Boys cross country: Schokora, Abraham hoping to continue Marmion tradition
Marmion seniors Jack Schokora and Niraj Abraham both have big goals for the upcoming cross country season.
Sure, both distance runners have a number of individuals goals, especially after the coronavirus pandemic limited the number of meets last season. But Schokora and Abraham are more focused on leaving a different type of legacy at the all-boys private school.
The Cadets, from 2005 to 2014, were a consistent force in the state in Class 2A and 3A, highlighted by Dave Grange's fifth-place medal in 2006 in Class AA. First-year Marmion coach Andrew Lifka, a 2017 graduate, has put a focus on rebuilding the team's tradition.
"The goal of continuing Marmion's cross country tradition is very important to us," Schokora said. "It's been a strong program since I was a freshman, and we know we have the responsibility to continue instilling the strong values we learned from past Marmion runners."
After dealing with an injury for most of his junior cross country season, Abraham said he's healthy and ready to have a breakout season.
"I've been feeling healthy and stronger than before," he said. "I really want to break my personal best and have a strong showing for the state series. Along with racing goals, I really want to be able to help the freshmen adjust to Marmion and the team."
Lifka said Schokora and Abraham are two runners to watch this fall, especially with both runners coming off solid summers.
"Jack's coming off some minor injuries from last season that's really fed into his motivation," he said. "He's been consistently training and hoping to break the 16-minute mark. Niraj did well in the spring running track, so we're excited to see what he can do in cross country. Those two took it upon themselves to spearhead our leadership.
"They want to redefine the culture of the team and for Marmion to become a household name again. We've had good success in the past. They want to get back there and we've embraced the underdog mentality. We're all trying to get Marmion to be a competitive name in the postseason."
Schokora said he's looking for a big improvement from his 46th place time of 16 minutes, 57.41 seconds at last season's Class 2A Lakes sectional.
"This is my last chance to be able to prove myself," Schokora said. "It's a good goal to keep me motivated throughout the season. Last season I had sort of a breakthrough, and I'm hopeful to be close to what I've ran in the past. I'm anticipating an exciting season."
Lifka said his knowledge of the program from his days running cross country is something he plans to lean on to help his runners.
Lifka said senior Mitchell Gratz is another key runner this season, along with junior Connor Carlson and sophomore Lucas Chung.
The Cadets upgraded their schedule by adding the Palatine Invite and the Minooka Flight Invitational.
"It's been a quality summer for summer, a unique time of change for the team," Lifka said. "We have a really good balance of upperclassmen leadership and committed sophomores and a large freshman class that has a lot of potential. Our top group balance with a couple of good seniors and three or four sophomores and freshmen is good."