Milesplit Illinois Weekend Preview
If there is a lull in the omnipotent Prairie state high school season, it would be this weekend. There are only a handful of meets on Saturday and Sunday to bridge the gap between now and next weekend’s conference championship galleria.
The main event to watch this weekend is the fifth annual Nike Northside vs. Southside Challenge. The event is held in lieu of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 13, 2013. The pre-selected high school teams have an opportunity to take part in a pseudo-marathon on the same hollow ground as the actual marathon. The runners will cover the final 2.6 miles of the official course and finish amid thousands of fans and revelers.
Featured teams-
Chicago (C. Hope Academy)
Chicago (Curie)
Chicago (Gage Park)
Chicago (Hancock)
Chicago (Hubbard)
Chicago (Jones College Prep)
Chicago (Kennedy)
Chicago (Lane Tech)
Chicago (Latin)
Chicago (Lincoln Park)
Chicago (Little Village)
Chicago (Luther North)
Chicago (Steinmetz)
Chicago (Whitney Young)
Naperville (Neuqua Valley)
New Lenox (Lincoln-Way Central)
Orland Park (Sandburg)
Plainfield (South)
Regina Dominican
Rickover Naval Academy
Rolling Meadows
Skokie (Niles West)
Sullivan
Winnetka (North Shore Country)
General Event Timeline-
• 5:30 a.m. Team Arrival / Check-In Begins
• 6:45 a.m. Teams Depart for Shuttle Buses on Michigan & 11th Street (YELLOW dot on map)
• 7:00 a.m. Buses Depart Michigan & 11th Street for Start Line at Michigan & 28th Street
• 7:00 a.m. Hospitality Tent & Bleachers Open to spectators
• 7:40 a.m. Start: Boys Race
• 7:50 a.m. Start: Girls Race
• 8:40 a.m. Awards Program at Northside vs. Southside Hospitality Tent
• 9:35 a.m. Marathon Elite Male Finish
Meet outlook:
There are several quality teams in the field to watch for. The main question is whether or not each key team going half speed or full bore knowing that they have their conference championship the following weekend. This race is almost like an exhibition football game. The winner will get a trophy as a consolation prize, but walking away with pride is probably most desired. The “loser (s)” can always say that it was a fun run road race they competed in.
The boy’s field should be interesting because of “Northside/Southside” bragging rights. Secondly, do you really think teams like #5 Chicago Lane Tech, #6 Orland Park Sandburg, #7 Naperville Neuqua Valley, #11 New Lenox Lincoln-Way Central, #16 Palatine, #4 2A Chicago Jones Prep, and #25 Plainfield South will lay down? Not a chance. Too much competitiveness and that’s the beauty of the sport. Like it was said earlier, bragging rights are on line here. This race could take place in the alleys of the Windy city!
Other weekend action:
Chicago (St. Ignatius Prep) will be taking their road show to Washington, DC for the Georgetown Prep Invitational. If you recall they traveled there back in February during the indoor season for a track meet. Now, it appears they have forged a courtship with their catholic school brethren. The top 24 boys and girls will be making the trek.
The West Aurora Stampede used to be a very competitive end of regular system invite but ever since they moved from the Waubonsee Valley College, the meet hasn’t been the same. But it is still a quality meet with the likes of Wheaton-Warrenville South and Neuqua Valley girls competing on all levels.
The Metamora Invite will close out the central Illinois regular season with some fine teams in attendance. The girls will feature #2 3A Palatine as the pre-eminent favorite. The Lady Pirates have been coming to this meet for years and they usually don’t a competition they traveled three hours for. If anything, they will be working on improving their race savvy strategies. Top 2A schools Normal University, Glenbard South, Metamora, Mahomet-Seymour, and more will be in the house. The boy’s field will feature Mahomet-Seymour, Metamora, Normal U High, and others.
The Sterling Invite in the far western part of the state will be very competitive. Belvidere North, Sterling, and Rock Island (Alleman) are some of the key teams competing on the boy’s side. Belvidere North, Kaneland, and Dixon will be there on the girl’s side.
The Class A brethren will be competing one last time too. The place to be will be the Toledo Cumberland Invite on Saturday. The boy’s top ranked team Tolono (Unity) will be there. Previous #1 Monticello will also be there. They have an opportunity to get their logo back. St. Joe-Ogden will also be. On the girls side, there will three of the top five ranked teams in action including Monticello, Tolono Unity, St. Joe-Ogden, Urbana U, and Carlinville.