IHSA Class 3A Regional Highlights

October 22, 2023

 

By Michael Newman

 

Alton Regional @ Alton HS

Qualifiers advance to the Granite City Sectional

Girls Race - #11 Edwardsville led by the fifth-place finish from Madison Popelar captured the girls Regional title scoring 49 points. Normal West was the closest team to the Tigers scoring 60 points to finish second. It was a city of Normal meeting in the front of this race as Julie Bach of Normal West ran 18:28 to win the individual title with teammate Renee Warren finishing second (18:34) with Ali Ince of Normal Community running 18:38 to finish third. Ellie Bush of O’Fallon ran 18:48 to finish fourth.

 

Edwardsville placed 5 runners in the top 13 with a 63 seconds on the five including Popelar, Emma Patrick (8th), Olivia Coll (11th), Ella Thompson (12th), and Antonella DeAvila (13th). #23 O’Fallon scored 83 points to finish ahead of team qualifiers Normal Community (112 points), Springfield (139 points), and Quincy (150 points).

 

Boys Race - For the second meet in a row, #4 O’Fallon put up a perfect 15 points to win the Boys Regional title. Dylan Ybarra led O’Fallon running 15:13 to win by six seconds ahead of teammate Zach Thoman (15:19). The Panthers had a 39 seconds on their top five that also included Eli Greenstreet, Brayden Kloeppel, and Harrison Schroeder.

 

#28 Edwardsville finished second with 54 points led by top 10 finishers from Jackson Amick (7th), and Gavin Rodgers (9th). Other team qualifiers included Normal Community (130 points), Normal West (130 points), Quincy (164 points), and Springfield (195 points). Granite City missed advancing to their home sectional by seven points finishing seventh.

 

Andrew Regional @ Tinley Park Community Park

Qualifiers advance to the Granite City Sectional

Girls Race - It was a close team race in this regional as #9 Minooka edged #18 Lincoln-Way Central 45-57 for the regional team title. #26 Lincoln-Way East scored 64 points to finish third. Central’s Brea Counihan was the individual champion with a 18:24 time. Minooka placed three runners in the top five as Maya Ledesma ran 18:39 to finish second ahead of Madeline Mellin of Bradley-Bourbonnais (18:49), then followed by Minooka’s Taya Gummerson (18:55) and Natalie Nahs (19:01). Minooka placed 5 runners in the top 20 with Liana Blount (14th) and Paige Joachim (20th) closing the gap. The top five split for the Indians was 70 seconds.

 

The race for Lincoln-Way Central might have been their best to this point of the season. The Knights placed 5 runners in the top 17 with Mia Forystek (8), Nadia Bowden (9), Ava Dughetti (12), and Claire Carter (17) separated by 33 seconds behind Counihan. The team’s top five split was 83 seconds. Lincoln-Way East was led by finishes from Maura Hanrahan (7th) and Katie O’Brien (10th). Lockport Township finished fourth with 93 points, followed by Bradley-Bourbonnais (172 points), and Lincoln-Way West (177 points) were the other sectional qualifiers.

 

Boys Race - Lincoln-Way Central edged district rival #29 Lincoln-Way East 64-71 with Minooka scoring 83 points to finish third. Jeremiah Lanum of Bradley-Bourbonnais ran 15:21 to win the individual title with Habtamu Epley of Homewood-Flossmoor finishing second (15:25). Michael O’Brien led Lincoln-Way East finishing third (15:39). The Griffins placed 5 runners in the top 17 in this race. Their split on that group was 42 seconds. Evan Jensen led Lincoln-Way Central by finishing fourth (15:41). The Knights in this race placed three runners in the top eight, five runners in the top in the top 32. The split on their first four runners was 35 seconds. The overall split for Central was 68 seconds.

 

Lockport Township (102 points), Bradley-Bourbonnais (136 points), and Andrew (142 points) were the other sectional qualifiers. Lincoln-Way West finished seventh (148 points) missing qualifying for sectionals by six points.

