ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Dylon Nalley (Sr., Marion)
In the first recorded race on the books for 2023, Dylon Nalley placed second at the Detweiller at Dark Cross Country Race. Never mind that it was 88F with high humidity at 9:30p, it was about re-establishing himself as one of the best distance runners in the state. Nalley took second to Will Conway (Sr., Floyd Central IN) at 15:02. The psychological message was that he was ready to rebound and have a terrific year after dealing with sickness and injuries for the better half of the 2023 track season.
Nalley immediately took off and produced one of the best Septembers in recent history. He set meet or personal bests in three contests, including running 14:00.2 at the Richard Spring Peoria Notre Dame Invitational on September 16.
Nalley would skate through October and into the state championship with tremendous attention heaped upon him. One such item was breaking the 14:00 barrier. Although he came up short, he still won the athlete of the day and defended his 2A title in 14:05.
The final leg of Nalley's sparking season was that he was undefeated against his state peers, clocking a personal best 5000m in 14:47 at the NXR Midwest Regional. It is the fastest time an Illinois runner has run on Indiana soil. Nalley concluded his season in Portland, Oregon, at the Nike Cross Nationals, in which he ran admirably, placing 27th in 15:40- four seconds out of an All-American spot.
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: #2508 Jack Jennings (Fr., Palatine Fremd)
Jennings came into high school as someone to watch in his first cross country season. He ran a blistering 4:41 mile as an eighth grader, making himself a prime candidate as one of the Vikings' top runners and an opportunity for the team to make some noise at the state level.
Jennings placed in the top ten six times during the season for the Vikings. He led all freshmen in the three-mile (14:57) and was the leader at the state championship with a fine 41st place finish (15:01).