Cory Bane - Sophomore: Cory is a second year cross
country runner. Cory tries to make practice fun and
still has that competitive side that you will see in
races. Cory's best time of his freshman year was a 21:34
which he ran at the Peoria Notre Dame Invitational. Cory
improved 1 minute and 57 seconds his freshman year.
Austin Beck - Freshman: Austin is a first year high
school cross country runner. Austin is an extremely
strong willed runner. He has already proven himself to
be one of our top fresh/soph leaders and is also doing very
well as a varsity runner. During his freshman year,
Austin earned a medal at the Charleston Invitational open race
by placing 7th. Austin earned a medal at the Springfield
Invitational by placing 14th in the freshman race.
Austin medaled at the Eureka Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing
18th. Austin medaled at the Olympia Fresh/Soph
Invitational by placing 22nd.
Woody Boero - Freshman: Woody is a first year high
school cross country runner. Woody is a tough runner and
will most likley be one of the better runners in his
class. He pushes the older boys in practice and shows he
has good running ability. Woody showed he is a strong
freshman runner by placing 17th in the Springfield
Invitational freshman race.
Sean Buchanan - Sophomore: Sean is a first year cross
country runner. Sean joins us from the track team as he
was a strong sprinter. He is quickly adjusting to the
longer runs and has proven himself to be a strong distance
runner as well. This fall will not only help his
sprinting, but he brings a lot to the cross country team with
his talent. Sean came on strong mid season as
he placed 5th for the team at the East Peoria Invitational.
Kurt Bucker - Freshman: Kurt is a first year cross country runner. Kurt has already won fresh/soph new runner of the week honors for his great work ethic and determination. He is a pleasure to be around and is a great role model for our other runners.
Blake Colclasure - Junior: Blake is a first year cross country runner. In fact, Blake's first sport ever is his junior year of cross country. He is very talented and has run some impressive times for his debut to high school sports. I think you will see some great things athletically out of Blake this year and next. Blake medaled at the Olympia Open race by placing 11th. Blake was fastest for our team in the Olympia Open race.
Phil Dempsey - Junior: Phil is a first year cross
country runner. He is a great addition to the team as he
is always in a great mood and a positive person to be
around. Phil has a strong work ethic and always pushes
himself in practice. His times continue to drastically
improve which reveals his work ethic and commitment.
Phil runs with intensity. He constantly wants to improve
and is a great role model for others.
Luke Duda - Sophomore: Luke is a first year cross
country runner. Luke is a great addition to our
team. He is a hard worker and has talent. He has
already shown himself to be a good distance runner. He
will most likely be a leader of our fresh/soph team.
Sam Geneser - Freshman: Sam is a first year cross
country runner. Sam currently has Limes disease and is
on our "injury reserve list". I look forward to seeing
him recovered and feeling better.
Alex Gorsuch - Junior: Alex is a third year cross country
runner. Alex is currently battling a foot injury.
Jonathan Hunter - Senior:
Jonathan is a first year cross country runner. He shows
great courage and determination as he always takes on the harder
workouts in practice. He is a great role model for the
younger athletes as he exhibits great character and work
ethic. In one meet, Jonathan went out of his way to assist
another runner who was having an asthma attack. Jonathan
was our only runner to run a PR on the extremely slow course at
the Springfield Invitational.
Brandon Keeney - Junior: Brandon is a second year cross
country runner at the high school level. Brandon did
have running experience at the jr. high level and it
shows. He was often in our top 10 runners for most of
his sophomore year despite battling a leg injury.
Brandon is once again in our top ten as a junior.
During his junior year, Brandon earned a
medal at the Charleston Invitational open race by placing 6th.
Jared Kingry - Sophomore: Jared is a first year cross
country runner. Jared brings two great assetts to the
team. He brings a great sense of humor that makes
practices more enjoyable and a fighter's spirit when it comes
to competition. With Jared's talent and spirit, he will
make a great distance runner. He often
ran under great adversity, such as a sprained ankle, yet ran his
guts out.
