The Sentinel: State Cross Country Meet

State Cross Country |
Central’s Mathias finishes 18th in state cross country meet, Mahomet-Seymour places in top ten

PEORIA - Mahomet-Seymour’s boys cross country team capped their season with a sixth-place finish at the IHSA Boys Class 2A Cross Country State Finals on Saturday at Detweiller Park, earning 279 points to secure a top-ten team placement. Competing in a strong field, Mahomet-Seymour showcased depth and tenacity.

Leading the way for Mahomet-Seymour, junior Henry McMurry claimed 26th with a time of 14:55.00, setting a fast pace in the early stages of the race to finish under the 15-minute mark. Senior Kaleb Kasper crossed next for Mahomet-Seymour, taking 40th place in 15:15.10, followed by sophomore Tate Bode at 107th, who completed the 3-mile course in 15:51.10. Rounding out the top five for Mahomet-Seymour, freshman Adam Smigielski and senior Lukas Nykaza secured 161st and 163rd place with respective times of 16:14.50 and 16:16.60, adding critical points for the Bulldogs.

Central junior Caleb Mathias made a notable individual appearance, finishing in 18th place with a time of 14:50.90, the best individual result for the Champaign-Urbana area in Class 2A. Mathias’ performance marked a strong showing, establishing him as a key competitor among the state’s top runners with All-State recognition earned on Saturday.

The meet’s top finisher, senior Finn Richards, won with a time of 14:21.10, leading Payton to first place in the team standings with 113 points. Morton and Latin finished in second and third with 191 and 195 points, respectively, rounding out the podium as Kaneland (222 points) and Dixon (196 points) followed closely.

KEYWORDS: Central Cross Country, Mahomet-Seymour, Cross Country All-State, IHSA state cross country, High school sports

State Champions! Once again Unity cross-country program captures Class 1A title

Unity's Emily Decker runs in the Class 1A championship race at the IHSA State Cross Country State Finals on Saturday. Decker was the third Rocket to cross the finish line, finishing her race in 18 minutes and 22.60 seconds.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Class 1A Final Standings

1. Unity 109
2. Anna-Jonesboro 157
3. Peoria Notre Dame 224
4. Eureka 231
5. Knoxville 270
6. Chicago Christian 274
7. Shelbyville 278
8. Father McGivney 319
9. Williamsville 331
10. Herscher 347

Peoria - Two weeks ago, the Unity girls cross country program cemented their place in prep sports history as a downstate running dynasty. The Rockets tallied 109 points, 48 points less than their nearest competitor to bring home the Class 1A state title for a third consecutive season.

Led by sophomore Mackenzie Pound and Erica Woodward, who finished their individual race under the 18 minute mark, Unity's three-peat performance moved the school to #5 on the IHSA's list for most-consecutive title wins.

Pound was the tenth runner in the small school race to cross the finish line at 17:36.87. Woodard, a senior, also earned All-State status, crossed over at 17:45.26.

Unity's #3 runner, Emily Decker, finished 30th behind Clinton senior MaKayla Koeppel (18:18.41) and Christ Our Rock Lutheran's Sarah McKowen, senior, at 18:20.41. Earning her third team medal, Decker turned in a time of 18:22.60.

Running neck and neck to the finish line, Ashlyn Denny held off Princeville's Bethany Sennett, who finished six-hundreth of second ahead of her stopping her race clock 18 minute, 53.38 second.

Almost a second and half later, Rocket senior Olivia Shike closed out her prep cross country career at 18:54.89 to close out the top five runners to cross the finish line.

Over the past nine season, except for a two-year hiccup from 2018 to 2019, the Class 1A state championship trophy was brought home by either Unity or St. Joseph-Ogden. Unity now ranks second in program state title victories, behind Winnebago's 13 state title, with five. Surpassing St. Teresa's four titles, Unity has won four previous state championships in 2015, 2017, 2021, and 2022. The Rockets also were runner-up back in the one class system in 1988 and again in the three-class championships in 2016.

This championship squad included:
10. Mackenzie Pound 17:36.87
14. Erica Woodard 17:45.26
30. Emily Decker 18:22.60
52. Ashlyn Denney 18:53.38
55. Olivia Shike 18:54.89
63. Camryn Reedy 19:00.12
73. Reagen Stringer 19:07.77

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.).