St. Peter cross country team looks strong heading into conference championship
After two weeks of tough training and racing, the St. Peter cross-country team should be tired and sluggish. This was hardly the case as both the 7/8th and 5/6th grade teams looked as solid and fresh as if they were well rested racing in the final conference meet at Seyller Park in Hampshire. Their strength was definitely a sign of their hard work, dedication and spirit heading into the most competitive and important part of the season.
The 5/6th grade team had two very tough opponents to contend with in front-runner St. Charles Borromeo and St. Patrick. Borromeo's top five all placed in the top ten of Monday's race making them nearly unreachable with only 25 points and a heavy favorite for the conference trophy. St. Patrick is good but with a score of 60 points to St. Peter's 70 it isn't inconceivable that the Rockets could catch them with fresher legs at the championship. It all comes down to St. Peter's fourth and fifth runners getting closer to that elusive top ten and their three front-runners gaining a few spots up front. It's sure to be an exciting race next Monday.
After struggling with some injury and illness issues, the St. Peter 7/8th grade team appeared to be back on track. Like the 5/6th graders, the top team is mathematically unreachable. St. Patrick won the meet with 33 points and four runners in the top ten. However with new life in their legs, St. Peter placed second with 59 points to St. Catherine's third place 75 points with a mix of boys and girls doing the scoring.
Congratulations to the following St. Peter top 10 finishers. 7/8th race: Mary Tork - 2nd, Kaitlin Zucco - 4th, Nora Brady - 5th, Taylor Austin - 8th, William Huber - 5th, Ben Robertson - 7th, Ryan Thumm - 10th. 5/6th race: Colleen Thumm - 4th, Grace Caskey - 7th, Katarina Koester - 9th, Ryan Fors - 9th, Lucas Chung - 10th.
On Monday, the Rockets travel to hilly Randall Oaks Forest Preserve in West Dundee for the Tri-County Cross Country Conference Championship meet. Both St. Peter teams will battle for second place honors in the challenging and competitive conference.