Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Heads to State for the 5th Year in a Row

For the fifth year in a row the Yorkville Middle School girls are heading down to the IESA State Cross Country Championships and the boys will be joining them for the fourth time in the past five years. Both teams earned second place in what many consider to be the most difficult sectional in the state with consistent state qualifiers such as Batavia, Shorewood Troy, and Minooka as well as up-and-coming teams such as Kaneland and Sycamore. Yorkville and Batavia are teams that are incredibly familiar with each other as they had matched up four times before the sectional race this past Saturday, but Saturday’s race was the closest yet between the two conference foes. Batavia won the girls race with a score of 34 to Yorkville’s 43. Kaneland’s girls team earned the last state-qualifying spot with 68 points. The boys race was so close that the results had to be confirmed via video. Yorkville was originally announced the winner by a scant two points, but after a mistake was caught on video Batavia ended up winning with 63 points to Yorkville’s 65 points. Shorewood Troy was the third state-qualifying team with a score of 111.

The Girls Team

Olivia Borowiak was one of Yorkville’s two seventh-grade All-State runners last season and has come back this season as a contender for the individual state championship. She set her personal record (P.R.) of 11:38 at the Tiger Trails Invite in Oswego and has won four individual races this year. Olivia is also a national champion gymnast so she is used to succeeding.

Colleen O’Connor was the team’s other seventh-grade All-State runner last season and became the only seventh grader in Yorkville Middle School history to break 12 minutes in a two-mile race. While she has not broken 12 minutes yet this season, she has consistently been a top runner in every meet, with a P.R. of 12:18 at the Tiger Trails Invite. Colleen is also an accomplished swimmer and tri-athlete and, along with Olivia, has been one of the team’s eighth-grade captains.

Emily Eberhart played volleyball as a seventh grader while her twin brother ran cross country. She decided to run cross country this year and quickly became one of the team’s top runners. Her P.R. of 12:01 at Tiger Trails was tantalizingly close to breaking the 12-minute mark, but a strong race at state could see her in the 11-minute range.

Victoria Crawford won the “Future Potential” award as a seventh grader and she has certainly fulfilled that potential. She ran a 12:31 at the IESA Sectional race to set a P.R. and has been one of the team’s most vocal leaders as a team captain. Victoria is one of the most positive personalities on the team and has kept spirits up no matter the situation this season.

Dani Evans worked through ankle injuries this season to become a strong fifth runner for the team. She ran step-for-step with Victoria at Sectionals to run a 12:31 P.R. of her own. While not a team captain, Dani is another positive influence on the team and has a knack for getting the girls pumped up before a race.

Seventh-grade runner Jazmin Russell was thrust into the Sectional race last Saturday after Roni Bruck was not able to run. Jazmin ran a great race to P.R. with a time of 13:07. She won the team’s sportsmanship award early in the season and, as one of the team’s seventh-grade captains, has been a strong leader and positive influence on the team.

Madison Grandys has been trading places with fellow seventh grader Jazmin often throughout the season. While Jazmin got the better of Madison at the Sectional race, Madison still ran a P.R. of 13:14. Madison has been in the team’s top seven runners for the majority of the season and has balanced playing on a travel soccer team with her cross country meets nearly to perfection.

Roni Bruck was not able to run at the Sectional race, but her P.R. of 13:24 at Tiger Trails is a great time and Roni could see a sub-13 minute time at state if she is able to run.

Hanna Zeinstra is one of the team’s alternates for state, and has always been a quiet, motivated runner on the team. She has never missed a practice, is always trying her hardest during workouts, and is well-deserving of the trip down to state with the team. She set her P.R. of 13:56 at Tiger Trails, and while she likely will not be running at state, she had an incredibly successful eighth-grade season and will share in the team’s success if the team brings home a state trophy.

Samantha Moreno fought through an injury this season to make the state team as an alternate. The seventh-grade runner has always tried her hardest and ran a P.R. of 13:54 at a home meet at Lyon Farm. She exudes a quiet confidence that will certainly help her succeed at even higher levels when she becomes an eighth grader next season.

The Boys Team

Alex Loos has been the top runner on the boys side for the entire season. As a team captain he is quiet, but confident, and he always works his hardest in practices and at meets. His P.R. of 11:01 at the Sectional course at Yorkville High School also set a team record for the course, and Alex is attempting to break into the ranks of All-State runners at state this coming weekend.

Jake Carlson is an accomplished hockey player as well as a potential All-State runner. His P.R. of 11:17 led to him earning All-Sectional honors in 10th place. He has consistently been the team’s number two runner this season and his success at state could mean great things for the team.

Austin Hunter broke into the top ranks of the team as a seventh grader and has even given Jake a run for his money at times. He set a P.R. of 11:19 at the Sectional race and is only three seconds away from the fastest time ever run by a seventh grader for Yorkville Middle School. Austin has set four team records this season and is one of only two seventh-grade boys running at state for the team.

Brett Rhodes is the other seventh-grade boy on the team, and he nearly wasn’t able to run at the Sectional race. Brett was held out of the team’s home Fox Trot Invite the week before Sectionals, but came back strong and ran a P.R. of 11:34 while holding off a number of runners from Batavia. Brett seems completely healthy and ready to help the boys team accomplish great things at state.

Ben Tholen has been the team’s most vocal leader, and he has helped lead a pack of runners that has been the backbone of the boys team and will ultimately determine the team’s success at state. As a seventh grader Ben was not able to finish the season because of a football injury, but concentrating on cross country this season really helped Ben succeed. He wasn’t far behind Brett with a P.R. of 11:39 at the Sectional race, and Ben’s leadership is essential to the team’s success.

Hunter Benesh made an impression at the Sectional race by running a P.R. of 11:38 and beating a few of his teammates who usually got the better of him in races. Hunter is one of the goofier members of the team and can always be counted on to lift the spirits of the team. We may not have seen Hunter’s best race yet and it very well could come at state.

Cole Bruck ran a P.R. of 11:41 at the Sectional race and has been a steady member of the team’s top seven for most of the season. The Yorkville Middle School cross country team has never had seven runners run under 11:45 in the same race and Cole ensured that happened with his great performance last Saturday.

Bryan Corrigan won the “Future Potential” award as a seventh grader and he nearly qualified to run in Sectionals, but was the victim of numbers on one of the best teams in the state. Bryan’s finishing kick is a devastating weapon and he can always be counted on to pass a handful of runners in the final stretch of a race. Bryan ran a P.R. of 12:19 at Tiger Trails and certainly would have run under 12 minutes if he had one more race this season.

Zack Nauman is an alternate on the team for the second year in a row and is one of the team’s most light-hearted members. Without runners like Zack the team would be too serious for its own good. Zack ran a P.R. of 12:11 at Tiger Trails, and has served as one of the team’s best cheerleaders when he isn’t running.

Peyton Tiseth ran his way onto the state roster by winning the junior varsity race at the Fox Trot Invite by a wide margin. Peyton’s P.R. run of 12:12 at the Fox Trot was good enough to give him a roster spot as a seventh grader, and was almost enough to give him a spot as a runner in the top seven. Peyton will have his chance to run at state next year, though, and he will definitely be one of the team’s top runners as he goes into his eighth-grade year.