 

Grant Community Regional @ Bulldog Athletic Complex, Ingleside

Qualifiers advance to the Hoffman Estates Sectional

Girls Race - #3 Barrington was in total command of the team race placing 5 runners in the top 9 to win the Regional title with 27 points. Scout Storms of Barrington bounced back from last week’s second-place league finish by running 17:33 to win the regional title. Danielle Jensen of McHenry was 19 seconds behind running 17:52 to finish second. Anna Lester of Vernin Hills (18:01), Mia Sirois of Barrington (18:04), and Kaylee Wilson of Warren Township (18:10) rounded out the top five runners.

 

Storms and Sirois top five finishes helped the Fillies with an easy win in this race. Sabrina Roach (6th), Abby Lewis (7th), and Kaleigh Burns (9th) were part of a 2-5 pack that had a 47 second split. #22 Warren Township scored 85 points to finish second followed by other sectional qualifiers Deerfield (102 points), Libertyville (118 points), Vernon Hills (123 points), and Zion-Benton (157 points).

 

Boys Race - Barrington held out some of their top runners including MSL champion Joe Bregenzer. It opened the door for #23 Deerfield as the Warriors scored 47 points for the Regional title ahead of #5 Barrington (75 points) and Vernon Hills (89 points). Libertyville (115 points), Grant Community (140 points), and McHenry (141 points) were the other team sectional qualifiers.

 

It was a close individual as Charles Blackmer of Vernon Hills ran 15:37 to edge Jameson Tenopir of Cary-Grove by one seconds (15:38) to win the individual crown. Ethan Scott of Barrington (15:51), Nick Schmitz of McHenry, and Michael Chudy of Libertyville (both ran 15:54) rounded out the top five runners. Deerfield placed 5 runners in the top 13 with only a 12 second split led by top 10 finishes from Dylan Cohen (6th), Jamie Chandler (8th), and Dane Brown (9th).

 

Hampshire Regional @ Hampshire HS

Qualifiers advance to the Lake Park Sectional

Girls Race - #14 Huntley led by the individual win from freshman Haley Rahman led from the start on their way to scoring 34 points to finish ahead of Hampshire (58 points) and Rockton Hononegah (65 points). Rahman’s winning time of 18:58 was six seconds ahead of Hononegah’s Kylie Simpson (19:04) and Allyson Niedfeldt (19:08). Madison Harmsen of Rockford Guilford was fourth (19:10) ahead of Hudson Szymonik of Hampshire (19:12). DeKalb with 121 points, Machesney Park Harlem with 157 points, and Rockford Guilford with 168 points finished fourth through sixth qualifying for next week’s Lake Park Sectional.

 

Huntley dominated the team portion of this race placing 5 runners in the top 11 with a 65 second split on the group. Ava Allison (6th), Cori Klivinger (7th), Morgan Sauber (9th), and Aspen Maldonado (11th) were separated by 48 seconds.

 

Boys Race – Rockford Guilford backed by a 4-5 finish from Brandon Lawson and Landon Bachta edged Rockton Hononegah 68-75 to the team title. Huntley, led by Tommy Nitz’s individual win, advanced to the Lake Park Sectional scoring 92 points finishing third. DeKalb (113 points) and Machesney Park Harlem (118 points) placed fourth and fifth. Hampshire and South Elgin both scored 132 points tying for sixth-place.

 

Nitz pulled away to run 15:28 to claim the regional championship ahead of Cole Tupper of Elgin (15:36) and Jacob Barraza of DeKalb (15:52). Guilford placed 5 runners in the top 25 behind Lawson (15:57) and Bachta (16:11) in the top five. Their overall split was 73 seconds.

 

Loyola Academy Regional @ Loyola-Munz Campus Course, Glenview

Qualifiers advance to the Hoffman Estates Sectional

Girls Race - #2 Prospect did nor race their full lineup in this meet resting Meg Petersen, Sophie Fransen, and Ireland Wildhart. The Knights still prevailed in this meet scoring 37 points in winning the regional title ahead of New Trier (82 points). Maria Polyakov of Glenbrook North ran 18:20 for the regional win 15 seconds ahead of Kaitlyn Burns of Glenbrook South (18:35). Prospect placed 5 runners in the top 15 led by the 3-4-5 finish from Kaitlin Skelton, Lily Ginsberg, and Veronica Znajda who all finished within a second of each other. Bridget Derengowski (11th) and Ella Benassi (15th) were the team’s fourth and fifth runners. New Trier was led by the 8-10 finish from Hannah Falk (8th) and Josie Cahill (10th).

