Girls cross country: Prospect, Wilson right on course at Lake Park
It was business as usual for Prospect senior girls cross country standout Brooke Wilson at the Harvey Braus Invitational on Saturday at Lake Park.
A soft course and a bit of rain didn't seem to faze the Knights senior as she held steady and powered to a fourth-place finish in 17:18.3 on the school's East Campus course in Roselle.
Glenbard West rising freshman star Katelynne Hart and senior Lindsay Payne came from behind in the final mile in taking first and second to lead Glenbard West to a dominant victory with 37 points.
Hart (16:49.8) held off Payne (16:51.7) in the final 100 meters to secure the victory, followed by St. Charles North junior Audrey Ernst (17:01.1).
Ernst set the pace early leading the first 2 miles before the Glenbard West dynamic duo came from behind in the final mile.
Wilson ran a comfortable race and held off Schaumburg junior Madison Marasco (17:20.6) in the home stretch.
The race featured two of the top returning runners in Class 3A, with Payne finishing second last season and Wilson taking third at the state meet.
"I tried to run my race plan and did what was best for me," said Wilson, who didn't panic after a blistering first mile by Ernst. "I stayed patient and maintained a steady effort throughout."
Marasco also kept it together, despite running the entire race with her shoe laces untied.
The Saxons junior finished 16th in Class 3A last season and showed on Saturday that she will be force this season.
"The goal was to come out and stay with the top girls and then just hold on," said Marasco who shadowed Wilson for the majority of the race, before losing contact in the last half mile. "Last year definitely gave me confidence and showed I could do this."
Glenbard West definitely showed it will be a major player at the state meet this season. The Hilltoppers opened their season by taking first and defeating defending Class 3A state champion Minooka at the Hinsdale Central meet the prior weekend.
This week the Hilltoppers kept it humming by placing six girls in the top 16, easily cruising to the title in the 22-team field.
"We're not done yet, we are going to continue to keep pushing and working hard," said Payne of the Hilltoppers' impressive early season performance. "We go into every weekend with a clean slate, striving to do our best."
Senior Madeline Dingle (17:32.8) and junior Olivia Niziolek (17:40) finished sixth and eighth in propelling Maine South to a solid second-place finish with 104 points.
Sophomore Sarah May (18:08.3) took 10th place helping York (109 points) to a third-place finish, followed by St. Charles East (115 points).
Prospect started last season a bit conservatively and it paid off as the Knights captured the Mid-Suburban League title.
The Knights are using that same blueprint this season, shuffling their lineup and picking up a fifth-place finish on Saturday with 138 points.
Wilson pushed the pace, with sophomore Jenna Baltes (18:41) stepping up big in securing 17th place. Sophomore Cori Drew (19:01.3) and junior Mikayla Olsen (19:08.5) aided the Knights' charge by taking 31st and 33rd place.
"Our depth gives us an advantage, because everyone is pushing for a varsity spot," said Baltes of the Knights' fluctuating lineup. "We are all pushing each other."
Schaumburg has high hopes this season, after finishing seventh at the Schaumburg sectional last season.
Marasco set the tone on Saturday with junior Lauren Kubinski (18:00.8) adding to the effort with a solid ninth-place finish.
"We're working on our gap between our first and fifth runners," said Kubinski. "Qualifying for state is definitely one of our goals."