Mount Prospect River Trails Middle School finishes first in IESA 3A Boys Cross Country state meet

River Trails Middle School's boys cross country team finished in first place this weekend at the state meet in Normal, winning the IESA 3A Championship.

"In cross country it is your first five runners that account for scoring, yet it truly took the entire team to make this accomplishment happen. Our runners pushed and competed with each other every day at practice and at every meet to help enable the growth needed for winning a state championship," Coach Jim Kuperman said. "On top of that we had 8th grade leaders that were second to none. When you have a team with amazing running abilities, work ethics, and leadership, good things tend to happen. This year great things happened, and it is all due to our runners and their commitment to our program."

The boys' team was led by Matthew Benedict with an 11:19, Johan Gonzalez with an 11:22, Lucas Pfoutz with an 11:30, Evan Marshall with an 11:42, Declan Brady with an 11:50, Santiago Arroyo with a 12:16, and Colin Brady with a time of 12:21. Benedict and Gonzalez also earned All-State honors by each placing in the Top 25. Everett Georgacakis, Aadit Shinde, and Josh Wellington rounded out the boys state team. The boys also won the conference and sectional championships in the weeks leading up to the state meet.

" As a Coach there is nothing more fulfilling than watching your students experience the joy of winning, as well as accomplishing something that they previously couldn't even imagine," Kuperman said. "Winning the state championship is something that they will remember and be proud of for the rest of their lives. It was an amazing moment on an amazing day."

The girls' team took 11th at state. They were led by Gianna Walters, Kate Getz, Brielle Perrault, Maggie Mau, Cadence Perrault, Jordan Patterson, and Alexia Erdei. Audrey Enabe, Alianna Luna, and Emily Parry rounded out the girls state team.