Jack Aho is looking to lead the charge this season
3200m-
2016 State Champion: Jared Borowsky, Lincolnshire (Stevenson), 9:07.47
Season Outlook: The competition in this event will be largely dependent upon which athletes select to run the 3200, the 1600, or both (and how the 4x800 could play into this). The first returner is two time 2A state XC champ Jack Aho (Sr., Grayslake Central), who could face 3A state champ Soren Knudsen (Sr., Minooka) head-to-head for the first time. Both champions were undefeated after the first weekend of September through the state meet, and Aho ran at both Footlocker and NXN while Knudsen nursed an injury. It seems likely that Aho will double again (he did last year) and Knudsen will mostly likely run the 1600. Equally as noteworthy are juniors Dylan Jacobs (Sandburg) and Danny Kilrea (Lyons). Jacobs and Kilrea dominated the midwest during postseason competition and are certainly Illinois' best returners over long distances. Now, Sandburg and Lyons have not run their best distance runners in the 3200 in recent history, but the chances Jacobs and Kilrea have to compete for a state title may be too good for them to be held out (Kilrea did finish 8th in this race last year).
The all-state cross country list should give a good picture of what other names will be vying for all-state 3200 spots. Brian Griffith and Matt Pereira (Seniors, Lake Zurich) finished 5th and 6th and the latter always runs well at the end of the season. Neuqua will likely have two finalists, and could be Jackson Jett (Sr.), Zach Kinne (So.), Scott Anderson (Sr.) or Matt Milostan (Sr.)
A real surprise in cross country was Oswego East's Dylan Zangri (Sr.) and could be a guy to watch in the 3200. Finally, ever since his health issues at the end of his junior year of cross country season, Irwin Loud (Sr., OPRF) has really only looked in full form during last year's 3200 final, where he finished third. His 1:58 to begin the season is a promising start, so we could see Loud return with strength to finish his college career.
Other runners to watch: Alec Danner, Brian Leonard, Paolo Tiongson, Blake Evertsen, Evan Mitchell, Caleb Washington, Warren Blood, Sean MacGregor
Top returning performances-
| RANK | TIME | ATHLETE/TEAM | GRADE | MEET DATEPLACE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9:00.70 | 2017 | ||
| 2 | 9:06.36 | 2017 | ||
| 3 | 9:12.90 | 2018 | ||
| 4 | 9:13.55 | 2017 | ||
| 5 | 9:13.85 | 2017 | ||
| 6 | 9:13.90 | 2017 | ||
| 7 | 9:14.07 | 2017 | ||
| 8 | 9:14.26 | 2017 | ||
| 9 | 9:15.24 | 2017 | ||
| 10 | 9:18.29 | 2017 |