Boys cross country: Barrington's Laning moves to the head of the pack

Nick Laning was looking for a breakout performance.

And the Waukegan sectional presented the perfect opportunity for the rising Barrington runner last fall.

Waukegan Sports Park offered a unique challenge with its signature switchbacks and narrow running lanes. The field had some heavy hitters, including the Lake Zurich trio of Brian Griffith, Matt Pereira and Kyle Griffith along with Mid-Suburban League champion Brian Leonard just to name a few.

But Laning nailed it, securing a seventh-place finish and qualifying to his first Class 3A state meet. In the process, Laning cemented his status as one of the elite distance runners in Illinois.

"I was really looking forward to that race the entire season," said Laning who went on to take 32nd place at the Class 3A state meet. "I was preparing for it mentally and physically - to really hit it hard and stay near the top guys."

And the Broncos senior has not looked back since his signature race at Waukegan.

Laning rolled into the spring, hitting personal best in the 3,200 (9:16.83) at the Lake County Boys meet. He went on to with the 3,200 at the MSL meet, took second and qualified in the 3,200 at Fremd sectional and capped a big junior year by earning his first state medal with a ninth-place finish in the 3,200 at Class 3A state meet.

His steady rise since freshman season has been fun to watch, and now the Broncos senior enters his final cross country season as the one to watch.

Laning will be among the favorites if not the favorite to win the MSL title, and he is also in line to secure his first state cross country medal. His season is off to a great start, as he won the Lake County Invite at Lakewood Forest Preserve in Wauconda on Wednesday.

"He is the epitome of the progression you hope to see from freshman year to senior year," said fourth-year Barrington coach Tom Root. "His consistency over the last four years has been picture-perfect.

"Just late last season, when he was able to key off some of the top runners in the state and to see how he stacked up against them, that is when it became very clear he was one of the top runners in the state."

Laning had a solid sophomore campaign, finishing 14th in the MSL, then taking 21st at the Schaumburg sectional.

But he became more consistent in his junior season, when he was under 16 minutes in all of his races finishing with a 14:54 at the Class 3A meet for his first sub-15 effort.

"It was crazy and super fun," said Laning of his first state race at historic Detweiller Park. "Just seeing all the other guys out there running as hard as they could. You definitely have to get out fast, and then it's just a matter of continuously trying to keep passing people and holding on."

There will be a bit of added pressure this fall after what Laning accomplished last year, but the Broncos senior doesn't have a lot of time to dwell on those kinds of things. He'll be too busy, playing trombone in the Broncos band and along with a full schedule of classes sprinkled with AP courses.

"He has such a balanced life he never gets stressed because he has distractions on what going on in school, to band and I'm sure countless other things," added Root. "So yeah, I don't worry about him getting weighted down by pressure or intimidated by the target on his back."

Laning is entering his second season as captain for the Broncos and is the only returning senior to run at the sectional meet. The team definitely keys off their senior leader.

Senior Jeff Hasselbein ran for the Broncos in track but is participating in cross country after three seasons in soccer. It hasn't taken him long to see the impact Laning has on the team.

"He's the leader and everybody looks up to him," Hasselbein said. "They know what he can do and he is going to be our steady, fastest guy."

But Laning is not one to soak up personal glory and always deflects any type of personal plaudits back to his team.

"Really, my teammates help me out the most - they are always there encouraging me," Laning said.

A cool Saturday morning on the lacrosse field that hugs Lake-Cook Road is where you could find Laning and his mates going through the paces preparing for the upcoming season.

The team had just completed a workout called 40 quarters, in which each teammate is paired with another and each run twenty 400 meters, combining for a total of 40.

There was a buzz of anticipation and Laning seemed to be in his comfort zone as he meshed with his teammates.

Off to the side was former Barrington star Erik Peterson, observing the team in its preparation for the coming season. Peterson was a two-time MSL champion and an all-state runner for the Broncos in both 2010 and 2011.

The distance between the two was pretty short, and the level that Peterson eventually reached seems to be within Laning's grasp this season.

"The way I see it you just have to go out there and go for it," said Laning, "Obviously sometimes you'll fail, but you just have to hope for the successes. Really it's the team the team that helps you succeed, because they are always there pushing you, so you know they got your back and you can take those chances and really go for it."