 

Other team sectional qualifiers included Loyola Academy scoring 107 points to finish third followed by Glenbrook North (137 points), Highland Park (143 points), and Stevenson (146 points). Elk Grove missed advancing to sectionals by six points.

 

Boys Race - #7 New Trier had their intact top seven runners on the line and ran strong to get the regional win. The Trevians placed 5 runners in the top 15 to win the team championship with  39 points. #20 Highland Park finished second (60 points) ahead of third-place #25 Prospect (95 points). Ben Crane led New Trier by running 15:13 to win by 12 seconds ahead of Highland Park’s Nate Wehner (15:25) and Brian Hatoum (15:30). Felix Hekster (6), Atticus Miller (7), and Walter Garrett (10) finished in the top 10 separated by nine seconds. Their fifth runner Jordan Kreiner finished 15. The Trevians had a 5 runner split of 68 seconds and a split between Hekster and Kreiner of 23 seconds. Highland Park had 3 runners in the top 10, 5 runners in the top 28.

 

Stevenson finished fourth (109 points) with Glenbrook North (142 points) and Glenbrook South (169) finished fifth and sixth. All three teams will race next week at the sectionals. Wheeling missed qualifying by seven points.

 

Lyons Township Regional @ Lyons Township South Campus Course, Western Springs

Qualifiers advance to the Hinsdale Central Sectional

Girls Race - #4 Downers Grove North rested their top runner Lily Eddington in this meet. The Trojans still scored 25 points to win the regional championship placing 5 runners in the top 10 including bringing the first three runners across the line. Sarah Paul ran 18:57 for the win with teammates Ava Gilley (19:00) and Alayna Todnem (19:01) finishing within four seconds of their teammate. Sydney Hnatiuk and Hannah Renner finished ninth and tenth giving the Trojans a 49 second top five split. Amelie Ojeda of Willowbrook ran 19:07 to finish fourth.

 

#15 Lyons Township finished second (44 points) behind the 6-7-8 finish of Anna Bylsma, Lauren Bohringer, and Julianne Melby. #19 Hinsdale Central scored 63 points to finish third led by Pola Dygon finishing fifth. Willowbrook (130 points), Riverside-Brookfield (150 points), and Reavis (178 points) to also qualify for the sectional meet.

 

Boys Race - #1 Downers Grove North tuned up for next week’s sectional meet placing 6 runners in the top 9 scoring 21 points for the team title. Their top five split in this race was just 26 seconds. Phillip Cupial, who was the team’s top runner last week at the WSC-Silver Championships, ran with Ryan Eddington throughout the race with Cupial winning. Both were timed in 15:43. Grant Schroder (5th), Zach Bender (6th), and Will Surratt (7th) completed the team’s top five pack. Aden Bandukwala of Hinsdale Central and Cooper Marrs of Riverside-Brookfield were both timed at 15:49 to finish third and fourth.

 

#15 Riverside-Brookfield led by top 10 finishes from Marrs and Jack O’Brien (8th) scored 57 points to finish second. #6 Lyons Township did not run with top runners Nick Strayer and Cillian Henning but still finished third with 72 points led by the 10-11 finish by Ben Wuggazer and Tate Pavelka. #18 Hinsdale Central (87 points), Berwyn-Cicero Morton (143 points), and Reavis (171 points) were the other sectional qualifiers.

 

Marist Regional @ Midlothian Meadows, Midlothian

Qualifiers advance to the Hinsdale Central Sectional

Girls Race - #10 Sandburg did not race their top runner Lindsey Gerhardstein in this regional race. The Eagles still won the team title with 34 points having 3 runners in the top 4 places. Katie Roche led Sandburg running 18:33 for the regional title with teammate Ava Giblin finishing second (18:46). Abbey McClorey of Maris finished third (18:55) followed by Sandburg’s Lily Molloy (19:01) and Emily Mangin of Mother McAuley (19:05). Other sectional qualifiers were led by Mother McAuley scoring 59 points to finish second. Marist was third (84 points) ahead of Jones College Prep (89 points), AA Stagg (119 points), and Whitney Young (144 points).

