Geneva brings home 5th place from state
PEORIA - Geneva girls cross country team entered the season with high expectations, and with good reason the Vikings had won two consecutive state Class 3A titles and seemed primed for a third.
But graduations, transfers and injuries derailed Geneva's bid for its third consecutive title at Detweiller Park in Peoria on Saturday.
Kelly Whitley, who had finished second the previous two years, took 18th leading Geneva to a fifth-place finish with 176 points.
"We were worried all season because races weren't going our way," said Whitley who finished with a time of 17:52. "But we still felt we could do it. It didn't go our way, sometimes that happens.
Palatine placed 3 runners in the top 19 in winning its seventh state title with 99 points.
Ruth Allen (17:47), Sarah McIntosh (17:48), and Courtney Brown (17:52) finished 13th, 15th, and 19th to lead the Pirates.
Kim Christensen (17:19) and Lexie Goldsmith (17:20) went 3-4 leading Sandburg (142 points) leading to second place.
Lauren Mordini (17:48) and McKenna Kiple (17:54) took 14th and 22nd place propelling Wheaton Warrenville South (160 points) to third place.
Naperville North (174 points) edged the Vikings for fourth place.
Chicago Whitney Young senior Lavinia Jurkiewicz took the individual title finishing with a time of 17:11 followed by Rolling Meadows junior Christina Gastfield (17:17).
Kelly Shogren (17:59) finished 26th for Geneva just missing all-state honors by one position.
Tess Ehrhardt (18:23), Rachel Hammond (18:38), and Liza Tauscher (18:53) completed the Vikings scoring finishing 49th, 69th, and 90th place.
Whitley led the Viking attack the previous two years with consecutive runner-up finishes, this year the junior was a bit back.
"It was a little disappointing after getting second two years in a row," added Whitley of her finish. "But I gave it everything I had."
Geneva's fifth-place finish has already has already given the Vikings plenty of motivation for next season.
"Next year will be different," added Whitley. "Now we all know what it feels like not to win state and we're going to work 10 times harder. But I'm very proud of how everyone performed today."
St. Charles North senior Meghan Heuer (17:53) earned all-state honors with 21st place finish for the North Stars.
Sophomore Mallory Abel (18:15) took 37th place in leading St. Charles East (403 points) to 16th place.
Sophomore Taylor Crawford (18:42) finished in 80th place pushing Bartlett (549 points) to 21st place.
Class 2A: Springfield won the Class 2A title finishing with 124 points followed by Yorkville (130 points), and East Peoria (162 points).
Woodstock's Kayla Beattie won the Class 2A individual title crossing the finish line in 17:14.
Burlington Central senior Maggie Gannon (18:15) picked up her second consecutive all-state honors with an impressive 8th place finish.
"I was just a lot more confident and knew what the pace would be like," said Gannon who finished 19th last year. "I made a surge in the back that put me in the top 10 pack."