Dustin Kinkelaar - Sophomore: Dustin is a second year cross
country runner. Dustin stepped right up into our top 8
on the Varsity team in most meets during his freshman year,
despite having never had previous cross country
experience. Dustin has an amazing amount of natural
ability in this sport combined with a determined mind that
will make him one of the best in the sport someday.
Dustin also brings to the team a carefree attitude.
Although he can be serious when it counts, he is a fun loving
person that his teammates enjoy being around.
During his sophomore year, Dustin earned
a medal at the Charleston Invitational open race by placing
9th. Dustin was our team's fastest open runner in the
Springfield Invitational. Dustin medaled at the
Eureka Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing 13th. Dustin
medaled at the Olympia Fresh/Soph race by placing 15th. Dustin
earned a medal in the open race at the Mahomet-Seymour
invitational by placing 9th.
Joe Logan - Junior: Joe is a first year high school
cross country runner. He joins us with great running
experience from high school track and junior high cross
country. His experience has been shown in the early
practices and meets as he runs well. Joe goes out of his
way to help the team during the school day when he doesn't
have homework. Joe runs with a great amount of intensity
and is a great example for others to follow in this area.
Brandon Lovett - Senior:
Brandon is a first year cross country runner. Brandon has
had agreat start to the year and has stepped into our top ten
runners. He always takes on the harder workouts and uses
his upper body strength to tackle the hills. Brandon's
lack of experience is not noticed as his intensity and desire to
be one of the best is carrying him to the top of the pack.
During his senior year, Brandon earned a
medal at the Charleston Invitational open race by placing 8th.
Devin Lyons - Junior: Devin is a 3rd year high school
runner. Devin "Billy Goat" has motivated the older
runners with his desire to improve by working hard.
Devin ran over 250 miles his sophomore summer and improved as
a result. His work ethic continues to inspire our team
as he ran 300 miles before his junior year in the
summer. His hard work paid off as he started off in the
top 7 of the team. He was also selected as a captain his
junior year by his teammates who respect him.
During his junior year, Devin earned a medal at the Charleston
Invitational by placing 20th.
Jacob Mahaffey - Freshman: Jacob is a first year high
school cross country runner. Jacob brings a lot of
running experience with him from the junior high. Jacob
ran constantly in the summer before his freshman year and it
paid off. Jacob already started the year in the top
seven runners. As a freshman, he is small in stature,
but he has an incredibly large will to be a great
runner. Jacob will be one of the top runners in the area
in his grade. Keep an eye out for this future high
school super star. During his freshman
year, Jacob earned a medal at the Charleston Invitational by
placing 23rd. Jacob earned a medal by placing 5th in the
freshman race at the Springfield Invitational. Jacob
medaled at the Eureka Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing 7th.
Jacob won a medal at theEast Peoria Invite by placing 12th in
the Fresh/Soph Race. Jacob medaled at the Olympia
Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing 7th. He also earned a
medal at the Mahomet-Seymour invitational by placing 30th.
Michael Mansfield - Junior: Michael is a 1st year cross
country runner. Michael is a solid young man who works
hard and is always respectful to his team. He sets a
good standard for giving a great effort and being committed to
himself and the team. We are lucky to have him on our
team. Mansfield gave each meet his all,
often running PRs, such as in the East Peoria meet when he was
only 2 on the team that ran a personal best that day.
Jamie Miller - Senior: Jamie is a second year cross country runner. Jamie shows great determination in practice and meets. He is a great role model for our younger runners. Jamie has come out even stronger his second year. His experience and determination are helping him to drastically improve.
Clay Mitchem - Sophomore: Clay is a second year cross country runner. He has a strong will and energy to go with it that is helping him to be one of the strongest runners on the fresh/soph team. Clay's strengths are a great match for the sport of cross country. Clay has continued to improve as a sophomore and will be one of the leaders on the fresh/soph team. Clay ran in our top 5 at the fresh/soph race at Peoria. He showed great courage as he gave it his all while running sick at East Peoria.
Evan Monson - Sophomore: Evan is a second year high
school cross country runner. Evan shows a great amount
of commitment and determination to himself and the team.
His ability to run through discomfort is one of the best on
the team. He continues to improve his time as a
result. During the summer before his sophomore year,
Evan ran constantly and it shows. Evan cut off around 7
minutes from the start of his freshman year to his sophomore
year.
