Head Coach/assistant coaches: Jon Burnett / Anna Munie / Craig Munie

Last year's finish: Normal Sectional- 8th place

Key returners: Ben Lown (Sr), Jamison Gherardini (Sr), Miles Cintron (Sr), Will Thoman (Jr)

Outlook: This year's team will be a tighter pack than last year's, according to Coach Burnett. "We will need a tighter pack due to the loss of Brayden Kloeppel," he indicated. "We are hoping to close the gap on Edwardsville and return to the state meet as a team." In order for that to happen, the Panthers are going to need career seasons from the entire cast. Miles Cintron and Jamison Gherardini return as top runners. Burnett adds: "We have a solid mix of returning athletes who have varsity experience and new blood that is gaining experience. I am looking forward to seeing how this team progresses during the season."

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Joey Pacione/Samantha Garcia, David Haberman, Alberto Villa

Last year's finish: Lake Park Sectional- 11th place

Key returners: Rishab Kulkarni (Sr), Tim Dellaria (Jr), Michael Mazza (So), Brandon Arguello (Sr), Thomas Jalowiec, Lukas Svabas (Jr), Joshua Wittig (So)

Newcomers: Rahm Solano

Outlook: "Losing two individual state qualifiers means the team will have a different structure this year," said Coach Pacione. "Our top five will form a great pack, and our success will be determined by how far up that pack can be." The 19-second scoring split on the top five is what Pacione is alluding to. Rishab Kulkarni is slated to be the team's top runner this fall. "It is the best depth we've had in over a decade, so I am excited to see what the athletes can do."

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Brett Heimstead; Joe Stubenvoll, Don Proft

Last year's finish: Grant Regional- 7th place

Key returners: Brody Wiley (Jr), Tyler Koehl (So), David Ady (Sr), George Wurl (Jr), Marcus Schenk (Jr), Tommy Dunne (Jr), Cam Johnson (Jr), Jonah Stewart (So), Brayden Brickler (So)

Newcomers: Isaac Mills (Fr), Noah Valko (Sr)

Outlook: It was a disappointing finish to the 2025 season, as the Blue Devils did not advance past the regional round. "After a tough finish in the fall last year, the boys got back to work throughout the winter and had a solid track season," said Coach Heimstead. "We are entering the season with a lot of promise and a great summer base. We are looking to run fast late into the fall. We have a great team culture going. The goal is to get better each day."

Head Coach/coaches: Tim Brown/Dan Hemmens, Will deBolt

Last year's finish: Hinsdale Central Sectional- 8th place

Key returners: Shreyas Meyer (So), Charlie Minott (Sr), Edison Lin (Jr), Blake Pickering (Sr), Ethan Toms (Sr), Kevin Chen (Sr). 

Newcomers: Henry Minott (Sr) plans to run cross this fall.   Great track athlete, but has always played soccer.  First summer running with us and will easily be in our top 7! Two promising freshmen--Charlie Mayer and Miles LeFevour 5)

Outlook: The Huskies missed out on the state championship sweepstakes last year, but were able to get Shrey Meyer much-appreciated experience. He broke the freshman record (15:17) and is tabbed to be the top dog this fall.

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Kari Turcan/Gavin Dillehay

Last year's finish: Lake Park Sectional- 9th place

Key returners: Micah Lindsey (Jr), Adrian Benedetto (Sr), Jake Slowinski (Jr)

Newcomers: Caedmon Englekemier, Maddox Speidel, Christopher Perez

Outlook: This season will feel more like a rebuild according to Coach Turcan. "This team is one of our smallest in recent years, likely in part due to district redistricting, but the group we have brings a lot of potential and a strong desire to compete. We have our only sectional qualifier from last year, Micah Lindsey."

Assisting Lindsey will be Kaysen Parker and Jake Slowinski; they have put together strong summers and are ready to make the jump to the varsity level, while Caedmon Engelkemier, a track athlete running cross country for the first time, adds another potential varsity contributor.

