By Michael Newman

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There are plenty of a good meets throughout Illinois this weekend. The first weekend of October usually signifies the countdown in teams getting ready for their conference meets and in most cases taking the following week off.

Weather will play a factor this weekend. Rain hitting most of Illinois will make the courses that the runners will be on quite interesting. That’s what cross country is all about isn’t it?

Here is a look at a couple of meets to keep an eye on Saturday along with other meets taking place throughout the state:

Locktoberfest Invitational @ Dellwood Park, Lockport

Ranked Teams – 3A: #1 Hinsdale Central, #3 Naperville Neuqua Valley, #4 LaGrange Lyons Township, #8 Downers Grove North, #13 Glen Ellyn Glenbard West, #14 Plainfield South, #16 Buffalo Grove, #19 New Lenox Lincoln-Way Central, #20 Naperville North, #21 Edwardsville.

Outlook – How will Dellwood Park be on Saturday morning especially after the rain that is expected to hit the area 24 hours before the meet? There will be talent galore competing in this invitational with more than half of the teams either state ranked or ranked in their sectional. Hinsdale Central looked strong on Thursday taking five of the first six places against York led by a 1-2 finish by Blake Evertsen and Chris Brenk. The question will be if all of their top seven will be in that race. The same applies for Neuqua Valley. There are usually a few runners missing from this meet due to Science Fieldtrips out of state. The talent is still there to win led by Connor Horn and Michael Widmann.

The one team that I would watch for is Lyons Township. They are on a good streak winning a big triangular last week then the Culver Academy Invitational. Connor Madell has been running tough and will challenge for a top spot. The key is keeping their pack within 30 seconds of each other on the hills of Dellwood Park.

The individual race will be strong also. Ryan Clevenger (North HS, Downers Grove) should be the big favorite in this race. The only 3A runner he has lost to this season has been to Jesse Reiser at First to the Finish. There will be talent in this race to push him including Kevin Salvano (Buffalo Grove HS), Brydon Groves-Scott (Edwardsville HS), Chris Brenk, Blake Evertsen, and Matt McBrien (Central HS, Hinsdale), Connor Horn and Michael Widmann (Neuqua Valley HS, Naperville), Jon Klaiber (North HS, Naperville), Chris Buechner (Glenbard West HS, Glen Ellyn), and Raul Rosendo (Joliet Central HS).

Wheaton North Falcon Classic @ St. James Farm, Warrenville

Ranked Teams – 3A: #1 Glen Ellyn Glenbard West, #6 Naperville Central, #8 Lockport Township, #12 Wheaton-Warrenville South, #15 St. Charles East, #19 LaGrange Lyons Township, #22 Naperville Neuqua Valley, #24 New Lenox Lincoln-Way Central 2A: #1 Yorkville, #6 Crystal Lake Central, #19 Glen Ellyn Glenbard South Out of State: St Ursula Academy OH (Ranked #9 in D1).

Outlook – The emphasis will be more on individual efforts in this flight meet. This invitational took a little hit when Naperville North chose not to compete here this weekend, New Trier will not compete in 2014 due to Yom Kippur, and Neenah WI will not compete because of Homecoming festivities. The new out of state team in the field is St. Ursula Academy of Ohio. They are currently ranked ninth in their state.

The focus on this meet will be the championship race starting around 10:30 AM. Lindsay Graham (Glenbard West HS, Glen Ellyn) should be the favorite in this race. The one runner that could push Graham is Annie Heffernan (St. Ursula Academy, Cincinnati). She is the defending D1 state champion and also won the D1 1600 meter run last spring in track. In her last race, she won the high powered Trinity Valkyrie Invitational at Louisville.

They will also be challenged by Skyler Bollinger (Yorkville HS), Torree Scull (St. Charles East HS), Sara Atkins (Wheaton-Warrenville South HS), Lauren Whitehouse (Mahomet-Seymour HS), and Rachel Hoffman (Central HS, Naperville). In the team battle, the depth of top ranked Glenbard West will be challenge by equally deep teams from Naperville Central and Yorkville.

