Saturday
The Parkside Invitational saw many personal records shattered as the Spartans cruised through the course. It also saw 49 teams cover Maxwell Park’s two-mile course which is known for its fast times as well as being the host for the IESA State Meet.
Getting the first crack at the rain-covered course were the varsity girls. Chrystal C. got off to a great start and carried her performance through to a quick time of 13:21. Madison B. finished second for the Spartans in a time of 13:46. Anna, Abby, Sidney, Kaylie, and Rachel finished in a 1:15 spread as our 3-7 runners. These girls fought hard and were rewarded with fast times.
Second to trod through the mud were the varsity boys. Utilizing their teammates, these boys saw similar success to the girls as they followed their race plan to perfection. Each of the top seven boys achieved a personal record. Logan D. barely missed the 12-minute mark in 12:02 while Maddox D. was the third 6th grader overall to cross the line (12:07). Seth J. was close behind in 12:13. Zach, Michael, Cooper, and Caden rounded out the top 7 with a :57 spread between our 4-7 runners.
Third to test their limits on Maxwell’s course were the open girls. Julia K. crossed the line in 14:57 to lead our athletes and achieve a personal best time.
Finally, the open boys got to showcase their talents as the last race of the day. In a time of 13:22, Branston K. led our boys through the course with a big personal record.
After the races were concluded, Coach Springer shared her thoughts on the meet: “We have consistently been able to perform well at this meet over the years and there was no difference today. This is a true testament to how well our training and preparation has been going for our squad. We just have to continue working and use this performance as motivation for the rest of the season.”
Highlight of the meet: Ryan S. finished the race with a time of 13:34 during the open boys race. This tops his previous personal best of 15:38 by 2:04. He has consistently been getting better during practice and has shown a lot of guts during races.
Our running Spartans continue their campaign at Tremont on Thursday, September 13th with a start time of 4:30 P.M. The team will then have a quick turnaround to compete on Saturday at Mahomet-Seymour at 9:00 A.M. Go Spartans!