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2026 IHSA XC Regional Previews
1A Kankakee (McNamara) Writer: Brodie Peterson The boys race shows off some decent talent with Holden Gerdes of Fairbury Prairie Ridge, ranked 12th in 1A, battling it out with 1A #15 Joe Faris of Dwight. Following close behind them will be Evan Benoit of Herscher. All three of these guys have been having killer seasons, so this could be anyone’s game here. On the team side Herscher, the 8th-ranked team in 1A, is the clear favorite. In a regional, a simulated 50 point gap is h

Carson Vittorio
10 hours ago37 min read


2026 Conference Week Preview: Saturday
West Suburban Conference Silver Writer: Jackson Summy The WSC Silver is one of the strongest 3A conferences in the state, and it should be another exciting year of racing here. On the boys side, the individual race should be pretty close between a number of ranked runners. 3A #8 Patrick Hill of York is the narrow favorite coming into this race. He took second at the Richard Spring invite with a PR of 14:29 and he has been a dominant force in every race that he’s ran so far. 3

Carson Vittorio
6 days ago13 min read


2026 Conference Previews: Friday Conferences
Conference week is here, and we're breaking down all of the friday action below! There are a couple good meets today, so read up and see who's the favorite to win their conference title around the state! Friday Southwest Prairie Conference Writer: Brayden Gaffud Boys Teams: 3A - #1 Plainfield (South), #14 Plainfield (North), #24 Yorkville, Bolingbrook, Joliet (Central), Joliet (West), Plainfield (Central), Plainfield (East), Minooka, Oswego, Oswego (East), Romeoville Girls T
Jackson Summy
Oct 164 min read


2026 XC Season: IESA Sectional Predictions
IESA Sectionals are happening this weekend! Check out our predictions for the team and individual winners below! 4A Boys Sectional Team #1 Team #2 Team #3 Individual Champ A Cary Lake In The Hills (Marlowe) McHenry Leo Maher (8th, McHenry) B Lake Zurich North Palatine (Winston) Lake Zurich South Matthew Jahnke (8th, Palatine [Winston]) C Arlington Heights (Thomas) Arlington Heights (South) Mt. Prospect (Lincoln) Austin Ryter (8th, Arlington Heights [Thomas]) D St. Charles (Wr
Jackson Summy
Oct 94 min read


2026 Naperville Twilight Preview
Naperville Twilight is one of the best meets of the year, and it's going down this Wednesday! We broke down all the action for you right here, enjoy the Naperville Twilight Preview: Boys Teams: Addison (A. Trail), Arlington Heights (Hersey), Aurora (Metea Valley), Batavia, Chicago (Jones), Dixon, Downers Grove (North), Downers Grove (South), Geneva, Glen Ellyn (Glenbard West), LaGrange (Lyons), Minooka, Morris, Naperville (Central), Naperville (Neuqua Valley), Naperville (Nor
Jackson Summy
Oct 64 min read


2026 Mike Newman Sectional Rankings: Week 5
Here are this week’s IHSA Sectional Rankings! Last week the IHSA reveiled the assignments! These rankings are dedicated to Mike Newman, who passed away last year. Mike was the owner of ILXCTF.com and was well-known for producing these top 10 rankings every season. In his honor, we have named these rankings after him. 3A Boys Elk Grove Village New Lenox (Lincoln-Way Central) Roselle (Lake Park) LaGrange (Lyons) Rank Team Last Rank Rank Team Last Rank Rank Team Last Rank Rank T

Carson Vittorio
Oct 16 min read


2026 Weekend Roundup: XC Season Week 5
Week 5 brings a number of exciting invites around the state. We break down all the big meets going on this weekend here! Enjoy this weeks edition of the Weekend Roundup! Palatine “Meet Of Champions” Invite Writer: Jackson Summy Boys Teams: 3A - #4 Arlington Heights (Hersey), #5 Winnetka (New Trier), #7 Palatine (Fremd), #8 Elmhurst (York), #9 Mt. Prospect (Prospect), #10 Plainfield North, #11 Lake Zurich, #15 Park Ridge (Maine South), #16 Libertyville, #17 Naperville (Neuqua
Jackson Summy
Sep 2511 min read


2026 Weekend Roundup: XC Season Week 4
We're already in week 4 of the 2026 cross country season! We break down all of the action going on this weekend in this weeks edition of the weekend roundup! Dale Donner Invite Writer: Ian Tancrell Boys Teams: 1A - #2 East Dubuque, #14 Rockford (Lutheran), #15 Elmwood, Aledo (Mercer County) Amboy, Cambridge, Erie-Prophetstown, Forreston, Grannville (Putnam County), Henry (H.-Senachwine), Kewanee, Kewanee (Wethersfield), LaSalle (L.-Peru), Manlius (Bureau Valley), Mendota, Min
Jackson Summy
Sep 1819 min read


2026 Weekend Roundup: XC Season Week 3
FTTF 1A Invite Writer: Brodie Peterson Boys Teams: #1 Eureka, #2 East Dubuque, #3 Clinton, #4 Elmwood, #5 Chillicothe (Illinois Valley Central), #6 El Paso-Gridley, #8 Delavan, #9 Williamsville, #11 Edwardsville (Metro-East Lutheran), #13 Herscher, #15 Rockford Christian, #16 Roxana, #17 St. Joseph-Ogden, #18 Murphysboro, #19 Fairbury (Prairie Central), #20 Rockford Lutheran, #21 Toledo (Cumberland); Abingdon-Avon, Anna-Jonesboro, Argenta-Oreana, Auburn, Aurora Christian, Bee

