Cross Country: Cooper Marrs paces Riverside-Brookfield to sectional title

MAPLE PARK – Riverside-Brookfield junior Cooper Marrs’ assessment of his team’s performance at the Class 2A Kaneland Cross Country Sectional Meet indicated there was room for improvement.

That’s fine since the Bulldogs have the most important meet of the season next Saturday at Peoria’s Detweiller Park.

R-B took the team title, led by Marrs in third place and Jack O’Brien in eighth, with 97 points. Belvidere North (115) was second and Prairie Ridge (139) was third.

The top seven teams and top 10 individuals not on those teams qualify for state. Glenbard South took fourth and Fenwick was seventh to also secure team berths.

South was led by Ryan Chung in 17th place; Fenwick’s Nathaniel McKillop led his team in eighth.

Marmion’s John Daffenberg (14th) and Connor Carlson (26th) qualified as individuals.

“It was a team effort all-around,” Marrs said. “I wouldn’t say any of us had our best race, but we did what needed to be done to win.”

Sterling’s Dale Johnson (14:36.88) and Belvidere North’s Evan Horgan (14:51.92) took the top two spots ahead of Marrs (15:04.60).

“I wouldn’t say I had my best race, but I learned a lot about how I can run next week, strategy-wise,” Marrs said. “It was a good chance to see some of the competition I will see next week. It should be fun.”

In the girls race, St. Francis took sixth and Nazareth was seventh to qualify as teams. Fenwick’s Bella Daley (fifth), R-B’s Bryce Pacourek (ninth) and Gianna Gelb (10th), Trinity’s Molly McGreal (21st) and Hinsdale South’s Abby Petersen (30th) advanced as individuals.

Pacourek enjoyed running with Gelb through the race.

“I was really happy. I was super-proud of how we worked together and ran (personal records),” Pacourek said. “We were trying to qualify as a team. I was really happy with how I ran. I was able to stay focused during the race and I had a really good kick at the end to catch the last few people I could.”

Petersen made it with the eighth of the 10 individual spots for her third trip to state.

“It was definitely a tough sectional,” she said. “It was my mentality. I knew I needed to be within a certain range of people. I would listen for their names, for my own name and took in all the cheering. It helped motivate me to keep running.

“I knew it was going to be really close, but I really wanted this my senior year.”