Wolfe again ahead of the pack; Schaumburg soars
The alarm went off - and Prospect sophomore Brooke Wolfe and the Schaumburg girls cross country team responded Saturday.
Wolfe once again made separation in the second mile and eased to a comfortable victory in 16:53 at the 36th annual Lake Park Invitational in Roselle.
"I wanted to run with the lead pack and when I felt good just take the race," said Wolfe, who also won the Fenton Invitational last weekend. "It's a good start, but I just want to keep progressing."
Schaumburg used a devastating final mile to place three runners in the top 10 and four in the top 16 to cruise to the team title with 61 points.
Senior Karen Lesiewicz (17:16), senior Colette Falsey (17:24) and senior Britten Petrey (17:55) punished the final mile in finishing second, fourth and 10th to lead a talented Saxon squad to the title.
"The plan was to go out conservatively and not have those three charging at the beginning," said Saxons coach Jon Macnider of his powerful trio. "You can be in a race without crushing every step. Basically we wanted to run so we could come home charging."
And the Saxons did exactly that with Prospect (97 points) taking second followed by Downers Grove North (134 points), Glenbrook North (156 points) and St. Charles North (159 points).
Lake Park sophomore Kaylee Flanagan (17:23) took third place and Hoffman Estates junior Haley Goers (17:24) took fifth place to round out the top five.
Lesiewicz, Falsey, and Petrey led the charge for the Saxons with sophomore Hannah Combs (18:08) contributing a 16th-place finish in an impressive showing.
Lesiewicz, who won the state title for the 1,600 in Class 3A last spring, flashed her kick in surging to second.
"We wanted to have a kick at the end," said Lesiewicz of the Saxons' controlled start. "The last mile I just put my head down and went for it. There is no set order on our team, whoever is feeling good just takes it."
Wolfe was feeling good for Prospect, helping the Knights secure second place. The sophomore is feeling much more confident this season and it has shown early.
"Last year I had to get used to the three miles," said Wolfe. "This year it's a lot easier. Now I just want to keep progressing."
Sophomore Lauren Poplawski (18:00) and junior Laura Maibuecher (18:02) took 12th and 13th place to help propel Prospect.
Downers Grove North was missing senior Gabby Effrain, but senior Samantha Fry (17:36) finished eighth, leading the Trojans to a third-place finish.
"It definitely gives you a lot of confidence to run against some of the top runners in the state," said Fry of her performance. "It shows all your hard work is paying off. The team continues to improve each week."
Sophomore Gabbie Hesslaue (18:05) and sophomore Jillian Kothanek (18:32) took 14th and 25th to supply a punch for the Trojans.
Sophomore Valerie Bobart (18:22), sophomore Katherine Weber (18:23) and freshman Ellery Marrinan (18:24) packed together a 19th-, 21st- and 22nd-place finish to lead Glenbrook North to fourth place.
Junior Sydney Stuenkel (18:07) finished 15th, leading St. Charles North to fifth place.
Kaylee Flanagan (17:23) continued her impressive sophomore campaign by taking third place and helping host Lake Park secure sixth.
The sophomore hung with the leaders all race and was in position to take second place before Lesiewicz outsprinted her in the final 100 meters.
"Our whole team has been doing great in workouts and I think it paid off today," said Flanagan, who finished second at Fenton last weekend.
Goers (17:24) ran a solid race to take fifth place and help Hoffman Estates secure seventh. The junior clung to the lead pack and is building off last season, when she finished 23rd in Class 3A.
"I feel like I'm more experienced this year," said Goers, who has taken over a leadership role for the Hawks. "I learned as much as I could last year and now it's my turn to teach. We all have new roles this season, but I think we're progressing well."
Bartlett senior Alyssa Schneider finished fifth in Class 3A as a sophomore, but an iron deficiency put a drag on her junior season.
The senior is healthy this season and it is showing. Schneider (17:27) took sixth, helping the Hawks to an eighth-place finish.
"It was tough not knowing what was wrong last year," said Schneider, who won the St. Charles East Invite last weekend. "I feel so much more confident and stronger this season and I'm looking forward to racing."
Sophomore Nicole Watkins (18:10) and junior Taylor Crawford (18:30) aided the Hawks' charge with a 17th- and 24th-place finish.
Freshman Emily Leonard (17:34) and sophomore Megan Lemersal (18:28) took seventh and 23rd for ninth-place Maine South.
St. Charles East sophomore Jessica Evans (17:55) finished in 11th place and South Elgin junior Jordan Tuin (18:18) took 18th place.