Wolfe, Prospect win MSL title
Prospect’s girls cross country team entered the season with high expectations, but injuries and illnesses put a damper on the Knights’ start.
But Prospect has continued to improve all season, and on Saturday at the Mid-Suburban League meet, the Knight had their best day yet.
Prospect junior Brooke Wolfe won her second consecutive MSL individual title in 17:32, pushing the Knights to the team title with 55 points on a sunny but breezy morning at Busse Woods in Elk Grove.
Palatine took second with 67 points, with Hoffman Estates (70 points) nipping Barrington (71 points) for third place. Fremd (122 points) took fifth place.
“I knew we would have a rough start to begin the season,” said Prospect coach Dave Wurster, whose team won its second MSL title in three years. “But we just believed in ourselves and had confidence that we could do it. We kept getting better and better, and it kept building.”
Wolfe had a foot injury that wiped out her track season last spring, but the junior shook off her early season rust and got separation in the final mile while cruising to her second consecutive individual MSL title.
Palatine junior Tess Wasowicz (17:46) took second, followed by Hoffman Estates senior Haley Goers (17:47), with Fremd junior Kelly Breen (18:00) and Palatine sophomore Jessica Lincoln (18:03) rounding out the top five.
“It was a competitive field and we were all dealing with the wind,” said Wolfe. “I gave all I could the last mile. We kept improving as a team all season. Our whole team is coming together.”
Senior Laura Maibuecher (18:22) and junior Lauren Poplawski (18:29) took ninth and 11th place for Prospect. They’d been slowed earlier in the season due to mono, but they help set the tone early by putting the Knights in solid position.
Senior Kate Welch (18:45) and sophomore Rachel Henk (18:51) helped seal the victory for the Knights by taking 16th and 18th place.
“I think we all surged in the second mile,” said Poplawski. “Then we were able continue that in the final mile. It feels so good; it was one of our goals.”
Wasowicz and Lincoln set the early pace for Palatine, which finished second in the league for the third consecutive season. Sophomore Cassidy McPherson (18:15) finished seventh and senior Ellen Smith (19:00) was 22nd.
“Things were really tight,” said Palatine coach Joe Parks of the top four teams that were separated by only 16 points. “Obviously you want to win a conference title and we were right there banging on the door, but the last couple years we’ve pulled out state trophies after finishing second.”
Wasowicz hung tight with the Wolfe and Goers through 2 miles, and the junior finished strong.
“Overall it was a strong race,” said Wasowicz of her finish. “I know I have to keep working on the second mile. We’re getting more experience and I think we’ll come together these next couple of weeks.”
Senior Haley Worman (18:06) took sixth place, teaming with Goers to give Hoffman Estates a solid 1-2 punch.
Goers helped push the pace early, and was hanging tight with leaders at the 2-mile mark.
“You could tell she was going to make a break,” said Goers of the Wolfe third-mile surge. “As a team we know we are capable of doing more, we just need to work a little bit harder.”
Senior Takshaka Patel (18:48), freshman Alondra Aguirre (18:52) and sophomore Haile Solome (19:06) finished the Hawks’ attack by taking 17th, 19th, and 25th place.
“I was pleased with our results, it was close,” said Hoffman Estates coach Kirk Macnider, whose team made a major jump after finishing seventh in the MSL last season. “It was an incredible battle. Every week we continue to get stronger; we know that it’s out there. We’re back in business.”
Junior Becca Batliner (18:17), senior Ella Tracy (18:22), and junior Rachel Simon (18:35) kept Barrington in the hunt by taking 8th, 10th, and 12th place. Batliner used a strong opening mile to set the tone for the Fillies.
“The race started out slow because no one wanted to take the wind,” said Batliner. “But then it picked up. As a team we really packed it up and I think we’ll come back strong.”
Senior Alexa Argianas (18:52) and sophomore Caroline Reynolds (18:56) aided the Fillies’ attack by taking 20th and 21st place.
“I was pleased with how we ran today but the other teams stepped up and ran well too,” said Barrington coach Debbie Revolta. “We don’t have the firepower up front that some of the other teams do; we just have to continue to keep moving our pack up.”
Junior Katherine Filosa (19:05) and junior Morgan Brauer (19:05) took 23rd and 24th place, combining with Breen to push Fremd to fifth place. Breen pressured the leaders early and finished strong.
“I just wanted to push myself and see how long I could hold,” said Breen. “I proved I could hold my own.”
Senior Kelsey Steenstrup (18:38) and junior Hannah Coombs (18:43) took 13th and 15th place to pace defending MSL champion Schaumburg to a sixth-place finish, 2 points behind Fremd
“I knew we had to work together to finish strong,” said Streenstrup, who worked off Coombs in powering the Saxons.
Senior Nora Gawlik (18:41) used a strong start in securing 14th place for Hersey.
“I just wanted to push it early,” said Gawlik. “It was good race and I was able to stick with position.”