St. Joseph-Ogden edges Unity for Illini Prairie XC title

RANTOUL - St. Joseph-Ogden’s depth paid off a week ago today as the Spartans claimed the Illini Prairie Conference boys cross country title with 62 points, narrowly defeating Unity, which finished second with 84 points. The Spartans placed all five of their scoring runners in the top 18, holding off a strong individual performance from Unity’s Camden Fairbanks, who won the race.

Fairbanks, a junior, took the individual title, finished the course in a personal-record 15 minutes, 33.1 seconds. Fairbanks beat his previous best by over 11 seconds, adding another stellar result to his season, which includes a 15:44.7 at the Spartan Classic last month. Unity’s second finisher, junior Eli Crowe, placed seventh with a time of 16:04.3, just shy of his personal best of 15:19.7 from the Spartan Classic.

While Unity boasted the top individual, St. Joseph-Ogden’s pack running proved the difference. Junior Lance Retz led the SJO, finishing sixth overall with a personal-best 16:03.0, improving his time by 18 seconds from his previous PR. Sophomore Colin Burnett also set a new personal record, finishing 11th in 16:20.2, a substantial improvement from his earlier season performances.

St. Joseph-Ogden’s next three finishers — sophomore Nate Farney (13th, 16:24.3), senior Jack Fisher (14th, 16:26.9), and senior EJ Beckett (18th, 16:37.7) — ensured the team maintained its edge over Unity. Their tightly packed grouping helped secure the team’s first-place finish, with just 34 seconds separating the Spartans’ top five.

Pontiac rounded out the top three in the team standings with 88 points, led by junior Peyton Beebe’s third-place finish (15:53.4).

Unity’s runners, while putting up solid performances, couldn’t overcome the overall depth of St. Joseph-Ogden. Behind Fairbanks and Crowe, UHS’ next finisher was junior Collin Graven, who finished 12th in 16:22.1. But the Rockets’ final two scorers, Carter Tiemann (29th, 17:16.0) and Ryan Akers (35th, 17:33.0), left them with too much ground to make up.

The meet, held at Brookhill Golf Course, saw four runners finish under 16 minutes, with the next four narrowly missing that mark. Unity’s Fairbanks set the pace from the start and maintained a strong lead to claim the victory, but SJO’s ability to keep their top runners close together proved decisive in the team competition.

Team Standings:
1. St. Joseph-Ogden – 62
2. Unity – 84
3. Pontiac – 88
4. Illinois Valley Central – 102
5. Monticello – 120
6. Prairie Central – 161
7. Central Catholic – 169
8. Rantoul – 175
9. St. Thomas More – 213
10. Paxton-Buckley-Loda – 231

Top 10 Individual Finishers:
1. Camden Fairbanks, Unity – 15:33.1
2. River Derby, Monticello – 15:41.6
3. Peyton Beebe, Pontiac – 15:53.4
4. Cam Fenton, Pontiac – 15:57.2
5. Aiden Duhs, Illinois Valley Central – 16:00.5
6. Lance Retz, St. Joseph-Ogden – 16:03.0
7. Eli Crowe, Unity – 16:04.3
8. Tim Sikorski, Monticello – 16:05.8
9. Wade Cloninger, Rantoul – 16:14.0
10. Philip Lee, St. Thomas More – 16:20.0

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Three area schools finish in top 5, Evan Cook shines at Spartan Classic

ST. JOSEPH — Evan Cook of St. Teresa High School captured the title at the Spartan Classic on September 28, 2024, posting a time of 14:54.97, the second-best in the state this season for the Class 1A division. The race, which featured 195 runners from 28 teams, took place under clear skies and mild temperatures in the upper 60s.

Cook's performance marked a significant milestone in his career, as he achieved a new personal record, surpassing his previous best times of 16:35.9 as a freshman, 15:22.9 as a sophomore, and 15:37.6 last year. His victory solidifies his status as one of the top competitors in Illinois cross country.

