With Colby running hard up front right there, I knew I needed to dig down that extra 1 or 2 percent because every point was going to count."
Derrick than flashed his true skills entering the final mile, when his coach yelled: "We need to get that point!"
Derrick turned, shot back an "Okay, Coach!" and unleashed a burst of energy which catapulted him into the lead and en route to a three-second victory over Lowe in 15:39. The move was authoritative and the outcome impressive.
Chris Derrick looks back near the finish and sees he has a 7-second lead.
His teammates followed 6 - 23 - 28 - 67.
From there it was Riddle, who missed the heart of the high school season schedule due to injury, who continued to rebound exceptionally well and was a scoring catalyst for Naperville toward the front end of the 154-runner field. Reportedly in 14th place approching the final kilo, Riddle caught at least a half dozen runners utilizing a 'long kick.'
"I knew we were getting points, I just didn't know if it was going to be enough."
Naperville's 2-3-4 scorers
 |  |  | 6th, James Riddle
| 23rd, Daniel Pawola
| 28th, Aaron Beattie
|
photos by John Dye
Said junior Daniel Palowa, one of only two non-seniors in the race-day lineup: "The only time I heard the scores was at the 3k, and all I heard was teams 2 through 4 and none of them were us. I figured we either were running great and were in first, or we weren't in the top four so maybe some of us were struggling. I felt I was in pretty good position, so maybe we actually were winning."
Palowa's 23rd-place effort was second-fastest in the field; 4th-man Beattie was 28th to rank second at that position order; Grady ranked third among the #5 men; #6 man Michael Ruff was 91st overall to place third among all teams' #6 runners while Joseph Budnik plced 109th to rank second and all teams' final placers.
COMING MONDAY IN EXPANDED FOLLOW-UP:
The battle of New Mexico plus a region-by-region breakdown of the meet, the fate of at-larges, trends on the national scene.
Results
RecordTiming.com - Contractor License Hy-Tek's Meet Manager
Nike Team Nationals - 12/1/2007
Portland, OR
Last Completed Event
Event 3 Boys 5k Run CC Championship
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Name Year School Finals Points
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Results - Men
1 Derrick, Christopher 08 Naperville XC Club 15:39.8 1
2 Lowe, Colby 08 Carroll XC Club-B 15:42.8 2
3 Johnson, Benjamin 08 Albuqerque XC Club 16:20.7 3
4 Sulkin, Steven 09 Elmhurst XC Club 16:23.2 4
5 Brown, CJ 09 Carroll XC Club-B 16:23.5 5
6 Riddle, James 08 Naperville XC Club 16:26.0 6
7 Wilson, David 09 Brookline XC Club 16:27.0 7
8 Kostelnik, James 08 Los Angeles XC Club 16:28.3 8
9 O'Donnell, MacLean 08 Oak Ridge RC 16:29.3 9
10 Roys, Donald 09 Medina XC Club 16:30.7 10
11 Pittman, Allen 08 Los Alamos XC Club 16:33.1 11
12 Zacharais, Patrick 10 Albuqerque XC Club 16:33.2 12
13 Hamilton, Aaron 08 Rogers XC Club 16:33.2 13
14 Ahearn, Willie 08 Danbury XC Club 16:35.0 14
