Emotional victory for Lake Park’s Flanagan
Lake Park junior Kaylee Flanagan was missing one of her biggest fans on Saturday at the Palatine Invitational.
Flanagan’s grandfather, Richard Wilson, passed away on Monday. He had been one of Kaylee’s biggest supporters
Flanagan ran with a heavy heart, but her feet were light as the junior cruised to an emotional victory in 16:51, easily outdistancing Maine South sophomore Emily Leonard (17:22) and Prospect defending champion junior Brooke Wolfe (17:25) on a cool but rain-free morning at Deer Grove East Forest Preserve in Palatine.
“I ran this race for him,” said Flanagan who made separation in the opening mile and never looked back. “It was hard, but he loved being out here … he was an inspiration for me.
“I have a great family and my teammates are by my side. He was watching over us.”
Assumption, the top ranked team in large schools for Kentucky, had four runners in the top 18 and took first place with 80 points.
Wheaton Warrenville South took second with 134 points, with Lake Park (153 points) nipping host Palatine (157 points) for third place, and Lyons Township (201 points) taking fifth place.
“We don’t really have that one super star,” said Assumption coach Barry Haworth of his team’s performance. “But we have a very strong top four and we just have to keep our fifth runner close. When we stay together, we can be successful.”
Leonard was successful in holding off Wolfe for second place. The Maine South sophomore held off a late charge by Wolfe in securing second place.
“I knew she was behind me, but I didn’t know how far,” said Leonard of her finish. “I had to keep my pace, and then finish strong.”
Wolfe won last year’s Palatine Invitational in 17:17; the Prospect junior wasn’t too far off that pace on Saturday. Once again the junior worked from behind and finished with a flourish.
“Flanagan is super-talented and runs the whole race hard,” said Wolfe. “I was feeling really good at the end of the race. Now I just have to keep training hard and keep improving.”
Maine South junior Megan Lemersal (17:35) and Assumption sophomore Katherine Receveur (17:36) finished fourth and fifth.
Wheaton Warrenville South entered this year as the preseason favorites to win Class 3A. But after finishing second to New Trier at the Hinsdale Central Invite and Peoria Woodruff Invite there were a few questions.
But the Tigers answered those questions and offered a glimpse of their potential on Saturday with its solid second-place finish.
Junior Kayla Kightlinger (17:50) led the charge with an 11th-place effort, followed by senior Lauren Mordini (18:08), junior McKenna Kiple (18:11), and junior Hope Schmelzle (18:11) who finished 24th, 27th, and 28th.
“I definitely think our team is going in a positive direction,” said Kiple. “I think we’ll only get better from here. Our training is going well and I think we’ll be ready at the end of the season.”
“I thought our kids competed hard,” said Wheaton Warrenville South coach Rob Harvey. “We have a long way to go until the state meet and the attitude is spectacular. I feel really positive with where we’re going right now.”
Lake Park is also feeling a positive vibe. Flanagan set the tone for the Lancers, with junior Samantha Montalbano (17:56) and junior Brianne Murphy (17:59) adding support with a 17th- and 19th-place finish.
“It was solid but not our best performance,” said Lake Park coach Lauren May. “Our four and five runners need to move up a bit. We definitely can compete; we just have to keep improving.”
Sophomore Jessica Lincoln (17:38) and junior Tess Wasowicz (17:39) took 6th and 7th place to help host Palatine to a fourth-place finish.
Lincoln continued to impress, hanging tough with the lead pack throughout the race and helping Palatine close the gap on Wheaton Warrenville South and Lake Park.
“Experience has really helped this year,” said Lincoln. “I’m starting to believe I can run with the top runners.”
Sophomore Cassidy McPherson (17:59) added 20th place for a Pirates attack that is still searching for a fifth runner.
“We’re closing gap, but we’re still searching for someone to step up,” said Palatine coach Joe Parks. “Through four we’re running great. Now we just have to get people to run a little better. We have some time and I really believe we have the kids that can do it.”
Senior Lisa Gorden (17:41) took eighth place, propelling Lyons Township to fifth place
Senior Elizabeth Tracy (17:56) and junior Rachel Simon (18:10) took 16th and 26th place in helping Barrington take sixth place with 208 points.
Tracy has stepped up big and set the pace for the Fillies’ pack this season.
“It was a really fast first mile and I think that took some of us by surprise,” said Tracy of the early pace. “I thinking everyone was trying to work back up there to get to where we needed to be. We just have to keep focusing on the pack running.”
Freshman Sami Staples (17:43) took ninth place in leading Crystal Lake Central to seventh place with 216 points.
Wolfe’s third-place finish helped Prospect take eighth place with 218 points.
Individually, St. Viator junior Hanna Winter (17:55) used an impressive opening mile on the way to finishing 12th.
“I jumped out to a good start,” said Winter, who was in fourth place at the mile mark. “I tried to push the second mile — I finished strong, but I couldn’t hold on.”
Downers Grove North junior Gabrielle Hesslau (17:55) has taken over the leadership role for the Trojans and continued to impress by taking 13th place.
“Early in the season it was hard taking on the leadership,” said Hesslau, “It’s getting easier every race.”
Libertyville freshman Kristi Del Prato (17:55) continued to make progress, taking 14th in leading the Wildcats.
“Today I got in a groove and kept working,” said Del Prato. “Every week I keep working harder and harder, and I just wanted to keep getting better and faster.”
Freshman Kya Suzuki (18:01) paced Stevenson by taking 22nd place.