By Michael Newman

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The second invitational out of the three held at Detweiller Park usually produces some sizzling times in both the girls and the boys team races. I do not expect it to be different this year. The weather is expected to be cool and the course is expected to be fast. The same can be said about the athletes that will toe the line at this course.

Twenty four ranked teams in Illinois on the girls’ side and 25 ranked teams in the boys’ race should answer questions that Illinois fans and coaches have asked during the summer and the first part of the season.

Here is a look at both of the varsity races that will be contested Saturday morning at Detweiller Park.

Girls Varsity – 9:40 AM

Individuals – This still should be a great race even though Madeline Perez (Glenbard West HS, Glen Ellyn) is still not back at 100% and most likely will not race Saturday morning. The field is still loaded. I expect that the winning time will be in the mid 16:40’s.

Perez’s teammate Lindsay Graham has transitioned well into the Glenbard West program this fall. The sophomore was outkicked at the Hornet-Red Devil Invitational by Hinsdale Central freshman Alexa Haff, then came back and ran a powerful last mile to win last weekend at Lake Park. The other West runner that should be in the front will Lisa Luczak, but she will take the opposite approach to the race. She likes to build into the race and move the second half. That showed last week when she moved from 21^st at the mile to finish 3^rd at Lake Park.

Mimi Smith (New Trier HS, Winnetka) has stepped into the leadership role on and off the cross country course. Her second place finish two weeks ago at Hinsdale shows that she is ready for a fast time on Saturday. One of the questions in this race is the status of Carly Krull (Sandburg HS, Orland Park). She did not run the first race of the year at Lyons Township. If she is in the race, Krull likes to hang back early in the race and run a strong last mile. She has a good kick that could take the title.

There are two runners, I believe, could steal the spotlight in this race. The first is sophomore Maryjeanne Gilbert (Notre Dame HS, Peoria). She finished second at 2A state last year and showed great improvement earning a second place in the 3200 last spring. If she is with the lead pack going into the last mile, she could get the win. The other runner that I would keep a close eye on is Mackenzie Yanek (Pleasant Valley HS IA). The sophomore destroyed a great field two weeks ago at the Pleasant Valley Spartan Invitational winning by 48 seconds. Naperville North’s Elly DeTurris placed third in that race. She could be the one runner that pushes the pace early.

Palatine will push for the team championship and one of the reasons why is from the great running so far by senior Liz Cox. She finished in the top 5 two weeks ago at Hinsdale and could be pushing for a top ten finish in this race. Expect teammate Jessica Lincoln to be close to her. Torree Scull (East HS, St. Charles) ran a great race last Saturday at Lake Park and took second behind Lindsay Graham. Scull could play a factor in this race. Ashley England (North HS, St. Charles) and Emily Leonard (Maine South HS, Park Ridge) both finished towards the front last week at Lake Park. Expect more of the same from these two on Saturday.

Other runners that I would keep an eye on include Megan Carroll (St. Viator HS, Arlington Heights), Claire Costelloe and Julia Pena (Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville), Caroline Kurdej (Schaumburg HS), Adrienne & Maria Brauer (PORTA HS, Petersburg), and Grace Foley (Sandburg HS, Orland Park).

Teams – Two weeks ago at Hinsdale, it was the pack running of #3 Palatine holding on for a two point win over #2 Glenbard West. The two will go at it for the final time before the state meet and both would like to make a statement. West will rely on the front running of Lindsay Graham and Lisa Luczak. Grace Rogers had a good race last Saturday at Lake Park and could be in the top 15 in the race. The key for Glenbard is to have three runners in before Palatine’s firs. The four-five runners need to be at least 60-65 second from whoever their #1 runner is in the race Graham or Luczak.

Palatine has the depth and the mentality to stay close together during the race. That formula could give them another win over the Hilltoppers. Jessica Lincoln had a bad race two weeks ago. Expect her to be close to Liz Cox on Saturday. The emergence of sophomores Kelly O’Brien and Sabina Yousif to the top 5 make Palatine a little more dangerous. Cassidy McPherson and Amy Kieliszewski are another tandem that makes this Palatine team oh so tough. The Lady Pirates could win this race if they have one runner in the top ten and four others ahead of Glenbard West’s fourth runner.

#4 New Trier also showed depth at Hinsdale and could move a few athletes up onto the varsity. Mimi Smith will be challenging for the race championship, but she could help behind her with Freshmen Cara Keleher and Molly Schmidt along with sophomore Kelli Schmidt. If the Trevians can have a tight 2-5 split then we could see them in the mix for a trophy at this race. #5 O’Fallon ran a tight pack of under 30 seconds last week at Forest Park in St. Louis. The problem was that none of their front runners were in the top 20. Samantha Lapp and Sydney Neal have the potential to be in the top 15 in this race. If the Panthers can keep the same type of split, this team goes back south with the race championship.

Pleasant Valley IA will have the front running of McKenzie Yanek to lead the way. Naperville North doubled the score on them two weeks ago. This team is capable of leaving Detweiller with a top 10 finish.

With 12 ranked 3A teams in this field, there will always be a big surprise. We could see a surprise race from #16 Oak Park-River Forest. The Huskies have looked strong in winning both the Fenton Early Bird and the Royal Cadet Invitationals. Freshman Mary Blankemeier has been the front runner for this team. If Erin Schrobilgen can run close to the freshman Saturday morning, then the Lady Huskies could be a top six team in this meet.