 

Boys Race - #19 Sandburg finished in four of the first six places to win the team title with 26 points. Grant Giblin ran 15:16 to win the individual race. His teammates Luke Atzman (3rd), Mateo Ramiro-Garcia (4th), Brayden Gaffud (6th), and Jack Easterhouse (12th). Sandburg had a top 5 split of 67 seconds in this race. Jones Prep, led by top 10 finishes from Sam Berlinghof (2) and Spencer Dixon (9), finished second with 89 points. Whitney Young (102 points), AA Stagg (106 points), HL Richards (121 points), and Marist (144 points) were the other sectional qualifiers.

 

Naperville North Regional @ North HS Campus Course, Naperville

Qualifiers advance to the Hinsdale Central

Girls Race - #5 Naperville North placed all of their runners in the top 12 to easily win the team title with 29 points finishing ahead of #7 Naperville Central (68 points), #30 Metea Valley (84 points), and #29 Downers Grove South (139 points). Waubonsie Valley (155 points) and Oswego (159 points) were the other team qualifiers. #24 Neuqua Valley, without their top runner Elizabeth Hall for the second week in a row due to an injury, finished seventh failing to advance to next week’s sectional.

 

Liv Phillips of Naperville Central and Julie Piot of Naperville North broke away from the rest of the field once they left the stadium portion of the course just after the first mile of the race. Phillips pulled away from Piot during the second mile to clinch the regional win. Phillips ran a fast 17:17 on this 3-mile course with Piot second (17:31). There was almost a one minute gap before Holly Johnson of Downers Grove South ran 18:43 to finish third ahead of Rianna Tandon of Naperville North (18:49) and Mia Bertolini of Waubonsie Valley (18:50).

 

Naperville North had a 25 second split behind Rianna Tandon. Emma Berres (6th), Shania Tandon (7th), and Anika Lovisa (10th). Naperville Central placed 3 runners in the top 10 led by Phillips and then Lola Satre-Morales and Abby Mogg finishing eighth and ninth.

 

Boys Race - Zac Close of Neuqua Valley took the lead with 100-meters left in the race to win the individual race (15:10) by one second ahead of Josh Poeschel of Downers Grove South.  Close opened a 10-20 meter lead on Poeschel as the two runners left the stadium just past the first mile. Poeschel closed the gap and took the lead with a mile left in the race. Close narrowed the gap to 10 meters as the two entered the stadium. Tyler Browning of Naperville Central ran 15:20 to finish third ahead of Sean Heetland of Aurora West (15:31) and Ammar Bhanpuri of Naperville North (15:34).

 

It was close in deciding the team champion. #11 Neuqua Valley placed 3 runners in the top 8 to help the Wildcats with 56 points. #16 Naperville Central scored 66 points to finish second. #26 Aurora West (83 points), #27 Downers Grove South (118 points), Naperville North (120 points), and Metea Valley (138 points) also advanced to next week’s sectional meet. This is the first time that Metea Valley has advanced to the sectional meet as a team.

 

Neuqua Valley placed 5 runners in the top 36 that had an 85 second split on the group. Close was followed by Robert Glenn (6th), Anthony Pastore (8th), Tony Hinderliter (14th), and Jacob Lane (36th).

Naperville Central placed 5 runners in the top 20 with their second and fifth runners behind Browning separated by just 10 seconds. Patrick Clune finished 12th to lead the pack followed by Nick Kamp (13th), Max Henige (18th), and Manuel Najera (20th). Their overall split was 45 seconds.

Note: Kevin Dorsey contributed to this recap.

