It was a foxhole fight for the participants at the Niles West Boys Regional
RESULTS I VIDEOS I PHOTOS
Skokie IL-
The Niles West Sectional hosted a variety of teams hoping to move further into the postseason. Historic Illinois standout New Trier High School was present, as well as Maine South, Loyola Academy, Evanston Township, Niles West, Niles North, Elk Grove Village, Maine West, and Maine East. The day was set up for a good race, with a slightly brisk wind at times and no rain, but as runners later noted, temperatures were very low.
The girls' race went off first, with freshman Ellie Grammas of Loyola Academy winning by 45 seconds with a time of 18:26.3. She went out in front from the gun and maintained her strong lead to the finish. New Trier's Bridget Forbes followed in second, her teammate Marlee Fradkin close behind. Ultimately, Grammas led the Ramblers to a first-place finish, edging out New Trier by a single point. Loyola's team looks to be strong next year, as they are not losing any of their top 7 to graduation.
| 1 | Loyola Academy | 39 | 1+5+6+10+17 (29+31) | 1:10 1-5 Split | 19:12 Avg | ||
| 2 | New Trier High School | 40 | 2+3+8+13+14 (15+23) | 0:19 1-5 Split | 19:20 Avg | ||
| 3 | Maine South High School | 57 | 4+7+9+16+21 (30+36) | 0:37 1-5 Split | 19:28 Avg | ||
| 4 | Evanston Township High School | 86 | 11+12+18+20+25 (26+28) | 0:49 1-5 Split | 19:44 Avg | ||
| 5 | Niles West High School | 149 | 19+22+34+35+39 (40+45) | 2:27 1-5 Split | 20:52 Avg | ||
| 6 | Elk Grove High School | 175 | 24+33+37+38+43 (46+50) | 2:22 1-5 Split | 21:30 Avg | ||
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Next up was the boys' race, with strong contention for the win by New Trier and Maine South. Each team raced hard, both placing their top five runners within the top 15. Ultimately, the race came down to a tie, broken by New Trier's sixth runner as they walked away with the championship. Joey Kasch of Maine South trailed the early leader Spencer Werner from Loyola Academy through the first mile in 5:13. But by the second mile, he had taken over and run away with a win in 15:12.8. Evanston's Max Peterson took second.
| 1 | New Trier High School | 37 | 3+7+8+9+10 (11+15) | 0:22 1-5 Split | 15:40 Avg | ||
| 2 | Maine South High School | 37 | 1+4+5+13+14 (19+25) | 0:45 1-5 Split | 15:39 Avg | ||
| 3 | Loyola Academy | 76 | 6+12+17+20+21 (22+37) | 0:35 1-5 Split | 16:00 Avg | ||
| 4 | Evanston Township High School | 119 | 2+18+29+34+36 (38+39) | 1:33 1-5 Split | 16:25 Avg | ||
| 5 | Niles West High School | 161 | 27+28+31+35+40 (41+55) | 0:33 1-5 Split | 16:48 Avg | ||
| 6 | Maine West High School | 162 | 16+23+32+45+46 (49+51) | 1:27 1-5 Split | 16:49 Avg | ||
These teams will battle it out once again next week at one of the hardest sectionals in the state at Lake Park. Powerhouses Glenbard West, York, Wheaton Warrenville South, and many other schools will be running, so look forward to watching those races.