Boys cross country: Northwest state meet preview
Class 3A boys cross country state meet
Where: Detweiller Park, Peoria
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Team outlook: Palatine will be attempting to win its first state title after finishing second four times since 1993, including three straight from 2003-2005. Seniors Mat Smoody and Kevin O'Brien and sophomore Chano Bernardo all ran sub-15:00 races last week. Sophomore Alec Bollman complements seniors Eddie Lopez, Paul Kwak and Alex Mourousias to give the Pirates seven runners capable of a top-50 finish.
Hersey will look to claim a trophy led by three superb runners: seniors Kevin Havel and Billy Wisser and junior Erik Stanton. The trio averaged a combined 10.5 points during the two qualifying meets. However, Hersey's fate will likely depend on its fourth and fifth runners.
Neuqua Valley, Naperville North, Wheaton North, York, St. Charles North and Waubonsie Valley should all compete for trophies.
Individuals to watch: Havel burst onto the scene as a freshman when he finished fifth in the state. After getting fourth as a sophomore and runner-up as a junior, Havel has his sights set on a state title after he easily won both qualifying meets. Neuqua Valley senior Chris Derrick, who finished third last year, and York senior Tom Achtien, who was eighth, should challenge Havel.
York junior Steve Sulkin and Palatine's Smoody should also be in the running for a medal. Palatine's O'Brien and Bernardo, as well as Hersey's Wisser and Stanton could contend for the top 10. Other top runners include junior Kyle Gibson of Naperville North, senior Jim Riddle of Neuqua Valley, senior Chase Kadlec of Wheaton North and senior Chris DeSilva of St. Charles North.
What they're saying:
"I've been looking forward to this year all throughout my high school career. This week I'm going to be really anxious and really jittery and really nervous and all excited at the same time." - Hersey senior Kevin Havel
"The MSL prides itself as one of, it not the most competitive conferences in state. If you have just a couple teams showing up and doing well, that doesn't make a statement. It's our responsibility to represent the MSL." - Barrington coach Ty Gorman
"We have to run better next week than we did (at the Palatine sectional) if we want to reach our goal, which is to be up there near the top." - Hersey coach Tim Phillips
"I hope (we will get a trophy). State is a whole different deal. It's a completely different deal than (the Palatine sectional). This is our home course. State is a completely different type of race." - Palatine coach Chris Quick
-- Joe Esse