North Suburban Conference Meet

The Conference Meet should be about US:  it's the last time we race as a full team before the State Series for Varsity, and it's a culmination of all of our hard work. 

What I loved about today was the vibe. It started with everyone on time (despite the EARLY bus time to beat the weather) and lots of fun and love: treats from Yaritza and Kailey, fun stickers and ribbons from Cici & Eva, glitter from Norah, and sweet pictures in the cafeteria. 

After watching our Varsity guys roll out to a great start, it was our turn to get ready to race. The Varsity women were up first, looking powerful in pink. At the start, we got out well with a great position on the starting line. After the first 800, I was a little concerned. Yes, Liv was doing what I asked her--to take a risk and go out with Rachel! And these two looked good together. And Norah and Arwen were just steps behind, looking locked in, and April was only steps behind them. Kyranni was looking good, too. The problem was that we were a little too far back for my liking. They responded well when I said we needed to move up. By the time I saw everyone at the mile, our pack was still pretty tight, and we were moving up a bit, grabbing onto some Stevenson runners. April had fallen off a bit of Norah, but I would later learn that she had a painful stitch on her right side that was affecting her race. Kyranni did a great job of pushing out of the stadium to compete with the pack ahead of her.

Emerging from the woods for the second time, Rachel was being Rachel:  acting as a beacon for our pack by pressing head, keeping that second mile honest. Liv and Woman King were working in tandem to pull on their captain, pressing down the hill. Norah did a great job of pressing down that hill, too! And April, despite how she was feeling, responded well at this spot.  Kyranni did a great job of competing at this point, too, pulling away from a Stevenson runner and working on some Mundelein girls. 

By the time our girls came to the woods again, Liv and Woman King were now giving Rachel a break by doing the leading work together. They looked so strong together--pulling hard for the team! Norah did a great job of pressing hard out of the woods here, and April put in ten hard steps to compete with a Stevenson racer. I missed Kyranni as I raced across the field to watch finishes.

By the time I made it to the stadium, Liv was in full 800 mode, kicking like crazy in the stadium to edge out a Mundelein girl and place 19th--All-Conference Honorable Mention--AND running a new LPR of 19:50, a four second drop over her impressive race at Sterling last week. Arwen was our #2 with a great finish, ending on empty. She was close to Liv, eyeing her pink jersey only 10 seconds back. Rachel had an incredible finish today. All season, she has claimed that she is not a competitor, but she showed the grit that we will need next week in the final 50 meters. She kicked hard in the final steps to finish ahead of  Stevenson and Libertyville. Although she was disappointed with her place in the meet, all I can see is that deep dig at the end, giving all she could for her team. I need everyone to have that mindset next week! Norah held off a rushing Libertyville runner in the final steps as our 4th finisher. Great job defending your spot, Norah! Even thought April didn't feel like an "A" today, she fought hard for her team through the discomfort. As our 5th runner, she was gritty, helping us have a 1:15 split--not far off what we accomplished at Sterling. Kyranni rounded out our group for the day, running a gutsy race that resulted in a new LPR for her; she dropped an impressive 19 seconds over her already awesome race at Sterling! Way to go, freshie!

Here's what I know:  If we would have run the same 3-mile times that we ran at Sterling, we would have beaten Libertyville and would have been in striking distance of Lake Forest and Mundelein. It's hard to perform that well two weeks in a row,  I also believe that we have more to give. The plan for this week is to clean up a few things: 
1. At Sterling, we kept it fun and light. That's the goal this week!
2. At Sterling, we all fueled really well at night and in the morning. That has to be a priority this week. Idk what you all ate Friday night, but let's try to replicate Sterling's meal by getting some pasta on Friday! More importantly, you all got some good fuel in you Saturday morning. I suspect that with the early bus time, you were all not as intentional about breakfast. That's an easy fix that will make you all feel strong in the final mile.
3. At Sterling, you finished joyfully. That happiness came from knowing that you popped a great TEAM race and being proud of that fact! We can and will do that again at Grant by remember what produced that race: smiling and loving each other and taking a risk TOGETHER. 

