The boys cross country team at Elmwood Park was dealt a severe blow prior to Saturday’s Class 2A Fenton Sectional, with news that could have destroyed the Tigers’ morale.
The team learned two days before the meet that their top runner, senior Amadeus Lopez, was dismissed from the team for violating the school’s athletic code of conduct.
Coach Patrick Sheridan broke the news to his runners at a team meeting. He didn’t mince words about how he wanted them to react.
“I pretty emphatically told the team that we’re still going to the state meet. I pretty much shouted it,” Sheridan said. “They immediately got the emotion in my voice and the seriousness of the situation. It’s a hard thing for any team to have to go through, but I wanted them to know it wouldn’t stop them from getting downstate.”
It didn’t.
Despite running without Lopez, the Tigers placed fifth to advance to Saturday’s 2A state meet at Detweiller Park in Peoria. The top five teams from each sectional advance downstate.
Junior Devon Schumann led the way, finishing with a time of 17:03. Sophomore Carlos Sanchez was three seconds behind Schumann, and sophomore Khris Vicencio finished one second behind Sanchez.
“It was unexpected and definitely daunting, when we found out (Lopez) was no longer part of the team,” Schumann said. “But it was also a call to action. We knew we really had to step it up.
“(Coach) made it a point for us not to let our morale drop. (Lopez) was an important member of this team, but we’re all important members of the team and we had to pull through this.”
Schumann and fellow co-captain Justin Nieves weren’t surprised at the team’s performance on Saturday.
“I was never nervous for the team or our chances to get downstate,” Nieves said. “Sheridan cares about every one of us, he pushes us to do better and he made sure we were up to the challenge.”
Alex Martinez (18:01) and Nieves (18:23) rounded out the Tigers’ top five finishers. Mike Jones-Plasencia (18:59) and Mitchell Wojcik (19:12) also competed for Elmwood Park.
The Tigers won their first conference title since 1997 at this year’s Metro Suburban Conference meet, and Sheridan was pleased with their performance at the sectional meet.
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“Khris ran lights out Saturday,” Sheridan said. “Fenton’s course is a slower course, but he pretty much equaled his best time in that race. … I think (downstate) our top three could put on a good show.”
The Elmwood Park girls team had one runner qualify for state at the Fenton Sectional, as freshman Gabi Szado placed eighth overall with a time of 19:46.
“Gabi ran a good race on a tough course,” Sheridan said. “I think she’ll have an even better showing at state. She ran really well (at Detweiller) earlier this year in inches of mud, so I think she’ll do well.”
Gary Larsen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press