Dane Paxton - Senior: Dane is a second year high
school cross country runner. Dane is an easy going
personality that just brings a lot of energy and fun with him
to the team. His teammates love him because he has a
positive energy about him. He has already run a 22:06
this year.
Troy Pittman - Junior: Troy is a third year high school
cross country runner. He also was on the state
qualifying cross country team in Jr. High. Troy has
proved himself to be an excellent fresh/soph runner by
medaling in our first 2 fresh/soph invitationals. Troy
also set a 22 meet record in the open race at the Chrisman Cow
Chip Classic. Troy has also been in the top seven
runners on the varsity team every year.
Troy had the fastest freshman time during his freshman
year. He was one of the top runners in the area in the 2
mile the past two springs. He is a member of our "Old Dog
Sub 5-Minute Mile Club". Troy won the U-High Invitational
his sophomore year with a time of 16:15. Troy placed 4th
in regionals as a sophomore. Troy is an extremely talented
runner who will do great things as a junior and senior.
During his junior year, Troy earned a medal at the Charleston
Invitational by placing 6th. Troy earned a medal at the
Springfield Invitational by placing 22nd. Troy earned a
trophy at the U-High invitational after placing 3rd. Troy
earned a medal by placing 12th at the Mahomet-Seymour
Invitational. Troy earned all-confernce honors after
placing 4th in conference with a time of 15:46.
David Reisinger - Freshman: David is a first year cross
country runner. David has shown an amazing amount of
will the first couple weeks of his freshman season. He
has cut off around 13 minutes off his 3 mile time in such a
short time. This is due to his will to improve and push
himself in workouts. David showed great
determination as he was one of only 2 of our runners to run a
personal best at East Peoria.
Steve Roberts - Sophomore: Steve is a second year high
school cross country runner. He has brought with him a
lot of experience. As a freshman, he has stepped right
up to the varsity level and ran in our top 7 runners. He
has an amazing amount of talent and will continue to impress
us with his running accomplishments. As a sophomore,
Steve continues to be a leader on the team and runs in the top
5 runners. During his sophomore year,
Steve earned a medal at the Charleston Invitational by placing
24th. Steve is one of the top sophomore area runners and
continues to be in the top 7 on our Varsity squad. Steve
medaled at the Eureka Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing 4th and
being our team's top finisher. Steve medaled at the
Olympia Fresh/Soph Invitational by placing 11th.
Jared Sanders - Senior: Jared is a second year cross
country runner. Jared shows a great commitment to the
team and himself. He constantly works hard and his times
are drastically improving each race. Jared is a good
runner and a great addition to the team.
Jared shows a great amount of dedication and intensity as he ran
much of his senior year with a nagging injury. Despite
running with pain and discomfort he managed to run some strong
times. Jared was described by one of his teammates as
the unsung hero of the team due to his constant dedication to
the team and intensity with which he ran.
James Scherer - Senior: James is a second year cross country runner. James joined the team to improve his endurance for wrestling. James is definitely improving his endurance and is already matching his times from his first year.
Justin Sebens - Junior: Justin has plenty of experience
as a runner. He was part of MS Jr. High's state
qualifying team in Jr. High. As an 8th grader, Justin
broke 11:00 minutes in the 2 mile. He also qualified for
state in the 1600 meters and high jump. His favorite
quote is "go hard and never give up". Justin has proven
himself a strong high school runner by working his way into
the top 7 of the varsity team. He ran almost 500 miles
during the summer of his sophomore year and was one of the top
runners in the area. He proved himself a great area
runner as he ran one of the top area 2 mile times in track and
ran in the 10:20s. Justin ran in
the 15's his sophomore year. He won the fastest sophomore
award at the Spartan Classic and Mahomet-Seymour Invite.
Justin placed 7th in the regionals his sophomore year.
Justin was voted by his teammates to be a captain during his
junior year. He has been a leader in the summer running.
During his junior year, Justin earned a medal at the Charleston
Invitational by placing 5th. Justin earned a medal
at the Springfield Invitational by placing 10th. Justin
earned a trophy at the U-High invitational by placing 5th.
