Eric Neumann of Glenbard West faded the competition in the last stages of the race (Colin Boyle photo)
The boys race was no where near as deep as the girls but it was still a good time from a fan's perspective. The teams of interest #3 Neuqua Valley and #5 Hinsdale Central essentially put on a dual meet between themselves. Also, each team ran short handed without its top runner. Neuqua Valley senior Connor Horn dropped out of the race just 900 meters in the contest. Hinsdale Central junior Blake Eversten was told to go home after school by his coach Jim Westphal because was under the weather.
Neuqua Valley did not mess around in the early going when it seemed like the entire team was in the top 10-15 just like a dual meet. Hinsdale Central was the next best team led by senior Chris Brenk's fourth place finish.
It was a Neuqua Valley show as 8 of its 10 runners run under 15:35 and placed in the top 30 overall.
| Team Scores | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Team | Points | Scorers | Times | ||
| 1 | Neuqua Valley High School | 32 | 2+6+7+8+9 (10+13) | 0:15 1-5 Split | 15:15 Avg | ||
| 2 | Hinsdale Central High School | 56 | 4+11+12+14+15 (24+39) | 0:16 1-5 Split | 15:25 Avg | ||
| 3 | Yorkville High School | 110 | 18+20+22+23+27 (43+47) | 0:10 1-5 Split | 15:40 Avg | ||
| 4 | Naperville Central High School | 145 | 16+21+34+36+38 (41+45) | 0:31 1-5 Split | 15:49 Avg | ||
| 5 | Downers Grove North High School | 152 | 3+30+33+37+49 | 1:08 1-5 Split | 15:49 Avg | ||
| 6 | Glenbard West High School | 167 | 1+26+31+51+58 (64) | 1:39 1-5 Split | 15:53 Avg | ||
| 7 | Minooka High School | 172 | 5+28+42+44+53 (60+65) | 1:09 1-5 Split | 15:57 Avg | ||
| 8 | Plainfield North High School | 182 | 25+32+35+40+50 (55+63) | 0:37 1-5 Split | 15:58 Avg | ||
| 9 | Naperville North High School | 204 | 19+29+48+52+56 (57+59) | 0:54 1-5 Split | 16:06 Avg | ||
| 10 | Metea Valley High School | 240 | 17+46+54+61+62 (66+67) | 1:12 1-5 Split | 16:19 Avg | ||
The race for first exchanged several hands throughout the competition. Junior Alec Danner of Downers Grove North led the first mile in 4:45. He continued to hold the post through the second kilometer. Neuqua Valley senior Jake McEneaney took charge at two miles in 10:01 followed by Danner and surprise runner senior Eric Neumann of Glenbard West.
McEneaney stayed in the lead through most of the final mile. It wasn't until the runners entered the stadium that Neumann took the lead with a hard charge against McEneaney. Neumann increased the lead and won his first invite and breaking 15:00 for the first time.
Eric Neumann interview:
Top 15 finishers-
| M Three Mile Run - Finals | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Athlete | Team | Result | Points | ||
| 1 | Neumann, Eric | 12 | Glenbard West High School | 14:58.00 | 1 | |
| 2 | Mceneaney, Jake | 11 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:07.00 | 2 | |
| 3 | Danner, Alec | 11 | Downers Grove North High School | 15:09.00 | 3 | |
| 4 | Brenk, Chris | 12 | Hinsdale Central High School | 15:14.00 | 4 | |
| 5 | Lomeli, Miguel | 12 | Minooka High School | 15:15.00 | 5 | |
| 6 | Dina, Dominic | 12 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:16.00 | 6 | |
| 7 | Livingston, Aidan | 12 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:17.00 | 7 | |
| 8 | Jett, Jackson | 11 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:17.00 | 8 | |
| 9 | Milostan, Matthew | 11 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:22.00 | 9 | |
| 10 | Wolak, Patrick | 12 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:25.00 | 10 | |
| 11 | Hill, Nathan | 12 | Hinsdale Central High School | 15:26.00 | 11 | |
| 12 | Irvine, Andrew | 12 | Hinsdale Central High School | 15:26.00 | 12 | |
| 13 | Ferguson, Caleb | 12 | Neuqua Valley High School | 15:27.00 | 13 | |
| 14 | Planson, Ethan | 11 | Hinsdale Central High School | 15:29.00 | 14 | |
| 15 | Fathizadeh, Sam | 11 | Hinsdale Central High School | 15:30.00 | 15 | |