You can count on mean Maryjeanne when on the cross country course (Colin Boyle photo)
Something has got to give in this one race affair. Maryjeanne Gilbert (Sr., Peoria Notre Dame) will toe the line against 500+ girls but the one person that she will be looking for is Payne. Payne has taken over the helm now that senior Lindsay Graham is out for the season. In two races thus far, Payne has sliced her competition into pieces like cheese. Don't expect anything short of marvelous on Saturday. Gilbert had her coming party last year here with a blowout win in 16:30- which turned out to be the meet record.
Last weekend at the FTTF, Naperville North senior Judy Pendergast burned the course in 16:18. That time overtook the 16:28 that Payne ran at Lake Park. It is conceivable that an overall field could rival what the 3A class did last week. Six girls cracked 17:00. Gilbert, the Footlocker All-American, will be gunning for her all-time best of 16:12. O'Brien has run well in cross country over the past year. The season is still in the infancy stage for her but don't be surprised if O'Brien runs a super time. Audrey Ernst (So., St. Charles North) has a personal best of 16:53. Add former champion Mckenzie Yanek (Sr., Pleasant Valley, IA). Yanek won this race in 2013.
It would be nice to see Emma Moravec (Jr., Downers Grove North) step up and show the same prowess on grass as she does on the track. Maggie Scholle (Jr., Chicago Lane Tech) is emerging into a top tier runner in the state. Scholle placed second at Wauconda last week to Geneva senior Mackenzie Altmayer.