Kane County Chronicle Athlete of the Week: St. Charles East’s Greyson Ellensohn, cross country, senior

Name: Greyson Elensohn

Sport: Cross country

Why he was selected: At the Peoria High School Invite, Ellensohn dipped under the 15-minute barrier in a 3-mile race for the first time this season, running a 14:57.9 for a third-place finish in the Class 3A boys race.

Ellensohn was picked as the Kane County Chronicle Athlete of the Week in an online vote. Here’s his interview with Joel Boenitz.

You finished under 15 minutes for the first time this season. What was it like doing that?

Ellensohn: In my last race at the Richard Spring Invitational, I ran 15:06 there, and it was really hot that day. Me and my coach both knew that I was going to go under 15 minutes at some point this season, it was just a matter of when. And I knew going into the field, that it was really strong and I had to be up with that front pack because it’ll just drag me through with a good time. And I knew I had to work on my second mile. That was kind of a struggle that I’ve had, so I knew if I just focused on that second mile, stuck with the top two guys, and then just close hard, then I knew I could go under 15.

You dropped nearly 40 seconds off of your time from last year to this year. What changed?

Ellensohn: I think my training in the summer was a big part of it. I boosted my mileage quite a bit from what I did during the summer my junior year. Not only that, I’ve ran more mileage during the season. I think I went from 45 miles last year to up to around 55 this year, and I think it’s been pretty beneficial for me, knowing that I can run that high mileage. I did it during track, and it seemed to work. So me and my coach agreed that we can just do it this year and see how I race.

After being surrounded by seniors last season, what’s it been like being the main leader on the team?

Ellensohn: The team is why I’m here, and I’m trying to race for the team and all. But it’s just so different during workouts and stuff. I had Jed (Wilson) with me for every workout I had, so it’s a different change of pace having to mentally think about it, because these workouts I’m doing basically alone. So just mentally, you gotta fight through everything, because without a training partner, it’s very difficult. But I knew what I was going into the season, and so it’s not like it was a surprise, but it doesn’t mean a little bit of a challenge. But guys like Ryan Tobin and Michael Wilson have been having monster years in their place, with Tobin being one of the big reasons we’re on the cusp of qualifying as a team. And so I love seeing those two guys work together because when they do, great stuff happens.

How much of a confidence booster is it to get that goal out of the way before conferences and the state series?

Ellensohn: Our conference is very good. We have a lot of good guys. I think we have four guys under 15 as of right now, and one guy that’s really close. So if I’m up in that front pack having that boost of confidence from the last meet coming into it, I think I can PR at conference again, and having that going into the rest of the state series is huge.

Do you have any superstitions?

Ellensohn: I always wear the same socks. I wash them, obviously, but I always wear the same socks, which are super thin. I don’t like racing barefoot, but I like wearing socks that are super thin.