 

Oak Park-River Forest Regional @ Schiller Woods, Chicago

Qualifiers advance to the Lake Park Sectional

Girls Race - There was no question that #1 York would win this regional race. It was the depth of this team that once again was demonstrated. Last week, it was Michaela and Maggie Quinn that finished 1-2 for the Dukes at the WSC-Silver Championships. This week it was the fifth runner Maggie Owens that stepped up. Owens broke away from the field just after the first mile of the race. Owens went on to win the first high school race of her career in a time of 17:25. York placed 5 runners in the first six places to win scoring only 17 second. All seven of their runners in the race finished in the top 12. Anna McGrail (17:37) and Katherine Klimek (17:39) finished second and third. Katherine Stabb of Oak Park-River Forest broke the pack up running 17:41 to finish fourth. Michaela Quinn (17:42) and Maggie Quinn (17:49) finished fifth and sixth. York’s top 5 split was just 24 seconds.

 

#25 Glenbard West finished second (86 points led by the 13 place finish from McKenzie Gilbert. The Hilltoppers had a 41 second split on their top five runners. #29 Maine South finished third (90 points) behind finishes from Olivia DeLuca (11th) and Sofia DeLuca (13th). Oak Park-River Forest (94 points), Lane Tech (146 points), and Evanston Township (147 points) were the other three sectional qualifiers.

 

Boys Race – Mohamed Abdulahi of Mather made it two wins in the last two meets. He won the Chicago City Championships last week. On Saturday, Abdullahi pulled away from Owynn Garrelts of Maine South in the final mile to win the regional title with a 14:48 time. Garrelts ran 14:55 to finish second. Hirsi Hirsi of Mather (15:13), Zach Saltiel of York (15:15), and Nathaniel McKillop of Fenwick (15:17) were all part of top five finishes.

 

#8 Oak Park-River Forest used the first two miles in a temp run pace, then charged in the final mile to help them win the regional title with 60 points. Their first four runners were separated by 14 seconds with Daniel Johnson (6th), Lewis O’Connor (7th), Liam O’Connor (8th), and Andrew Harmon (11th) were part of that pack. The team had a 35 second split on their top 5 with Micael Michelotti (28th) the team’s fifth runner. #24 York continues to improve as they finished second with 86 points. Saltiel finishing fourth helped. Also, their top three split of 16 seconds with Saltiel and then Sam Kehoe (9th), and Max Zangan (12th). Emmett Bradford (26) and last minute replacement Ryker Harges (35) were the team’s fourth and fifth runners that had a 49 second top 5 split. The next three teams were separated by six points with Mather (114 points), Glenbard West (115 points), and #14 Lane Tech (120 points) finished third through fifth. Lane Tech’s top runner Will Kozlowski was ill and did not run on Saturday. Maine South edged Evanston 142-144 for the final sectional qualifying spot.

 

Palatine Regional @ Deer Grove East Forest Preserve, Palatine

Qualifiers advance to the Hoffman Estates Sectional

Girls Race – There was no surprise up front in this race. #6 Hersey finished in the top three places and 5 runners in the top 11 to win the team title with just 24 points. Margaretha Grabske led the Huskies running 17:55 to claim the individual title ahead of teammates Alexa Izenstark (18:13) and Elizabeth Waltz (18:16). Abigail Jordan of Palatine finished fourth (18:28) ahead of Maya Zabiegly of Hoffman Estates (18:34). Madeline Bialko (8) and Sofia Donner (11) were also a part of the top 5.

 

#21 Lake Zurich finished second (93 points) led by the sixth-place finish from Celia Blaylock. Palatine finished third (95 points) ahead of other team qualifiers Schaumburg (116 points), Fremd (142 points), and Hoffman Estates (143 points). Jacobs finished seventh missing qualifying by five points.

 

Boys Race - #10 Hersey had their first three runners within 18 seconds of each other to help the Huskies win the team title with 51 points. #13 Fremd scored 65 points to finish second. #17 Palatine scored 72 points to finish ahead of Jacobs (93 points), Conant (103 points), and Lake Zurich (140 points).

 

Rory Gaan of Fremd ran 15:06 to claim the win with Zach Frayder of Hersey second (15:10). Max Sudrzynski of Jacobs (15:11), Alex Krieg of Palatine (15:14), and Liam Naughton of Hersey (15:17) finished in the top five. The return of Naughton in the top five on Saturday gave the Huskies a boost. Hersey ran 5 runners in the top 21 without top five runner AJ Svienty in this race. Rob Geissenberger (8), Mateus Salomao (15), and Jon Choi (21) were part of Hersey’s top five that ran a 60 second split.

