Grayslake C. tries to keep pace with R-B
Grayslake Central's boys cross country team knew it was going to be tough to catch Richmond-Burton Saturday morning at the 10th Annual J.T. Taylor Invitational.
And the Rockets lived up to their nickname as they would soar to the title of the 13-team meet with only 41 points on the 3-mile Camp Henry Horner course in Fox Lake.
The Rams did lock up runner-up honors with 73 points as they outdistanced third-place finisher Lakes with 99 points. Grayslake North brought home fifth with 126 points with the host Bulldogs (165) placing seventh under the warm running conditions.
Richmond-Burton's Ian Sanchez held off Round Lake sophomore Juan Carrera by 11 seconds to win the race in 16:10.
Youth was served well in the varsity race as Grant sophomore Ryan Mamerow placed fifth, Grayslake Central freshman Will Brewster sixth, Grayslake North freshman Matt Kendzior seventh, and Lakes sophomore Blake Franson eighth.
Senior Kevin Dickson added an 11th-place finish for Grayslake Central followed by teammates Ryan Schapals in 15th, Ryan Seiffert in 17th, and Kyle Rehberg in 29th.
"Will (Brewster) has been running about these times and our goal is to get him around 15:45 to 15:50 by the end of the season," said Grayslake Central coach Joel Peebles. "We were able to improve our times and place from last year without a doubt and that is what we look for."
After Blake Franson, Lakes' push for third place was led by sophomore Danny McGrath in 21st, junior Kyle White in 22nd, senior Mike Ziolko in 25th, and junior Grant Franson in 28th.
"Overall we're running on tired legs with our fourth race in seven days," said Lakes coach Andrew Schroeder. "We didn't have two of our top guys run, but there's no way right now that we could touch Richmond-Burton."
Sophomore Tyler Vincent was Grayslake North's second runner in 14th place while senior teammate Scott Moller was the Knights' third runner in 33rd.
"They had a good performance, our top two are a freshman and a sophomore, and both of them are doing phenomenal," said Grayslake North coach Brandon Boyd. "Our 3-4-5 runners all came in together and that really helped our team score."
The host Bulldogs were paced by Mamerow in fifth and senior Lance Littleton in 27th.
"He (Mamerow) ran great and it was probably the best finish he's had all year in the last 800 meters," said Grant coach Jeff Durlak. "Our top two are working hard and its just a matter of getting our 3-4-5 closer and closer."
Round Lake did not field a full seven-man team for the varsity race, but Carrera was impressive again for the Panthers considering this is his first season of cross country.
"He's won four races this year, he took 13th place at the county meet, and we're hoping to get him into the sectionals," said Round Lake coach Kevin Brady. "We're getting better, and a lot of us are still learning to push past the wall in a sense."
Carrera ran the 800 meters last spring in track, but he is quickly adjusting to the longer distances in cross country this fall.
"I could have done a little better, but hopefully I don't slip next time," Carrera said. "He (Sanchez) had a pretty big lead the whole way and it was just a little bit closer than it was at the finish."
Wauconda placed 12th as the Bulldogs were competing without top runner Dan Raupp Saturday due to their homecoming game against Antioch.