Boys Varsity Race – 11:00 AM

Individuals – The discussion on who the favorite in this race starts and ends with Patrick Perrier (O’Fallon HS). Last week at the Forest Park Festival in St. Louis, Perrier stormed away to the fastest 5k time in the nation running 15:03. Last year, he ran 15:24 in St. Louis and came back to run 14:27 in Peoria. If the conditions are right, we could see close to 14:20 or under in this race.

Who will be close to him in this race? Good question. This is a deep quality field but will any of them be able to touch the O’Fallon runner. One runner that I would keep a close eye on is Dan Lathrop (South HS, Plainfield). He dominated at the end of August at Maxwell Park in the Normal West Opener. He played with the field last week at Joliet before moving away from the pack for an easy win. His improvement curve is on the upswing. He could be one that could be close. Nolan McKenna (Wheaton-Warrenville South HS, Wheaton) has started out slowly this year finishing fifth at Hinsdale and then last week behind Zach Dale at Wauconda. He has the talent to be towards the front as well.

Angel Estrada (Highland Park HS) has been a slight surprise so far this season winning comfortably at Lake County then finishing a strong second behind Billy Magnesen at Hinsdale. He has the potential to be in the front as well. Pete Cotsirilos (New Trier HS, Winnetka) looks like he is completely back from an injury that has kept him off the cross country course for the last two years. He moved the second half of the race at Hinsdale and could be a factor in this one. Graham Brown (Palatine HS) continues to get stronger and stronger every race that he is in. He was fourth at Hinsdale and could flirt with a top five finish Saturday morning.

Will there be a York runner towards the front in this race? It depends what strategy is used. Nathan Mroz has demonstrated in the past that he can run with some of the best. A hip stress fracture sidelined him his entire junior cross country season. After a strong end of track season, the senior could be in the mix. He could, however, be leading the York pack. We will have to wait and see.

Joe Suarez (East HS, Plainfield) looked in control in his second place finish last week at Lake Park. He has the talent to be in the front. David Rodriguez (Hersey HS, Arlington Heights) has not raced all out this year yet, but I expect him to be in the mix for a top ten spot. Other runners that I would keep an eye on towards the front include Nick Hess (St. Thomas More, Champaign), JD Lafayette (University HS, Normal), Simon Thorpe (Dixon HS), Jack Carpenter (Maine South HS, Park Ridge), Dorrian Gordon (O’Fallon HS), Eryk Yunk (North HS, Belvidere), Luke Schroer (Wheaton-Warrenville South HS, Wheaton), Alex Bashqawi, Matt Plowman, and Kyle Mattes (York HS, Elmhurst), and Jeremy Lozano (Lake Park HS, Roselle).

Teams – This was supposed to be a big showdown between two of the top teams supposedly in the state. It could be but many questions will need to be addressed. #2 O’Fallon was missing four of their top seven runners that were recovering from various illnesses and injuries. We could see all of them in the lineup Saturday. O’Fallon has a strong leader in Patrick Perrier and Dorrian Gordon has taken the next step up. O’Fallon will not win the team race if they have the same kind of split that they had a week ago. If needs to be near 65-70 seconds off of Perrier for this team to have a chance to win.

#3 York looked comfortable in their dual meet win at Glenbard West not putting the throttle down during the entire race. That will change on Saturday. The Dukes have a strong front four led by Nathan Mroz. The big question for the defending 3A state champions is if they have a runner that will step up to take the fifth man role and stay within 30 seconds of the York pack. If that happens, York will be tough beat. If not, it is not out of the realm of imagination that this team finishes lower than third.

#4 New Trier will be a team that will challenge for the championship. They have the front runner in Pete Cotsirilos. Their key will be if Chase Silverman be closer to his teammate Cotsirilos. The Trevians have proved that they can run a tight 3-5 pack. The closer Silverman is to the front, the better chances of his team winning. #5 Hersey is the other mystery team in this field. They have not been pushed at all this season and this will be their first invitational going “all-out”. Andy Philipose has not raced at all this season. If he is in the mix along with David Rodriguez, this team could contend for a championship. They have the talent to be up front.

#13 Lane Tech has looked impressive in winning their first two invitationals at St. Patrick and Wauconda with 5 man splits of 10-12 seconds. The key for the Lanesters is having a runner in the front twenty and keeping at least a thirty second 1-5 split on.  Saturday. Just like Hersey, they have the potential to be towards the front in this race. #11 Wheaton-Warrenville South will have the front runners in Nolan McKenna, Luke Schroer, and Kyle Cepeda. The key for them is to get their four-five runners close. The bigger the gap there is in a race with this many runners, the higher the score will be for the Tigers. #14 Lake Park has looked good the last two weeks. If Jeremy Lozano can stay within the first fifteen and the Lancers keep a 45 second split, this team could be in the top 5. #15 Palatine had a clunker of a race at Hinsdale, but have rebounded with strong wins against conference rivals Barrington and Conant. This team needs to have a 42 second split off of Graham Brown to be in the top 5 in this meet.

Keep an eye on both #17 St. Charles East and #18 Sandburg. The Saints looked strong last week almost defeating Lake Park. Sandburg looked impressive at Lyons two weeks ago and will build off of that. Also watch for 2A #3 Mahomet-Seymour. They had a tight 33 second split a week ago at Springfield. If they have a runner in the first 20, this could be a team that will surprise.