North’s cross country team achieved rare air by becoming the first team in program history to compete at the national level.
Head coach Andy Derks and seniors Easton Miller and Owen Stahl, junior Quinn Davis as well as sophomores Gavin Hall, Aidan Connors, Thomas Czerwinski, and James Maso. traveled to Portland for the Nike Cross Nationals (NXM) on Dec. 1.
“I am really excited for our guys,” Derks said. “Qualifying for NXN is something that we have talked about for years, but it was always kind of this far-off goal that we weren’t sure we would ever reach. However, these guys have worked really hard and earned the right to be considered one of the top teams not only in Illinois, but also the country.”
The team previously placed 2nd in both the state championship and the midwest regional, bringing North their first state cross country trophy. Only 22 high school cross country teams in the nation qualified to participate in nationals.
“This is a great accomplishment for our cross country program to be one of the top 15 teams in the nation,” Athletic Director Ron Lear said. “Our boys and coaches have done an outstanding job this year, and we are so proud of them.”
NXN originated in the early 2000’s as a way to gather the best teams from around the country into one championship meet. There are nine regions around the country, with the top two teams from each region and four at-large teams from around the country qualify. North is in the Midwest Region, composed of teams from Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Missouri.
This was North’s 10th time racing at the Midwest Regional meet, and our previous best finish was last year’s championship race earning 17th place. Most years, the team did not even qualify for the championship race.
“It’s cool to run against the best runners and see how we match up,” Miller said. “Our whole team has put in so much work starting from June all the way until now, and we deserve to run here against the best.”
Originally, the Tigers were ranked 20th coming into the race, but they beat their projection by five ranks on a muddy course.
“I’m pretty happy with how the team did,” Derks said. “It was a wet race, but our guys ran well.”
The boys now look ahead with high aspirations.
“We are not ‘happy to be there’,” Derks said. “We want to go out and prove that we belong and that we are the type of program that will not just be there once, but make qualifying a regular thing. We are excited to represent PNHS and the state at NXN. I am so proud of these guys, it was a blast to watch them compete.”
