'Targets on their backs'
A year ago, the outlook for the Geneva girls cross country team appeared quite different from it does for the upcoming 2008 season.
The Vikings began the 2007 season with their top two returning runners battling injuries and a group of freshmen who were talented but lacked experience.
What a difference a year makes.
The Vikings cruised to a Class 3A state title in 2007 on the feet of six freshmen and a sophomore, who now not only have that valuable state experience, but also the expectations that come with winning a championship - to repeat.
Vikings coach Bob Thomson wasn't sure what to expect out of his young team a year ago, but he is fully aware that his young team will have expectations coming from many fronts this year.
"It's a different type of pressure," Thomson said of entering the season as state champions. "Last year we were unknown, but this year they have targets on their backs, but sometimes you feel pressure when you doubt yourself, and I don't see them doubting themselves. They remain confident in their abilities and the time they've put in preparing and practicing."
The returning top seven for the Vikings are sophomores Kelly Whitley, Liza Tauscher, Rachel Hammond, Tess Ehrhardt, Megan Brady and Kat Yelle, and junior Myra Yelle.
Former top runners, senior Sarah Cable and junior Kelly Shogren, also return injury free this year. New to the Vikings team will be senior Sarah Heuer and junior Meghan Heuer, who both ran at the state meet in Minnesota last year.
Whitley was the Vikings' top runner last year, and she nearly was the top runner in the Class 3A state meet, shaving almost a minute off her sectional time to finish second.
And while the lure to be the individual state champion is present, Thomson said Whitley remains grounded and focused on improving and helping her team.
"I think she wants to see herself improve and make it back to the state meet," Thomson said of Whitley. "Her role on the team is still as our lead runner, and every team needs one. We try to keep everyone as close to her as we can, but that's a little hard to do as good as she is."
Thomson admits his team is still young, but they could be even stronger than last year.
"We're just going to take it one meet at a time," Thomson said. "The goal is still to get to the state meet and see what we can do there. Our focus right now is on the St. Charles invite, improving our times, and staying injury free. Practice makes them more competitive, and we're only as strong as all runners combined."
Lizzy Hynes enters her senior season at St. Charles East, hoping to put an exclamation point on what has already been an outstanding running career. A year ago, Hynes took both the regional and sectional titles, and then ran the three mile course at Detweiler Park in 16:59 to place third at the Class 3A state meet.
Saints coach Denise Hefferin said while Hynes has her sights on winning an individual state title, her top priority is to help her entire team advance to the state meet.
"Lizzy wants nothing more than to advance down to the state meet with her team," Hefferin said. "Her goal for every meet is to race to win and that's the same goal this fall. I think her past experiences have prepared her to have a good chance at achieving that goal (state title)."
The Saints enter the season ranked 25th by Dyestat.com (formerly the Illinois Prep Top Times), but Hefferin prefers to look more at the team she's returning than at the rankings.
"I was really happy being ranked in the top 25 by Dyestat, but our goals for this season are higher," Hefferin said. "They've been training since June for the one common goal and they're just very excited to get out there."
Senior Dayna White, juniors Grace Gordon and Lauren Comstock, and sophomores Gina Bartindale, Rachel Rawson and Morgan Ketterling return from the Saints' top seven from last year. Senior Lauren Hoepper and junior Holly Robertson also return from injury.
Rounding at the other area Class 3A teams, Batavia, St. Charles North and West Aurora all return the core of their 2007 squads.
Returning for the Bulldogs will be senior Sydney Spain, juniors Alexis Sampson, Dana Landem and Katie Parisi, and sophomore Kathryn Skleney. The Bulldogs placed sixth in the St. Charles East regional last year.
The North Stars will be without their top runner from a year ago, but still return four of their top seven. Stephanie Strasser was 24th in the Class 3A state meet last year, but her family moved to Florida. Returning for the North Stars will be seniors Ashley Capone, Nicole McSweeney and Emily Freiny. Sophomore Erica Bauerbach becomes the North Stars' top runner.
Senior Charlotte Smith has quietly been West Aurora's top runner since her freshman year. The Blackhawks return four from their team that finished ninth in the East Aurora regional last year. Joining Smith will be fellow seniors Charity Vitkus and Brittany Loza, and sophomore Elisia Meyle.
In Class 2A, Aurora Central Catholic, Kaneland and Rosary should field very competitive teams.
Despite losing their top two runners from last year to graduation, Aurora Central Catholic should still have enough talent to remain competitive. The Chargers return five of their top seven.
Seniors Alyssa Shaff and Meghan Kelly will team with returning sophomores Jaclyn Nagel, Alexis Anthony and Allison Alosio. Nagel, Shaff and Anthony all placed in the top 10 to help the Chargers win the Princeton regional a year ago.
Juniors Bianca Guzaldo, Melissa Lindsay, Natalie Perry and Katie Petry also return for the Chargers, and freshmen Bailey Shemanski, Jessica Nagel and Amanda Contreras will provide coach Troy Kerber with added depth.
"We could end up having a rotation of 12-13 girls," Kerber said. "The potential for the girls is fantastic. We might start out slow, but I think we'll come on strong at the end. Natalie Perry had an outstanding summer of training and turned it up another level. She's been our No. 1 runner in practice. The training they do in the summer is so essential. It's that work in the summer that often determines success in November."
The Knights lost only one runner from their 2007 top seven, and sophomore Andrea Strang was 43rd in the Class 2A state meet. Seniors Alexandra Olson, Laney Deligianis and Kelli Patterson, junior Lisa Roberson, and sophomore Kristina Bowen all form a nice pack for the Knights. Junior Shelby Loester returns injury free and freshman Jen Howland is pushing the top seven in practice.
Knights coach Doug Ecker is hoping the team continues the progression that began at the beginning of last year.
"If we stay healthy, we should be better than we were last year," Ecker said. "We're looking for improvement and to get better as time goes on, and we're hoping to have a chance to run into late October (regional and sectional)."
Rosary also returns six of its top seven from the 2007 team. Junior Haley Euting leads the Royals, and she will be joined by seniors Courtney Convey, Audrey VanAcker and Nora Bowe, fellow junior Meghan Gannon, and sophomore Kelly Kieffer.
Aurora Christian placed seventh in the Class 1A state meet last year, despite its top two runners nursing injuries. The Eagles head into this season returning five of their top seven and another strong group of young talented runners.
Junior Deanna Jimenez placed 24th in the Class 1A state meet last year. Jimenez has been running varsity since she was a freshman and has been excelling since junior high. That pattern has proved successful again for Aurora Christian, as freshman Sarina Oleson joins the varsity team this year after proving herself as the lead runner on the City of Lights Champion squad last year as an eighth grader.
Jimenez and Oleson will be joined by senior Kaitlin Bellak, junior Danielle Gorder and sophomores Sydney Bennett, Jannea Epperson and Amy Berger.
Coach Priscilla Copple is optimistic the key additions will gel with her returning runners to make another trip downstate.
"I think being in the top five (in Class 1A) would be a nice goal for us this year," Copple said. "They've added three more teams to our sectional this year, so that will be a challenge for us."