Unity cross country standout Eli Crowe runs his first lap around Detweiller Park at last year's state cross country meet. Crowe recorded a career best 3-mile run at the Spartan Classic, finish the course 15:19.7 in fourth place. So far, he as turned in the 9th best time in Illinois in Class 1A this season. The Rockets finished fourth in the team standings St. Joseph-Ogden's annual cross country meet.

Photo: PhotoNews/Clark Brooks

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The Spartan Classic continues to be a highlight of downstate Illinois' high school cross country season, showcasing the talent and determination of harriers across the state.

Three other local runners finished in the top 15, showcasing the depth of talent in the region. Eli Crowe of Unity finished fourth with a time of 15:19.69, while Jack Fisher of St. Joseph-Ogden and Camden Fairbanks of Unity placed ninth and tenth, respectively.

Crowe's performance was particularly impressive, as he recorded his season-best time of 15:19.7 at the Spartan Classic, currently ranking him ninth in the state for Class 1A.

The team competition saw University High take the top spot with a score of 110, followed by Clinton with 133 points. St. Joseph-Ogden and Unity both finished with 174 points, but St. Joseph-Ogden secured third place based on tiebreakers. Pleasant Plains rounded out the top five with a score of 219.

Urbana U-High had several notable finishes, with Ross Kimme placing sixth at 15:34.75. Other top finishers for U-High included Pieter Duursma in 20th with a time of 16:00.31, Kai Schwartz in 24th at 16:03.36, Luke Fahnestock in 28th at 16:13.79, and Bruce Tang in 32nd at 16:18.76.

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St. Joseph-Ogden's Jack Fisher runs to the finish line at the 2023 IHSA Cross Country State Finals last November. Fisher led the Spartans to the finish line at last month's Spartan Classic.

Photo: PhotoNews/Clark Brooks

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St. Joseph-Ogden's top finishers included Jack Fisher in ninth place (15:43.97), followed by Lance Retz in 33rd (16:21.42), EJ Beckett in 37th (16:31.49), Colin Burnett in 44th (16:44.62), and Eli Franklin in 51st (16:58.06).

Unity's top finishers were Eli Crowe in fourth place, Camden Fairbanks in tenth (15:44.63), Collin Graven in 30th (16:15.82), Ryan Akers in 66th (17:18.14), and Alex Mowrer in 81st (17:37.29).

The top 15 finishers were as follows:

1. Evan Cook (12) - St. Teresa - 14:54.97
2. Elijah Teefey (11) - Pleasant Plains - 15:11.28
3. Johnathan Iacobazzi (11) - Sullivan - 15:14.02
4. Eli Crowe (11) - Tolono Unity - 15:19.69
5. Blake McLeese (11) - Tuscola - 15:33.40
6. Ross Kimme (12) - Urbana U-High - 15:34.75
7. Xander Neamtu (12) - Tuscola - 15:35.04
8. David Hornaday (12) - Tuscola - 15:43.44
9. Jack Fisher (12) - St. Joseph-Ogden - 15:43.97
10. Camden Fairbanks (11) - Tolono Unity - 15:44.63
11. Ryne Norton (12) - Maroa-Forsyth - 15:45.52
12. River Derby (12) - Monticello - 15:47.83
13. Julius Ramos (11) - Effingham - 15:50.29
14. Ryan Kuhn (12) - Deer Creek-Mackinaw - 15:51.39
15. Tim Sikorski (9) - Monticello - 15:52.79

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Cross-Country: Jack Fisher lead SJO's sectional cross country effort

by Daniel L. Chamness
      Special to The Sentinel

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CHAMPAIGN --The St. Joseph-Ogden boys' cross country team destiny to compete at this year's Illinois High School Association Class 1A State Finals was confirmed at the sectional meet. Hosted by SJO on October 29 at Dodds Park in Champaign, the Spartans dashed to a fourth-place finish in what was arguably the toughest Class 1A Sectional in the state.

SJO finished with 164 points behind Decatur St. Teresa, who finished with 77 points.

While every cross-country athlete would like to make the state finals, it is highly-unlikely the current Spartan program will miss any in the forseeable future. Three juniors, two sophomores, one freshman, and one senior made up the SJO's top seven runners on the roster.

