Cross country roundup: Barrington, St. Viator girls; Hersey, Libertyville, Prospect boys among regional winners

Step one towards the IHSA state meet began for girls cross country teams Saturday morning as regional meets were held all across the area.

In Class 3A, Barrington nipped Lake Zurich 31-32 for the Grant regional championship as the Fillies' duo of Victoria Tarara and Angelica Hil placed 1-2 to help their team capture the title.

After sustaining a fractured fibula at a training camp in Colorado in July, Barrington star junior Mia Sirois remains sidelined after posting a state-record time of 15:53.4 last year at state. Sirois ran in one meet early in the season, but her status for sectionals and state are still uncertain.

"She's on the mend," said Barrington coach Debbie Revolta, whose team beat York by one point for the state crown last fall. "I just don't know if she will be back."

Third-place Warren (118 points), fourth-place Stevenson (133), and fifth-place Carmel Catholic (163 points) also advanced to the Hoffman Estates sectional.

Warren's Kaylee Wilson placed third followed by the Lake Zurich trio of Chloe Wettstein, Avery Muhr, and Abigail Kocher in places 4-6.

At the Palatine regional, Jacobs freshman sensation Lennox Szymonik ran to first place in 17:22.46 while Hersey won the team title over the Golden Eagles by a 32-75 margin.

Also advancing to sectionals were Schaumburg (79 points) in third, Fremd (114) in fourth, Conant (136) in fifth, and Palatine (139) in sixth.

Hersey freshman Graceleen Mabry was the runner-up in 17:42.25 followed by teammates JoJo Messer and Alexandra Kopacz in third and fourth, respectively. Hoffman Estates' Maya Zabiegly placed fifth to advance as an individual.

At the Loyola regional, Prospect's Meg Peterson took first place in 17:45, but New Trier won the championship by a score of 40-54 over the Knights.

Fourth-place Maine South (98 points) and sixth-place Elk Grove (178 points) also advanced to sectionals. Maine South's Tessie Bradley took third while Reagan Malone led the Grenadiers in sixth.

In Class 2A, St. Viator won the Grayslake Central regional 57-72 over Deerfield. The host Rams placed third (121 points) while fourth-place Lakes (125), and sixth-place Grayslake North advanced to the Lakes sectional.

Vernon Hills' Estella Ollinger (18:17.10) took first place to advance as an individual while Grayslake North's Madison Petersen was the runner-up by 1.6 seconds. St. Viator's Emily Walberg placed fourth while Lakes' Maddie Schrader was fifth.

At the Woodstock regional, St. Francis took first place with 45 points while Wheaton Academy took third place in a 72-72 tie-breaker over fourth-place Crystal Lake South. Cary Grove (109 points) also advanced to the Lakes sectional.

St. Francis teammates Elena Mamminga and Erin Hinsdale placed 2-3 while Cary-Grove's Alexandra Santoyo placed fourth.

Boys races: Hersey started off its postseason on the right foot Saturday morning as the Huskies slipped past Fremd 52-55 for the Class 3A Palatine regional title.

The host Pirates (77 points) took third to advance to the Hoffman Estates sectional along with Buffalo Grove (91) in fourth, Wheeling (161) in fifth, and Conant (168) in sixth.

Fremd's Jack Jennings won the race in 14:56.53 followed by teammate David Moore in second, Palatine's Alex Krieg in third, Buffalo Grove's Riley Wold in fourth, and Conant's Charlie Calderone in fifth.

At the Grant regional, Libertyville outdistanced Lake Zurich 51-60 for the championship. Also advancing to sectionals were Barrington (122 points) in third, and the host Bulldogs (127 points) in fourth.

Lake Zurich's Cameron Libby won the race in 14:57.67. Libertyville's Taylor Rihm placed second followed by Lake Zurich's Luke Marshall in third, Grant's Maxx Haas in fourth, and Mundelein's Elijah Mendoza in fifth.

At the Loyola regional, Prospect captured the team title with 30 points as the foursome of Brody Cushing, Quinn Davis, Luke Robinson, and Landon Samp took placed 3-6 in the meet. Maine South (122 points) also advanced to sectionals in fourth place. Prospect's Collin Ryan placed 12th while Maine South's Brendan Tremblay took 13th.

In Class 2A, Vernon Hills (89 points) took third at the Grayslake Central regional while the host Rams (101 points) took fourth. Fifth-place Carmel (177) also advanced to the Lakes sectional.

Grayslake Central's Adan Cordova rolled to first place in 15:15.41 while Lakes' Cooper Summy (fourth) advanced as an individual.

At the Woodstock regional, fourth-place Crystal Lake South (107 points), fifth-place Cary-Grove (121), and sixth-place Wauconda (157) qualified for sectionals.

Antioch's Carson Lanners placed third to advance as an individual while Joseph Gonzalez was the Gators' top runner in fourth place.