Cross country: Sterling’s Johnson takes second at state in 2A boys race

Rock Falls girls place ninth among 1A teams

Sterling's Dale Johnson runs in second place out on the course Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022, during the Sycamore Cross Country Invitational at Kishwaukee College in Malta. Johnson went on to finish in second.

PEORIA – Battling the elements and over 200 top high school runners in each race at the IHSA Cross Country State Finals at Detweiller Park in Peoria on Saturday, Sauk Valley area runners managed a solid showing collectively, despite less-than-ideal circumstances.

A heavy downpour persisted for the better part of an hour-and-a-half from the 9 a.m. start. High winds and a muddy course further added to the difficulty of the races, as the wind-chill temperature was well below the low-to-mid 50s expectation and solid footing was harder to find.

Sterling’s Dale Johnson had little trouble navigating the sloppy terrain and pushing through the cold weather, as he ran to second place in a field of 236 in the Class 2A boys race. His time of 15:06.35 trailed only Marion’s Dylon Nalley (14:44.62), and was five spots better than his seventh-place finish as a sophomore last year.

“I feel amazing. I’m so glad at what I’ve done today. I’m proud of myself,” Johnson said. “It really means something to me to finally be in that top position for once.

“The conditions today, they were not great. I’ve actually run a faster time on this course before, but everybody had to do it, so it was all cool.”

The other Golden Warrior to qualify for state, Delia Block, finished 124th out of 234 runners in the Class 2A girls race, recording a time of 20:22.51.

Aaron Conderman fared well as the lone qualifier from the Dixon boys, finishing 60th in the 2A race with a time of 16:41.91.

Competing with a full team, the Dixon girls finished 15th out of 28 teams with 391 points. Emily Conderman was the top finisher for the Duchesses, clocking a 19:45.57 for 76th place. Teammate Emma Smith was close behind, running a 19:53.85 for 87th. Smith, a two-time state qualifier, took 16th in last year’s 2A girls race.

“I actually am not happy. I’m definitely going to work hard for track, and just come back to a good race in track,” Smith said. “It was one of the hardest races I’ve ever ran before, and I tried to push through it, but I just couldn’t.”

Kamryn Rodgers and Keeley Mick finished 93rd and 99th for Dixon, crossing the finish line in 19:59.15 and 20:04.11. Also competing for the Duchesses were Kate Boss (20:36.37, 143rd), Hannah Steinmeyer (20:37.73, 148th) and Kait Knipple (20:52.55, 163rd).

In Class 1A, there were 258 runners in both the boys and girls races. The Rock Falls girls came in ninth out of 30 teams with 314 points.

Ariel Hernandez and Kat Scott were the top two Rocket girls, finishing 41st and 65th – both as first-time state qualifiers. Hernandez recorded a personal-record run of 18:58.28, while Scott ran a 19:32.83. Hana Ford clocked a 19:43.76 for 76th, Ava Shank ran a 20:19.42 for 128th, and Gracie Rippy came in 169th with a time of 21:13.17. Brooke Howard and Aniyah Thomas came in 188th (21:37.60) and 236th (23:17.17) for Rock Falls.

“I feel good. I PR’d by like a minute,” Hernandez said. “It felt pretty good to run in the rain. I loved it – like every second of it.”

“I felt good. My pace was much better than last time,” Scott said. “It felt really relaxing, but it was a little scary with the wind to slow you down.”

Competing for Rock Falls as individuals in the 1A boys race, Jose Gomez and Anthony Valdivia finished 61st and 136th. Gomez ran a 16:45.08, while Valdivia clocked a 17:23.27.

As the lone Oregon runner to make the state cut, Ella Dannhorn finished in the top half of 1A girls, running a 19:57.64 for 103rd.

The Newman boys came in 22nd out of 30 teams with 577 points.

Leading the way for the Comets was 86th-place finisher Lucas Simpson, who ran a 16:58.84. Lucas Schaab, the second-fastest Newman runner, recorded a 17:22.98 for 135th, Ken Boesen clocked a 17:31.98 for 153rd, and Wyatt Widolff ran a 17:45.72 for 169th. Zachary DeForest and Espen Hammes finished back-to-back in 235th and 236th, finishing in 18:56.40 and a 18:58.88. Ryan Welty rounded out the Newman lineup with a 241st-place finish, clocking a 19:06.59.

Bureau Valley’s Elijah House ran a 16:43.91 for 60th as the lone qualifier from his team. House qualified for state last year as a junior.

“It was what I was ranked to be. I would’ve liked to do a little bit better, but with the rain and everything, it’s expected,” House said. “I want to say it’s not fun [running in the tough conditions], but it was actually a little bit of fun. I kind of like it when the race is a little bit tougher. I like to work a little bit harder, and then the rain keeps me cool, and it just makes it a little bit more hard for everyone and makes it more fun for me.”

Polo’s Carson Jones ran solo for the Marcos, clocking a 17:27.10 for 147th.

The Riverdale boys finished second as a team with 130 points, behind only DePaul College Prep’s 113.

Tommy Murray was the fastest Ram, blazing a 15:05.55 for third place, while Landis Musser nabbed 11th with a 15:49.40, and Peyton Sand took 20th with a 16:03.45. Braeden Bode came in 57th with a 16:41.03, and Mitchell Hasenour took 77th with a 16:54.88; Cael Hinde finished 132nd with a 17:22.02, while Andy Murray ran to 199th in 18:09.49.

Dan Wussow

Dan Wussow

Dan is the sports editor for Sauk Valley Media. Previously, he wrote for The Post-Crescent in his hometown of Appleton, WI.