Hoffman Estates' achievement stands the test of time

There was no shortage of individual stories to chase in eight years of covering the boys state track and field meet.

The team race usually was not a concern. Mid-Suburban League schools were long-distance shots that didn't come in at an event where top three trophies were reserved for the swiftest afoot.

But it was a different story on the last day of May, 1997 in Charleston. One where Hoffman Estates went to the awards stand as a team and grabbed the second-place Class AA trophy.

A moment no other boys team has experienced in the 45-year history of the MSL.

"It was such a great group of athletes and they were so supportive of each other," said retired Hoffman assistant coach David Alex, who now lives across from Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago and is writing plays. "They weren't worried about me. Everything was team with whatever we asked them to do."

It didn't hurt that Pierre Leinbach, the star needed for state success and one of the greatest athletes in MSL history, was also a team player.

Leinbach, a four-year letterwinner at Wisconsin, was coming back from second- and third-place finishes in the hurdles as a junior.

After that were a lot of questions for Alex and head coach Pete Reiff, who died of a heart attack a week before the 2003 state meet.

"At the start of the year we knew we had Pierre, but that was all we had," Reiff said after the 1997 meet.

A series of crucial additions gave Hoffman what makes trophy contenders and usually breaks MSL teams -- state-caliber speed to score Saturday relay points.

Kevin Reeves came out for the first time as a senior after playing football and basketball. After getting cut from basketball, twin brothers Wesley and Warren Carter joined the team their junior and senior years respectively.

Juniors Marquis Russell and Pierre Sutton added to the sprint depth. Shot putter Ted Cnota enhanced Hoffman's chances of becoming the first boys track MSL trophy-winner.

And they had two of the best coaches at getting kids ready to go when May rolled around in Alex and Reiff.

Still, with the meet a few days away, Reiff remained cautious about Hoffman's hopes in a meet where Lake Park ran away to an expected title by 19 points with sprint stud Anthony Moorman.

What if there was a botched handoff or false start? How would all the track newcomers handle the big stage of nearly 10,000 fans in Eastern Illinois University's O'Brien Stadium?

"We have the potential to do something, which is something I've never had before at the state meet," Reiff said a few days before heading to Charleston. "For me as a coach it's weird to approach it as a team meet."

Having Leinbach approach it that way was a big help.

A lot of kids would have worried about only their main events. But that wasn't Leinbach's way.

In the conference and sectional meets he finished the 110-meter high hurdles and raced right back into the starting blocks for the 100.

At state, Leinbach won the 110 high hurdles in 13.9 and the 300 intermediate hurdles in 37.18. In between he anchored the third-place 800 relay with Reeves, Wesley Carter and Russell.

"He was cooking," Alex said of Leinbach's 21.73 closing leg. "His senior year he was a man with a mission."

He could have easily been cooked since he also picked up 2 points by finishing seventh with a 46-3 triple jump.

"I didn't know if I was going to be able to get my legs over the hurdles," Leinbach said that day of the 300s. "I almost tripped on the awards stand trying to get up there. My hamstrings were so tight.

"But I kept on thinking of how hard I worked and how hard the coaches had worked and everyone else on the team."

Cnota took sixth in the shot put -- an MSL staple of success -- with a 56-4¾. Ironically, in a league that has proven it can go the distance with anyone in the state, Hoffman didn't score a point in the three longest individual races or 3,200 relay.

And Leinbach could do no more after the 300 hurdles. Now it was up to the Carter twins, Russell and Warren in the 1,600 relay to finish the MSL's elusive trophy hunt.

They ran like veterans in 3:20.37 to finish third and seal the runner-up finish. Reiff, Alex and the Hawks savored the magical moment long after most everyone had departed O'Brien Stadium.

"It was very special," Alex said, "and the school was very responsive and supportive.

"It was a tribute to the guys on the team. They were well-liked and respected."

And talented enough to produce a moment that has stood a 45-year test of time.