This was a race of the ages in 2019 with Brett Gardner (Lincoln-Way East) and Josh Methner (Hersey)
#1 Sandburg has had only one race this season and they won the Lyons Township Invite. That was several weeks ago and Coach John O'Malley who is usually reserved about things and his team in the early going, admits that his Eagles are ready. He will have seniors Declan Tunney and Brock Rice leading the charge and they are table setters who could potentially place inside the top 10. They will need assistance from the scoring pack if they want to walk away victorious.
Oswego has been a team on the rise during the early part of the season. The Panthers have exercised tremendous firepower from their top five scorers led by senior Ethan Forsell. Forsell has clocked 14:51 and his mates dropped times under 15:20. Detweiller runs very fast so expect more of the same. York was defeated by Oswego at the Joliet Twp Invite. Look for the Dukes to unleash their "A" squad for the first time this season.
Within the trenches are several Class 1A and 2A schools. Latin, for one, returns for the second consecutive weekend. The Romans won the 1A portion of the FTTF Invite and will be in a fight to place inside the overall top 10. But from a virtual standpoint, they have an opportunity to battle Depaul Prep, St. Joe-Ogden, and several other "A" schools. Akili Parekh and Ryan Hardiman will lead the charge for the Romans.
The individual race to the tape should be another Richard Spring classic performance. St. Charles East senior Micah Wilson is ready to lay down the performance of the season. He has cruised in two meets this season including at Lake Park last weekend. The 14:46 that Wilson Georges of Limestone threw down will get seriously touched. Another senior Tim Neumann of Downers Grove South is another top ace who is itching to drop a monster effort. Can he push Wilson past two miles? Others to consider are senior Spencer Werner of Loyola Academy, junior Mason Krieg, juniors Alex Das and Parker Nold, senior Michael Atkins of Wheaton South, junior Hunter Whitney of Chicago Tech are some names to watch. Don't forget about the emerging star sophomore Marcellus Mines. He has clocked 15:05 this season.