He also earned a medal at the Mahomet-Seymour invitational by
placing 10th. Justin earned all-conference honors by
placing 7th with a time of 15:53.
Nick Sellers - Senior: Nick is a second year cross
country runner. After running a strong sophomore year,
Nick took a year leave of absence only to return to the team
an even more mentally intense and physically stronger
runner. He has already worked his way into the top ten
runners of the team. During his senior
year, Nick earned a medal at the
Charleston Invitational open race by placing 12th.
Nick shows great intensity as he was the only person on our
team to run a PR at the slower Olympia course. Nick
medaled at the Olympia Open race by placing 12th.
Lasse Skov - Junior: Lasse is a first year cross
country runner. Lasse joins us from Denmark as an
exchange student. Lasse continues to drastically improve
as Denmark has a much different sport's system. Lasse
currently lives with the Stoeger family. The team enjoys
him as he is teaching them a lot about Denmark and life in
Europe.
Rob Steffen - Sophomore: Rob is a first year cross
country runner. Rob was recruited by his teammates as he
is a fun guy to be around. His running continues to
improve as he quickly adapts to the sport. Rob
came on strong mid season as he showed the top runners how to
run with heart. Rob ran a personal best at the Olympia
Fresh/Soph Invitational where he was in the top five for the
team.
Thomas Thoren - Sophomore: Thomas is a second year high
school cross country runner. He showed great
determination during his freshman year and improved his time
drastically. He was the only runner his freshman year to
earn the prized award of excellent effort award. He
earned this through showing above and beyond the call of duty
determination in practice. Thomas is an excellent
student/athlete. As a sophomore, Thomas has carried his
same great attitude and work ethic with him. He often
takes on the hardest workout and is improving as a result.
Brandon Vietor - Senior: Brandon is a first year runner
for the team. Brandon served as a top notch manager for
the team as a junior. He continues to help us as a
senior leader. Brandon goes out of his way
to help out the team whenever he can.
Gabe Walder - Junior: Gabe is a second year cross
country runner at the high school level. Gabe comes to
us with running experience in both jr. high cross country and
high school track. Gabe has proven himself to be one of
the top distance runners in the area in track and is proved
himself to be one of the top cross country runners in the area
during his sophomore year. Gabe stepped right in and is
in the top 5 runners on our team for both his sophomore and
junior years. One of Gabe's greatest running strength's
is his confidence as a runner. He is like a rock in that
he is a consistent runner that is very good at pacing
himself. This helps to pull our other runners to great
times. Gabe's is a great asset to our team as he helps
to bring up some of the best conversations during training
runs. He invented our team's "game" of visiting about
our five most important life goals while running. Gabe
was voted to be captain for his junior year.
During his junior year, Gabe earned a medal at the Charleston
Invitational by placing 18th. Gabe takes it upon
himself to encourage and help his teammates out.
Jared Willard - Senior: Jared is a first year high
school cross country runner. Jared joined us after a
strong year in track as a 400/800 runner. His intensity
and love for running have helped him run in our top 3 runners
so far. He is a great addition to our team as a new
runner. During his senior year, Jared
earned a medal at the Charleston Invitational by placing 14th.
Jared ran much of his senior year in the third position on our
Varsity team. This is quite impressive for a first year
high school cross country runner.
Nathan Wilson - Sophomore: Nathan is a second year cross
country runner. He brings a lot of humor and
team spirit to the team. His teammates love him as he is
a lot of fun to be around. His times continue to improve
as he gets older and stronger. Nathan shows
great character as he finishes each race no matter what his
place is in.
Austin Wingate - Senior: Austin is a second year cross
country runner. Austin has been a great addition to the
team, because he is loyal and gives his heart 100% to the
team. Austin always gives it his best effort when he
runs and that sets a great example for others. Off the
field, Austin does whatever he can to improve our team and
help to build it to becoming a stronger program. Austin
can be credited for helping to get the team one of our golf
cars. Austin continues to be one of
strongest encouragers of his teammates at each meet. His
great helping and caring personality is always shown by the way
he takes care of his teammates. Austin takes a lot of pride in
his team and always is first to defend the honor of the team.