Head Coach/assistant coaches: J. Ryan Thompsen/Jeff Connett, Mitch Gilbert

Last year's finish: Normal Community Sectional- 15th place

Key returners: Henry Eissing (Sr), Lukas Klauser (Sr), Matthew Lienhardt (Sr), Patrick Valcich (Jr), Nate Kwasneski (So), Connor Moran (So), Patrick Neiheisel (So), Benjamin Petroit (So)

Newcomers: Charlie Budz (Fr), Brady Slowik (Fr)

Outlook: Former longtime Plainfield South assistant coach Ryan Thompsen takes over for the legendary Tom Razo, who has retired. "I'm very excited to get this team into the rhythm of the regular season," said an elated Thompsen. "We've only had a handful of workouts, but this group has been coachable since Day 1 back in June." Look for a meticulous Ryan to bring ambitious but realistic goals to his team. "This season is about setting up the first draft of the blueprint for future Lockport cross country teams' success, while making the small tweaks through September and October to bring out the best performance in each athlete this season.

There is some talent in the cupboard with Patrick Valcich and Matt Lienhard, who ran under 15:50 last year. "This group has already been fun to work with, and the bonds that will carry us through the inevitable ups and downs of a season are getting stronger every week," says Thompsen. "At the end of the season, we will be able to say we competed at our best in November. I also have to mention the tremendous job Coach Connett has done in helping me transition into this role and in handling logistical tasks that have kept us on track. He's a great asset to our staff. Coach Gilbert has also provided valuable mentorship to the guys through his own extensive experience in training and racing." 

Head Coach/coaches: Ryan Hollister/Cindy Wagner, Jordan Lung

Last Year's Finish: Lake Park Sectional- 15th place

Key Returners: Hudson Cuplin (Jr), Logan Legge (Jr), Lucas Bailye (Sr), Nigel Gay (Sr), Lucas Pagan (Sr), Jaylen Person (So). 

Newcomers: Madden Legge, Hudson Legge, Alex Kiehl

Outlook: This year's team is shaping up to be one of our strongest squads in several seasons, with six of our top seven runners from last year returning and a deep group of experienced athletes pushing for varsity spots. Hudson Cuplin medaled at the Fox Valley Conference Championship last year and broke 16:00 along with Logan Legge and Lucas Bailye. With that experience, depth, and a tight, competitive pack, the Whip-purs have potential to compete for the conference championship and make a run at qualifying for the state meet. 

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Kevin Christian/Chris Keller, Michael Hanley, Tom Smith

Last year's finish: Palatine Regional- 7th place

Key returners: Gavin Glosson (Jr), Alex Taskov (Jr), Doyle Watson (Jr), Andrew Kroeger (Sr), Nathan Pierzchalski (Sr), Ben McMahon (Jr), Dane McCarthy (Sr)

Newcomers: Joey Flaskamp (So), Jack Soto (Sr, from soccer), Paul Tobijasieqicz (Fr), Killian Kilpatrick (Fr), August McDougall (Fr)

Outlook: The Golden Eagles just missed qualifying for sectionals last year with a young team, and now they have all their scoring runners back. They put in a huge summer of running and are expecting to compete at the top of the FVC. Gavin Glosson looks to be a legit #1 runner on the team, followed closely by Alex Taskov. We need to see whether this group will be between 15:15 and 15:30 or between 15:45 and 16:15. If it's the former, they will be extremely competitive, even after not qualifying for sectionals last year.

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Tony Rizzo, John Gibbs, Mike Ramirez

Last year's finish: Waubonsie Valley Regional- 8th place

Key returners: Nate McGinnis (Sr), Ethan Jenkins (So), Julian Flores (Sr), Benjamin Harvey (Sr), Kevin Carrera (So)

Newcomers: Finn McMackin, Jaxson Neukirch

Outlook: "This summer has been good in the sense that we were together training and putting in real work," said coach Tony Rizzo. "While we do not yet have an established top 7, we feel this year's team will be competitive and hopefully surprise some at the end of the season."

