Cross country: Will Gelon leads Prairie Ridge back to IHSA Class 2A State Meet

WOODSTOCK – Prairie Ridge senior Will Gelon has produced a standout career with two All-State finishes, so what he had to say after Saturday’s Class 2A Woodstock Sectional Cross Country Meet was a mouthful.

“It was definitely the best race of my career, so far, mentally, at least,” Gelon said. “It went out perfectly for the tempo and the pace I felt. I just felt super relaxed through the first 2 miles. I’m pretty sure my last mile was sub-5, so being able to close like that is a big confidence boost.”

Even a fall about 400 meters from the finish did not slow Gelon down much as he took second place in 15:36.4, about 11 seconds behind Grayslake Central’s Trey Sato, and more than 20 seconds ahead of the next competitors.

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Woodstock’s Ishan Patel, left, battles Grayslake Central’s Trey Sato during a boys Class 2A Sectional Cross Country Meet at Emricson Park in Woodstock Saturday. (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local)

Marmion (101), Kaneland (105) and Prairie Ridge (108) had a tight race for the boys title at Emricson Park. Woodstock (166) took fifth place and will join the Wolves at the IHSA Cross Country State Meet next Saturday at Peoria’s Detweiller Park.

Crystal Lake Central’s Aiden Shulfer (13th), Crystal Lake South’s Joey Gonzalez (16th) and Burlington Central’s Ryan Kries (24th) were local individual qualifiers.

Crystal Lake Central’s Hadley Ferrero took second in the girls race and led the Tigers back to the state meet as they took second as a team. Two-time defending champion Grayslake Central (83) won the team title, followed by Central (110) and Crystal Lake South (123), which had won sectional titles in the last three seasons.

Prairie Ridge’s Olivia McPherson (16th) and Aibgail Burke (19th) were the other local individual qualifiers.

It was another fun day for Prairie Ridge boys coach Judd Shutt, whose sons Cohen and Ellery run for Woodstock. Shutt will coach his team while seeing his sons compete again next week.

“We are obviously pleased to earn a return trip to the state meet,” Judd Shutt said. “Depth is our strength and we needed it today. Sophomore Kieran Gilleland, who has moved into a varsity spot this postseason, stepped up to run as our No. 5 man today and help secure a third-place finish.

“Will Gelon and Gerrit Dam (11th) led us with their best races of this season. Falling seven points short of a sectional title has us hungry and excited about what we are capable of next weekend at state.”

Twins Ishan Patel (fourth) and Aryan Patel (14th) led Woodstock, which will make its third consecutive trip to Peoria. Ellery Shutt was 28th for the Blue Streaks.

“The boys are excited to go back to the state meet,” Streaks coach Jay Fuller said. “A couple of them were under the weather today, but they gutted it out to get to state.”

Hadley Ferrero’s freshman sister Skyler took 14th and Emma Macke was 30th for Central.

“I was pretty confident our team, after last weekend, our team we had some issues, but this week I knew we were going to pull it together because we had fire in us from last weekend,” Hadley Ferrero said. “We were ready to put all of our effort in.”

The Tigers finished behind South in the Fox Valley Conference and Woodstock North Regional meets in the previous two weeks.

“I am incredibly proud of how our girls have responded to adversity all season long,” Tigers coach Brett Willhoit said. “They are putting it together at the right time. It was a total team effort today and everyone helped ensure our team success. It was a very competitive race and the girls stepped up across the board.”

South’s girls were led by Abby Machesky and Liv Pinta in 10th and 11th places. Colette Bacidore was 27th. The Gators finished second and fourth in the last two state meets.

“It’s exciting. I’ve been with this group for four years now and it’s like we’re a family, not just a team,” Machesky said. “We all know everything about each other and have worked together through our hardest times. I’m so glad to be doing this because of them.”