Stevenson’s Suzuki accelerates to victory
The weather conditions were anything but ideal for distance running, but the Lake County Invitational provided a great start to the new season for many girls cross country teams and individuals Wednesday afternoon at Lakewood Forest Preserve in Wauconda.
The individual race to the finish line was not even close as Stevenson freshman Kya Suzuki showed what a huge impact she is going to have this season with a winning time of 19:31.
“Tactically she (Suzuki) ran really well and we were really focusing on the second half of the race, so it was really nice to see,” said Stevenson coach Don Proft. “Our fifth, sixth, and seventh runners’ times were better than I was expecting.”
The team race went according to form. Libertyville proved it is going to be one of the main teams to beat in the North Suburban Conference as the Wildcats won the championship on the 3.05-mile course with 66 points.
The hot and humid conditions created a major challenge for runners, but Vernon Hills didn’t seem to mind, nipping NSC foe Lakes 84-87 for second place in the 16-team field.
Libertyville’s run to the title was led by its top-five pack of Nicole Jaffke (seventh), Maggie Fiorito (eighth), Abigail Toohey (15th), Lexie Zafiratos (16th), and Stephanie Hanagan (20th).
“We were thrilled because we’ve been putting them through the wringer the last couple of days,” said Libertyville coach Joe Roth. “They did exactly what we wanted them to do and they looked like they were in good shape.”
Mundelein outdistanced Stevenson 121-181 for fifth place followed by Grayslake Central (202) in seventh, Wauconda (304) in 10th, and Grant (337) in 12th.
Lakes senior Kathryn Dean (19:48) was impressive with her second-place finish as she outdistanced Lindsey Lewis of Grant by 14 seconds. Lakes’ Hannah Wittman placed fifth before collapsing from the heat after the race.
“It was just really hot and really humid and at first I just wanted to get in the top five,” said Dean. “I was leading after the first mile and she (Suzuki) took off on me after a mile and a half.”
Runner-up Vernon Hills was very sharp behind the pack of Danielle Fiarito (13th), Samantha Hershman (14th), Alison Marks (17th), Melanie Rogers (19th), and Tara Rooney (21st).
“Our strategy today was to have everybody run together and the newcomers looked great,” said Vernon Hills coach Suzanne Richert. “The newcomers stuck with the people who were on the team before and they were happy there was no wind.”
Danielle Griesbaum (22nd), and Marisa Franson (23rd) helped bolster Lakes’ third-place finish.
“I’m really happy with six in the top 37 and all of the girls ran their hearts out,” said Lakes coach Keith West. “Some of them are still sore from the first meet on Saturday and this is the best we’ve ever done in the county meet.”
Mundelein was led by its duo of Claire Naughton in 10th and Elena Palacios in 11th. Marisa Perreault placed 25th for the Mustangs.
“We sent the girls out conservatively and they got caught a little too far back,” said Mundelein coach John Osmanski. “Our top two ran a really smart race and passed a lot of people in the last mile and a half.”
Lewis is primed for another great season after placing third in the NSC last year.
“She (Lewis) worked on some things from last year as far as getting out a little faster,” said Grant coach Jeff Durlak. “Her time today was about 30 to 40 seconds from where she ended up last year.”
Host Round Lake was led by Celeste Acosta in 24th while Becky May led Grayslake Central in 27th. Libertyville’s Meaghan Polk placed 28th.