That being said, I am proud of how you all raced today. We know what we need to do to keep this goodness going. Let's gooooooo this week!  :)

Due to the threat of nasty weather, Warren combined the F/S and JV races. Honestly, I loved this decision. Our crew got to race together to help each other. The power of our pack on the starting line was palpable! This group had such a great connection at Lakes in the Bronze race, so it felt fitting that they got the chance to start together again in the final race of the season. At the gun, our crew looked so good, taking a perfect line to the first turn. Coming out of the woods for the first time, Sofie was our leader, looking fiesty! Just behind her in a powerful pack, Candy, Celene, and Fernanda were absolutely slaying! I missed Eva this time through--I think she was near these three, though! Only seconds later, I saw Nathaly and Yaritza working together, pulling on the pack ahead!  Dani wasn't far behind, looking so strong despite having to back off this week with a crabby hamstring. Cynthia and Cici were pushing each other with Carla only steps behind, pulling on their power. Divonalynn got out hard, pulling on Carla's lead! And Jocell looked sooo good, looking up to Divonalynn only steps away. Finally, Jasmine had a great start, working with a Stevenson runner. Overall, this first section of the race looked impressive. Everyone looked gutsy and strong!

In the woods, the second time, the front of our pack changed up, with Candy and Fernanda taking the lead. These two looked so dang strong! Sofie had fallen back, but I encouraged her to run without regrets. She got out of her head and started zooming through the woods! Celene was pulling on Sofie, using the little downhill to her advantage. Eva was next looking so strong! She has come such a long way this season, just looking powerful with aggressive arms and open stride. Nathaly was zooming at this point, flying through the woods to pull on Eva. Yaritza's summer strength was showing at this point as she pressed hard through the woods. Dani was executing such an even race--she was within shouting distance of Yaritza and looking so good! Cici had pulled away from the twins, giving them a beacon to look at as she worked the woods HARD. She did such a great job of catching a Stevenson runner here! Cynthia and Carla were only steps apart in this section, working hard to get to Cici. Divonalynn looked so open in this part of the course, really using the path to press hard! Jocell, despite having fallen on the mats near the stadium, was gritting out her race, working to stay open and aggressive. And Jasmine did a great job of working the woods to keep with a Stevenson runner. 

Coming out of the stadium for the last loop, my message was the same to everyone:  work this last loop without regret! Fernanda was pushing hard at this point, leading our ZB pack. She did such a great job of taking 10 hard steps to press up to a new pack to compete with! Candy was doing the same not far behind, staying locked in. Sofie was making a great come back, nearing Candy and passing sleepy runners. Nathaly was now our #4, looking so confident in the last mile! Celene and Eva looked so powerful at this point, locked in on Nathaly's inspiration. Eva did a great job of packing back up with Celene before heading into the woods. Yaritza looked so good in this section! She was zooming along the trees to get a good position for the woods. I could barely whip my head around before Dani showed up, looking so intense for this last loop! Coming out of the stadium, Carla had taken the lead over her sis, offering strong inspiration for the last loop! She looked so assertive! Cynthia did a great job of taking 10 hard steps once she cleared that tricky turn. Divonalynn looked good emerging from the stadium, working hard with a Warren runner. Jocell, despite her hips hurting, pressed on for her final loop with grit and pride!  And Jasmine looked so locked in for her final loop, working to keep up with a Stevenson runner.

