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Sports

OPRF girls' cross-country team is poised for a breakout season

Ranked 5th statewide in the pre-season, squad has All-State tandem and a pair of solid `Huskie packs' that are off to a swift 2020 start

Building on two straight state final appearances, the Oak Park and River Forest High School girls’ cross-country team has an unprecedented one-two punch: star power and abundant depth.

The combination adds up to a Huskie program that was ranked fifth in the preseason, statewide, and is now poised to become the best in school history.

In 2018, the Huskies equaled a school record by placing 10th at the Class 3A finals; last year, the team turned in a 13th-place performance from among the 25 schools that advanced to the storied Detweiller Park course in Peoria.

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In a meet at Morton West High School in Berwyn on Wednesday, Sept. 16, even with two of its top runners sidelined, OPRF placed the first eight runners, and 12 of the top 13 finishers.

In the process, the team fulfilled its goal of having “two solid chase packs” behind the swiftest runner, junior Josephine Welin, said OPRF head coach Ashley Raymond.

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“The team is grateful for the opportunity to race,” Raymond said. “It has recharged our competitive spirit for the rest of the season.”

Along with senior Nora Wollen, Welin was an All-State performer last year. She finished 16th in Peoria, one second behind Wollen, and figures to be a contender for a top 5 finish this year.

At Morton West, Wollen—recovering from a stress fracture to her fibula—played the role of livestream videographer and narrator to families who are prohibited from attending meets as part of pandemic precautionary measures.

Without her usual running mate, Welin finished the 2.9-mile course in 16:40. That torrid pace was 90 seconds ahead of the first Huskie pack: senior Parker Hulen (18:14), senior Maggie Rose Baron (18:15), sophomore Avery Minnis (18:16) and freshman Lenny Sterritt (18:20).

The next pack, about a half-minute behind, consisted of sophomore Anne Stine (18:47), freshman Katie Stabb (18:48), and sophomore Elise Chranko (18:49).

Morton West’s top runner was next, followed by senior Maja Metcalf (19:16), freshman Samantha Welin (19:22), sophomore Abby Lofgren (19:39) and sophomore Leora Kurtz (19:40).

The Huskies’ depth is crucial for a sport that sees its share of assorted injuries. Wollen is expected back around mid-October, which would be perfectly timed for the post-season. At the state final last year, in placing 15th individually, Wollen came within one second of breaking the school’s all-time cross-country mark, set by Mary Blankemeier when she finished fifth in the 2013 state final.

In addition, junior Samantha Duwe, who is consistently the team’s No. 3 runner, sat out the Morton West meet with illness. As a freshman, Duwe placed fifth among Huskies at the 2018 state final, only to be sidelined by a concussion as a sophomore.

On Friday, Sept. 25th, the Huskies travel to Downers Grove North to face a highly regarded Trojans program. Last year, Downers Grove North placed 21st at the state finals, eight slots behind OPRF.

This year the Trojans are ranked fifth, while OPRF has dropped to 12th in state rankings as a result of its relative competitive inactivity.

As with every high school sport, girls’ cross country is affected by precautions necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic. Invitational events that draw teams from throughout northern Illinois have been nixed, and the team’s first meet was to have been on September 12th at York High School, before an 11th-hour cancellation.

Other than OPRF’s meet against Morton West, all the program’s regular-season races will be restricted to West Suburban Conference schools.

Meantime, the Illinois High School Association and school officials from throughout the state are in the process of assembling a picture of what the post-season will look like this year.

On Wednesday, after a special board meeting, the IHSA Board of Directors announced athletes in cross country (as well as golf) will receive a sectional event. Sectionals will happen the last weekend of October over a three-day span.

Until that announcement, the only sanctioned postseason event on the calendar was a regional championship.

At minimum, if health conditions permit, there should at least be a close approximation of state finals. ShaZam Racing and MileSplit Illinois, a pair of companies that serve cross-country competitors, have organized an independent state cross-country series in early November for all three prep divisions—Classes 1A, 2A and 3A. OPRF is in Class 3A, comprised of those schools with the largest enrollments.

In addition to its clash at Downers Grove North, other upcoming meets for the Huskies are Saturday, October 3rd at Glenbard West High School; Friday, October 9th at Hinsdale Central; and Saturday, October 17th at Lyons Township.

For more information about the OPRF girls’ cross-country program, visit

https://oprfhscrosscountry.wee...

Disclosure: the writer is the father of an OPRF girls’ cross-country runner.

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