 

Plainfield Central Regional @ Plainfield Central HS

Qualifiers advance to the Granite City Sectional

Girls Race - The team finish was close. The individual winner was unexpected. Tessa Russo was Plainfield North’s second runner finishing sixth overall in last week’s Southwest Prairie Conference meet on October 13. Russo came away with the regional win (18:03) by seven seconds ahead of SPC Champion Morgan Dick of Oswego East (18:10). Plainfield North’s Elsie Czarniewski finished third (18:18) ahead of Sophia Keeler of Yorkville (18:19) and Morgan Coker of Pekin (18:27).

 

One point separated the top three teams in the standings. #8 Yorkville claimed the title with 55 points. #17 Oswego East and #13 Plainfield North both scored 56 points finishing second and third.  Yorkville placed 5 runners in the top 18 led by Keeler and followed by Ashley Schraeder (7), Annabelle Reeder (11), Liliana Camargo (17), and Mia Evans (18). Their top 5 split was 67 seconds. Morgan Dick’s second-place finish for Oswego was followed by Macy Dick (8), Olivia Van Denend (12), Emma Berglund (16), and Josslyn Gaona (20). Their top 5 split was 84 seconds. Plainfield North had the top 5 finishes from Russo and Elsie Czarniewski. Marlie Czarniewski was the team’s third runner (6) followed by Keely Williams (23) and Kaitlyn Ward (25). Pekin (145 points), Rock Island (182 points), and Joliet West (184 points) were the final three qualifying teams. Plainfield Central finished seventh missing the sectional trip by four points.

 

Boys Race – There was not that much suspense in the race featuring top three teams #2 Plainfield South and #3 Plainfield North. Plainfield South did not run Dylan Maloney, Camyn Viger, and Riley Fink resting them for next week’s sectional race. It opened the door for Plainfield North as they placed 5 runners in the top 12 including the top three places to score 27 points for the win. Thomas Czerwinski ran 15:01 for the individual win with teammates Owen Stahl (15:15) and Aidan Connors (15:35 finishing second and third. Oswego East (81 points) and #21 Yorkville (87 points) finished second and third. Plainfield South (90 points) finished fourth ahead of Plainfield Central (137 points) and Joliet Central (157 points).

 

St. Charles East Regional @ Northwestern Medicine XC Course, Geneva

Qualifiers advance to the Lake Park Sectional

Girls Race – It was a two runner race for the individual regional tile on Saturday between Nicole Poglitsch of Wheaton-Warrenville South and Sofia Borter of Geneva. It was just Poglitsch and her thoughts in the final mile of this race. The Wheaton junior pulled away to win her second race as in many weeks with a 17:47 time. Poglitsch won by 26 seconds ahead of Borter (18:13).

 

#12 Wheaton North had the edge in the team race scoring 50 points for the team title with 5 runners in the top 20 led by the 3-4 finish from Maddie Romaine (18:35) and Emily Offutt (18:36 along with June Rectenwald finishing seventh (19:22). #20 Batavia finished second (64 points) running a 13 second split on their top five led by Claire Deppe finishing ninth. #16 Wheaton-Warrenville South finished third (89 points) followed by St. Charles North (110 points), St. Charles East (133 points), and Geneva (161 points). Lake Park missed qualifying for their home sectional by one point.

 

Boys Race – 3 runners in the top 4 led by the individual win from Josiah Narayanan helped #12 Wheaton-Warrenville South win the team title with 38 points. Narayanan ran 15:14 to win the race with teammate Aiden Noel finishing second (15:20). Angelo Ruggio (4), Samuel Purdue (14), and Jayden Bauer (17) gave the team a 72 second split. Aidan Murphy finished third to help #22 Wheaton North finish second (63 points). #30 Batavia scored (86 points) to finish third ahead of #9 St. Charles East (90 points). The Saints did not have a full lineup in this meet including DuKane conference winner Jedidiah Wilson. Geneva (150 points) and St. Charles North (173 points) were the other team qualifiers.