Plenty of firepower at Palatine Invitational
It's not the Fourth of July, but there are sure to be plenty of fireworks Saturday in Palatine.
The Palatine Invitational will be held at Deer Grove East Forest Preserve - the marquee cross country meet of the weekend featuring explosive boys and girls teams.
The girls varsity race will start at 10:20 a.m., followed by the boys varsity race at 10:50 a.m. Because of wetlands construction at Deer Grove East, the course has been altered.
Only limited parking will be available at Deer Grove East. A spectator shuttle bus will run every 15 minutes from Palatine High School starting at 9 a.m.
The girls field includes six of the top 10 teams in the dyestat.com poll - including No. 2 Palatine, No. 3 Barrington and No. 4 Prospect. Wheaton Warrenville South, Downers Grove North and Lyons are also in the 28-team field.
Palatine was edged by No. 1 Schaumburg 83-91 at the Peoria Notre Dame Invitational last Saturday, and the Pirates are looking to defend their 2009 title this Saturday.
"We actually ran pretty well in Peoria," said Palatine coach Joe Parks of the defending state champions. "It is our home course so we are looking to perform well on Saturday, and the girls are still confident."
Senior Courtney Brown, junior Emily Schulte and sophomore Tess Wasowicz have powered the Pirates early. Brown finished second at Peoria and is looking to continue a solid season.
No. 3 Barrington won the Peoria Woodruff Invitational Sept. 11 and finished second at the St. Charles East Invitational on Sept. 4, despite tying York with 70 points.
Sophomore Rebecca Batliner, the defending Palatine Invitational champion, and junior Ella Tracy have powered a strong attack.
No. 4 Prospect took second to Schaumburg at the Lake Park Invitational on Sept. 4.
Sophomore Brooke Wolfe has opened the season with a flurry for the Knights with titles at Fenton and Lake Park. Senior Laura Maibuecher and sophomore Lauren Poplawksi have also aided the Knights.
St. Viator is ranked No. 11 in 3A after moving up from 2A last year. Leading the Lions in this stern test are senior Keegan Grieble, sophomore Hannah Winter and freshman Meghan Carroll.
Other individuals to watch include Downers Grove North senior Samantha Fry, Wheaton Warrenville South junior Lauren Mordini, Hersey senior Salena Clohisy and Stevenson sophomore Mackenzie Levy.
The boys field includes 11 of the top 25 teams in the dyestat.com poll - including York, host Palatine, Lake Zurich, Lyons and Barrington.
York, which took third at the Peoria Notre Dame meet, have won 26 state titles and are the team to beat.
York senior Jack Driggs took first in Peoria and finished third in Class 3A last season. He will get plenty of help from sophomore Alex Mimlitz and senior Ron Hedman.
Palatine received a rude awakening, finishing eighth in Peoria.
"It was definitely a wake-up call for us," said Pirates coach Chris Quick, "On Saturday we're looking to defend our home course and getting back to how Palatine runs. We're definitely awake."
Junior Anthony Gregorio, senior A.J. Laskowske and senior Reuben Frey will lead the Pirates.
Lake Zurich and Lyons finished fifth and sixth at Peoria. Senior Alex Brend leads a surprising Lake Zurich squad, while senior Sam Telfer, who finished third at Peoria, leads Lyons.
Barrington finished 12th at Peoria with junior Erik Petersen leading the way. Also in the loaded field is defending Class 4 Missouri state champion St. Louis University.
Individuals to watch include Hersey senior Ryan O'Donnell, Buffalo Grove junior Jereme Atchison, Maine South senior David Eckhart, Loyola junior William Hague and Dundee-Crown senior Anthony Manfrin.
Fremd girls see bright light: It is hard to see the light of day when the top four teams in state are in your conference.
That's the case for Fremd, which is looking up at Schaumburg, Palatine, Barrington, and Prospect - ranked first through fourth in the dyestat.com state poll.
But the Vikings, ranked No. 14, have quietly put together a very solid start. Fremd opened a few eyes when it finished third at the Peoria Woodruff meet with 105 points Sept. 11. The Vikings finished 12 points behind first-place Barrington and 9 points behind runner-up Wheaton Warrenville South.
The Vikings took first at the Warren Invitational on Saturday, edging Rolling Meadows 62-65.
"We have a core of six or seven girls that are a pretty good pack," said Vikings coach Mark Anderson. "And our sophomore class is just very impressive."
Seniors Emi Sudo and Victoria Moroney have provided the leadership, while sophomores Kelly Breen, Katie Filosa and Samantha Bartolai have made huge strides.
Breen has carried the Vikings, finishing 15th at Peoria and third at Warren. The sophomore has emerged as one of the top runners in the Mid-Suburban League.
"I just try to tell myself to do my best in every race and try not to worry about where I am," Breen said.
Fremd returned six of its top seven runners from last year's team that finished eighth in the MSL. The Peoria Woodruff meet was a launching pad.
"We definitely didn't expect to do that well, we were just hoping for a top-five finish," Sudo said. "I think we showed a lot of teams that we can compete."
Fremd has not qualified for a state meet since 2006. The Vikings know it will be a challenge this year, especially in the rugged MSL, but they are not backing down.
"I think it has only made us better," Moroney said. "I think the competitiveness of our conference is why our team has gotten so much better. We know we have to push ourselves if we want to get to state."