Peoria, IL-
Once again, the hallowed grounds of Detweiller Park produced another memorable day of cross country races. Hosted by Peoria Notre Dame High School, this year's version of the Richard Spring Invitational was one of the largest in its existence.
The day started with the open races, and several interesting scenarios unfolded. For the girls, two veteran varsity runners, Paityn Brady (Fr., Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin) and Savanna Franzen (Sr., St. Joe-Ogden), competed in this division, as well as a fleet of other individuals and teams, to avoid the proposed hotter climes. Brady held off Franzen late in the final mile and won by 13 seconds in 18:11.
The boys open race featured veteran runner Elijah Teefey (Jr., Pleasant Plains), who used patience as he navigated his way through a sea of runners and struck into the lead at the second mile. Teefey dashed home ahead of Bobby Wintermute (Fr., Prospect) by 13 seconds with a time of 15:47.
Girls varsity-
The story coming in was #1 Downers Grove North and #2 York dueling for high stakes. DGN prevailed over the Dukes the previous weekend due to a strong surge over the final mile.
In addition to the Trojans and the Lady Dukes, Hilliard Davidson (#1 in Ohio), Pleasant Valley (#1 in Iowa),#4 Hersey, and #5 Prospect were ready to battle for the top spot.
Downers Grove North were without their top runner, junior Lily Eddington, who was sick and did not make the trip. The Trojans did their best to hold off the challengers. It was a different race strategy than before, as they led for the first two miles.
York, led by freshman star Karlin Janowski, broke away from the same cast as last weekend at the Lake Park Invite. She won in a personal best 16:45. The Dukes rewarded her with a 102-104 win over Hilliard Davidson. The Wildcats tried their best to defeat one of Illinois' top teams and put three runners in the top 10, led by Erica Kaulen (Jr.), Celia Schulte (Jr), and Ashley Alsko (Sr).
Boys varsity-
It was a balanced attack on the boys' team front in that it took 200 points for the winning team among 65 that scored. The crew from Mason, Ohio, returned after finishing fourth a year ago and got the job done in defeating York 202-222. The Comets came in as one of the elite programs in the Buckeye state, putting runners in the top 50, which sealed the deal.
It was a fun race to watch individually despite temperatures in the mid-80s and high humidity.
Leading the charge were Josiah Narayanan (Sr., Wheaton-Warrenville South), Joe Bregenzer (Sr., Barrington), and Aiden Noel (Sr., Wheaton-Warrenville South) under 4:40.
Narayanan took over just before the halfway point and never looked back. He hit the second mile in 9:31 and cruised home for the win in a personal best 14:25.
Bregenzer held off MSL league foe Alexander Krieg (Jr., Palatine) for second 14:36-14:37. "Goob" Gabriel McLain (Sr., Benton) clocked a PB 14:39 for fourth place. Aiden Noel (Sr., Wheaton-Warrenville South) was fifth in 14:52.
| Place | Team | Points | Scorers | Times |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mason | 205 | 10+23+44+50+78 (93+96) | 0:50 1-5 Split | 15:27 Avg |
| 2 |  Elmhurst (York) | 222 | 7+48+49+57+61 (80+142) | 0:45 1-5 Split | 15:29 Avg |
| 3 |  Palatine (H.S.) | 252 | 3+9+15+71+154 (172+201) | 1:42 1-5 Split | 15:23 Avg |
| 4 |  Lake Zurich | 271 | 8+27+28+99+109 (136+231) | 1:03 1-5 Split | 15:31 Avg |
| 5 |  Mt. Prospect (Prospect) | 281 | 36+40+62+70+73 (82+89) | 0:18 1-5 Split | 15:40 Avg |
| 6 |  Orland Park (Sandburg) | 283 | 20+29+37+83+114 (117+161) | 0:43 1-5 Split | 15:37 Avg |
| 7 |  Chicago (Lane) | 318 | 34+52+53+54+125 (185) | 0:39 1-5 Split | 15:42 Avg |
| 8 |  Arlington Heights (Hersey) | 335 | 39+43+67+86+100 (107+118) | 0:25 1-5 Split | 15:44 Avg |
| 9 |  Wheaton-Warrenville South | 374 | 1+5+69+112+187 (194+217) | 2:05 1-5 Split | 15:31 Avg |
| 10 |  Barrington | 375 | 2+21+79+126+147 (162+175) | 1:41 1-5 Split | 15:38 Avg |