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SJO-High School SportsSportsSt. Joseph Daily

Legacy of consistency and hard work keeps Spartan Runners successful

By FRED KRONER
fred@mahometnews.com

The past met the present on Saturday for the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ cross-country team.

A legacy of success added another chapter at Peoria’s Detweiler Park in the annual state meet.

The Spartans placed seventh in the 26-school field, marking the 13th year in a row that the school finished among the top 10 teams at state in Class 1A.

“One reason for the consistency is the consistency in their training,” SJ-O coach Jason Retz said. “We’ve done a lot of the same things over the years.

“When kids enjoy doing it, that’s the biggest part.”

Seniors led the way on Saturday for the Spartans. Jillian Plotner finished 43rd in the 215-runner field. Her 3-mile time was 18 minutes, 34.59 seconds.

Teammate Hannah Rajlich was next, clocking a 19:03.99.

Overall, the top six SJ-O runners finished the course within a minute of each other.

“We’ve been focused on that kind of split,” Retz said.

The next four SJ-O runners were sophomores: Ava Knap (71st in 19:04.54), Ashlyn Lannert (73rd in 190.9), Malorie Sarnecki (75th 19:28.50) and Addie Allen (77th in 19:34.24).

“They stepped up and performed,” Retz said. “Four of the seven ran lifetime bests and two others were within a few seconds (of personal bests).”

Allen, Knap, Lannert and Sarnecki were the Spartans who posted career-best times. Plotner was near her all-time best and Rajlich was close to her best-ever time at Detweiller.

The team’s seventh state runner was senior Ally Monk, who ended 95th in 19:59.07. Her placing meant that the entire Spartans’ lineup completed the course among the upper half of the field.

“You want to finish on top, but you want to get the most out of your group,” Retz said. “We’ve made huge gains forward from last year.”

Winnebago claimed team honors, with a total of 63 points.

Following the state championship team were runner-up Monticello (144 points), Unity (third place with 147 points), Normal University High (fourth with 154 points), Rock Falls (fifth with 186 points), Eureka (sixth with 225 points) and SJ-O (seventh with 267 points).

In the final runnerspace.com Class 1A state poll, SJ-O’s girls were ranked sixth.

SJ-O’s team placements during its 13-year state streak:

YEAR PLACE
2019 Seventh
2018 Fifth
2017 Second
2016 First
2015 Third
2014 First
2013 Sixth
2012 Tenth
2011 Seventh
2010 Third
2009 Ninth
2008 Fifth
2007 Fourth

St. Joseph-Ogden Boys’ cross-country

There will be no bragging rights for individual supremacy between the SJ-O boys’ and girls’ cross-country programs.

Junior Brandon Mattsey was the Spartans’ leader in Saturday’s Class 1A state meet at Peoria’s Detweiler Park.

He placed 43rd, matching the top performance of the school’s first finisher in the girls’ state race. Mattsey’s 3-mile time was 15 minutes, 48.78 seconds.

“It was fun to watch him compete,” SJ-O coach Jason Retz said. “He put himself in position.  Halfway through, he was in the top 25.”

Mattsey moved into the 19th spot for the fastest-ever SJ-O times at Detweiller.

In all, the first five Spartan finishers had a split of 1 minute, 21 seconds.

“We performed well and it was enjoyable to watch the character of the kids on the course,” Retz added.

Senior Eric Poe was the team’s No.  2 runner, posting a time of 16:27.75.

The remainder of the team’s lineup consisted of underclassmen.

Sophomore Charlie Mabry was 119th in 16:40.19, sophomore Elijah Mock was 149th in 17:02.54, sophomore Luke Stegall was 159th in 17:09.99, junior Logan Wolfersberger was 175th in 17:28.50 and junior Lukas Hutcherson was 184th in 17:46.59.

All seven of SJ-O’s competitors ran quicker times than they did the previous week at sectionals.

Monticello won the team crown, totaling 115 points.

SJ-O, which was ranked 25th in the final runnerspace.com state poll, took 18th with 421 points.

With so many underclassmen gaining experience in 2019, Retz is excited about the future.

“It will be a lot of fun to watch them a year from now,” Retz said. “This could be a very special group if they keep their focus.

“We have guys ready to step in and a good group of eighth-graders that we hope can help fill the six, seven and eight spots.”

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