Sure, Violet Schnizlein ran a strong IHSA Class 3A regional race Saturday, arguably her strongest ever. But as far as coach Laura Turk was concerned, it was almost destiny for the Oak Park and River Forest senior, who finished in fourth place with a personal-record time of 17:52.10 in the meet held at Chicago’s Horner Park.
“Maybe it was big, but we knew it was happening,” Turk said. “It’s taken awhile, and she’s been chipping away and she just needed this race to break it open a little bit, because it was always there.”
The Huskies snagged third place as a team with 69 points, ensuring a trip to next Saturday’s sectional meet at Lake Park. Junior Emily Jones finished 14th in 18:35.6, while sophomore Eileen Easton (18:51.4). junior Isabella Crowe (18:52.7) and freshman Loie Burwell (18:55.8), arrived together in places 16-18.
For Schnizlein, the weather couldn’t have been better – not too warm and not too cold, and no precipitation. She parlayed that into a strong second mile, to pull into the top four by its conclusion.
“I got out at a pace I wanted to get out at, I think it was sub-5:50, which was a little slower than the first mile I ran last race, but I felt good competitively,” she said. “I think what really helped was running that really fast second mile, which is where I’ve been working on cutting down my time.”
But there was more to Schnizlein’s race than that. In the moments prior to the race, she was about as serious as a judge on the starting line, and her teammates followed suit. No laughing or lollygagging. In fact, no smiles period.
That’s leadership, and it pays off when the race is over.
“I’d say my leadership approach is to try to provide support and order for my teammates,” she said. “I try to always know what’s happening, so I know what to tell my teammates and I try to make sure people are in the right spot, doing the right thing. But I want to make sure everyone is having fun.”
Jones had a good time. That will happen when you blend seriousness up front with a strong effort on the course.
“I feel like this meet was a lot better than conference,” she said. “I feel like we have a really strong team this year. I’m hoping we make it to state.”
Boys seize second
With perhaps 100 meters in front of the finish line Saturday, OPRF senior Yonny Rafter was a tad behind DePaul Prep senior Liam Donehoo.
No way Rafter was going to miss out on a top-six finish. So he found another gear, passed Donehoo and ended up finishing sixth in the boys race in 15:26.1.
“In the race, we were planning to settle in the back, and eventually the third mile is coming and I know that’s my main strength,” Rafter said. “It was playoff spirit. I wanted it more than him.”
And how. He led the Huskies to a second-place finish, ensuring advancement to next Saturday’s sectional meet at Lake Park, but he had plenty of help. Senior Brady Creel was 12th in 15:33.2, while fellow senior Julian St. Pierre was 13th at 15:36.5. Junior Nick Houghton checked in at 15:40.5, good enough for 16th.
The Huskies employed a novel strategy Saturday that worked to a T.
“We came in here having a plan of keeping the team together through two miles, around 25th place,” Creel said. “We were talking mostly, getting everyone packed up, and the plan was after the second mile, we would move and pass a bunch of people in that third mile.”
Hougton agreed with that assessment.
“The goal as a team was to go through the first mile as a pack, conservative,” he said. “That’s a big goal accomplished, run that first mile smooth.”
Coach Chris Baldwin was impressed by his entire group and their ability to stay on task, especially Rafter.
“Yonny’s a kid who came into our team for cross country as a sophomore,” coach Baldwin said. “He ran track freshman year. He’s really worked tremendously and improved. He’s committed himself to getting better, week in and week out.”