"We have been running in competitive meets all season to get to this point," said Jason Retz, SJO's head coach. "It will be great for them to have the state experience."

The team was led by sophomore Jack Fisher, who crossed 26th after he toured the three-mile course in 16 minutes, 29.38 seconds. Freshman Lance Retz finished immediately behind Fisher 28th in 16 minutes and 29.98 seconds.

The other Spartan athletes that finished within a second of each other were sophomore Mason Guido (17:02.61) and senior Ethan Blackburn (17:02.88). They were 50th and 51st, respectively.

Two juniors served as the third and fourth runners. Carson Maroon and Aden Armstrong took 37th and 41st, respectively. Maroon ran the three-mile course in 16:45.99, while Armstrong finished in 16:52.05.

The Spartans have competed in every state final except for two in 2012 and 2018. There was no state championship in 2020. In the seven times they advanced as a team, they were in the top 10 six times. They earned a team trophy in 2015, taking third in the state.

"We want to take advantage of every opportunity we are given," said Retz. "I want to see them show up and compete. We are excited to be here, but the athletes need to have a sense of urgency and purpose."

The Tolono Unity boys finished 10th in the sectional, scoring 260 points. Like their arch-rivals at SJO, the had a very young lineup, with only one senior. Four freshmen ran in the varsity race. One sophomore and one junior were also in the lineup.

Eli Crowe, one of the freshmen, took 25th in the SJO Class 1A Sectional. He finished the race at 16:28.91. The rest of the scoring top five were within a minute of each other. Camden Fairbanks took 44th in 16:53.75. On his heels was the lone senior on the team, Brendan Graven, who finished in 17:00.32, good for 47th place.

Isaac Ruggieri (85th) and Alex Mowrer (91st) rounded out the top five. Ruggieri crossed the finish line at 17:39.59, while Mowrer finished at 17:52.0.

Two freshmen served as the sixth and seventh runners. Carter Tiemann (93rd, 17:57.59) and Collin Graven (155th, 20:44.56), respectively.

Julio Angrave leads Urbana harriers at Peoria Invite

PEORIA -- Urbana's Julio Angrave ran a 16:10.05, finishing 54th out of a pool of 292 runners at the Peoria Cross Country Invitational on Saturday. As a team, the Tigers finished in 18th place out of the 41 competing teams.

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Urbana's Julio Angrave runs in the Class 2A Cross Country State Finals on Saturday, November 6, 2021. The senior led the Tigers' harrier squad to the finish line turning in a time of 16:10.05 on the same course last Saturday at the Peoria Cross Country Invitational. PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

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This year's 1A/2A race was won by Marion with 136 points. Normal University placed second with 152 points, and Mather High School was third, edging-out Champaign Central for the bronze medal position by 32 points with 172.

Tigers' Hudson Coady, Michael Allison, Cordaro Sims, and Brian Allison contributed toward their final team score of 443.

Coady finished 78th at 16:32.34, Michael Allison crossed over at 16:39.00, and Cordaro Sims was next to finish a second later behind his teammate at 16:40.60. Brian Allison rounded out the top five runners in 133rd place with a time of 17:05.37.

The Urbana boys program also had strong finishes from sophomores Mohammed Amrani and Dereje Jahiel, who clocked times of 17:07.76 and 17:33.98, respectively.

The Tigers will run again on Tuesday on the University of Illinois Cross Country Course at the annual Twin City Meet and then again on Saturday for the Big 12 Conference title back at Detweiller Park.

Tigers run at Peoria Invite, Stori top finisher for the UHS

PEORIA -- The Urbana girls' cross country team finished 23rd in the team standings out of 34 teams at the Peoria Cross Country Invitational on Saturday, October 1.

Senior Maya Stori led the Tigers' squad to the finish line circumventing the course at Detweiller Park in 20 minutes and 6.49 seconds in the Class 1A/2A race. 80th overall, she finished behing Bloomington's Alexandra Noona and ahead of Morton's Cali Fitzgerald.

Later, Stori was followed into the chute by teammate Abby Fairbanks, who stopped the clock at 20:10.80 for best time in the 3-mile distance this season. Prior to Saturday's race, Fairbanks' top finish this season was 21:09.70.