15 Terry, Matt 08 Danbury XC Club 16:35.1 15
16 Gibson, Robert 08 Brookline XC Club 16:36.5 16
17 Nixon, Layne 08 Woodlands XC 16:37.2 17
18 Gilna, Gareth 09 Los Alamos XC Club 16:39.9 18
19 Pittman, Kyle 10 Los Alamos XC Club 16:40.5 19
20 Bowidowicz, Tom 08 Los Alamos XC Club 16:40.5 20
21 Molke, Robert 09 Bergen XC Club 16:40.6 21
22 Kimpel, Andrew 09 North Central XC 16:42.1 22
23 Pawola, Daniel 09 Naperville XC Club 16:45.7 23
24 Connor, Reed 09 Woodlands XC 16:46.4 24
25 Butler, Andrew 09 Woodlands XC 16:49.1 25
26 Clark, Ryan 10 Albuqerque XC Club 16:50.1 26
27 Valdes, Tyler 09 Dana Point XC Club 16:50.7 27
28 Beattie, Aaron 10 Naperville XC Club 16:50.8 28
29 McCutcheon, David 08 Murrieta XC Club 16:51.2 29
30 Achtien, Thomas 08 Elmhurst XC Club 16:51.2 30
31 Belgiovine, Anthony 08 Bergen XC Club 16:52.4 31
32 Morgan, Taylor 08 Greater Portland 16:55.6 32
33 Dean, Leon 09 North Central XC 16:55.8 33
34 Spearman, Richard 09 Woodlands XC 16:56.4 34
35 Gedyon, Elias 11 Los Angeles XC Club 16:57.3 35
36 Arthur, Jeremy 08 Medina XC Club 16:58.2 36
37 Howard, Jeffrey 09 North Central XC 16:58.5 37
38 Spencer, Sterling 11 Swanson XC Club 16:59.8 38
39 Hebert, Jordan 09 Elmhurst XC Club 17:00.7 39
40 Fox, Michael 08 Warwick Rc-B 17:04.1 40
41 Danaher, William 09 Clifton Park TC 17:04.4 41
42 Landry, Brian 08 Fairfax XC Club 17:04.6 42
43 Schaefer, Tucker 09 Danbury XC Club 17:05.1 43
44 Murray, Taylor 09 Albuqerque XC Club 17:05.8 44
45 Burnstein, Michael 08 Brookline XC Club 17:05.8 45
46 Surly, Taylor 08 Rogers XC Club 17:06.7 46
47 Ducharme, Danny 09 Wayzata XC Club 17:06.9 47
48 Ackerman, Bradford 08 Warwick Rc-B 17:07.6 48
49 Cooper, Kyle 08 Albuqerque XC Club 17:08.2 49
50 Prial, Daniel 08 Warwick Rc-B 17:09.3 50
51 Spencer, Leighton 09 Bergen XC Club 17:10.4 51
52 Davenport, Brian 10 Fairfax XC Club 17:11.2 52
53 Turina, Thomas 09 Greater Portland 17:11.4 53
54 Bubniak, Joey 09 Danbury XC Club 17:11.8 54
55 Diaz, Andres 09 Los Angeles XC Club 17:12.1 55
56 Hicks, Steven 08 North Central XC 17:12.3 56
57 Glover, James 09 Clifton Park TC 17:12.5 57
58 Drenckhahn, Jeremy 09 Wayzata XC Club 17:13.3 58
59 Witherell, Tom 08 Los Alamos XC Club 17:13.4 59
60 Lehane, Elliot 08 Brookline XC Club 17:14.4 60
61 Curran, Carlile 10 Greater Portland 17:15.4 61
62 Knauer, Daniel 09 Murrieta XC Club 17:15.6 62
63 Ladron, Diego 08 Swanson XC Club 17:16.6 63
64 Slater, James 09 Los Angeles XC Club 17:16.6 64
65 Bowman, Anders 08 Wayzata XC Club 17:16.9 65
66 Alvarez, Tyler 08 Dana Point XC Club 17:17.1 66
67 Grady, Kevin 08 Naperville XC Club 17:17.8 67
68 Harris, Daniel 10 Clifton Park TC 17:17.9 68
69 Peacock, Emerson 08 Oak Ridge RC 17:19.3 69
70 Maynard, Samuel 08 Medina XC Club 17:19.5 70
71 Roth, Forrest 08 Rogers XC Club 17:19.5 71
72 Tyler, Adam 08 North Central XC 17:20.6 72
73 Florkiewicz, Ryan 08 Warwick Rc-B 17:21.2 73
74 Sigeti, Angel 08 Murrieta XC Club 17:21.4 74
75 Leuchanka, Alex 09 Warwick Rc-B 17:21.8 75
76 Ahmed, Musa 10 Greater Portland 17:23.0 76
