Girls cross country: 5 storylines to watch in The Herald-News area in 2024

Here are some of the interesting storylines for girls cross country in the Herald-News coverage area for the 2024 season.

Wide-open races

It promises to be a season-long affair to figure out who is the best in the Herald-News area. There are several candidates. Minooka finished 16th in the state last season in Class 3A, while Plainfield North took 17th, Lincoln-Way Central was 22nd and Lincoln-Way East was 26th.

Lincoln-Way Central’s Brea Caunihan heads into a turn int the Girls 3200 Meter at the Class 3A Lockport Sectionals on Friday, May 10, 2024 in Lockport. — Brea Counihan returns this season to try and help her Lincoln-Way Central team return to the Class 3A state meet. (Gary Middendorf)

Plenty of experience

Minooka returns six of its top seven runners from last season, including Maya Ledesma, Taya Gummerson, Natalie Nahs, Liana Blount, Cassie Brushaber and Paige Joachim. Plainfield North brings back four: Marlie Czarniewski, Tessa Russo, Elsie Czarniewski and Emaan Hussain.

Lincoln-Way Central also returns four runners: Brea Counihan, who finished 18th as a freshman last season, Mia Forystek, Ava Dughetti and Jillian Davies. Lincoln-Way East welcomes back three runners in Kara Waishwell, Kate Roberts and Olivia Launius.

With that much experience returning, those four teams seem to have a leg up on getting back to Peoria’s Detweiller Park.

Conference battles

There’s nothing like a tight, season-long competition for conference supremacy to prepare a team for the grind of the postseason, and some of the area conferences will provide just that.

The Southwest Prairie features Minooka and Plainfield North, along with Yorkville (ninth place in 3A) and Oswego East (16th), making it one of the deepest conferences around. Not to be outdone, the SouthWest Suburban includes not just Lincoln-Way Central and Lincoln-Way East, but also Sandburg (10th) and an always-tough Lockport program.

Facing that type of competition week in and week out should push those teams to keep times fast and provide a solid foundation for when the postseason rolls around.

Youth movement

Not only do several of the area’s top teams have runners returning, but many of those runners are still youngsters. Minooka will feature sophomores Nahs and Joachim, while Ledesma, Gummerson, Blount and Brushaber are seniors. At Plainfield North, Marlie Czarniewski will be a sophomore, Hussain and Russo are juniors and Elsie Czarniewski is a senior.

At Lincoln-Way Central, Counihan, Forystek and Davies are sophomores, while Dughetti is a junior. Lincoln-Way East, meanwhile, sees senior Waishwell and sophomores Roberts and Launius return.

Lemont's Niki Tselios competes in the Class 2A State Cross Country race on Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023 at Detweiller Park in Peoria. — Lemont's Niki Tselios returns this season after finishing ninth in Class 2A last year. (Scott Anderson)

Other classes

In Class 2A, Lemont returns all seven runners from last season’s 23rd-place finisher. Coming back are senior Niki Tselios (ninth place), juniors Maggie Davey, Cassie Cunningham, Maya Fedko and Margaret Sinnett and sophomores Julizabeth Martinez and Nell Fedko.

Morris (28th) also returns all seven of its runners who earned the program’s third straight state qualification. Returning are seniors Makensi and Danica Martin, Leah Ortiz and Paityn Valentine, along with juniors Hope Emmerich and Zara Lugo and sophomore Leah Laughary.

In Class 1A, Seneca returns six of the seven runners that led to a 20th-place finish last season. Returning for the Irish are seniors Evelyn O’Connor, Natalie Misener and Aubrie Jackson, juniors Lily Mueller and Ruthie Steffes and sophomore Julie Mueller. Dwight sophomore Makayla Chambers returns after qualifying for state last season, as does Wilmington senior Brooklyn Flores.