3A Hoffman Estates Sectional Recap

The muddy terrain at Busse Woods Forest Preserve didn't seem too promising. However, it didn't stop athletes like Aly Negovetich (So., Grant) and Josh Methner (Sr., Hersey) from giving it their all.

In the girls' race, Negovetich's plan was to come out smooth and then dominate the third mile. She knew people were going to start to merge because of the hills and the mud, so she started to pull away from the rest of the group. "It's more of an adrenaline rush. You get that time to finish, but my coach was saying "No doubts, no doubts!" so that was a really big motivator, " Negovetich said. She was last year and this year's individual champion. She finished with a 17:50.

Prospect focused on finding each other and put in some good surges further into the race to help improve their places. "The last mile we knew we had to give it our all and leave everything out on the course," Audrey Ginsberg of Prospect said. The Barrington girls have been practicing to stay together in a pack during workouts. "We all just push each other. That split coming down has been amazing," Molly FitzPatrick (Jr., Barrington) said. The impact of their hard work was very apparent on Saturday with FitzPatrick placing 2nd (18:04), Alyssa Norris (Sr., Barrington) placing 5th (18:15), and Allison Drage (Sr., Barrington) placing 8th (18:30). The finish between Barrington and Prospect was a close one with Prospect placing 1st by one more point.  

In third place with a time of 18:07, Anna Harden (Fr., Hersey) started out fast and tried to maintain a lead for as long as she could and set the pace and see what she was truly capable of. At the two-mile mark, the race started to open up and she knew she could stick with the top group of girls. "I was very confident running upfront and my overall 3rd place finish validated the fact that I am capable of running with the top group of girls," Harden said. The Hersey girls, who placed 4th as a team, are looking to have their best performance of the season at State.

The following individuals will be advancing to State: Negovetich, Kate Jortberg (Sr., Glenbrook South), Brooke Johnston (Fr., Lake Zurich), Fatima Giron (Sr., Round Lake), Brenda Torres (Fr., Wheeling), Natalie Sandlow (Jr., Glenbrook North), and Skyler Kreunen (Jr., Lake Forest) 

The following girls' teams will be advancing to State: Prospect, Barrington, Fremd, Hersey, and Palatine.

In the boys' race, star Josh Methner (Sr., Hersey) put the focus on winning as a team rather than individually. The #6 Hersey Huskies have been fostering a team togetherness for most of the season in everything they do and that's the same idea going into the postseason, everyone working towards one goal: making it to State. "We've been running team-oriented and we've been confident in the work we've put in. I was just making sure all of our guys were ready," Methner said. He's this year's individual champion with a time of 15:23 and Hersey placed first.

Carter Schorr (Sr., Mundelein) has been doing all his workouts together with teammate Dillon Blake (Sr., Mundelein). He went into the race feeling relaxed and didn't put too much pressure on himself. "I went out there and I gave it my best and I'm happy with my performance and I don't think I could've done better," Schorr said. His goal wasn't to win, it was to stay with Methner. He placed second with a time of 15:33 and will be advancing individually to State. Jason Polydoris (Jr., Highland Park) placed third with a second behind Shorr (15:34). Polydoris will also be advancing individually to State.

Additionally, the following individuals will be advancing to State: Anthony Rodriguez (Sr., Stevenson), Corey Pacernick (Sr., Stevenson), Blake, Will Gordon (Sr., Libertyville), and Maxum Caesar (Sr., Cary-Grove)

The following teams will be advancing to State: Hersey, Lake Zurich, McHenry, Glenbrook South, and Barrington.