77 Boudreau, Parker 08 Danbury XC Club 17:23.5 77
78 Heaton, Hunter 10 Medina XC Club 17:24.3 78
79 Miniger, Gregory 08 Warwick Rc-B 17:25.0 79
80 Vargas, Raphael 10 Bergen XC Club 17:25.4 80
81 Spisiak, Daniel 08 Elmhurst XC Club 17:25.5 81
82 Avila, Alexander 10 North Central XC 17:25.8 82
83 McDonald, Jonathan 08 Clifton Park TC 17:26.6 83
84 Valdes, Ryan 09 Dana Point XC Club 17:27.3 84
85 Pavlick, Brent 09 Clifton Park TC 17:27.7 85
86 Riemer, Phillip 08 Oak Ridge RC 17:28.0 86
87 Sanchez, Anthony 08 Murrieta XC Club 17:28.1 87
88 Lacambra, Anthony 09 Dana Point XC Club 17:28.4 88
89 Wyka, Stephen 08 Bergen XC Club 17:28.4 89
90 Jones, Austin 08 Greater Portland 17:30.3 90
91 Ruff, Michael 08 Naperville XC Club 17:32.0 91
92 Thornburg, Aaron 11 Swanson XC Club 17:33.8 92
93 Heflin, Evan 08 Fairfax XC Club 17:34.5 93
94 Luthin, Timothy 11 Warwick Rc-B 17:34.8 94
95 Turkheimer, Joel 08 Greater Portland 17:35.0 95
96 Ellswoth, Jared 08 Swanson XC Club 17:37.9 96
97 Blakeley, Mitch 08 Woodlands XC 17:39.2 97
98 Ostrouchov, Christopher 09 Oak Ridge RC 17:40.6 98
99 Milin, Anthony 08 Los Angeles XC Club 17:41.4 99
100 Trainor, Brian 09 Clifton Park TC 17:42.4 100
101 Rau, Justin 08 Danbury XC Club 17:43.1 101
102 Rankin, Kent 08 Medina XC Club 17:43.2 102
103 Ruiz, Paul 09 Los Angeles XC Club 17:43.3 103
104 Slauson, Peter 10 Greater Portland 17:45.3 104
105 DePinto, John 08 Carroll XC Club-B 17:45.4 105
106 Smith, Neal 10 Carroll XC Club-B 17:45.5 106
107 Cole, Christopher 08 Oak Ridge RC 17:46.3 107
108 Wang, Timothy 08 Woodlands XC 17:46.7 108
109 Budnik, Joseph 08 Naperville XC Club 17:47.2 109
110 Balmaseda, Ricky 08 Danbury XC Club 17:47.4 110
111 Efurd, Cameron 09 Rogers XC Club 17:48.0 111
112 Kincade, Chris 09 Murrieta XC Club 17:48.1 112
113 Talbot, Mark 08 Elmhurst XC Club 17:49.0 113
114 Moonan, David 09 Dana Point XC Club 17:49.6 114
115 Wasz, Andrew 09 Wayzata XC Club 17:49.8 115
116 Pearce, Ian 08 Murrieta XC Club 17:50.6 116
117 Chan, Josh 08 Dana Point XC Club 17:51.2 117
118 Day, Evan 09 Wayzata XC Club 17:51.8 118
119 Orrala, Juan 09 Rogers XC Club 17:52.3 119
120 Toure, Ahmed 09 Carroll XC Club-B 17:52.6 120
121 Sharpe, John 10 Oak Ridge RC 17:52.8 121
122 Wordell, Andrew 11 North Central XC 17:52.9 122
123 Hemphill, Kevin 09 Los Alamos XC Club 17:53.8 123
124 Witko, Alexander 09 Fairfax XC Club 17:55.4 124
125 Schlicht, Kyle 09 Swanson XC Club 17:56.8 125
126 Rosas, Howard 10 Bergen XC Club 17:57.7 126
127 Golden, Michael 08 Woodlands XC 17:58.7 127
128 Mercurio, Christopher 08 Brookline XC Club 18:00.4 128
129 Campbell, Damon 09 Albuqerque XC Club 18:00.5 129
130 Jones, Keaton 10 Swanson XC Club 18:01.4 130
131 Cecil, Adam 10 Elmhurst XC Club 18:03.2 131
132 Carapezza, Michael 09 Bergen XC Club 18:04.7 132
133 Bernstein, Aaron 08 Fairfax XC Club 18:05.1 133
134 Walters, Lucas 09 Medina XC Club 18:05.6 134
135 Haugland, Oliver 10 Wayzata XC Club 18:05.9 135
136 Way, David 09 Elmhurst XC Club 18:08.2 136
137 Dean, Joshua 09 Dana Point XC Club 18:09.8 137
