10/28 - Sectionals - The outcome for the Wildcats was not what we had hoped on a sloppy, muddy and windy day at Busse woods. The cats finished a disappointing 10th place. The Cats were lead by Kevin Smith in 49th (17:16), Ken Diedrich 62nd (17:29), Eric Rodriguez 67th (17:31), Mike Meier 74th (17:39), Derrick Moy 86th (17:48), Peter Maslanka 112th (18:08) and Mark Swakow 136th (18:51). The times on the course as an average were over 40 seconds slower then two weeks ago at the conference meet.

10/21 - Regionals - The Wildcats opened the second season with a strong run on saturday putting them in position to qualify for state next weekend. The cats finished in 3rd place with 74 points. Hersey upset Palatine 40-44.The cats ran a strong aggressive race right from the start. The "Golden-Domers" were lead by senior Kevin Smith finishing 7th in 15:46. Kevin bounced back from last week by beating several all-conference athletes. Junior Ken Diedrich (10th) 15:55, senior Mike Meier (11th) 15:56, senior Derrick Moy (20th) and sophomore Eric Rodriguez (26th) followed Kevin to give us a very tight pack and a small 1-5 split. Peter Maslanka 35th and Norbert Gajos 43rd finished up the scoring for the Cats.

10/19 - Saxon Frosh Inv. - We only had 3 freshman participate so no team score but the freshman that ran, ran well. Rob Meier lead the trio finishing in 4th place. This was the best finish by a wheeling runner at the meet in 4 years.

10/14 - MSL Conference meet - The varsity finished in 9th place at the conference meet. The Cats were without Derrick Moy because of illness. Most of the varsity didn't run well. We know were are better then we what we displayed on saturday. Kevin Smith finished 30th, Ken Diedirch 37th, and Eric Rodriguez 44th. Norbert Gajos 52nd, Peter Maslanka 60th, Mike Meier 61st and Ryne Neville 70th. Mark Swakow finished a strong 15th in the JV race followinged by Phil Rifkin 26th, Hristo Yordanov 27th, Eric Crabbe 29th, Ryan Konkul 31st and Toni Segura 33rd. The JV finished a solid 4th place. For many it was their last race of the season. On the frosh-soph level we finished 11th of 12 teams.

10/7 - Wildcat Inv. - The Cats came out on a perfect day for racing and won the Wildcat Inv. for the first time in four years. Wheeling was lead by Kevin Smith (9th), Ken Diedrich (10th), Derrick Moy (13th), Mike Meier (24th), Peter Maslanka (42nd), Norbert Gajos (46th), Ryne Neville (48th) and Mark Swakow (69th). We outlasted Buffalo Grove 98-114, with Huntley 3rd with 116 points. On the frosh-soph level the boys finished 2nd, their best finish of the season. The young cats were lead by Eric Rodriguez (1st) Rob Meier (10th), Viktor Gonzalez (24th), Henry Kirby (29th) and Mike Laffey (35th).

9/30 - Peoria Inv. - Perfect weather and a dry course lead to a great run by our Wildcats. We finished 7th at the Peoria Inv., where 49 teams compted. All 7 runners ran season bests. The team was lead by Ken Diedrich in 15:50, Kevin Smith 15:55, Derrick Moy 15:55, Mike Meier 16:03, Eric Rodriguez 16:30, Ryne Neville 16:57 and Mark Swakow 17:03. Our split of 40 seconds between 1 through 5 is one of the smallest of the season. We continue to improve as the season moves on. We have put ourselves in position to make a serious run at qualifying for state.

9/27 - Tri vs. Hersey and Elk Grove The Cats gave it a run vs. Hersey and Elk Grove, and are beginning to realize we can run with the 13th ranking Huskies. Our top 5 ran with their 3-7 and gave them a good push. Eric Rordriguez continues to support the top 4 in every way possible, wednesday running within 10 seconds of our 4th man most of the race. Our split of 28 seconds at the finish was the smallest of the season. We are still missing 3 of our top 10 because of minor aches and pains that will create a very interesting next couple of weeks. There are 9 guys who could be fighting for those last 3 spots. This will make us stronger as everyone has something to prove each week. The Varsity heads down to Peoria, while the JV and F/S head downtown to the Loyola Inv.

9/21 - Dual vs. Rolling Meadows - The Cats hosted Rolling Meadows on a cloudy thursday afternoon. The varsity ran well and beat the Mustangs 22-36. The cats were lead by Ken Diedrich (2nd), Kevin Smith, (3rd), Mike Meier (4th) Derrick Moy (5th) and Eric Rodriguez (8th). Our times continue to improve on across the board. Ryne Neville made a break through running a season best 17:29. Norbert Gajos can within two seconds or a personal best running 17:00. We have had 6 runners under 17:00 several times, now just need to keep everyone healthy. Toni Segura is beginning to make improvements, and may become a factor very soon.

