By Kristin Sharp
With three Yorkville runners finishing ahead of Crystal Lake Central’s No. 2 runner, it was clear the Lady Foxes avoided a third runner-up finish to the girls’ Class 2A state cross country meet.
Yorkville defeated Crystal Lake Central 74-106 to bring home the program’s first state championship last Saturday at Detweiller Park in Peoria.
“There were no surprises. They understand the competition there,” Yorkville head coach Chris Muth said. “It’s not like they were surprised. They’ve run against them and they knew how outstanding Crystal Lake Central was and they knew what they had to do. It wasn’t going to be easy, but they pulled it out. I couldn’t be happier for them.”
Crystal Lake Central freshman Sami Staples became a state champion when she crossed the finish line in 17 minutes, 7 seconds, and Yorkville senior Ali Hester finished 21 seconds later to place sixth in 17:28. Junior Casey Kramer finished eighth in 17:29 and senior Leena Palmer finished 10th in 17:34 to list all three to the All-State honor roll.
“In my head, I was coming up the hill and I was so tired, but I saw the girls ahead of me and I knew I had to do it for my team,” Palmer said. “I zoned everything out. The finish line seemed so far away, but all I wanted was All-State and I got it. I did it for all my seniors because half the girls on my team are seniors. This was my last year and I had to do it for them. I’m just happy with the outcome.”
Senior Esther Bell finished 29th overall with a time of 18:11 while junior Bri Stuepfert finished 39th as Yorkville’s fifth scoring runner, clocking in at 18:22.
Sophomore Kelsey Leedy finished 82nd in 18:55 and senior Ashley Leonetti closed out her high school cross country career in 145th place with a time of 19:51.
“All the girls ran a very intelligent race,” Muth said. “We obviously found our best race at the right time. Individually, there were some excellent performances.”
But the reality of the day’s events soon became bittersweet for Yorkville’s four seniors, who closed out their high school cross country careers last Saturday.
“We had to do it together and that’s exactly what we did,” Hester said. “You can’t ask for a nicer top seven team. We all work together every day in practice in whatever workout we’re doing. It feels great to end like this.”
For Hester, Bell and Leonetti, it was their eighth race at Detweiller and fourth state appearance. Yorkville placed 12th in 2008 and second in both 2009 and 2010.
“Each one of them brings something,” Muth said. “The top seven wouldn’t mesh without each one of them. It’ll be hard to change over next year. But we’re going to enjoy this moment and what they’ve accomplished. I can’t be prouder of them. I can’t be prouder that they came together at the right time. It’s much more than just winning for us coaches. I’m really excited for them.”
Winning was something Muth was less concerned about as Yorkville approached the state series last month. Instead, the Yorkville coaching staff emphasized ending the season with their best races of the season.
“The goal was to go out there and have fun, but bringing home a trophy is the icing on top of the cake,” Kramer said.
Hester and Kramer put themselves in a top position on the course early, and Palmer worked her way into the top 10 as the race progressed. Bell and Stuepfert stuck together for much of the race and improved their positions with each mile.
“Going into it, we knew we had to stay together,” Bell said. “When we got to the back square, a lot of people slow down and we had to open up and maintain our speed. I tried to build the whole way. I started kicking earlier because they were all yelling me. I just thought to myself, ‘This is your last hurrah. Who cares if it hurts.’ I had to do it.”
It was the second half of the race that solidified Yorkville’s hold on the state title.
“They went out aggressive and smart,” Muth said. “They ran a smarter race than most of the teams out there. With all that experience they had, a lot of teams get so amped up that they can’t control it. Our girls made the most in the second half of the race and it was just their pure determination that got them through.”
Before Yorkville even knew of its state championship, the emotions of the day hit the runners as they gathered at the finish line.
“At the finish, all I could do was cry because I saw all the girls and I knew we did it,” Palmer said. “I didn’t care what (place) we got; we did it.”
The runners echoed each other’s sentiments following the Class 2A race.
“We all just started crying,” Bell said. “I’ve just given so many hugs already. I’m sad it’s over, but I’m really happy for everyone too.”
“I don’t want it to be over,” Hester said. “This is my life. I run for my team and it’s just really sad that it’s over. But ending like this just makes me extremely happy. Everybody worked for the seniors and I can’t ask for more. We’re a family.”
Notes: In other state results, St. Teresa won the Class 1A state title ahead of runner-up Westmont 46-174 while St. Joseph-Odgen’s Chelsea Blaase won the race in 17:12. New Trier won the Class 3A race over Wheaton Warrenville South 82-144 while Naperville North and St. Charles East shared the third-place trophy with 183 points. Naperville Central’s Amanda Fox won the race in 16:24 ahead of 2010 champion, Oswego East senior Ariel Michalek’s runner-up finish in 16:37.