Conant's Dale commits to Illinois
Conant senior Zach Dale announced on Monday that he would be taking his running talents to the University of Illinois, and he made it official on Wednesday when he signed his National Letter of Intent with the Illini.
Dale said he followed his heart and chose Illinois over Wisconsin and Stanford.
"Illinois just felt like the right fit," Dale said of his final decision. "I had amazing visits at each of the schools and there was nothing particularly wrong with any of the choices."
Dale has proved to be one of the top distance runners in Illinois.
Last Saturday he put an exclamation point on his senior season with a second-place finish in Class 3A to McHenry senior Jesse Reiser.
Dale will now join forces with Reiser. The McHenry senior also committed to Illinois, giving the Illini quite a recruiting class with the state's top two runners.
Dale's only losses this season were to Reiser at the Schaumburg sectional and at the state meet.
"It's a unique opportunity," Dale said of his pairing with Reiser. "It was a friendly rivalry and I'm excited to be his teammate. We're both excited to be going to Illinois and help the program."
Dale offered plenty of excitement for Conant the past two season.
He won back-to-back Mid-Suburban League titles and finished in the top five in Class 3A for two consecutive years, including this year's runner-up finish.
Dale was also a force during the track season, where finished third in Class 3A for the 3,200-run and fourth in the 1,600 last spring.
On the national level, he finished in 13th place in the 3,200 at the prestigious Arcadia Invite in California and extended his track season into mid-June, finishing third in the 5,000 at the New Balance Nationals.
Dyestat currently has him ranked No. 19 in its national cross country rankings.
"He has represented the school very well, whether it was on the state level or national level," said Conant coach John Powers. "I know the decision has been weighing on him but he was able to handle the pressure."
Dale will major in computer science, competing on both the cross country and track and field squads for the Illini.
He will participate in this weekend's Nike Cross National Midwest regional in Terre Haute, Ind., and he also will be compete in the Foot Locker cross country regional on Nov. 29.
It was quite a three-day period for Dale, in which he ran to state glory and then finalized his college decision.
"I'm extremely relieved," he said. "I was so worried and put a lot of pressure on myself. It just feels like a big relief."
And a right fit.