Also scoring points for UHS were Ellie Scully, Noam Kramer, and Kaleigh Bell. Scully finish 158th at 21:50.16, Kramer 180th at 22:34.20, and Kaleigh Bell finished out the top-five runners with a time of 22:37.05, good for 182nd overall.

Lavie Maisha and Brianne Wefel finished the race with times of 22:55.61 and 23:18.61 respectively.

The 1A/2A title was won by Crystal Lake South with 88 points. Dunlap tallied 105 points to take second, and Glenwood finished third in the team standings with 148 points.

The Tigers will run again this Tuesday on the University of Illinois Cross Country Course at the annual Twin City Meet and then again on Saturday for the Big 12 Conference title back at Detweiller Park.

Unity cross-country team wins girls' title, Rocket boys finish third at Tuscola Classic

by Daniel L. Chamness
Special to The Sentinel

Tuscola -- The Unity Rockets and the Lady Lions of Marshall made it a two-team race for the team title at this year's installment of the Tuscola Cross-Country Classic on Saturday.

The Lady Rockets tabulated a 13-point advantage, scoring 47 points. Marshall, who had the best one-two punch, took second with 60 points. Shelbyville, who had the individual winner, took third with 93 points. A total of 11 girls' teams posted a team score.

Unity's Josie Cler runs the course at the 2022 Tuscola Cross-Country Classic. She finished the race at 21 minutes and 35.82 seconds.

Photo: Moto Johnson/The Sentinel

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"We knew that Marshall would be closer to us this week than they were one week ago," said Kara Leaman, the girl's head coach. "They are very strong up front. We have enjoyed competing against them the last few weeks."

Emily Decker, Erica Woodard, Mackenzie Pound, and Olivia Shake, all Rocket underclass runners, finished in the top 10. Decker finished the three-mile race in 18 minutes, 59.64 seconds. Woodard entered the chute less than 13 seconds later, crossing at 19:12.03. Pound and Shike, ninth and 10th respectively, finished in 19:36.44 and 19:44.55. Fifteenth place runner and number five scorer for the Lady Rockets, Camryn Reedy finished in 20:44.94.

"As the race unfolded, Camryn was a bit ahead of Marshall's fifth runner," said Leaman. "We are headed to St. Joseph and the Spartan Classic this week. In the upcoming races, we want the Rocket pack to continue to move up. We have a number of runners coming on at the right time. We are looking forward to having a returning Reagan Stringer. Emily and Erica have both led us. Mackenzie continues to improve and Olivia continues to stay close to the front runners."

Josie Cler (21st, 21:35.82) and Sophia Stierwalt (29th, 22:01.11) were Unity's sixth and seventh runners. Stierwalt is the only senior in the top seven.

The Lady Rockets have won three meets this year, including a dominating victory over other Class 1A teams at the First to the Finish Invitational at Detweiller Park in Peoria, which will host the state finals on November 5. Two of their victories were over Marshall, who would finish second.

The Rocket boy's team was led by a senior, namely Brendan Graven, who would finish 18th in 17:48.84. The boys ran three miles as well.

Unity's Camden Fairbanks finished the race at 17:57.28 to take 20th overall on Saturday.

Photo: Moto Johnson/The Sentinel

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But, after the lone senior finished, the Rockets were powered to third place as a team by four freshmen, who were the other scoring runners. The sixth and seventh runners were a junior and a Nicole sophomore respectively. Only 1:12 separated the top-five Rockets.

Camden Fairbanks would finish the race in 17:57.28 to take 20th. Eli Crowe (27th) and Collin Graven (39th) both broke 19:00 as well, entering the chute at 18:22.08 and 18:57.60. The Rocket top five was rounded out by Carter Tiemann, who finished in 19:00.20, which was good for 42nd.

"Our team is extremely young this year and I want the athletes to gain experience," said Nicole Bagwell, the Unity boys coach. "The other main goals are to remain as healthy as we can and finish the year with everyone healthy and running their best."

