On Sept. 21 New Trier’s boys cross country took first place at the Libertyville Invite. The invite was made up of teams from the Central Suburban League including Highland Park and Glenbrook South.

The boys were able to take first despite missing their top varsity runners who were given the weekend off. Nine of the boys placed in the top 25 which is what scored the team the big win.

Head coach David Wisner saw strong races from many of the boys, who placed very well in the invite.

“Standout runners would be Conor O’Neil, Jackson Flick, Patrick Jamieson, Jordan Shonfeld and George Cahill. These runners finished 7th, 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th for our team.” said Wisner.

The same success applied to the Junior Varsity runners. Senior Tyler Ackerman noted some amazing finishes from the JV team, including two boys who finished first and second in their group.

“At the junior varsity level, Ben Keenan and Carter Lindberg took 1st and 2nd places to help lead the team to a great win,” said Ackerman.

This weekend’s weather added an extra level of difficulty for the team. Libertyville hosted the invite on the difficult terrain of Adler Park

“It was a tough race with a lot of hills, rain, and mud but our training over the four months left us well prepared,” said Ackerman.

The team has put a focus on mileage which has shown in the team’s recent results. The prior weekend the team took part in the highly competitive First to the Finish Invitational in Peoria. Wisner credits this win as one of their biggest achievements of the season. It was the first time the team won this invitational. They finished ahead of 13 teams ranked in the top 25 in the state.

“Our biggest team achievement to date has been winning the 43 team First to the Finish Invitational a week ago in Peoria,” said Wisner.

The team is looking forward to more tough competition leading up to their conference meet which is Oct. 19.

Junior Conner O’Neil had a good weekend despite coming off an illness and he is especially excited for the upcoming invite in Palatine.

“We race down in Palatine next week where we will be racing the best teams in the state where we hope to compete and try to get the win.”

Wisner sees this upcoming invite as a great opportunity to get a feel for the competition they’ll face at state.

“Starting with the Palatine Invite this Saturday, we will also compete against almost every ranked team prior to the state meet. The better competition we see, the better we will be prepared.”

A big difference in the team is a new emphasis on having a positive mindset, which Wisner believes will help the boys be successful at state.

“The team has bought in to our training philosophy, they are highly motivated to be the best New Trier Boys team ever, and they are making the sacrifices to achieve these goals,” said Wisner.

“[They bring] focus and a positive attitude to every practice, and [are] incredibly supportive of all of their teammates,” continued Wisner.

In addition to increased focus the boys have been working hard during practices in order to be in the best shape for state.

They have been preparing by integrating healthy sleep, hydration, and nutrition habits into their everyday lives. The team continues to keep up the workouts as the bigger meets approach.

“Our varsity team has been keeping their mileage at 50-65 miles a week which will definitely pay off when we get to the postseason,” said Ackerman.

Overall, the first place win boosted the confidence of the team and they are hoping to continue this positive energy and fast running for the rest of the season.

“It was an amazing team effort and everyone ran very well. We packed up very well and used our teammates to help us win.” said O’Neil.