A year after Lincoln-Way North earned its first trip to the boys state cross country meet, the Phoenix have one last chance to get back to Peoria.
“We want to make the best of the opportunity we have left at North,” senior Demetri Panici said. “It’s hard thinking that the school is going to close. I think the entire school, as well as the team, want to make it the best year possible.”
North is among the top boys teams in the Southland. The Phoenix were sixth in a close group at the 20-team Minooka Flight Invitational last Saturday. A week earlier, they placed 10th out of 45 schools at the prestigious First to the Finish Invitational in Peoria.
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“I really want to go down to state again and really show what Lincoln-Way North has this year,” junior Noah Healy said. “We’ve got a really great team, really good top five and top seven.”
Healy won the Flight 3 race at Minooka in 15:46.65, the best time of any North runner at Channahon Community Park.
The next-best Phoenix times belonged to Kyle Bechtold (16:10.24, fifth in Flight 4), John Chomiak (16:11.45, 12th in Flight 1) and Panici (16:19:34, sixth in Flight 2).
Other North runners Saturday were Ryan Belavich (16:42.30 in Flight 5), Mark Harris (16:52.38 in Flight 5) and Mike Trost (17:20.16 in Flight 7).
The Phoenix won their first regional title last year and placed fourth in the sectional, two spots behind Lincoln-Way Central.
“In the past few years, we’ve had a good rivalry with Lincoln-Way Central,” Healy said.
Panici has a clear memory of how coach Jeff Purdom told Panici and his teammates at the sectional that they had qualified for state.
“He brought us together in a huddle and he said, ‘Do you guys want to run next week?’ That was really awesome,” Panici said. “I’ll never forget. We were jumping everywhere because it was the first time.”
After the SouthWest Suburban Red Meet on Oct. 17, North will be in the Class 3A Andrew Regional on Oct. 24. The Normal Sectional is on Oct. 31.
“I think we’ll do some big things this year,” Panici said.
Back in stride: Lincoln-Way Central’s Jenna Diers said she returned too quickly from a preseason meniscus injury last year and wasn’t strong enough to make the team’s top seven for the state series.
“I didn’t have the mileage base, so I couldn’t go fast enough,” Diers said.
This year is different — and better. Diers, a junior, won the SouthWest Suburban Conference preseason meet last month and clocked 18:01 at the First to the Finish meet on Sept. 12.
“I’m doing really well this season,” Diers said. “I got the second-best girls time in the history of the school at First to the Finish.”
Diers ran 19:10 for ninth place in Flight 1 at the Minooka invitational.
“It wasn’t a bad time,” Diers said. “With my hip hurting, it felt a little shaky, but it wasn’t a bad time.”
Kelly Robbins had the best time last Saturday among the Knights, 18:58 which was good for sixth place in Flight 2.
On the right course: Defending 3A runner-up Sandburg topped a 63-team field of 555 runners Saturday in the Richard Spring Invitational at Detweiller Park in Peoria.
Impressive times by top-10 finishers Sean Torpy (third, 14:27) and Dylan Jacobs (seventh, 14:36) helped the Eagles defeat runner-up Neuqua Valley 51-81.
Changing classes: Illiana Christian, a back-to-back boys state trophy winner in 2A, will be in the 3A Andrew Regional and Normal Sectional in site assignments released Friday by the IHSA.
Marist and Brother Rice moved down to 2A this year. They will be in the Marist Regional that advances qualifiers to the Wheaton Academy Sectional.
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Tim Tierney is a freelance writer for the Daily Southtown.