2010 Track Schedule
(Home Meets in Bold)

Palatine XC Partners

We started this season way back in June with six o’clock Early Bird mornings, hills at Peacock Valley, 10 to 12 mile long runs, tempo intervals, all with a hope of creating a year to remember and a chance to be competing for a state trophy down in Peoria the first weekend in November.  It is one thing to put yourself in that position and a completely another thing to make it happen.      

We entered this meet as the pre-meet favorites after dominating performances at Regional and Sectional, following our lone season loss to Prospect at the MSL meet.  That is a lot of pressure for a team, especially with four of the seven running in their first state meet.   You ladies handled the pressure extremely well.  You believed through all the hard work you had put in we were prepared.  You trusted your teammates and believed they would help you get the job done.  You ran with heart and desire.  And, most importantly, you had fun and were enthusiastic, taking advantage of the opportunity you created. 

It had been 13 years since Palatine Cross Country had won a state title.  A lot of good teams have been through this program since that time, even two state trophy winners, but none had been able to take us back to the top.  That tells you how difficult it truly is to win a state title and you never know how long it will take to repeat such a feat.  In 1989 Palatine won its first state title and went on an unprecedented run of five more titles and two runner-up finishes over the next 7 years.  So what does this 2009 state title mean for this program?  Will we continue to build on our success and put ourselves in a position to win more titles and more trophies or will it take another decade-plus for us to win another elusive state crown?  It all depends.  It depends on how much we are willing sacrifice and our willingness to continue to get better as teammates and as a team.

Either way, this was an amazing season.  I am extremely proud to be associated with such a dedicated, talented, and classy group.  You all should be so thrilled about what we accomplished this year.  Many coaches go their entire career and never win a state team title.  To have accomplished this in my first year as girls head coach makes it even more special.  I will always look back on this team with extra special memories.  It has been a pleasure working with you all and you've help make my transition to head coach extremely easy and enjoyable.  Thank you all so very much.  Go Pirates!!    

Mile 1 - And there off!  Always hard to gauge much early, but down the hill I thought we looked OK.  We were out, but not leading the race.  Showing we were under control.  The only concern I saw was McIntosh well off Ruth and Courtney at the bottom of the hill as I timed them at 2:40ish at the 800m mark.  At this point Tess and Laura were not far off each other, but Emily and Ellen looked a bit buried in the pack.  Sarah had to have made a big move over the next 800m as she went through the mile in the top 15.  Ruth and Courtney were still hooked at 5:34 for top-40 and Tess was close behind.  With four in the top-50 scores showed we were in 3^rd place at this point, behind surprise Sandburg and an improved Wheaton Warrenville South, but were ready to make our move up. 

1.5 Miles – A half mile later and we were in even better position, as we had moved up to first place and would be hunted by Sandburg and WWS the remainder of the race.  Every one of the girls moved up from their 1 mile position.  This was the result of a poised first mile and feeling strong, while a number of girls started fading from being too aggressive.  Ruth made a big move at this point, dropping 15 points and dragging Courtney with, who was not far behind.  Sarah and Tess were holding well, while Laura, Emily, and Ellen had moved up a bit as well.  As we made our way out of the triangle, we were in great position to put the race away if we could add some more distance on the other teams up to the 2 mile mark.

2 miles – At 2 miles we were clearly on our way to victory if we could close well.  We had opened up a 20+ point lead on 2^nd place Sandburg and over a 40+ point lead on Wheaton Warrenville South.  Point-wise we had not changed a whole lot, showing we were running strong and staying steady.  The point difference came from some of the other teams fading a bit.  Our strength from our mileage and hill work was starting to show.  While Tess had lost a few places, Laura and Courtney had made good moves to improve 7 and 9 places.    

Last Mile – Over the last mile I could feel the excitement building.  Standing at the 800m to go mark, I worried a bit when I didn’t see McIntosh in the top-10 (It became clear she suffered from the 1^st mile surge), but I quickly saw Ruth and Courtney seconds later and, would see Tess come by in the top-40.  While McIntosh was struggling a bit, Ruth, Courtney and Tess were moving great.  All we needed was a #5 and when newbie Laura came by in the top-70 or so I new we were good if they could all hold their spots.  The final scores would show that we had done it.  State Champions!!!  Three All-Staters.  All the hard work had paid off.  At the end, Ruth had closed to finish 13^th and lead the varsity team for the first time in her career...in the biggest meet of her career.  What a way to go out.  Minutes after the race we heard the big announcement…Palatine, your 2009 Class AAA Champs.  Official!!!