Derrick blazes path to Wildcats' state crown

PEORIA -- Nov. 3, 2007, will be a date that lives on in Neuqua Valley lore.

Showing strength at the top and throughout the team, the Wildcats dominated on Saturday to take home the first state boys cross country title in school history.

"I'm ecstatic because it was a true team victory," coach Paul Vandersteen said. "I knew they were a special group. They worked their tail ends off during the summer, and the state meet is won between June and the middle of August."

Senior Chris Derrick led the way, beating the field by 20 seconds with a blazing 13:52 pace. He is the first runner to break 14 minutes at the state meet since Tom Graves of Sandburg ran a 13:56 in 1977. And to find a better time, you have to go back to the single-class system in 1972, when Craig Virgin ran a 13:50.6.

"It feels so good to be able to push myself today. I just tried to kick as hard as I could just to get that record," Derrick said, before focusing on his team. "As awesome as it is to set the record, what makes cross country a joy to me is rooting for my teammates. To (share a state title) with them is amazing."

Junior Danny Pawola (eighth) and sophomore Aaron Beattie (13th) both made the all-state team for the Wildcats with senior Kevin Grady (27th) just missing.

Not only was it the first state title for Neuqua Valley, it was also its first trophy. Making it sweeter was the Wildcats ability to fend off perennial contender York, which finished second.

Senior Tom Achtien and junior Steve Sulkin both made the all-state team to lead the Dukes. Despite the duel second-place medals hanging from Achtien's neck, he showed how high York's expectations are when he expressed some disappointment with runner-up status.

"I would have loved to have first and first on my neck," he said. "But if there's one team that I would like to lose to, it's Neuqua Valley. They're a great team and they're classy. There's not much you can do with a team like that. We left it all on the course and that's all that you can ask for."

Waubonsie Valley was fourth with 149 points. Senior Mark Schumacher made the all-state team with a 17th-place finish. Senior David Schumacher and junior Emmett Lorenz just fell short.

Naperville North placed fifth behind the all-state efforts of senior John Newman and junior Kyle Gibson. Gibson likely would have finished higher but was suffering from a migraine headache and bronchitis, which had him vomiting before and after the race.

All-state senior Chase Kadlec led Wheaton North to a seventh-place finish.

In the AA race Vernon Hills senior Moe Bahrini and Montini's Andrew Larsen ran as individuals and placed second and 10th, respectively, while Glenbard South junior Ben Miller took 76th. As a team St. Francis took 15th and Wheaton Academy finished in 16th.