Carson Vittorio
Sep 1127 min read


2026 Weekend Roundup: XC Season Week 2
Granite City Robinson/Lang Invite Boys Teams: 2A - #13 Marion, #23 Waterloo; 1A - #15 Metro East Lutheran, #20 Roxana; MO - #2 SLUH; Alton, Belleville Althoff, Belleville East, Belleville West, Breese Central, Chatham Glenwood, Chesterton Academy, Civic Memorial, Collinsville, Columbia, Confluence Academy, Dupo, East St. Louis, East Alton Wood River, Edwardsville, Father McGivney, First Baptist Academy(O’Fallon), Freeburg, Gibault, Granite City, Greenville, Highland, Jacksonv
Jackson Summy
Sep 419 min read


2026 Weekend Rundown: XC Season Week 1
The first weekend of cross country action is officially upon us! Illinois Running News will be providing coverage of multiple major invites across the state of illinois. The following 5 meets will all have coverage produced by Illinois Running News at. Sit back and enjoy reading about where we will be this weekend. EIU Showdown Writer: Sydney Cine Boys Teams: 3A - #3 Downers Grove North, #12 Naperville (Neuqua Valley), #20 Plainfield North, Algonquin (Jacobs), Bolingbrook, Hi

Carson Vittorio
Aug 2811 min read


2026 Pre-Season XC Previews: 3A Boys Teams Unranked
While the teams ranked in our preseason Top 25 enter the season with the highest expectations, they are far from the only programs capable of making an impact this fall. Illinois Class 3A is filled with talented squads that narrowly missed the rankings and have the potential to emerge as contenders as the season progresses. The teams featured below were not included in our preseason rankings but had their coaches complete the preseason questionnaire that was sent via email, a

Carson Vittorio
Aug 2023 min read


2026 Pre-Season XC Previews: 3A Girls Teams Unranked
While the teams ranked in our preseason Top 25 enter the season with the highest expectations, they are far from the only programs capable of making an impact this fall. Illinois Class 3A is filled with talented squads that narrowly missed the rankings and have the potential to emerge as contenders as the season progresses. The teams featured below were not included in our preseason rankings but had their coaches complete the preseason questionnaire that was sent via email, a

Carson Vittorio
Aug 1815 min read


2026 Pre-Season XC Previews: 2A Boys Teams Unranked
While the teams ranked in our preseason Top 25 enter the season with the highest expectations, they are far from the only programs capable of making an impact this fall. Illinois Class 2A is filled with talented squads that narrowly missed the rankings and have the potential to emerge as contenders as the season progresses. The teams featured below were not included in our preseason rankings but had their coaches complete the preseason questionnaire that was sent via email, a

Jackson Summy
Aug 1613 min read


2026 Pre-Season XC Previews: 1A Boys Teams Unranked
While the teams ranked in our preseason Top 25 enter the season with the highest expectations, they are far from the only programs capable of making an impact this fall. Illinois Class 1A is filled with talented squads that narrowly missed the rankings and have the potential to emerge as contenders as the season progresses. The teams featured below were not included in our preseason rankings but had their coaches complete the preseason questionnaire that was sent via email, a

Carson Vittorio
Aug 129 min read


2026 Pre-Season XC Preview: 2A Boys Individual Rankings
Class 2A has developed into one of the deepest and most competitive classifications in Illinois, and the 2026 season promises to continue that trend. With returning All-State finishers, state qualifiers, and a talented group of athletes coming off impressive track campaigns, the battle among the state's top runners should be fierce from the opening weekend through the IHSA State Finals. Our preseason rankings highlight the top 25 individuals entering the 2026 cross country se

Jackson Summy
Aug 520 min read


2026 IHSA Track and Field Boys State: 2A Preview
100m This is going to be one of the closest 100m State Final races we have ever seen. There are many athletes that are within milliseconds of each other. Realistically, any of the athletes mentioned here could take the title, as long as they have a good day on Finals day. The first contender is the only returning All-Stater from last year, Jaiduan Cranford of Metamora. Cranford was the early season favorite, as he smoked the field at IL Top Times. Not to mention, he still has
Brodie Peterson
May 2721 min read


2026 IHSA Track and Field Boys State: 3A Preview
100m Marcellus Moore's state record of 10.31 has stood as the gold standard of Illinois sprinting, but it may not survive this weekend. Bennett Konkey of Geneva arrives as the favorite and the biggest threat to that mark, and his resume this season has been nothing short of extraordinary. The senior never even qualified for state a year ago, yet here he stands as the most dominant sprinter in Illinois, owning a blistering 10.25 PR that is not only the fastest in the state thi

Carson Vittorio
May 2730 min read


2026 IHSA Track and Field Girls State: 1A Preview
We have finally made it to the end of the season, and the girls state meet is just around the corner. With 1A prelims tomorrow, we have gone event by event and broken down all of the action that you will see this weekend! 100 The 1A 100m has no clear favorite, which means there are a number of athletes that could take the win here. Two of the top times are held by freshmen Isabella Niebrugge of Teutopolis and Austyn McDowell of Robinson. Niebrugge ran a solid 12.06 at the sec
Jackson Summy
May 2019 min read


2026 IHSA Track and Field Girls State: 2A Preview
We have finally made it to the end of the season, and the girls state meet is just around the corner. With 1A prelims tomorrow, we have gone event by event and broken down all of the action that you will see this weekend! 100 Danville currently holds both the boys and the girls top 2A 100m runners. Focusing on the girls side, Jamia Esther is the favorite to win. Now, the tiniest mistake can be made in such a short race, but Esther is currently almost .4 seconds ahead of every
Jackson Summy
May 2018 min read
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