It’s the IHSA boys cross country 3A regional at Waubonsie Valley High School. All the Naperville area high schools, including Benet Academy and the DVC champs, Neuqua Valley are here to compete for a spot in next week’s sectional in Hinsdale. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
The runners are off at the sound of the starter’s gun. There are 84 runners competing in this race, with Grayson Meek of Neuqua Valley getting off to a good start, but Legend Alka of Willowbrook sprints his way to the front of the pack. Meek’s typical partner in crime, Jesse Gudauskas, who won the DVC, is out with an illness.
Conrad Saner leads the early charge
Running alongside the tennis courts is Conrad Saner of Downers Grove South, taking the lead with Meek keeping pace with another, Wildcat Anish Bhagat, and Naperville North runner Simon Reckamp. Trailing behind the pack is Huskie Jackson Truty. Jack Anderson and Derek Williamson of Naperville Central, another Huskie, Shreyas Meye,r and Benet’s Robert Johnson are neck in neck with each other, with a trio of Wildcats (Joseph Clifton, Garrett Anderson, and Reyaansh Bhagat). Metea Valley’s Henry Faber is near that top group as well. Mustangs Dylan Bennett-Garza and Ashutosh Subudhi are near the top 30 with Naperville North runners Charlie Minott, Alex Hostetler, and Gavin George, and Chase Gerwin from Central and Aidan Pour from Neuqua. Damian Schultz and Declan Diamond from Benet are in the hunt for individual spots, as are Mika Lam and Jasdeep Grover from Waubonsie Valley.
Grayson Meek fights for the front
Running downhill is Conrad Saner and Grayson Meek in the lead. Downer’s South John Clinton is in line with Willowbrook’s Miteku Branch and Legend Alka. Rounding out the top 10 is Downer’s South Will Miller, Anish Bhagat, Reckamp and Truty, and Glenbard East’s Mason Hephner. Derek Williamson, Bolingbrook’s Nikolas Maldonaldo, Redhawk Jack Anderson, and Shreyas Meyer of Naperville North are following along in the top 15.
Approaching mile 2, the leaders are still the same with Meek and Saner. From a farther distance is Miteku Branch of Willowbrook. Alka and John Clifton are not far behind. Wildcat Anish Bhagat leads the Huskie duo of Simon Reckamp and Jackson Truty. Will Miller is trailing behind the trio as well. Glenbard East’s Mason Hephner, Nikolas Maldonaldo, Shreyas Meyer, Anderson, Scherer, and Williamson, and West Aurora’s Nathan Gehrmann are all in one pack.
At the finish line, it’s neck in neck with Grayson Meek and Conrad Saner running home. Both runners lean in for the win, but it’s Saner who takes first place while Meek takes second place, less than a half second behind.
Downers Grove South secures the boys cross country regional
Finishing in third place is John Clifton of Downers Grove South, with Miteku Branch of Willowbrook in 4th place. Jackson Truty and Simon Reckamp are the top North finishers in 5th and 6th place. Anish Bhagat and Shreyas Meyer finish in 8th and 9th place. Downers Grove South takes home the regional with a score of 74.
Naperville North, Neuqua Valley, Naperville Central, Bolingbrook, and Willowbrook are the top 6 qualifying teams. Robert Johnson is the lone Redwing advancing along with Henry Faber from Metea Valley, with both finishing in the top 20. The Wildcats take second place thanks to Clifton, Garrett Anderson, and Pour finishing in the top 28. Charlie Minott and Carston Harris round out the scoring for North, who finishes in third as a team.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page!
