Buffalo Grove's Salvano motivated by the moment

For Buffalo Grove senior Kevin Salvano, the time is now.

Getting to this moment has been a steady process for Salvano, who worked in the shadows his freshman year, emerged as a team leader his sophomore season and blossomed into one of the state's top runners last season.

Now Salvano is ready to make one final surge.

"Ever since freshman year, I thought about being on the big stage," said Salvano. "Now that people finally know about me it's great, but the main goal is to be my best in November."

And regardless of the month, Salvano has been pretty good throughout his whole career.

He took 20th in Class 3A his sophomore season, helping lead Buffalo Grove to a 13th-place finish in Class 3A.

He continued his climb through his junior season, battling for the Class 3A lead deep into the state meet race before tying for the second-best state finish in Buffalo Grove history by taking fifth at Detweiller Park in Peoria.

The Bison senior enters this season on the short list for Class 3A state contenders.

"We knew that potential was there from the beginning," said Buffalo Grove coach Zach Crandall. "In his freshman year you could tell he had it. Over the course of the last four years he's been building toward that potential."

"Last year it was important for him to start to see what his potential was and build his confidence. Now, going into this season I think he knows how good he is."

And he was pretty near flawless last season capping his run with a strong postseason.

Salvano started the postseason by finishing second to Conant senior Zach Dale at the Mid-Suburban League meet. He then took first at the Libertyville regional, added a fourth-place finish behind eventual Class 3A state champion Jesse Reiser of McHenry, Dale, and Lake Zurich sophomore Matt Pereira. Salvano completed his run by crossing the line at the state meet in 14:27, nailing down his fifth-place finish.

"That was the goal," said Salvano of his nifty postseason run. "I saw it coming, but I'm not sure if anyone else did. Racing against Jesse (Reiser) and Zach (Dale), two of the best runners in the country, was awesome and a great learning experience."

Salvano increased his exposure last spring when he hit a career best in the 3,200 (9:04.79) against some of the best runners in the nation at the Arcadia Invitational in California.

He ended his junior year by taking eighth in 3,200 at the Class 3A state track and field meet, solidifying himself as one of the top returning runners in Illinois.

Salvano and Pereira, who finished third in Class 3A last season, enter the season as co-favorites to win the state title. But the contending list continues to grow and includes Neuqua Valley senior Connor Horn, York sophomore Charlie Kern and Oak Park-River Forest junior Irwin Loud.

"A lot of pressure," said Salvano of the growing target on his back. "There are so many guys that can win the state championship. If you're marked as one of the favorites then there're all these guys right behind you that want to beat you."

The Buffalo Grove senior will also be looking to lead the Bison back to state after they missed qualifying by 9 points last season, finishing sixth at the Schaumburg sectional. Having Salvano show the way will only help.

"He's become a great leader," said Crandall. "He's got a great pulse of the team and tries to get the guys to go along with him. There is no cockiness to him at all, he just goes out and does what he can - just a great kid."

Salvano has narrowed his college choices to Wisconsin, Notre Dame, and Syracuse, and is also focusing on a deep run at the Nike Cross Nationals and Footlocker post season races.

The composed senior knows there is a lot on his plate for his final season, including meeting individual expectation, aiding the team in meeting its goals, as well as his senior responsibilities.

But he doesn't blink when asked to talk about his ultimate target - a state championship.

"I've been focused on this season for awhile," said Salvano, "I mean I had goals my freshman, sophomore, and junior seasons - but they have all led up this year."