Jacobs won't concede, but FVC coaches tab McHenry

Jacobs will still be one of the top boys track teams in the Fox Valley Conference this season, but McHenry is the team to beat in the FVC, according to league coaches.

The Warriors, who won the last two FVC freshman-sophomore meets and prevailed at a recent 10-team indoor invitational at Dundee-Crown, will try to end Jacobs' remarkable run of six straight conference titles.

"Jacobs is always great and Dundee-Crown is always tough, but McHenry is going to be phenomenal," Crystal Lake South coach Dave Puma said.

"McHenry looks the strongest," agreed Dundee-Crown coach Tom Smith, now in his 29th season with the Chargers. "They have top-notch kids and the depth to double score in several events, especially distance and the jumps. Jacobs still has some top-shelf kids and will still score a lot of points, but it could come down to who takes points from whom."

Jacobs coach Jason Borhart didn't concede the crown, but he realizes McHenry's time may have come.

"I think McHenry would be the favorite," he said. "I can slice it up a whole bunch of different ways where we're in the mix, but McHenry has sprints and jumps. You get those and that's the majority of track meet.

"Unfortunately, when we'd run something well, we'd win and they'd be second and third. We can score and we have some big guns but so do they."

Here's a look at what to expect from the local teams in the Fox Valley Conference.

Cary-Grove: The Trojans will rely on points from their distance runners and throwers and attempt to gain points in events left thin due to graduation losses.

State qualifier Phil Fairleigh returns in the 3,200. The junior ran a 9:19 last week at the Top Times meet, easily besting the 2009 Class 3A state qualifying standard of 9:33.

Another potential qualifier is senior discus thrower Ryan Psenka, who surpassed the state standard during the regular season but fell short of that goal at the sectional meet.

Middle-distance runners Eddie Gibbons and Kai Rikardsen return along with sophomore Anthony Golowach. Golowach was one of the more impressive freshmen in the area last season in the 200 and 400 for a team that finished fourth at the Fox Valley Conference meet.

"At the distance level we have very solid good depth," 14th-year coach Layne Holter said. "We're doing a lot of rebuilding on jumps and sprints. It's a group that will need time over the season to mature and get their feet under them."

Crystal Lake South: The Gators should be able to count on consistent points from their miler this season. Senior Josh Uvodich broke the school record in the 1,600 last weekend, when he posted a time of 4:27.02 at the Great Lakes Invite held at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisc.

"He looked absolutely great, and that time is very solid if you look at some of the other area times," 10th-year coach Dave Puma said.

Also returning for the Gators are senior middle distance runners Steven Rogers and Emmanuel Gamez, who made up half of the team that helped the school's 1,600-meter relay place fifth at the state meet in Charleston. Puma said he has high expectations for Rogers in the 800 and the mile relay, whereas, Gamez should be a consistent scorer in the 400 and 800.

Over 100 athletes make up the CL South boys track program this season, though the majority still have room to grow. "Probably 60-70 of them are underclassmen," Puma said, "but the upperclassmen we have are either great athletes, great leaders or both."

Dundee-Crown: The Chargers aren't the favorite in the Fox Valley Conference but coach Tom Smith, who begins his 29th years as boys track and field coach at Dundee-Crown, said his team should be competitive enough to remain among the league elite. The Chargers finished third at the FVC meet last year.

D-C doesn't return any individual state qualifiers from 2008, but this team has competitors in multiple events who should accumulate points.

Paul Smith returns to run the 3,200. After recent bouts with bronchitis and a sinus infection, the senior is regaining his form and aiming for a trip to Charleston. "That's his goal," Tom Smith said. "It's just a matter of getting healthy now. He ran a competitive time last spring."

Other key returnees include senior Dan Magnant (800, 400), junior Jon Magnant (middle distances), sophomore Anthony Manfran (middle distances, relays), junior Nathan Prom (relays), senior Ian Salvatini (sprints, sprint relays), senior Aaron Reams (hurdles, triple jump) and junior Pat Livengood (high jump).

"I think we still have a shot to be in the thick of things," Smith said of the FVC race. "We have some open events and still have to fill in some things but if we can put some relays together that can get us points, we should stay in that upper division of the conference."

Huntley: The Red Raiders finished second in the Fox Valley Conference last season to Jacobs, then bested the Golden Eagles to claim the Class AA sectional team title. However, points will be harder to come by this time around with only nine returning letter winners and the two-thirds of the roster populated by underclassmen.

"It's kind of a new look," enthusiastic fourth-year coach Jim Rolando said. "Right now, pretty much all of the events are competitively open. We are looking to see who steps up and is willing to continue the winning tradition built over the last three seasons."

One Huntley athlete with his own winning tradition is junior thrower Marcus Popenfoose. Courted by virtually every major college track program in the country, Popenfoose placed fourth in Class AA in the discus as a sophomore and 10th in the shot put.

Senior Alex Beruscha set a new school record in the 1,600 recently with a time of 4:28.12. Senior Josh Sivila is a school record holder in multiple events and will run sprints and middle distances. Newcomer Asama Itseumah is expected to earn points in the field events and sprints.

Jacobs: Senior sprinter Mike Wallace and junior hurdler Danny Trevor head another talented assemblage from Algonquin's boys track powerhouse.

Wallace went downstate last year as part of Jacobs' 800-meter relay team. He'll be one of the top 100- and 200-meter dash runners in the Fox Valley Conference and will attempt to make it downstate in the 400 at sectional time. He was timed at just over 51 seconds in the 400 three weeks ago.

Trevor won the high hurdles last year at the FVC meet and took fourth in the sectional, so a state finals appearance is a realistic possibility. Jake Lawson has cleared 13 feet in the pole vault and has potential to climb higher. Sophomore Joey Cieniewicz should earn the Eagles points in middle-distance races. Senior Elliott Turnbaugh will be called upon to lift multiple relay teams, which will be a key to Jacobs' chances in the FVC.

"We need to do well in relays, we need our big guys Danny and Mike to get points and we need new guys like Joey and others to score when get to the conference meet," seventh-year coach Jason Borhart said, whose teams have finished atop the league every season he has coached. "We definitely need those things to happen if we want to keep doing what we've been doing."