The Torpy twins Chris and Sean are dead aimed to win the state title for Sandburg (Steve Bugarin photo)
3A Boys 2015 State Meet Preview: National Contenders, Key Absences
A particularly messy weekend across the state of Illinois created a special set of memories for some teams during sectional competition- and nightmares for other teams. The image of most of the leading pack of the Girl's race at Hinsdale piling over each other in an overflowing creek is a dramatic representation of the excitement- and disaster- that filtered all but 25 teams in each class. The early forecast for Peoria, IL says 55F and sunny- a cool but clear dry day, and weather wise surely a lamb following the lion that was Halloween Weekend.
But a fantastic amount of depth across the state, depth that we at MileSplit have hyped for months, finally makes its full realization at Detweiller this week and will be anything but a lamb as several schools send teams achieving things never done before in their individual histories. At the top we have a few compelling stories- national contenders, perennial powerhouses making surges, injury victims making returns, you name it. The Boys 3A race should be over in a record low time but a faster race with greater performances means even more to dig through as we count down the days to this year's State Championship. Who are these teams at the top? Why don't we take a look.
The State's Collective Eyes will be on Orland Park (Sandburg)-
Sandburg is ranked #2 in the country in the most recent edition of the Saucony Flo 50. Beyond these rankings, Sandburg's performance this season speaks volumes for the team's favorite status entering the race, and opinions of coaches arose the state reflect this. The middle of Sandburg's season highlighted a squad split, especially on October 3rd when Sandburg won BOTH the Peoria Central Invitational and the St. Charles North Invitational, and neither were particularly close.
The work of Sandburg's season culminated in a strong 45-65 win at Sectionals over host Hinsdale Central. So surely Coach John O'Malley is pleased, right coach?
"So far we've had a phenomenal season... other than the sectional," says O'Malley. "The sectional race was by far our worst performance. There are a variety of reasons for this including a key guy [Dylan Jacobs] getting injured in the middle of the race, but the bottom line is that I didn't have the guys ready to go."
The distinctive pack-running strategy of Sandburg held firm at the start of the messy sectional race- but as the race developed and fording mud pits and rivers became the race, the field strung out and put the Eagles in a less comfortable racing position. As O'Malley mentioned, super sophomore Dylan Jacobs' hamstring betrayed him and Jacobs fought to a 33rd place finish. Led by a race win from year-long harrier Sean Torpy in 14:57 and possibly a season-best performance from his brother Chris, Sandburg walked away from the sectional with a win but an uncharacteristic 60 second split on Torpy. Now the status of Jacobs is in question and presents possibly a new challenge for Sandburg but not one they are unprepared for. As O'Malley says, "We've prepared for this by changing our lineup every week--the boys are used to depending on any one, any day." The improving weather looks to play to the advantage of the Sandburg pack, but there is much more motivating the defending runner-up team.
"My guys are angry right now," reports O'Malley. "They have a very large chip on their shoulder and are not happy with the way things went Saturday. We tend to run well when we are angry and challenged, so I am looking forward to watching them compete the next two Saturdays."
Do not forget where this team ended up a year ago- a frustrating second place to Hinsdale Central. The motivations for one of the deepest teams in Illinois state history pile are compounding- led by a 14:27 man in Torpy, and equipped with what will likely be 6 other sub 14:55 runners, the other 24 teams have reason to watch out for Sandburg. They are the unquestioned favorites entering the race. And if you do not believe me, just wait until Saturday. The Eagles pack is coming.
Heavy artillery action from the Schaumburg Sectional (photo by Itai Epstein)
Each Trophy Contender Had a Unique Path to State-
Any team on top of their game at Peoria can compete for a trophy--but there are four more teams in particular who will be especially gunning for the podium: Elmhurst (York), Naperville (Neuqua Valley), Hinsdale (Central), and LaGrange (Lyons Township).
[York]
Let's start with York. We are now a calendar year removed from one of the most head scratching progressions in recent memory, as York finished outside the top ten teams at Palatine, then tied for 5th at Niles West to narrowly secure a state berth, as the state questioned the strength of the program. Not too soon, however, did York finished a strong 6th at Detweiller and then a 3rd place at Nike Cross Regionals Midwest. Yet did we not truly expect York to make their mark in some York-like way? The magic of legendary Coach Joe Newton continues to manifest in new ways and another year has come, and despite York's lowest state finish in over 50 years last year, we expect them to make a push for a trophy once again in 2015.
York won their sectional with the same point total as Sandburg (45) with their first place finisher finishing in the same time (Charlie Kern in 14:57), but by a greater margin over surging CPS champ Whitney Young (45-71).
Consistent years from seniors Jon May and Max Denning have supported the pack strength of the Dukes but we cannot deny the highlight of this team is super-talent sophomore Charlie Kern Jr. (there have been a few of those already). Kern ran 14:36, turning in one of the greatest freshman cross performances ever last year, but flew largely under the radar individually throughout the year. This can be attributed, however, to a season of heavy training, and Kern is running spectacularly at the right time.
The state has learned by now that Newton prepares his athletes in the right way for the state race- the recent trajectory of York shows no evidence otherwise. The new face of depth in Illinois is graced with a familiar one. The front pack of the race will have its fair share of York Green.
[Neuqua Valley]
Several heartbreaking absences curse the Illinois cross country scene, and one of the most significant losses was senior Connor Horn to a stress fracture, opposite the injury he suffered early in his career. There exists no perfect replacement for Horn--but the Wildcats' remedy lay in their unbelievable depth behind him. Neuqua Valley showed flawless pack running at a handful of their late-season meets and the 15's they scored in back-to-back meets displays the coherence of a team training as one.
