The Illinois Cross Country Club competed at the NIRCA National Cross Country Championships on November 12 in Hershey, PA. It was a successful day for the club across six races in the biggest club national championship yet. In the championship race, the men finished fourth and the women finished ninth. The day was also highlighted by incredible efforts in the open races: Quinn Todzo was the national champion in the Junior/Senior/Grad division and Grayson Stout was the runner-up; Leonel Rodriguez ran a heroic race to finish as the runner-up in the Freshman/Sophomore division.
Junior/Senior/Grad
The day started off with a bang. The man, the myth, the legend Quinn “Jackhammer” Todzo toed the line looking for the win and he executed perfectly. Quinn was hyped out of his mind in an expletive-laden pre-race huddle and that fiery intensity burned through the entire race. After seasons of grinding away, Quinn took home the victory on Saturday morning with a 27:27.
Just behind the Dancellor came another incredible performance from IXC as senior Grayson Stout took second in the race. Grayson joined the club team late this fall and ran his first race of the season at Regionals. He tore his ACL in 2015 and his performance at Nationals means #thereturn is complete as he broke through with a 27:36, more than 10 seconds ahead of third place.
The club has always prided itself on its strength in the open race, and Saturday was no exception. The men’s team won handily over Penn State, 36-50. Junior Jack O’Neil was sixth overall and senior Tyler Dixon was tenth in his final cross country race. Tyler loved the brutally tough Hershey course in 2013 and he made the most of his return to Pennsylvania. Also making his return to Hershey, senior Jack Morrissey was the fifth man.
Junior Austin Kuehr finished sixth for the team and senior Sean “SMB” Bruyere finished seventh. Big Sean ran his best race of college his freshman year in Hershey, finishing sixth overall in the men’s open race and he ends his cross country career as the team’s seventh man in Hershey.
In the women’s race, junior Vicky Dent surged throughout the 6K course to finish first for the women and claim tenth place overall. Senior Hannah Smith, the only Hershey veteran for IXC in the race, finished next, in thirteenth and senior Ellie Palacios capped off her XC career with a 22nd place finish in Hershey. One of the biggest jumps from last season came from Mariela Marquez. Last year in Kentucky, she ran 29:15 at Nationals. This year, on a much more challenging course, Mariela ran 27:32 as the team’s fourth runner. Junior Megan Frintner rounded out the scoring five.
Championship
The men’s championship race was highlighted by some experienced veterans on one last ride and going out with a bang. The men’s team finished fourth, behind dominating efforts by Oregon, UC-Davis and Penn State. It was an improvement of eight places from last year and the team crushed Great Plains foe Iowa State, who edged IXC at Regionals.
Senior Jared “Big Red” Ripoli was the team’s top finisher, reestablishing himself as the team’s top dog. Jared became the first IXC athlete ever to run in the championship race all four years of competition. He earned his second NIRCA All-American honor with a 19th place finish in 26:29. He ran 27:31 in Hershey at Nationals in 2013.
The team’s second runner broke out at Nationals last season and has been on a roll ever since. Josh Feldman claimed NIRCA All-American honors with a 23rd place finish. He’s a key part of the club’s young talent after steady top finishes through the entire 2016 campaign. Senior head coach Ryan Somerfield was the team’s third man in a stellar effort. Ryan worked his way up the entire race aiming to run a race to be proud of. He used a strong kick to finish 36th in his strongest performance of the season.
Sophomore Willy Wolf was fourth for the team and senior David Choi was fifth in his return to Hershey with a 27:13. He ran 29:48 his freshman year. Junior Michael Frintner finished sixth for the team and freshman Zach Mesplay was seventh.
In the women’s race, the team was once again led by the triple threat of sophomore Anneliese Schulz, senior Emma Burkhardt and freshman Emily Condic. The women finished in ninth place overall. Anneliese led the charge for the women with a 23:50 NIRCA All-American performance good for 23rd place. Emma and Emily both finished exactly at 24:18, with Emma taking 44th and Emily taking 45th overall.
Junior Erin McKee capped a strong return from overseas in her return to the championship race, finishing as the women’s fourth runner. Sophomores Sara Folliard and Jill Monier have run well at every meet she’s competed at this season, and they finished as the fifth and sixth women, respectively, in Hershey.
Freshman/Sophomore
The open races were split by class for the first time at Nationals this year, giving the underclassmen an opportunity to shine. Sophomore Leonel Rodriguez seized the spotlight with a courageous effort to finish as the runner-up in the Frosh/Soph race. Leonel has been battling respiratory illness all season, but he faced down his demons with an incredible race. He lurked in the front pack for most of the race and took the lead with about 1K to go. He was caught by Penn State’s Andrew Hanna, but Leonel exerted himself to the fullest to finish a challenging season.
Sophomore Justin Shim, with the cheers of his father behind him, was second for the team and twelfth overall. He was followed closely by fellow sophomore Adam Bruyere in fourteenth. Freshman Cody Lund had a stellar effort to finish in 28:49. Cody broke his season goal in the very first meet, and capped off his first campaign with the club in 16th place.
In a tenacious effort, sophomore Arturo Woodward-Montes rounded out the team’s scoring five. Injury made Arturo question whether he would even compete at Nationals, but he gritted it out and moved up through the entire race for a strong showing. Freshman Sean “Crunchy” Frintner also gritted out a solid race while tweaking his leg during the race. Little Sean finished as the team’s sixth man and fellow freshman Rohit “Pool Party” Kumar was seventh. Freshman Jacob Anderson also had a phenomenal last race of the season, finishing in 31:31. He ran his best time of the season at Hershey, the toughest course of the season.
For the women, a small but strong squad represented in the Freshman/Sophomore race. Freshman Leah Ziolkowski led the way with a 27:33 finish, sophomore Adriana Miltko ran a tough race, including a fall, to finish as the women”s second runner. Freshman Callie Rukavina was the third finisher for the women.
It was the team’s third trip to Hershey and the first since 2013. It was a day full of highlights for IXC and a fantastic finish to an awesome season. The trip would not have been possible without the help of parent volunteers to drive our vans to Nationals. Thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy/Mom and Dad, Mr. and Mrs. Frintner, Mr. and Mrs. Folliard, Mr. Feldman, Mr. and Mrs. Condic, and Mr. Yoon.
Thank you for your support the entire 2016 cross country season! Keep checking illinoistrackclub.com for updates as the team moves into track season, starting with the Illinois Wesleyan Titan First Chance Meet on December 3.
