Entering her junior campaign, Kaneland junior cross country runner Brianna Bower had a small bump in the road on what looked to be a promising season. Bower finished 37th overall at the state meet as a sophomore and was looking to be one of the top runners.

But she suffered a stress fracture in the final days of summer this year. The junior pushed and worked hard all season to get back into top form for the final stretch. At the Kaneland Sectional, Bower finished 12th overall with a time of 18:11. The state meet was not exactly what the junior wanted with a 57th-place finish. For her efforts this fall, Bower is the Daily-Chronicle’s Girls Cross-Country Runner of the Year.

“Because I started with a stress fracture and stuff this season, I guess hard work gets you far because it was nice to improve throughout the season,” Bower said. “It is pretty cool. I work really hard, so it is kind of cool.”

Kaneland coach Doug Ecker said the junior worked hard for the recognition this season.

“She is a pretty shy person, so I think she appreciates things like that,” Ecker said. “It is nice as a junior, especially because of the season she had. The last two races might have been two of the better races that she has had.”

That early season hurdle put a setback on what looked to be a promising season. Bower was out for six weeks toward the early part of the fall and had to be eased back into the workouts. The junior biked on the side to keep up her conditioning.

Once she got back, she progressed rapidly. In what was described as her best races of the season, Bower ran a time of 18:11 at a tough sectional.

“It was like the first time I got in the low 18s (minutes) all year, so it was nice,” Bower said.

As a team, Kaneland finished sixth at the Kaneland Sectional, which is one spot out of qualifying as a team. Bower was the only qualifier from Kaneland.

“I’d say her sectional was by far her best,” Ecker said. “We knew she could qualify for the state meet because it would be iffy as a team. It was a very difficult sectional team-wise, but also as individuals.”

At the state meet at Detweiller Park in Peoria, Bower finished with a time of 18:35. She said it might have been her asthma that held her up in the final race.

“I think it was partially my asthma, but I totally freaked myself out, so I got a little nervous,” Bower said. “I didn’t do as good as I wanted, but it was nice just to be there.”

Bower had been dealing with asthma throughout her high school career, but Ecker said her attacks have been far and few between as she has grown older.

“She has always had asthma, and when she was younger, the attacks would be more frequent,” Ecker said. “I know her goal was to run under 18 minutes and try and be in the top 25.”

Bower’s finish at the state meet was tops among area runners, and the junior has one more year to prove she belongs in the top 25 at state.

“I really enjoyed this season,” she said. “It was nice to run with the team and grow as a team. We did really well at the sectional meet. Even though everyone didn’t make it, we all ran our best races and I just had a lot of fun running this year.”

Girls Cross Country

Briana Bower, jr., Kaneland – Finished 57th in the state with a 18:35 at the 2A state championship in Peoria. Ran an 18:11 on her home course in the sectional.

Emma Conway, soph., DeKalb – Voted the team MVP, Conway had a personal best of 20:30, and ran a 21:42 at the region to qualify for the section race.

Tania Barragan, jr., DeKalb – Qualified for the section and finished in 20:47.9. Her best time this year was a 20:34.

Audrey Harrod, soph., Hinckley-Big Rock – The only cross country for the Royals, Harrod does all her training solo. She took second at Byron with a personal best of 18:47 and made the Class A section tournament, taking 17th in 20:12.

Ella Holland, fresh., Sycamore – Ran a season best of 19:33 and averaged a 21:33. She also qualified for the section tournament.

Victoria Clinton, sr., Kaneland – After finishing fourth on the team in the section race, Clinton rose at her home course in the sectional, taking second on the team and 27th overall in 18:40.

Brianna Campbell, jr., Genoa-Kingston – Though she finished behind teammate Anna Drendel at the region meet, she still clocked in at 20:36 and helped the Cogs get a surprise trip as a team to the section.