Peoria Central Invitational @ Detweiller Park, Peoria

Boys Ranked Teams – 3A: #2 Orland Park Sandburg, #22 McHenry; 2A: #5 Springfield, #9 Metamora, #11 Sterling, #16 Rock Island Alleman, #23 Normal Community West; 1A: #15 Tremont, #25 Mt. Zion

Girls Ranked Teams – 3A #9 Hoffman Estates, #14 Chicago St. Ignatius, #20 Downers Grove South, #25 Oswego; 2A: #13 Peoria Notre Dame, #18 Metamora, #22 Washington, #25 Springfield.

Outlook – This is the oldest of all the Peoria meets. With the other two Peoria meets that have already taken place, this meet has lost a little of its luster. The big thing to watch is the individual races in both the Girls and the Boys races. Both feature the fastest runners on this Detweiller Park course so far this season. In the Girls race, Maryjeanne Gilbert (Notre Dame HS, Peoria) ran 16:30 two weeks ago at Richard Spring and could go faster depending on the conditions of the course. Rain expected in the Peoria area the day before the meet could make the course somewhat sloppy. Gilbert will have a couple of runners pushing her. Rachel Lau (North HS, Plainfield) continues to improve and could push Gilbert. Olivia Ryan (Fenwick HS, Oak Park) has gone undefeated this year and will also be in the front pack. Also watch for Morgan Schulz (Cary-Grove HS) and Abby Kargol (South HS, Downers Grove) to be towards the front. Hoffman Estates and St. Ignatius should challenge for the team championship.

In the Boys race, all eyes will be on Jesse Reiser (McHenry HS). He has the fastest time state wide on either a 3 mile or 5 k course and should be the big favorite here. Caleb Hummer (Danville HS) looked strong in his win last week at Springfield and could challenge. Also watch for Sean & Chris Torpy and Tom Brennen (Sandburg HS, Orland Park), Keagan Smith (Huntley HS), and Mike Anderson (Prospect HS, Mt. Prospect) to all be in the front pack.

The team battle in the Boys race lacks the sizzle that were in the other Peoria races. The huge favorite in this race will be Sandburg. They will have the runners up front. I would not be surprised if they put all seven runners in the first fifteen places. McHenry is the only other ranked 3A team in this field. Unranked Hoffman Estates has been running strong as of late winning the MSL West Division Championship. Prospect, Huntley, Springfield, and Metamora could also challenge for top five finishes.

St. Charles North Invitational @ Leroy Oakes, St. Charles

Boys Ranked Teams – 3A: #10 Naperville Central, #11 Jones College Prep, #18 St. Charles East; 2A: #10 Prairie Ridge

Girls Ranked Teams – 3A: #2 Hinsdale Central, #7 Minooka, #10 Batavia, #17 Downers Grove North, 2A: #8 Lemont

Outlook – It should be a good team battle between Hinsdale Central and Minooka in the Girls race. The Red Devils have the power up front led by Alexa Haff and Annie Zaher. Minooka also runs with a good front pack led by Ashley Tutt. Both teams will need great runs from their fifth runners in order for the team championship. The individual race will be a rematch of the First to the Finish Race with Alexa Haff and Lauren VanVlierbergen (Jacobs HS, Algonquin) battling each other on the muddy Leroy Oakes course.

The Boys team race will be a battle of three good pack teams. Naperville Central was a surprise at the beginning of the year when they finished third at Hinsdale. They are no longer a surprise with a tight thirty second pack. Jones College Prep ran a 36 second split last week at Palatine and should challenge for the team championship. St. Charles East also has a good pack that could come away with the win on their home course. The individual race is wide open with no real “star-power” in this race. The runners that I would watch include Brady Bobbitt (Marmion Academy, Aurora), Filip Pajak (Prairie Ridge HS, Crystal Lake), and Ryan Wietes (Batavia HS).

Other meets throughout Illinois this weekend:

-    Pat Harland Invitational @ Wilmot WI (Antioch Hosts)

-    Carterville Invitational

-    Delavan Invitational

-    Elmwood Invitational

-    Freeport Invitational

-    Jacksonville Invitational

-    LaSalle County Invitational

-    Lisle Mane Event

-    Oakwood Invitational

-    Pat Savage Invitational @ Niles West

-    Wheaton Academy Invitational @ Kress Creek Farms, West Chicago

 Good luck to all athletes, coaches, and fans this weekend!