The Rockets finished with 134 points. Tuscola would win their home meet, which was held at Wimple Park with 102 points. Effingham-based St. Anthony took second with 105 points.

Area runners qualify for boys cross country sectional

Sixteen area high school runners qualified to compete at the IHSA St. Teresa cross country section next Saturday.

With no state meet this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, eight members from both Unity and St. Joseph-Ogden will run for a chance to bring home this year's highest award in cross county next week.

Representing the Rockets, who finished in fouth place at the regional meet, are seniors Jarrett Cox, Ben Gavel and Connor O'Donnell along with juniors Nolan Miller, Clayton Jamison and Thomas Cler. The upperclassmen are supported by sophomore Brendan Graven and freshman Bryson Denny.

Finishing above Unity in the final team standings, the St. Joseph-Ogden boys squad was just 7 points away from bringing home the regional title. Helping SJO to a second place finish and advance were Ethan Blackburn, Charlie Mabry, Carson Maroon Brandon Mattsey, Elijah Mock, Luke Stegall, Spencer Wilson and Logan Wolfersberger.

Regional Results:
5. Brandon Mattsey (SJO) 16:00.6
8. Charlie Mabry (SJO) 16:11.6
10. Carson Maroon (SJO) 16:19.9
11. Elijah Mock (SJO) 16:37.6
14. Connor O'Donnell (Unity) 16:39.7
16. Logan Wolfersberger (SJO) 16:40.6
17. Ben Gavel (Unity) 16:44.0
19. Jarrett Cox (Unity) 16:45.8
24. Luke Stegall (SJO) 17:06.0
27. Clayton Jamison (Unity) 17:14.3
29. Spencer Wilson (SJO) 17:19.7
30. Thomas Cler (Unity) 17:21.0
39. Bryson Denny (Unity) 17:54.6
40. Brendan Graven (Unity) 17:58.9

Spartans finish in top 3, Rockets in 4th at IPC meet

SJO's Brandon Mattsey runs during the 2019 IHSA state cross country meet. The senior, who finished 4th overall, led the Spartans to a third-place finish at this year's Illini Prairie Conference meet on Saturday.

(Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Brandon Mattsey, Charlie Mabry and Carson Maroon completed their run within 18 seconds of each other for 21 team points at the 2020 Illini Prairie Conference Meet on Saturday. The combined effort secured the St. Joseph-Ogden boys cross country squad a third place finish on Saturday.

Twenty-five seconds off his personal best in the 3-mile race, Mattsey was the first Spartan to cross the finish line at 16:07.43. His fourth place finish coupled with Mabry coming in 8th place and Maroon in 9th less than three seconds apart provided a commanding lead over the rest of the field in the team competition.

Connor O'Donnell led Unity's first three runners over the line stopping the clock at 16:29.35 and was the 10th finisher in the varsity race. Teammates Jarrett Cox then finished three seconds later in 11th place and Benjamin Gravel ended his run on the course in 16th place at 16:54.41.

The trio along with Nolan Miller and Thomas Cler secured the Rockets fourth place finish with 96 points.

SJO tallied 60 points to finish third behind Monticello's 44 points and the newly crowned IPC champs of 2020, Olympia with 39 points.

Illini Prairie Conference meet results:

4	Brandon Mattsey	SJO	16:07.43
8	Charlie Mabry	SJO	16:22.22
9	Carson Maroon	SJO	16:25.25
10	Connor O'Donnell	Unity	16:29.35
11	Jarrett Cox	Unity	16:32.92
16	Benjamin Gravel	Unity	16:54.41
19	Elijah Mock	SJO	17:08.02
20	Luke Stegall	SJO	17:08.73
22	Logan Wolfersberger	SJO	17:16.19
28	Nolan Miller	Unity	17:40.45
31	Thomas Cler	Unity	17:48.72
44	Spencer Wilson	SJO	18:23.18
46	Clayton Jamison	Unity	18:46.65
50	Bryson Denny	Unity	19:33.67

SJO cross country schedule features five home meets

SJO's Logan Wolfersberger runs his first lap around the course at the 2019 IHSA State Cross Country State Finals. He is one of three seniors anchoring this year's Spartans.

(Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

This year's St. Joseph-Ogden harriers have the pleasure of hosting five home meets this season.

After two road meets, the Spartans will debut the racing skills at home against visiting Oakwood and Armstrong on September 8. Eighteen days and a three-meet road campaign later, SJO will host four consecutive running events at home. The home stand kicks off with the Spartan Classic at 9a on September 26.

This year's boys squad is led by seniors Logan Wolfersberger, Brandon Mattsey and Lukas Hutcherson. The trio will lead a supporting cast with Aiden Armstrong, Freshmen; Ethan Blackburn, Sophomore; Braden Clampitt, Junior; Zach Dahman, Sophomore; Holden Jones, Freshmen; Charlie Mabry, Junior; Carson Maroon, Freshmen; Elijah Mock, Junior; Isiah Mock, Freshmen; Luke Stegall, Junior; and Spencer Wilson, Freshmen.

On the ladies' side, Hanna Eastin is the lone senior on the 2020-21 squad. Ava Knap, Kelsey Martlage and Ashlyn Lannert are the core runners of junior class of seven runners with the potential to win a state title in 2021. Malorie Sarnecki, who earned Most-Improved-Player recognition last fall returns along with Kailyn Ingram, Emma Parkinson, and Taryn Sexton to round out the eight upperclasswomen on the squad.

The sophomore class line-up includes sophomores Kaytlyn Baker, Teagan Miller, Katie Oehmke, Izzy Sexton and Lili Wentzloff. Newcomers Chloe Allen, Chloe Burkhalter, Maya Chahine, Helene Jones, and Lauren Lannert, all freshmen, joined the program this fall.

2020 Fall Schedule

08/28/2020 • Away
Unity, UniHigh
Location: Unity High School

09/05/2020 • Away
Charleston
Location: Charleston High School

09/08/2020 • Home
Oakwood & Armstrong
Location: St. Joseph Community Park

09/12/2020 • Away
Paxton-Buckley-Loda
Location: Paxton Buckley Loda High School

09/15/2020* • Away
Monticello
Location: Monticello

09/19/2020 • Away
St. Teresa Tri-Meet
Location: Decatur St. Teresa High School

09/26/2020* • Home
Spartan Classic
Location: St. Joseph Community Park

10/03/2020 • Home
Shelbyville, PBL, St.Teresa
Location: St. Joseph Community Park

10/06/2020 • Home
vs.Illini Prairie Conference Meet
3 COED open races at 4p/4:45p/5:30p
Location: St. Joseph Community Park

10/10/2020 • Home
IPC XC Meet
Girls: 9a/9:45a girls - Boys: 10:45a/11:30a
Location: St. Joseph Community Park

10/17/2020 • Away
Monticello IPC Meet
Location: Monticello High School

10/24/2020* • Away
IHSA Regionals
Location: TBA

Wolfersberger, Sarnecki earn cross country Most-Improved recognition

Twenty-eight St. Joseph-Ogden High School student-athletes earned varsity letters in cross country this fall. With the leadership of this year's six seniors, both the girls and boys programs competed at this year's Illinois High School Association state finals in Peoria.

Senior Eric Poe races to the finish line at the 2019 IHSA state cross country meet at Detweiller Park on November 9. In addition to a varsityl letter, Poe was honored with the Rick Walden Most Consistent Award. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

The boys squad finished in 18th place with a score of 421 points. The top five scoring runners were Brandon Mattsey, Eric Poe, Charlie Mabry, Elijah Mock and Luke Stegall.

Earlier in the day at the state finals on November 9, senior Jillian Plotner led the SJO girls' to the program's fifth consecutive top ten team performance since 2014.

Nine members of both running programs received special team recognition at the end of the season.

Brandon Mattsey and Hannah Rajlich earned Most-Valuable-Player for their respective squads. Logan Wolfersberger was named the boys' Most-Improved Player and Malorie Sarnecki earned the same recognition for her efforts on the girls' squad.