Key returners: Achyuth Randeep (Sr), Evann O'Neil (Sr), Shawn Chen (So), Will Stevenson (Jr), Ryan Wu (Sr), Ben Lenciauskas (Jr), Mika Lam (Sr), Ryan Heap (Jr)

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Peter Raak/Ben Jeffrey, Tom Robertson

Last year's finish: Geneva Regional- 10th place

Key returners: Connor McInerney (Jr), Liam Dwyer (Jr), Griffin Poterek (Jr), Gabriel Ochsenschlager (Jr), Kurt Borter (Jr), Dylan Edling (Jr).

Newcomers: Cameron Schmidt (Jr), Jacob Calvario (Fr), and Johnny Lando (Fr)

Outlook: This year's team will be a nice mix of juniors who have progressed over the years, along with some newcomers who should have an immediate impact. The boys have been extremely focused and motivated this summer, with their sights set on big things and fast times this fall.  This focus has been a marked improvement, and it will be exciting to see how it translates to races this fall.  It will be equally exciting to see how the newcomers add to the mix. It will take some time to figure everything out, but it will be exciting once all the pieces are together and in place.   

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Kyle Nugent/Kurt Frazier 

Last year's finish: State Championship- 22nd place

Key returners: Sam Roser (Sr), Nathan Ho (Sr), Cole Mocko (Jr), Judah Cabral (Sr)

Newcomers: Austin Check, Dean Plahetka, Ely Tedford, Eli Hermsen

Outlook: "We return four runners from our state qualifying team from last year, and that group brings leadership and experience that will help our team in October and November." The goal is always to be competitive within our conference and be healthy when it matters most.

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Matt Kaplan/Jason Monson, Brandy Swanson, Jimmy Jestus

Last year's finish: State Championship- 26th place

Key returners: Joseph Sittler (So), Joseph Zawacki (So), Mark Omoniyi (Jr), Brandon Thompson (Sr), James Hennessey (Jr). Outlook: "Our boys team is coming off qualifying for the 3A state meet as a team and returning six of our top eight runners from last season," said Coach Kaplan. "This gives our team a great core group to work with going into another season." 

Joseph Sittler and Joey Zawacki will be looked to lead the team up front, having both posted great marks in their freshman year. Mark Omoniyi will be expected to push up into our top three consistently to help the team score. Overall, this group has good experience from last season but will need to work hard if they want to return to the state meet this fall.

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Max Crowninshield/Jaclyn Borrowman, Caleb Hernandez, Rachel Schoenecker

Last year's finish: Lake Park Sectional- 17th place

Key returners: Matthew Richlen (12), Charles Iain Blair (12), Ignas Petrus (12), Cesar Garcia-Soto (12), Diego Magallanes (12), Nathan Garino (12), Benjamin Smaroff (12), Thomas Becker (10), Jasper Ross (10), Reuben Swenson (11)

Newcomers: Alejandro Loza (9)

Outlook: "This year will be a turning point for our program," Said Coach Crowninshield. "With so many seniors who have a bunch of varsity racing experience, I think we can really outshine what we did over the last two seasons. These guys have really bought into the program and are super tight-knit, which I believe is always a recipe for overachieving."

"I think that we have a handful of guys who are really ready for some big performances at the end-of-season meets this year, and we could surprise some people. Finally, we have two sophomores who have really shown potential this spring and summer. These two will push the senior group and could make some massive gains compared to last year."

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Joe Sullivan

Last year's finish: Lake Park Sectional 10th place

Key returners: Naode Abreha (Jr), Natnal Tekle (Jr), Muhsin Ali (Sr), Abdirahman Mahad (Jr), Saimon Kahsay (Jr), Daniel Rosales (Sr), Fanuiel Kahsay (Jr).

Outlook: After qualifying for State in the 4x800 in the spring, the boys want to make it to Detweiller as a team in November. This group has come a long way in the last year in gaining experience and maturity. But they still have a long way to go to be a competitive team in 3A. The main objective is to continue to improve one day at a time.

Noade Abreha enjoyed a tremendous track season, followed by a fast early start at Detweiller at Dark (14:59). His teammate Nati Tekle is expected to be close behind, forming a strong 1-2 punch.

