1A-
Anna Sophia Keller at the 2015 SJO Spartan Invite (Beth Schied photo)
Girls-
Anna Sophia Keller will have one more opportunity at perfection this season. The three-time state champion from Effingham (St. Anthony) has never lost a race on Illinois soil. As great as Keller is, she has never competed against any of the state's titles in any of the top flight invitationals. The simple fact is that it is not her fault. In some sense it does not really matter. Keller has run 16:35, 16:27, and 16:21 in her three title runs. Keller's three composite score average is one of the best in IHSA history.
It will be interesting to see what the top teams from 2015 behold. Champion Tolono Unity appears to be a stout team once more. Urbana University could be the favorite with healthy Annemarie Michael and Arielle Summit. There are one of the top duo threats in the state. St. Joe Ogden has Faith Houston back as a leader. Decatur St. Teresa will be back in the fold this fall from 2A.
Boys-
Tolono Unity put on a clinic last year scoring 30 points. That is the second lowest point title scored. Those memories will live on forever. Unfortunately, Unity will be hard pressed in getting a top three spot after graduating 6 of 7 runners. There are lots of key graduations from some of the other top teams as well. Shelbyville lost several key scorers as did St. Joe Ogden and Robinson. A deeper look by editor Alex Goodlad will have to the take.
Jon Davis' graduation will see the individual stock fall very far. Davis was the top overall runner in Illinois last year. He is know at U of I prepping for his college career. A ton of runners have graduated so it's hard to predict a top returner. Look for state 3200 runner up Logan Hall to emerge as a front runner.