Charlie Mabry received the Tim Mies Effort Award. Addie Allen won the Ashley Wright Effort Award. Eric Poe was the recipient of the Rick Walden Most Consistent Award and the Chelsea Blaase Most Consistent Award was given to sophomores Ava Knap & Ashlyn Lannert.

This year's varsity letter winners are seniors Ally Monk, Taddy Pettit, Jillian Plotner, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich and Josh Sexton.

Juniors: Hanna Eastin, Lukas Hutcherson, Brandon Mattsey, and Logan Wolfersberger.

Sophomores: Addie Allen, Braden Clampitt, Sidney Davis, Kailyn Ingram, Ava Knap, Ashlyn Lannert, Charlie Mabry, Elijah Mock, Hope Rajlich, Kendra Riddle, Malorie, Sarnecki, Taryn Sexton and Luke Stegall.

Freshmen: Kaytlyn Baker, Ethan Blackburn, Mary Hinrichs, Teagan Miller and Izzy Sexton.

Mattsey leads SJO at state meet, XC boys finish 18th overall

On the final day of the fall, two days before Monday's nasty snow and ice blanketed central Illinois, the St. Joseph-Ogden harriers ran to an 18th place finish at the Illinois High School Association's State Cross Country Finals at Detweiller Park last Saturday.

Junior Brandon Mattsey, SJO's top runner, completed his race in 15 minutes and 48.78 seconds earning 28 points with his 43rd overall place finish.

Helping the Spartans edge out 19th place Unity, was senior Eric Poe, Charlie Mabry, Elijah Mock and Luke Stegall who earned 421 points. The Rockets finished with 423 points in the team standings.

It was Poe's final cross country event with the Spartans. In the senior's first and only state run, he clocked in at 16.27.75, finishing in 100th place. Nineteen runners later, Mabry concluded his race 13 seconds later at 16:40.19.

Mock and Stegall finished ten runners apart. Coming in at 17:02.52, Mock crossed finish line seven seconds ahead of Stegall's 17:09.99.

Juniors Logan Wolfersberger and Lukas Hutcherson also ran in the season finale. Not in the top five finishers for the Spartans, their results did not count toward overall the team score. Wolfersberger was 175th overall at 17:28.50 while Hutcherson ran over the finish line at 17:46.59 for 184th place.

Spartans runners head to state

Both the boys and girls cross country teams at St. Joseph-Ogden will be in the running for this year's Class 1A IHSA State Finals on Saturday.

The men's squad finished third in the team standings after last Saturday's sectional meet in Effingham. SJO's top five runners accumulated 158 points behind Urbana U-High (96 points) and sectional champions Monticello with 42 points.

Junior Brandon Mattsey finished the course at 16.56 and Eric Poe clocked in at 17.16. Both runners turned in times nearly minute slower than their times near the end of September due to the muddy, marsh like conditions along the course.

"Our coach had us run without socks," said Poe, a second-year veteran. He was the 22nd runner to cross the finish line. "It made it much easier to run with just spikes."

Saturday will be a first Poe, who will be running in his first state cross country meet. He excited about the opportunity to run against some of the top runners in the state.

"Every team there, every runner is high quality," he said. "The quality of the runners that will be there, that's what I'm excited about."

The senior is glad he left football, he played his frosh and sophomore season, as his fall sport and jumped into the sport of cross country.

"I don't regret the decision," he said with pride. "I'm very thankful for the coach I have and my teammates who have been helping me along. It is not an easy sport."

Also running for the Spartans at the sectional meet was Charlie Mabry, who turned a time of 17.40. Three other runners - Elijah Mock (17.50), Logan Wolfersberger (17.52) and Luke Stegall (17.53) - finished under the 18 minute mark. Lukas Hutcherson was the last St. Joseph-Ogden off the course at 18.49.

The Spartans will run their final race of the season at Detweiller Park in Peoria on Saturday. The girls race starts at 9 a.m.. An hour later boys race starts at 10 a.m..

