The 2023 Palatine Meet of Champions was a big delight for the fans. Relive the memory through this boys deluxe highlight!
The Girls: A majestic scene from last year's varsity mid-race
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Defending champion York graduated a bevy of girls, but they appear just as formidable. The Lady Dukes upended Barrington 68-80, which was a caveat for their ultimate 3A state title and later a berth in the Nike Cross Nationals.
This year, expect the main two playettes plus Prospect, Hersey, Lincoln, OR, and others to duel for win, place, and show.
York has an ultimate low-stick runner: freshman sensation Karlin Janowski, who has won the last two invitationals. After her, it will be a battle for pack runners to finish the job.
Barrington enjoyed an easy time at the First To The Finish Invitational two weekends ago when they scored 49 points. The Fillies put three girls in the top 10 and all five scorers among the top 25. Sophomore Mia Sirois and senior Scout Storms went 1-3 in that affair. If all things are fair, they will contend for an individual title. The Fillies produced a 17:54 three-mile average on Detweiller's fast turf. That could go well at Deer Grove Forest Preserve.
Prospect is a team still finding itself despite tremendous success over the past few years. The Knights have not run their full squad to date for various reasons. It appears they are ready to show their true cards, led by senior Veronica Znajda. Backing her up will be partner in crime junior Meg Peterson. Peterson is a top-five candidate on her best day. The Knights will need the back end of their pack to come through if they hope to finish among the titans.
There is one team capable of muddling the waters and creating chaos, and that is Lincoln, Oregon. Coached by Eric Dettman (legendary York distance runner), he has created a winning culture in a short period. The Cardinals are led by Ellery Lincoln (So), a 4:40 miler who was an integral part of the Nike Outdoor Nationals 4xmile championship. Lincoln comes from a great running stock; her parents are former elite runners Sara Schwald and Daniel Lincoln. Ellery has clocked 17:43 (5K) in her most recent competition. Her strong supporting cast includes Elyse Henriksen (Jr) and Sophia Malinoski (Sr). They all could finish inside the top 10.
Four girls have broken 17:00 since they lengthened the course to an official three miles almost a decade ago. It is possible that four or more, as well as the meet record of 16:53 by former Barrington ace Molly Fitzpatrick, could fall. The go-to picks are Sirois, Janowski, Lincoln, Storms, and Znajda. The pace will need to be fast but honest for that to happen.
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To date, and on paper, this could be the deepest boys field of the season. All things considered equal, of course.
There may be some coaches and athletes seething, waiting for this opportunity to prove they are for real.
Plainfield North and Plainfield South did not run their best two weekends ago at the FTTF Invite. North finished third behind a then-surprising Palatine Fremd squad by 60 points. The Tigers are expected to be at full strength on Saturday.
Plainfield South participated in that same invite in Peoria and placed 13th. The Cougars' top runner, senior Dylan Maloney, finished fifth but was missing several teammates. They should be ready to go on game day.
Fremd will be out to prove its lofty #2 ranking, which is based on the strengths of freshman Jack Jennings and senior Rory Gaan.
Barrington could be the maddest team in the lineup. The Fillies did not have a great day last weekend at the Richard Spring Invite in Peoria. They were expected to challenge York for the team title but instead fell to 10th despite senior Joe Bregenzer's nice second-place effort. The problem was that the fifth man, Ethan Scott (So), placed over a minute behind the second man and was 150th overall. If they can improve in this crucial spot, they will be a top-five threat.
York may run freshman star Patrick Hill on the varsity level if Coach Charlie Kern believes he can win the title, although he is in the entries for the freshman race as of Friday night. The Dukes are good enough to steal it without him. Last weekend, they were inches away from taking the team title with a 45-second scoring split. Senior Emmett Bradford will be among the leaders, so watch out for him.
Palatine, Edwardsville, and Lake Zurich are the top 10 teams threatening to destroy any parlays set against them.
The individual race will be interesting to watch. Ben Crane (Sr., New Trier) has been on a mission to break every meet record in sight. Though he has been victorious in his two major victories, the weather and actual three-mile course length have prohibited him from doing so. The great Josh Methner (Hersey) holds the record of 14:32. The opening mile pace back in 2018 was around 4:40. If he or anyone else can manage that, the record could fall. Brengenzer, Alexander Krieg (Jr., Palatine), Bradford, and another top freshman, Karanveer Patil of Lake Zurich.