Mustangs take fifth

 

By Rob Valentin

ChicgolandPreps.com Editor

Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009

    Northside College Prep may not have won a city title but they have a lot to be proud about.

    The Mustangs took fifth place in the city championship held at Washington Park on Saturday and all seven runners finished in the top 46 of a race that had 128 participants.

    Leading the way for Northside was Karlyn Gehring, who took 22^nd place in a time of 20:33.89.

    “I didn’t know where the mile marks were because usually it’s three laps round but we only had two laps here so no one was telling you your times,” Gehring said.

    The beginning of the race did throw the Gehring and the Mustangs off a little bit.

It was a terrible beginning because we weren’t even  on the start line,” Gehring said.     “We were in a huddle and they told us to get on the start line and we all turned around and then the race started.”

    Gehring was able to overcome the late jump and took off to get towards the lead group but she still ran into some trouble.

    “We went around a tree and someone tripped me and I fell down,” she said. “I twisted my ankle a little bit and my ankle hurt pretty bad for most of the race.”

    Bessie Nolan (25th, 21:00.17) and Su Yang (26, 21:00.98) were next across the line for the Mustangs. The due ran much of the race together and they were in quite the battle with a pair of Lane Tech runners in the final couple hundred yards. Nolan and Yang finished ahead of one of the Indians’ runners by a half second but came in behind the other by half a second.

    “Coach told us that we had to chase down the two lane girls,” Yang said. “Bessie and I kind of had silent communication and we knew we had to try and get past them.”

    Nolan was excited with how she was able to work with her teammate for a faster time.

    “Su and I ran really well together,” Nolan said. “I knew I had to stay with her and she knew I was on her tail. I think it was a really good system.”

    Yang was pleased with her race, especially considering she hasn’t been able to practice very much in the last couple weeks.

    “I think I did okay,” Yang said. “I missed most of the days last week and I’m still a little sick but I think it was a good race overall. But practice really helps you a lot.”

    Yang wasn’t a big fan of a course that had been the victim of a lot of rain over the previous couple days.

    “I like it a little firmer,” Yang said. “Of course I would rather run on the concrete instead of the grass. But it wasn’t that bad.”

    The next finisher for Northside was Yesenia Valadez, who took 34^th place with a 21:30.69.

    “The first mile I felt pretty good but I wasn’t feeling as good when we started with the second mile,” Valadez said. “I tried to stay with Su and Bessie but then they kind of got past me. I felt I could have done better than I did.”

Valadez is seeing a lot of improvement in herself over last year.
     “Compared to last season, I definitely think I’m doing  lot better,” Valadez said. “At the beginning of the season I was seventh on varsity and today I was fourth. I just need to work on my last mile and I need to be able to stick with Bessie and Su.”

    Rounding out the scoring for the Mustangs was Maggie Ivanova, who took 36^th place in a time of 21:37.95. Other contributors for Northside were Dava Batjargal (41^st, 22:02.99) and Simmone Seymour (46^th, 22:27.22).

    Up next for the Mustangs will be the Class 3A Loyola Regional at Harms Woods on Saturday, Oct. 24.

    “I kind of wanted to have a little faster time,” Nolan said. “But I think I’ll do well in regionals and sectionals.”

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Northside conquers challenge

By Rob Valentin

ChicagolandPreps.com Editor

Saturday, October 3, 2009

    Northside College Prep had a new challenge during the Pat Savage Invite at Niles West on Saturday.

    With 34 teams running a tight course the Mustangs pack was broken up early so they had to run on their own. But Northside persevered and brought home a sixth place finish in the White Division.

    Leading the way was Karlyn Gehring, who took 27^th place in a time of 20:52.

“It was a really, really nice day for racing,” Gehring said. “I expected it to be cold but it was perfect.”

    While the weather might have been perfect, the beginning wasn’t.

    “The beginning of the race was hard because we were in the middle and everyone converged on us. I was getting spiked and had to push through people. I like to start out fast but I had to go really slow. I was like fourth on the team and I had to pass everyone up. I just focused on catching the next girl ahead of me.”

    Coming in second for Northside was senior Bessie Nolan. Her time of 21:11 was good enough for a 30^th place finish.

    “It was really good weather conditions,” Nolan said. “The course was pretty fast but there were a lot of turns. The boys gave us some advice early on and told us to get out fast. I was able to do that so it was okay for me.”

    Nolan did have to pay the price for getting out quick.

    “I had a first fast mile and my next two were not as fast so that’s kind of disappointing,” Nolan said. “I think we’re in pretty good shape right now. I’d like to be a little bit faster but I think I’ll have a really good time for city.”

    Su Yang had a rough day for the Mustangs. The junior was third across the line for Northside taking 41^st place with a time 21:26.

    “I think I did worse than usual because I was injured and didn’t run the whole week,” Yang said. “Then I got this cold. It’s really hard to breathe while I’m running. Hopefully it’s not swine flu.”

    Yang also injured her knee and thought the time off would help get her a little rest and make her even stronger than usual. But that didn’t quite pan out.

    “At the time it seemed okay but after this race I realized how much not practicing affects you,” Yang said. “It makes your race really bad.”

    Finishing out the scoring for the Mustangs were senior Yesenia Valadez (50^th, 21:51) and freshman Taylor Provax (53^rd, 22:04).

    “My knee has kind of been bothering me for the past few weeks,” Provax said. “I rode the bikes earlier this week instead of running. I guess just pushing myself aggravated my knee. It started hurting halfway through the second mile and increasingly just got worse.

