Throwback Thursday: First To The Finish Invite
There are few meets on the Illinois cross country calendar quite like the First To The Finish Invitational. Every September, hundreds of runners make the trip to Peoria for one of their first major opportunities to race on the legendary Detweiller Park course. What makes the meet unique is the classification format, with the 1A, 2A and 3A teams separated into their own races. That gives fans an early opportunity to see how the best teams and individuals in each class stack up against one another. The 2025 edition, held on September 13, was no different. With more than 40 teams in the 3A boys race alone and loaded fields in every classification, the 38th Annual First To The Finish Invitational gave Illinois cross country fans plenty to remember. And looking back now, the meet was filled with performances that foreshadowed the rest of the season.
The 3A boys race featured an incredible collection of talent, but Philip Cupial of Downers Grove North separated himself from the field. Cupial covered the three-mile Detweiller course in 14:27.30, winning by nearly 10 seconds over Plainfield North senior Thomas Czerwinski, who finished in 14:37.20. Downers Grove North's Stephen Cox continued the Trojans' dominant day by taking third in 14:44.00, while Stagg's Jack Krusinski and Granite City's Landon Harris rounded out the top five. The depth behind them was remarkable. Downers North placed three runners inside the top seven, with William Surratt finishing seventh in 14:49.50. Plainfield North had Aidan Connors in ninth, while Palatine Fremd's Jack Jennings finished 10th in 14:55.50. The first 14 runners all broke 15:02. That is the kind of depth that made the 2025 First To The Finish Invite such a strong early-season measuring stick.
Cupial's individual victory was only part of the story. Downers Grove North dominated the 3A team race, scoring just 62 points to win by 36 points over Plainfield North. Plainfield South finished third with 125, followed by Palatine Fremd and Edwardsville. The Trojans' strength was their incredible front-end depth. Cupial led the way with the individual championship, followed by Cox in third and Surratt in seventh. Isaak Stein added 28th in 15:18.10, while Tyler Lynch-Goff finished 29th in 15:18.30. That gave Downers North five runners inside the top 29 and a scoring average of roughly 14:58. Plainfield North was right behind them, led by Czerwinski's runner-up finish and Connors' ninth-place performance. Dominic Frigo, Gavin Hall and Aidan Kyrychenko also finished inside the top 40. It was an early glimpse of two teams that would remain major factors throughout the 3A season.
The 3A girls race produced one of the most exciting finishes of the entire meet.
Freshman Lennox Szymonik of Jacobs edged Batavia's Avery Hacker by just 0.10 seconds. Szymonik crossed in 17:03.30, while Hacker finished in 17:03.40.
That tiny margin was one of the closest finishes of the entire day and represented an enormous statement from Szymonik, who was just a freshman. Behind the two leaders, Plainfield North's Marlie Czarniewski finished third in 17:26.30, Barrington's Angelica Hil was fourth in 17:34.50, and Hinsdale Central's Ella Satre finished fifth in 17:35.60.
The race was absolutely loaded. Barrington's Victoria Tarara was sixth in 18:12.70. Batavia's Gwendolyn Krodel was seventh. New Trier's Kayla Ritchie and Hononegah's Kylie Simpson were eighth and ninth, respectively. Twelve runners broke 18:27.
The girls team battle was just as competitive. Plainfield North came away with the 3A championship, scoring 94 points. Naperville North finished second with 110, while Barrington was third with 115. Hinsdale Central finished fourth with 161. The Tigers' strength was their depth. Czarniewski led the way in third, while Laurel Eager finished 15th, Olivia Eager was 22nd, Ayla Czarniewski was 26th and Kate Beavers was 32nd. That gave Plainfield North five runners inside the top 32 and enough depth to hold off two extremely talented teams in Naperville North and Barrington. For Barrington, Angelica Hil and Victoria Tarara led the way, while Hinsdale Central was led by Satre and Morgan Kohn.
The 2A boys race may have been the biggest preview of a star emerging onto the statewide scene. Carson Kaiser of Kaneland won the race in approximately 14:28, defeating a loaded field that included many of the runners who would later contend for the 2A state championship. Kaiser entered the season as one of the most exciting young runners in Illinois after finishing fourth at the 2024 2A State Meet as a freshman. His First To The Finish performance immediately showed that he had taken another step forward. And the competition behind him was excellent. The field included Cuyler Swanson, Quaid Berger, Thomas Jochum, Judah Binger, Jameson Tenopir, Maxwell Kirby and many other runners who would become familiar names throughout the season. Illinois Running News noted before the meet that 22 of the state's top 25 ranked 2A boys were entered.
The 2A girls race also featured a future state-title contender. Emaline Foster of Prairie Ridge defeated Montini's Sydney Gertsen to take the First To The Finish championship. Foster won in 16:56, with Gertsen finishing just five seconds behind. It was a major early-season victory for Foster, who was only a sophomore. The race also featured several of the runners who would become major players in the 2A championship picture, making Foster's victory particularly significant in hindsight. By the end of the season, Foster had developed into one of the top runners in Illinois and finished second at the 2A State Meet in 16:47.1.
The 1A boys race had a completely different storyline. For Chaz Oberkfell, First To The Finish was a return to the scene of his greatest achievement. The Gillespie senior was the defending Class 1A state champion after winning the state title at Detweiller the previous November. His first return to the course came with plenty of attention, and Oberkfell delivered exactly what everyone expected. He won the race in 14:56.40. Du Quoin's Caiden Cook gave Oberkfell a strong challenge and finished second in 15:01, while Elmwood-Brimfield's Aiden Faulkner finished seventh in 15:20. The race was loaded well beyond the winner. Forty-one runners broke 16 minutes, a remarkable indication of the depth in the 1A field. For Oberkfell, it was another step in what would eventually become a second straight state championship season. He would return to Detweiller in November and win the 1A state title again in 14:32.10.
The 1A girls race featured one of the biggest stars in the state. Sundara "Sunny" Weber of Sandwich continued her dominant start to the season by winning in 16:18.70. Weber had already established herself as one of Illinois' premier distance runners during the track season, and the First To The Finish victory showed that her transition to cross country was going to be just as impressive. But she didn't have an easy run to the finish. Kate Foltz of Tuscola, the defending 1A state champion, pushed Weber throughout the race and actually managed to create separation late before Weber surged back ahead near the finish. That early-season battle became one of the defining storylines of the 1A girls season.
What made the 2025 First To The Finish Invite so memorable was the sheer amount of talent spread across the six classification races. The 3A boys race alone featured 41 scoring teams, while the 3A girls race had 36 teams. The 1A and 2A fields were equally deep, with hundreds of runners racing across the morning and afternoon. For many runners, it was their first real opportunity to see where they stood against the best competition in their classification. For others, it was a chance to test themselves on the same Detweiller course where the season would eventually end. And for some, it was the beginning of a season that would turn into something much bigger.
That's what makes the First To The Finish Invite such a fun meet to revisit. At the time, the races were simply early-season battles. But knowing what came next makes the results even more impressive. Philip Cupial was beginning another championship-level season with Downers Grove North. Chaz Oberkfell was back at the site of his state championship. Carson Kaiser was announcing himself as one of the best young runners in 2A. Lennox Szymonik was showing that a freshman could immediately compete with Illinois' best. Sunny Weber was beginning another dominant season. And Emaline Foster was establishing herself as a future state championship contender. The 2025 First To The Finish Invitational wasn't just a big meet. It was one of the first major chapters of the 2025 Illinois cross country season — and looking back now, the signs of what was coming were everywhere.