9/16 - Rockford Guilford Inv. - The Cats went up to Rockford and reclaimed the team title we has lost last season. We scored 61 points to runner up Belvidere 84. The Cats were lead by Ken Diedrich (5th), Kevin Smith (6th), Derrick Moy (9th), Norbert Gajos (18th) and Peter Maslanka (24th), Mark Swakow (33rd) and Ryan Konkul (50th). We did not run at full strength which continues to give us confidence down the road. The course at Rockford changed this year for the first time, adding many turns among the mud in the 2nd mile. The Frosh-soph finished 5th as a team, with Eric Rodriguez finishing 3rd overall. The JV went 2-3-4-6-22 to win the JV title. Phil Rifkin, Toni Segura, Ryne Neville, Brian Mendoza and Anthony Tarullo helping bring home the title.

9/14 - Dual @ Prospect - The cats lost to Prospect 16-40 on thursday. Not one of our better races.

9/9 - Lake Park Inv. - On a cool and cloudy saturday the Cats demonstrated what is possible. The varsity finished in 4th place, behind 3 state ranked teams, just 18 pts behind Downers Grove North (#22). It was our best team race of the season, and the times backed it up. Derrick Moy (14th) 15:52, Kevin Smith (16th) 16:01, Ken Diedrich (17th) 16:02, Mike Meier (25th) 16:14, Eric Rodriguez (38th) 16:49, Peter Maslanka (43rd) 16:58, Mark Swakow (54th) 17:12. On the JV level the Cats brought home a 3rd place team trophy with solid finished from Phil Rifkin, Ryan Konkul, Hristo Yordanov, Brian Mendoza and Anthony Tarullo. All ran personal bests on the flat fast course. On the Frosh-soph level Rob Meier and Henry Kirby ran well finishing 33th and 46th respectively. The results of saturday were a big confidence boost for this team. We still have 3-4 more guys who have been fighting illness, which can help make us better as soon as they are back.

9/7 - Dual vs. Buffalo Grove - It was nice to return to our home course. The Cats ran a solid 2-3-4-6 to beat a young but determined Buffalo Grove team. They hung around most of the race keeping the results in doubt until the end. The return of Kevin Smith from a ankle sprain was a big help, along with Ken Diedrich 3rd, Derrick Moy 4th and Mike Meier 6th. Our fifth man was Sophomore Eric Rodriguez (10th) running his first varsity race.

9/2 - Crystal Lake South Inv. - The varsity finished 4th at CL with only two of our top 5 kids running. Norbert Gajos, Mark Swakow and Ryan Konkul all stepped up and helped to ensure a top 5 finish in the 17 team meet. The course a very hill and narrow course at Veteran Acres called everyone who ran. Derrick Moy finished 14th, Mike Meier 23rd, Norbert Gajos 29th, Mark Swakow 39th and Ryan Konkul 45th. On the F/S level the team finished 7th out of 17 teams, lead by sophomore Eric Rodriguez in 11th, Rob Meier 23rd, and Henry Kirby 36th.

8/31 - Dual @ Conant A course error on our part took the momentum out of our sails and gave Conant an advantage, they never gave up. The first meet of the season is always a question mark. The loss was tough to take, but hopefully will give us a wake up call.

It's still not too late to join, any athlete interested in joining the fun, we practice after school at 3:10 pm meet in front of the tennis courts!!

Aug 15th - We have had a great summer!! There has been a commitment to the TEAM this summer. It is going to be great to see the Wildcat PACK back in action. We just returned from our annual trip to Stockton, IL. There the guys put in as much as 30 miles over three days on very hilly terrain. Grandma Judy and the Wallaces have continued to be gracious hosts. It is my hope that this group will make us all very proud!!

Seniors Derrick Moy, Ryan Neville, Mike Meier, Kevin Smith, Eric Crabbe and Peter Maslanka (?) have taken the lead in guiding this young group. The varsity may be 10-12 deep this season with many guys running 30-60 second personal bests in the first meet this season.

Attention new comers and incoming freshman!!. All ability levels are welcome. Track athletes who are not in a fall sport please get involved, we already have 6 sprinters committed to getting stronger and faster by participating in cross country. Everyone runs in every competition, no one is left out.

We will be breaking up the team into at least 4 training groups. Each athlete will be placed in a group based on their ability level and how much training they have accomplished over the summer. For freshman and other newcomers, we start athletes at a low mileage level and build them up based on what they can handle. Too many freshman expect to be sent on an 8 mile run their first day of practice. That does not happen.

Wheeling Cross Country has had a tradition of success for many years. It is our goal to maintain this level of success. We expect our athletes to be dedicated and committed to becoming better athletes, students and members of our community. Success does not come easy, but for those who are willing to put in the time they will reap the benefits of success.

During the school year , we practice after school. Meet in front of the tennis courts in the back. All skill levels are welcome. Cross country is a great way for an athlete to get into shape for winter and spring sports.

If you have any questions please contact Coach Polak by email - tom.polak@d214.org - this is best during the summer. During the school year you can reach me a 718-4834.

Coach Polak