Muhsin Ali, Abdirahman Mahad, and Saimon Kahsay should fill out the scoring five. Daniel Rosales and Fanuiel Kahsay will provide senior leadership. Depth will be an issue at the back end of the scoring pack. Adds Coach Sullivan: "If we can continue to stay together as a group and put in good training, I will be excited about what we can do in October and November."

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Laura McClelland/Matt McClelland and Ryan Kappner

Last year's finish: Normal Community Sectional- 12th place

Key returners: Charles Ray (Jr), Blake Anders (Jr), Owen Triplett (Jr), Clayton McClelland (Jr), Eli Poe (Jr)  

Newcomers: Hudson Haulk (Fr), Joel McClelland (Fr), Declan Teirney (Fr)

Outlook: The coaching staff is excited to cash in the summer dividends, but they know there will be some growing pains along the way. "We are still younger on the boys' side with no seniors," said Coach Laura McClelland. "But this group of juniors are ready and have been positive leaders over this summer." 

Head Coach/coaches: Kevin Gummerson/Matthew Clark, Leslie Hencinski, Jessica Hopkins, Dan Schalk, Matt Thomas, Ashley Tutt

Last year's finish: Normal Sectional- 9th place

Key returners: Ryan Resar (Jr), Nathan Janulis (Sr), Cayson Traxler (Sr), Joshua Reece (Sr), Samuel Kies (Jr), Jackson Joachim (So), Carter Zemaitis (Jr), Gavin Ziech (Jr), Jordi Caballero (Sr)

Newcomers: Lucas Houlihan transferred to Minooka last winter from Joliet West and is expected to make an impact on this team.

Outlook: "I am really excited to see what this team can do this fall," stated Coach Clark. "It has been a few years since we have toed the line as a team at Detweiller Park in November. This group wants to do just that. Over the summer, I always look for a group of athletes who are willing to do the things needed to earn a spot on the line."

This group, led by Ryan Resar, has done their homework as far as that goes. The next step is to go out there and get that work to transfer successfully on the course. Graduation losses have hit hard, but the excitement of this next group has been fun to see from Coach Gummerson's perspective. 

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Doug Cherry / Mike Heilman

Last year's finish: LWC Regional- 8th place

Key returners: Nathaniel Gabriel (Sr), Emmanuel Ramos (Sr), Kevin Quintero (Jr), Valentin Conejo (So), Jose Perez (So)

Outlook: "We should have improved depth with athletes that gained valuable experience last fall," said. "We aim to improve on last year and extend our season beyond the regional level."

Head Coach/coaches: Brad Donaldson/Luis Eugenio 

Last year's finish: St. Charles East Regional- 11th place

Key returners: Nathan Gundersen (Sr.), Breyden Massett (So.)

Newcomers: Alexis Vargas (fr)

Outlook by coach Cherry: "I'm really excited for this team. We have a couple of established runners with strong varsity experience who are hoping to qualify for the state meet. We also have a strong group of about five guys who have been working really hard since their freshman year and have made tremendous improvements. As they come together, it will give us some of the depth that we've been looking for for the last few years, and we'll be a lot more competitive in October and November."

Head Coach: Jarrin Williams

Last year's finish: Plainfield Central Regional- 9th place

Key returners: Elliot Batz (Sr), Nolan Jared (Jr), Steven Hernandez (Jr), Traeten Holtam (Jr), Judah Kargl (Sr), Xavier Guldenzopf (Sr), Soren Hoffeditz (So).

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Mickhale Lamba / Darren Bell

Last year's finish: State Championship - 18th place

Key returners: Knox Winn (Jr.), Gus Berlinghof (Sr.), John Falciglia (Sr.), Luis Urquiza (Sr.), Steven Jiang (Sr.), James Barrios (Jr.), Zachary Wong (Sr.), Christopher Baron (So.)

Newcomers: Alex Lynch (Fr.)

Outlook: "We lose two of the most decorated runners in Payton history (Declan Slavin and Tra'Monti Williams), but the next group of guys is up to the challenge to fill the void," said Coach Lamba. "This will be our second year competing in 3A, and we return four of our top seven from last year's state roster, all of whom can run well under 16:00 this fall, and our top guys under 15:00.

