Cross country: Cary-Grove girls, Huntley boys claim FVC honors
High school cross country for the most part is considered an individual sport.
Cary-Grove coach Mark Anderson likes the team aspect.
That philosophy was on display at Saturday's Fox Valley Conference meet held at Hickory Nut Grove Highlands in Cary and hosted by Dundee-Crown.
The meet was competed in muddy and wet conditions.
The Trojans' girls team, with four runners in the Top 10, garnered the top team trophy with a score of 46. Crystal Lake Central was second with 76 points.
"The race conditions were not ideal," said Anderson, "We had some luck and some surprising performances. "
Allison Drage was the top Trojan with a fifth place effort.
"I have been dealing with a lot of things this year," said Drage. "I ran well at St. Charles last week and was happy with the way I ran today."
Joining Drage in the Top 10 were freshmen Delaney Blohm (sixth), Morgan Dieschbourg (eighth) and Ellie Miller (ninth).
Paced by a fourth place effort by Alyson Doherty Jacobs was third with 80 points.
Crystal Lake South was fourth with 81 points. The Gators' top effort came from Chelsea Greene who was 10th.
Huntley, with a 20th place finish by Madison Overly, was fifth with a score of 118.
Dundee-Crown, led by a third-place finish by Sylvia Waz, placed seventh with a score of 170.
"It was hard day to run," said Waz. "I was happy with third and feel ready for the regionals next week."
Boys race: The memory of the 2016 Fox Valley Conference meet has haunted Crystal Lake South standout senior Jack Becker for a year.
Becker, who was leading last year's meet with 200 meters to run, fell and was unable to finish.
The talented Gator wasn't about to let anything negative happen at Saturday's FVC meet.
Becker was able to navigate the wet, muddy and treacherous 3-mile course in a time of 16:01.7 to claim top individual honors.
"Last year has stuck in my mind," said Becker. "I was mentally ready and wanted to relax."
Jacobs junior Zach Albrecht was second in a time of 16:21.7.
"I am really excited with second," said Albrecht. "I stuck with Jack for 2 miles but he really ran well."
Huntley, with three runners in the Top 10, took the team title with a score of 50.
Jadon Conroy was third, followed by Jeremy Roe (fourth) and Ian Geisler (seventh).
"Those three have been near the top of most meets all season," said Huntley coach Matt Kaplan. "We came here today to win the conference. "
D-C was second with 57 points. Joseph Devita, with a fifth-place finish was the Chargers' top finisher.
Jacobs was third with 78 points. Behind Albrecht, Mark Lemke was sixth.
A 10th place finish from Maxum Caesar led Cary-Grove to a fifth place effort with 118 points.
Paced by Becker, South was seventh with 172 points.
Hampshire, eighth with a score of 184 points, was led by Santiago Arreola who was 10th.