    “But my next race isn’t for two weeks so I’ll have a chance to heal during that time and I definitely want to be ready for city. If I ice it every day and take it easy it will heal quickly.”

    Other contributors for Northside were Simmone Seymour (54^th, 22:05), Dava Batjargal (55^th, 22:07), Maggie Ivanova (22:14) and Merita Bushi (22:30).

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Northside fights forward at Leyden

By Rob Valentin

ChicagolandPreps.com Editor

Saturday, September 26, 2009

     The Northside College Prep pack continued to impress as they competed in the Leyden Invitational on Saturday.

     The spread between the Mustangs’ first runner to cross the line and the seventh was just 1 minute 44 seconds.

     Leading the way for Northside once again was Su Yang, who completed the 5k course in a time of 21:30, which was good enough for 28^th place.

     “When we first started I was just trying to stay with the pack,” Yang said. “I was third after the first mile and on the second mile I started to pick up my pace.

     Yang has been consistently at or near the top of the pack this season, but that was something she was planning on.

     “At the end of last season I was only a few seconds behind Bessie (Nolan) and all the other girls graduated so I figured I’d be up at the top,” Yang said. “We’ve kind of switched off first place this season. I think the competition has really helped. If your first all the time, I don’t think you work as hard.”

     Up next for the Mustangs was Bessie Nolan who took 30^th place in a time of 21:59. Close behind her was Karlyn Gehring. Her time of 22:06 was good enough for 32

     “That was like the hardest race I’ve ever run,” Gehring said. “My legs were really tired and every step was hard. The whole week I’ve been getting really and shin splints and we did a lot of hard workouts so today was just a tired day.”

     Yesenia Valadez was just six seconds behind Gehring finishing 33^rd with a time of 22:12.

     “It was a pretty good day for me,” Valadez said. “I was just trying to stay with Bessie and help the team.      My first mile was my strongest and I didn’t do as well at the end as I could. Personally I think it was a good meet for us individually but our pack was pretty far back.”

     Freshman Taylor Provax was the final Northside runner to count for team scores and she took 36^th with a time of 22:23.

    “I definitely enjoyed the race and really liked the course a lot,” Provax said. “Karlyn, Bessie, Yesenia and I stayed in a pack and we strategized to pass people up. That was pretty cool to see.

     “On the third mile I started to fall behind but I was able to sprint it out at the end.”

Rounding out the top seven for the Mustangs were Maggie Ivanova (37^th, 23:02) and Maria Bushi (38^th, 23:14).

MUSTANGS' PACK PAYS OFF

By Rob Valentin

ChicagolandPreps.com Editor

Saturday, September, 12, 2009

   Northside Prep’s girls team ran as a true pack in Saturday’s Gordon Tech Invitational at Horner Park and the teamwork paid off as the Mustangs finished in second place behind U-High.

   Northside’s top six runners finished in 7^th through 12^th place and were led by Su Yang’s fantastic seventh place finish in a time of 21:18.

   “It was a pretty good race course but the heat was overbearing,” Yang said. “My feet were burning but we ran in a pack and really pushed each other.”

   When Yang says Northside ran in a pack, she isn’t kidding. The Mustangs were shoulder to shoulder for the first mile before yang began to pull away. As the race progressed she pulled further and further away.

   “I just tried to keep up with the two girls that were up ahead of me,” Yang said. “I’m not sure how far my teammates were behind me. I just tried to pace myself and keep up with the other girls.”

   Up next for the Mustangs was Karlyn Gehring, who took eighth place in a time of 21:41.

   “It was kind of a painful week for me,” Gehring said. “I was really sore and then today it was really humid but it was okay.”

   It was also a trying week for Gehring for other reasons, mainly the start of school last Tuesday, which of course brought tons of homework.

   “I think I got like four hours of sleep each night this week,” Gehring added. “It was like ick so that made me exhausted today.”

   Bessie Nolan was the third Mustangs to finish the race and she completed the three-mile course in a time of 21:51, which was good enough for ninth place.

   “We were all really close together for a while, almost in a line,” Nolan said. “It kind of looked like how we run in practice. It was a pretty fast first mile, but I think we really needed that.

   “(After the pack broke up) I just kind of ran with Taylor and then somewhere in the last mile I just tried to really pick it up. I was just counting down to the end of the race during that last mile.”

   Taylor Provax was the next to cross the line, taking 10^th place in a time of 22:10.

   “It was great teamwork in the race today and it was awesome to see us all in the pack,” said Provax who is a freshman and was running in just her third varsity meet. “There was a point where there were some nerves but now that the season is getting going, I feel pretty comfortable.

   “I grew up competing in cross country meets so I’m used to it. I just wanted to do my best and I think I’m doing that.”

   Maggie Ivanova was the fifth Northside runner and she finished in 11^th place with a time of 22:26.

   “Today wasn’t the best day for me,” Ivanova said. “Right before the race I drank too much water and I wound up getting a cramp. But otherwise, I think the team did really well.”

   While Northside’s pack started to break up after the first mile, the real good sign was that no one was passing Mustang runners.

   “We had some gaps in our pack but we didn’t any of the other teams past us so we still got places one after another,” Ivanova added.

   The final two runners for the Mustangs were Dava Batjargal (12^th, 22:27) and Karly Raber (17^th, 24:00).

   Northside will now pack up and hit the road for the Peoria Notre Dame meet next Saturday, which is held at the state course.

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Mustangs take second at St. Patrick Invite

Wednesday, September 2, 2009