It runs in the family with the Karkalis twins

There is only one person Photis Karkalis would not mind finishing behind in a race.

"If he beats me I don't care," Karkalis said of a sentiment shared by his fraternal twin brother Angelos.

The seniors from Rolling Meadows do care about finishing ahead of as many runners as possible today at Detweiller Park in Peoria.

The Karkalises will be chasing top-25 all-state dreams when they take part in their first boys state cross country meet in the Class 3A race at 2 p.m.

And it hasn't been an easy road for two brothers who have the pedigree, as their dad Andy ran for the Greek national team from 1972-75, but compete for a school without much of one in cross country.

This is the first time Meadows has had two qualifiers for a state cross country meet. Photis and Angelos Karkalis increased the overall total to just five for a program where the lone medalist is Christian Escareno (eighth in 2005).

"Maybe this can be the start to something," Angelos said. "It's all about dedication."

Their dedication has been better than ever for head coach Frank Schweda and assistant Jim Voyles, who reversed roles before this season. It led to a eye-opening second-place finish in 15:48 for Photis and a 13th-place finish for Angelos at last week's powerful Schaumburg sectional.

"Everyone assumes Photis will be the guy in the top 25," Voyles said, "but I wouldn't discount the other guy."

Especially since their competitive relationship is more of a sibling camaraderie rather than rivalry.

"We're both at about the same ability level," said Angelos, a two-time state track qualifier in the 3,200-meter relay who also made it to Charleston last year in the 1,600.

"We motivate each other and run together all the time," said Photis, who made his first trip to the state track meet in the 3,200 last spring.

But they didn't automatically gravitate to running early despite the background of their father Andy, who they describe as a big influence.

Photis and Angelos played basketball and volleyball. Their brother George played on Prospect's fourth-place state volleyball team in 1997 and their sister Dora played soccer and basketball at Meadows after the family moved.

Running started becoming a significant part of life for Angelos and Photis their freshman year.

"Our dad definitely helped us," Photis said. "He said, 'You guys are good at this, you should do this.' He had the experience at a real high level."

Andy Karkalis, who was born and raised in Greece and moved his family to the Chicago area in 1982, not only trained in but actually lived in the Olympic Stadium in Athens while running for the Greek national team. He ran the 1,500 in the 4:00-4:01 range and was hoping to take a shot at making the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal when a hamstring injury derailed his career.

But the Karkalises' dad also made it clear success would require more than good genes and natural ability.

"He said it was all about dedication and you have to sacrifice a lot of things," Angelos said. "He said, 'It's one of the hardest sports and you have to love it.'"

Last year Photis narrowly missed making it to Detweiller for the biggest meet of the year. Angelos was well off the pace in what he called a "bad season."

Those disappointing endings drove the Karkalises. It wasn't the amount of training of 50-55 miles a week, which Voyles and Schweda said isn't near the mileage level of a program such as York, but the approach toward it.

"It's our senior year so it's a different mentality," Photis said.

"I knew the ability was there," Angelos said. "Guys were beating me who I beat on the track by a lot so it was more mental."

There were still battles ahead, however.

Angelos missed a couple of early meets with left knee trouble. Photis had a breakout early-season race when he won the Crystal Lake South's Invitational but then missed four midseason meets with tendinitis in his right knee.

Photis struggled to regain his early season form and Schweda adjusted their training to more of a racing pace. His regional meet race gave him an inkling he might be back on track.

"My confidence level was just down after four consecutive weeks of poor races," Photis said. "It was an awesome surprise for me because it's one of the hardest (sectonals) in the state.

"It changed a lot for this weekend. There were a lot of good people in my sectional and I beat quite a few of them so the top-15 is a goal."

Angelos was also happy with the way he outkicked other runners down the stretch to run 16:15.5 and reach state.

"I have more confidence for the race coming up," Angelos said. "I want to get all-state. That's the ultimate goal."

The Karkalises believe this is just a beginning considering their steady progress in high school.

"They like it very much so I'll do my best in my power to continue that," said Andy, a track and field aficionado who hasn't missed any of the twins' races. "I was cut short because of injury but I want them to continue what I started. Hopefully they'll get all-state."

So where will the two solid students end up?

Academically they're also solid as Photis holds a 4.8 grade point average on a 5.0 scale and Angelos has a 4.5. Angelos said they both want to run cross country and track in college.

"We want to go to the same college," Photis said.

Which is no surprise since they've been a pretty good team so far.