Burlington freshman Kiem off to state
Wheaton Academy's Mark Phillips (15:17.5) ran away from the field Saturday at the Class 2A Belvidere boys cross country sectional, while Burlington Central freshman Clint Kliem (16:15.6) used an incredible finish in the final half mile to qualify for next weekend's state meet in Peoria.
Belvidere North (59) ran away with the team title, placing all 5 of its runners in the top 16 spots. Sycamore (90) finished second, followed by Crystal Lake Central (114), Kaneland (129) and Richmond-Burton (159).
Kliem wasn't going to miss out for anything. The Rockets' freshman bypassed 7 runners in the final half mile to earn a trip to state.
"That last 300 meters really killed my legs," he said. "In that back stretch, it got a little windy."
Class 3A at St. Charles East: Dundee-Crown sophomore Anthony Manfrin was the lone area qualifier for state out of the St. Charles East sectional. He finished ninth in the incredibly tough field in a time of 15:25.10.
Naperville North senior Kyle Gibson won the race in a time of 14:47.24 and the Huskies won the team title with 43 points. Geneva, Neuqua Valley, St. Charles North and Cary-Grove also qualified for state as teams.
Cary-Grove was led by a seventh-place finish from junior Phil Farleigh, who ran a 15:16.71. Bill Roth finished 20th for the Trojans.
John Radtke and Matt Stacionis contributed to this report.