Steven Jiang returns after missing the 2025 season. If he can pick up from his 15:03 output from '24, then the Grizzlies will be in good company. Additionally, this is a team with a lot of depth, coming off strong track seasons, and putting in the miles over the summer. "As the new head coach, I feel some pressure continuing the legacy of Payton teams before, but I'm confident this group will get us to where we want to be."

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Brian Caldwell/Mike Kirk, Greg Malone,y Sean Senf

Last year's finish: State Championship- 17th place

Key returners: Conrad Saner (Sr), Jakub Kranz (Jr), Henry Baker (Jr), Jack Begler (Jr), Thomas O'Connor (Sr), Henry Pearson (Sr), Michael Golminas (Sr), Trevor Dreyer (Sr), Loren Hirthe (Jr), Aditya Kota (Sr), Dexter Jones (So), Anthony Hernandez

Newcomers: Sam Axelson, Will Caldwell, River Ebert, Oscar Larsen, Travis Mayer, Ethan Smith

Coach Caldwell's outlook: "We find ourselves in a similar position to most years. We've lost some talented seniors, and our level of success will be predicated on how many guys this season are able to make the 'jump' to legitimate varsity runners. From a culture standpoint, things couldn't be going a whole lot better.

The guys are showing up consistently, putting in the miles, and coming together as a team. It's been a truly exciting summer for the program, especially building off a solid track season. We are fortunate to have a low point scorer at the front of races for us in Conrad Saner, who, even after an injury hiccup at the end of track, has looked terrific this summer. After that, we have the classic DGS situation of a whole lot of guys with the potential to be varsity scorers for us.

Jakub Kranz has steadily improved year after year, and the junior should be ready to compete up front in races. Fellow Henry Baker has had a great summer of training after a solid track campaign and should be in the mix. We also have a trio of guys returning from injuries, all looking stronger than ever, who will certainly play a role in our success.

Jack Begler, Thomas O'Connor, and Trevor Dreyer all suffered injuries either during or at the end of Cross Country last year but are now 100% healthy and ready to go.

Michael Golminas kept steadily improving throughout the track season and has looked very strong this summer as well. We also add what is likely our strongest incoming freshman class ever. Several of these guys could make the state series roster, but are likely a year away from becoming major varsity contributors.

The one wild card we have is newcomer Sam Axelson. Sam is a senior who had a monster track season. He split 1:53 on back-to-back days at state in the 4 x 800 and ran a smooth, major negative split 4:27 in his only 1600 outdoor. Some of his aerobic efforts throughout the Track season suggest he could make a huge impact this fall. We plan to bring him along gradually, but believe he has the potential to be a low scorer in big meets come October and November.

As a team, we're hoping to make a return trip to state and improve upon our finish from last season. Additionally, we've gone two years without winning a WSC-Gold title after over a decade as conference champions, so it is certainly a goal to win in a conference that has quietly gotten better and better over the last several years. 

Head Coach/assistant coaches: Chris Korabik, Heraldo Morrison, David Cooke, Aaron Harris, Tony Sacco

Last year's finish: Chicago Lane Regional- 7th place

Key returners: Alrik Swan (So), Charlie Maida (Sr), Brendan Houlihan (Sr), Joseph Horos (So), Devlin Burns (Jr), Michael Gaffey (Sr), JP Hlavin.

Newcomers: Julien Duque, Ari Thompkins, Jonathan Farkasch, Jamo McCusker, Clark Holland, Dylan Wood, Jack Sheaffer. Coach Korabik's thoughts: We're returning some studs at the top who have had great summers and look to compete with the best in 3A.

Our 5-6-7 is really up in the air right now, as we have a loaded freshman class joining an already deep sophomore group. I wouldn't be surprised to see any of the newcomers listed above contributing at the Varsity level this season.

Charlie Maida is our guy right now; he missed all of last cross country season with an injury but came back to drop 4:22 and 9:30 in track off of a lot of cross-training. Definitely look to him and Alrik Swan to be up in the front of the pack.