138 Resendiz, Jadden 08 Murrieta XC Club 18:11.2 138
139 Topete, JonCarlo 08 Los Angeles XC Club 18:11.8 139
140 Hardiman, Ryan 09 Brookline XC Club 18:12.7 140
141 Vierra, Andrew 09 Los Alamos XC Club 18:13.7 141
142 Fallow, Ryan 09 Medina XC Club 18:14.3 142
143 Munro, Daniel 09 Swanson XC Club 18:14.9 143
144 Garner, Evan 09 Carroll XC Club-B 18:15.5 144
145 Holmes, Peter 08 Wayzata XC Club 18:15.9 145
146 Belensz, Alexander 08 Clifton Park TC 18:16.1 146
147 McGroom, Ethan 08 Oak Ridge RC 18:18.7 147
148 Falls, Jordan 09 Rogers XC Club 18:18.8 148
149 Galvin, Timothy 09 Fairfax XC Club 18:19.0 149
150 Wildenborg, Henry 09 Rogers XC Club 18:23.2 150
151 Grove, Brendan 10 Brookline XC Club 18:26.8 151
152 Lauriello, Anthony 09 Albuqerque XC Club 18:34.4 152
153 Jachowski, Joseph 10 Fairfax XC Club 18:36.6 153
154 Weaver, Josh 09 Carroll XC Club-B 18:57.6 154
Team Scores
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Rank Team Total 1 2 3 4 5 *6 *7 *8 *9
=================================================================================
Results - Men
1 Naperville XC Club 125 1 6 23 28 67 91 109
Total Time: 1:23:00.10
Average: 16:36.02
2 Los Alamos XC Club 127 11 18 19 20 59 123 141
Total Time: 1:23:47.40
Average: 16:45.48
3 Albuqerque XC Club 134 3 12 26 44 49 129 152
Total Time: 1:23:58.00
Average: 16:47.60
4 The Woodlands XC Club 197 17 24 25 34 97 108 127
Total Time: 1:24:48.30
Average: 16:57.66
5 Danbury XC Club 203 14 15 43 54 77 101 110
Total Time: 1:24:50.50
Average: 16:58.10
6 North Central XC Club 220 22 33 37 56 72 82 122
Total Time: 1:25:09.30
Average: 17:01.86
7 Brookline XC Club 256 7 16 45 60 128 140 151
Total Time: 1:25:24.10
Average: 17:04.82
8 Los Angeles XC Club 261 8 35 55 64 99 103 139
Total Time: 1:25:35.70
Average: 17:07.14
9 Elmhurst XC Club 267 4 30 39 81 113 131 136
Total Time: 1:25:29.60
Average: 17:05.92
10 Bergen XC Club 272 21 31 51 80 89 126 132
Total Time: 1:25:37.20
Average: 17:07.44
11 Warwick Rc-B 286 40 48 50 73 75 79 94
Total Time: 1:26:04.00
Average: 17:12.80
12 Medina XC Club 296 10 36 70 78 102 134 142
Total Time: 1:25:55.90
Average: 17:11.18
13 Greater Portland XC Club 312 32 53 61 76 90 95 104
Total Time: 1:26:15.70
Average: 17:15.14
14 Clifton Park TC 334 41 57 68 83 85 100 146
Total Time: 1:26:29.10
Average: 17:17.82
15 Carroll XC Club-B 338 2 5 105 106 120 144 154
Total Time: 1:25:29.80
Average: 17:05.96
16 Rogers XC Club 360 13 46 71 111 119 148 150
Total Time: 1:26:39.70
Average: 17:19.94
17 Murrieta XC Club 364 29 62 74 87 112 116 138
Total Time: 1:26:44.40
Average: 17:20.88
18 Oak Ridge RC 369 9 69 86 98 107 121 147
Total Time: 1:26:43.50
Average: 17:20.70
19 Dana Point XC Club 379 27 66 84 88 114 117 137
Total Time: 1:26:53.10
Average: 17:22.62
20 Wayzata XC Club 403 47 58 65 115 118 135 145
Total Time: 1:27:18.70
Average: 17:27.74
21 Swanson XC Club 414 38 63 92 96 125 130 143
Total Time: 1:27:24.90
Average: 17:28.98
22 Fairfax XC Club 444 42 52 93 124 133 149 153
Total Time: 1:27:50.80
Average: 17:34.16
NTN Finals index |