The injury bug has been especially vicious towards Paul Vandersteen's boys' squad this year. One of the more remarkable stories of the early cross country season involves Wildcats runner junior Scott Anderson, who broke his fibula on a root early in the Hornet-Red Devil Invite in September, yet finished 3rd in the race. An indefinite injury leave is now definite, and Anderson made his return triumphant, finished 3rd just three seconds behind race winner Huntley senior Keagan Smith.
The chaos of Sectional Saturday also hit top Illinois frosh Zach Kinne, leaving him dazed and in shivers following the Wildcats dominant team win at West Aurora. Although Kinne's status for state is doubtful, the pack of senior Aidan Livingston, Anderson, junior Jake McEneaney and crew will support the aching legs of Neuqua Valley cross country. The Wildcats have been a favorite to achieve a trophy spot all year and remains in that spot despite the recent adversity. The team's major difficulty will be overcoming the lack of a sure low-stick front runner so their depth must continue to be the antidote. Surely, the 'Cats can challenge for a state title but Vandersteen is sure to keep his athletes' perspectives aligned.
Vandersteen: "We don't worry about places and times. Our goal is to run our best race of the year. We are ready."
[Hinsdale Central]
Defending state champions--and not just that, but two-time defending state champions. Success breeds success and Jim Westphal's Red Devils have done something right the last two years. Last year some pundits did not give Hinsdale Central the benefit of the doubt after a shaky sectional race, and the Red Devils proved the doubters wrong by running a convincing team race to snag their second straight first place team trophy.
2015 presents a new situation, however, and the odds appear to be stacked a little higher against Central this year- a fourth place conference finish may not appear very conducive to trophy consideration at first. But similar to York, there exists a sense of certainty- we know Hinsdale Central will contend this Saturday and we know their race will be strong. We know junior Blake Evertsen will be running for a state title, we know senior Chris Brenk, senior Andrew Irvine and junior Ethan Planson will be All-State consideration. A 44-second five man split on Evertsen is impressive-that is exactly what Central achieved at their home sectional. Maybe Evertsen's first lap fall into the creek is representative of Central's season- unexpected affliction and a little mess. Yet the season is ending and the Red Devils are charging through to the state meet, just as Evertsen grind out an impressive 15:14 3rd place finish. His 14:25.8 Detweiller best is the second fastest time from this year entering the 3A Championship race. Central has the benefit of the low Evertsen stick but they also have the experience of a team that has done this whole shindig before. Twice. And this should never be taken lightly.
[Lyons Township]
Lyons has not won a Boys state XC title since 1958, but their recent success has been more quietly consistent than any other team in the state in Boys 3A--the Lions seek a top 4 finish for the fourth straight year. The fourth Western-Suburban Conference team to be listed in this short section has been maybe under the radar, without any huge developments or any loud performances, but instead deadly consistency.
Junior Vince Zona's presence at the front of the pack has been a constant all year. Senior Matt Begeman has emerged recently and senior Connor Madell's leadership are tangible strengths that Lyons brings. But the 2nd place finish of sophomore Danny Kilrea at the Hinsdale Sectional was the most surprising individual finish perhaps, and not the place itself but the nature of the race. Sean Torpy, pushing hard from the front the entirety of the race, glanced back during the final mile to see the much smaller Kilrea giving chase- and even passing Torpy for a moment- before Torpy finally makes a push to the race win. Surely this signifies a direction of the Lyons team, to be led by Kilrea in the future and a top 7 that graduates just three seniors. But for this week, the best 3rd place sectional finishing team can finish 3rd or even better at Detweiller as well. A pack-running team, like Sandburg, should find a more comfortable tactical environment on the packed grass track north of Peoria, and with better conditions, the Peoria-navigating experience of Zona and Madell present a true affordance of the Lyons squad.
Prospect will be at Detweiller on Saturday (Itai Epstein photo)
Every Pack Team Has Their Own Story-
Will Downers Grove South carry their incredible momentum after a regional win and good sectional performance, into just their second ever state appearance?
Can Downers Grove North's pack move closer to Alec Danner to offset the plague of late-season injuries?
How will the resurgence of Jack Sebok lead a surprising Plainfield North team running with strong pack mentality?
What can we expect from one of the best teams in St. Charles East history, a deep team on all competitive levels?
How will Marmion Academy be motivated after avenging two near-misses from the state meet?
Has Naperville Central been grossly underrated the whole year, and how will their pack capatilize on a narrow qualification by 1 point over Huntley?
All of O'Fallons runners have greatly exceeded expectations--how dangerous are they?
Will Minooka's 4-5 runners drive them to beat the higher-ranked teams they beat early in the season?
How will Illiana Christian rise to the occasion in their first year at the 3A level?
What will be the statement made by Lincoln-Way North in its final year ever?
How will Joliet Central's past two years of state experience lead it to a school-best finish?
How can Whitney Young overcome roster uncertainties establish themselves as a legitimate top 5 contender?
Can New Trier place multiple runners in the All-State range and carry to Trevians to a high team finish yet again?
Can Maine South overcome a roster complexion change and return to Top 10 form as they were early in the year?
How will Wheaton North carry its momentum from a strong sectional race to upset several teams into a state meet with even more tough teams?
Will Lake Zurich narrow a gap haunting the Bears all year long, and compete for a trophy?
How will the new found, focused attitude of Hoffman Estates benefit them at Detweiller?
Is the front running Kevin Salvano synthesized with young talent a recipe for Buffalo Grove success at state?
Will Prospect continue to be the biggest surprise of the year and finish top 10?
Can McHenry's split drop significantly to give the Warriors a stronger showing at state?