The finishes were outstanding today. Fernanda was our first finisher with a gritty stadium finish. She dropped 12 seconds to earn a new LPR today! She did it by locking in for the final mile, catching people along the way. Great job, freshie!  Sofie was our second finisher with a strong last mile. She looked so open with her kick, despite not having anyone to hunt down. Great job, senior!  Nathaly was our third finisher today, looking so gritty despite struggling in the final kick. She dropped a whopping 33 seconds from her great race last week at Lakes. way to earn a big SPR in this final meet, senior! :) I love that grit! Last week, Eva had a huge race at Lakes. Today, in the softer conditions, she beat her previous LPR by a decimal, but I love that! She ran such a gritty race--way to go, Captain! Yaritza was our next finisher. As Kailey said on the bus, she looked so dang good this season. She has improved so much since last year, and it happened through commitment over the summer and hard work! She dropped a whopping 32 seconds from her sensational Lakes performance last week. Proud of your effort, Yaritza! Candy was only seconds behind Yaritza with an outstanding performance, too. Although she was mad about her last mile, she should be proud of her first two! I know that she is ready for great things next season, and I hope she will consider track this coming season to help her get to those big goals of hers! Proud of you, Candy!  Celene was right behind Candy with an equally gutsy race. After her hip flared up two weeks ago, we have been trying to get Celene feeling good enough to race. She did an outstanding job of working through the pain today, coming within one second of her LRP. She has improved so much from track season--I know that she is going to continue to develop as a runner! So proud of your effort and impressive kick, Celene! You really embraced this new sport! 

Like Celene, Dani has been managing an injury the past two weeks. She did a great job of keeping a tough mindset, though, and it paid off with a big PR. Her set her LPR at Dawson a month ago, and came back with vengeance today. She dropped an impressive 1:16 despite not being able to run much all week. Great work, Dani--your summer miles have certainly paid off! Cici was our next finisher with a great race. She was so locked in for the middle mile--it was her fastest of the day! Her kick was outstanding, too; she was only a few seconds off her spectacular PR from Lakes last week. Great race, Cici! Proud of you! Fellow senior Carla was our next bee into the chute. She has been SO consistent this season, running close to her PR again today! So glad that you took a chance on XC this season, Carla! Your mid-race moves are impressive! Her fellow Alonso and twin was right behind her. Cynthia looked so good in her comeback race. After dealing with a rude knee, Cynthia stayed locked in and ran a great race today, running within a tenth of a second of her LPR--so impressive, Cynthia! I'm proud of your dedication and mindset this season! Divonalynn pulled on the twins for the first half of the race, keeping them in sight as inspiration. She did a great job of opening up in her kick, securing a sweet 13 second drop for a new LPR after her spectacular race at Lakes last week! SO impressive, Divonalynn! Jocell was so close to Divonalynn for the first loop before a slippery mat took her out for a moment. I firmly believe that Jocell would have PRed again if she had made it through that section unscathed. She was so locked in today, working hard despite her hips aching. She was only 16 seconds off of her sweet LPR from last week's awesome race. Proud of your grit, Jocell. What to literally and figuratively get back up! Finally, Jasmine had a great race today. After some setbacks from JT, Jasmine got back on her focus and ran a sweet LPR today, dropping nearly 3 minutes! Way to lock in, Jasmine!

Overall, this crew raced HARD. Yes, the course was not sloppy like two years ago, but it wasn't fast like it was at Dawson. While the LPRs were impressive, I have to echo Coach Hamilton's message from our bus ride home: your race helped your teammate's race, and that's what our team is all about. I really feel like this team grew TOGETHER this year, and you did it by helping one another in workouts, on long runs, in races, and all the in-betweens. You looked out for one another and cared deeply for each other. That kind of care is magical in my eyes, and it signals a season of success! 

I want to take a moment to talk about the Sportsmanship Award. For years, the NSC has recognized athletes with great sportsmanship. I'm not going to lie:  so many coaches tell me that they are impressed by our whole team's energy. They love how hard you cheer for each other and other teams. They love your energy and positivity. I am proud that our team is known for that! The coaches and I selected Nathaly to represent that spirit this season. All season, she has dazzled with her cute outfits and visor. More importantly, she brings a joy and positivity to every practice and meet. I love her work ethic in practice, her fight during races, and her good juju with her teammates and competitors. Thank you for your optimism, Nathaly! You make our team stronger!