Boys cross country: Palatine's Leonard relieved after all-state finish

PEORIA - One word described Palatine senior Brian Leonard's finish at the Class 3A race at Detweiller Park:

Relief.

After burning the first mile, Leonard hung on over in the final 2, grinding out a 13th-place finish in 14:37.

Minooka senior Soren Knudsen set the tone for the race, blazing to the Class 3A title in 14:02.

Lyons junior Danny Kilrea (14:08) took second and was followed by Sandburg junior Dylan Jacobs (14:10). York junior Charlie Kern (14:12) and Lake Zurich senior Brian Griffith (14:14) rounded out the top five.

Neuqua Valley ran to the Class 3A team title with 83 points; it's the Wildcats' third state title. Downers Grove North (116 points) took second followed by Lake Zurich (186 points). Lyons Township (228 points) and Whitney Young (248 points) rounded out the top five.

Leonard work hard the first mile and then hung on - with the chase pack closing hard.

"It feels good," said Leonard, the Mid-Suburban League champion who crossed the first mile in a hot 4:35. "The first mile drained me out, it took its toll for the remainder of the race."

But Leonard didn't flinch down the stretch. He held off Loyola senior Paolo Tiongson (14:38) and Downers Grove North senior Jacob Ridderhoff (14:39).

"He wanted to be top-five and he ran like he wanted it," said Palatine coach Chris Quick. "He was starting to fade, but he stayed poised. He made the break with all the best guys in state and he was right in there with them at the mile and half. I'm very proud of his effort."

After missing a major part of his junior season to a leg injury, Leonard made up for lost time on a sunny and warm fall afternoon.

"It feel absolutely incredible, going from 6 a.m. swimming practice for my rehab last year to being all-state," Leonard said. "It was really an amazing journey to be running with the best in the state today."

For the second straight year, Prospect earned a seventh-place team finish in Class 3A with 281 points.

Junior Jack Terry (14:55) led the charge with a 33rd-place finish, followed by senior Sean Sanaghan (63rd, 15:10) and senior Jack O'Donnell (73rd, 15:14).

"As a team we feel ecstatic," said Terry. "We felt really good going into this race. We knew if we stuck together we could do what we wanted to do. I think for the most part we did just that."

The Knights finished on a high note, adding to their second place MSL finish and second-place Waukegan sectional finish.

"The guys hung in there and moved up," said Prospect coach Mike Stokes. "Terry ran like a monster, he just kept moving and was even moving at the end. We are proud of our finish."

Hersey freshman Josh Methner (14:53) took 30th place and senior Jacob Krupa (14:56) added 38th place as the Huskies finished 17th.

Senior Ben Kontney (15:22) and freshman Richard Jacobo (15:28) combined with Leonard to help lead Palatine's 18th-place team finish.

Barrington junior Nick Laning (14:54) took 32nd for the Broncos, and Hoffman Estates senior Jack Worman (15:00) placed 45th.

In Class 2A, senior Sam Brey (15:37) took 54th in helping St. Viator to a 14th-place team finish.