If you plan to head to Peoria for the state meet, here are the bib number of SJO runners to look out for: 702 — Ethan Blackburn (Fr.), 703 — Braden Clampitt (So.), 704 — Zach Dahman (Fr.), 705 — Lukas Hutcherson (Jr.), 706 — Charlie Mabry (So.), 707 — Brandon Mattsey (Jr.), 708 — Elijah Mock (So.), 709 — Taddy Pettit (Sr.), 710 — Eric Poe (Sr.), 711 — Josh Sexton (Sr.), 712 — Luke Stegall (So.) and 713 — Logan Wolfersberger (Jr.).

The SJO girls will be wearing the following numbers for their race: 253 — Addie Allen (So.), 254 — Kaytlyn Baker (Fr.), 255 — Sidney Davis (So.), 256 — Hanna Eastin (Jr.), 257 — Kailyn Ingram (So.), 258 — Ava Knap (So.), 259 — Ashlyn Lannert (So.), 260 — Ally Monk (Sr.), 261 — Jillian Plotner (Sr.), 262 — Hannah Rajlich (Sr.), 263 — Hope Rajlich (So.), 264 — Kendra Riddle (So.), 265 — Malorie Sarnecki (So.) and 266 — Taryn Sexton (So.).

SJO boys cross country squad takes 5th at regionals, advances to sectional on Saturday

Giving their all against the best small school running programs on this side of the state, the St. Joseph-Ogden boys cross country team did their best to prove their themselves worthy of the name Spartan. Competing under less than favorable weather conditions at the Class 1A cross country regional in Tuscola on Saturday, the team finished fifth overall.

Their collective effort resulted in extending their season yet another week in order to compete in the upcoming sectional meet in Effingham. The Spartans' top five runners finished with 97 points, two points away from what could have been a three-way tie score-wise with Paxton-Buckley-Loda and Unity, who tallied 95 points each.

This week, SJO runners will train with the goal of qualifying for this season's IHSA state meet at weekend's upcoming sectional for a spot in the IHSA state meet on November 9.

One of the first ten to cross the finish line in the boys race at last Saturday's regional race was SJO's Brandon Mattsey, who led the Spartan contingent in their fifth place finish. He turned in a time of 16:44 on the three-mile Wimple Park course in Tuscola. His career best three-mile time is 15:41.

Supporting Mattsey's effort, Eric Poe finished 14th overall at 17:03 and Charlie Mabry clocked in at 17:15 to earn 20 points for the team.

Here is how the Spartans finished at the 2019 Tuscola regional:

Runner	Place	Time
Brandon Mattsey (Jr.)	10	16:44
Eric Poe (Sr.)	14	17:03
Charlie Mabry (So.)	20	17:15
Elijah Mock (So.)	24	17:26
Luke Stegall (So.)	29	17:39
Braden Clampitt (So.)	35	18:02
Ethan Blackburn (Fr.)	43	18:39

Mattsey, Poe lead SJO cross country at invite

The SJO boys cross country squad finished 54th out of 63 teams at the Peoria Notre Dame Richard Spring Invitational on Saturday. This was a single division race with St. Joseph-Ogden competing against 2A and 3A large high school programs like St. Charles East, who won the meet, Loyola Academy, York and Carl Sandburg.

The Spartans were led to the finish line of the 3-mile race by Brandon Mattsey. The junior finished his run at Detweiller Park in 16 minutes and 42.7 seconds, just 18 seconds off his career best time of 16:42 and 12 seconds slower than his time a week earlier at the First to the Finish on the same course.

Senior Eric Poe, was the second SJO finisher crossing the circumventing the course four seconds behind Poe good for 198th place with a time of 16:46.

The next three scoring runners were Logan Wolfersburger (340th) at 17:56, Lukas Hutcherson (358th) at 18.05 and Taddy Pettit clocking in at 19:26, 409th out of the 446 runners on Saturday.

Meanwhile in the Freshman/Sophomore division, the young harriers turned a 27th place team finish. There were 53 teams made up of 359 runners.

The top five runners included Charlie Mabry and Elijah Mock, who ran sub-18 minute times, Braden Clampitt, Ethan Blackburn and Zach Dahman. Mabry, who finished at 17:10, nearly matched his career best to pace the underclassmen and Stegall concluded his effort at the 17:59 mark.