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Pack 4th at IHSA Regional
10/24/2011
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Varsity
As both host for the meet and two-year defending Regional champions, the Saint Ignatius boys cross country team was doubly disappointed with a fourth place finish in the IHSA Regional Championship race at Washington Park in Chicago on Saturday. Junior Jack Keelan won the individual title in a time of 15 minutes and 7 seconds for the 3.02 mile course, running away from the pack after the first mile to win easily. Senior co-captain Patrick Santino was 7th in 16:15. The Wolfpack’s next three scoring finishers were too far back - sophomore Chris Korabik (17th, 16:42), senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey (22nd, 16:45) and sophomore Taylor Dugas (23rd, 16:46). Freshman Andy Weber (30th, 17:15) and senior Mike Tonner (31st, 17:16) also competed. The Wolfpack scored 70 points, finishing behind winner Lane Tech (40 points), Morton (66) and Whitney Young (66). The Wolfpack ran without senior co-captain Peter Devitt, out with the flu. “We would have been better with Peter, but still not good enough to win,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “Other teams had guys out, too. We’re now down to one race, the Niles West Sectional on Saturday, to run the race we think we can run.”
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Pack 2nd at CCL Championships
10/19/2011
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Varsity
The Wolfpack finished second at the Chicago Catholic League Championships on Saturday, at Midlothian Meadows. Champions last year, the Wolfpack scored 63 points to finish behind Loyola Academy (35) and ahead of Fenwick (67) and Brother Rice (67). Junior Jack Keelan, 2010 champion, led the Wolfpack with his second place finish in the 2011 race. Keelan ran a faster three miles than he did last year, 14 minutes and 55 seconds, but he was outkicked in the final 200 meters by Todd Ford of Loyola. Senior co-captains Patrick Santino (12th, 16:10) and Peter Devitt (13th, 16:12) were the number two and three runners for Ignatius followed by senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey (17th, 16:44) and sophomore Chris Korabik (19th, 16:50). Keelan, Santino, Devitt, Vickrey and Korabik earned All-Conference honors. “Second place might not feel so bad if we hadn’t won last year,” said Coach Ed Ernst, “and I suspect Jack Keelan feels the same way. But if you think about it, second place is really a pretty good day against our Catholic League competition.”
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Wolfpack 2nd at CCL Championships
10/19/2011
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Frosh
Andy Weber finished as the second individual to lead the Wolfpack to a second place team finish at the Chicago Catholic League Championships on Saturday, at Midlothian Meadows. Weber ran from behind, chasing front runner Salvatore Flight of Fenwick and taking the lead briefly by a few steps with 200 meters to go, but Flight finished one step ahead. Weber’s time for three miles was 16 minutes and 57 seconds. Brian Santino (8th, 18:08) and Joey Connelly (9th, 18:16) ran strong races for the Wolfpack and Crofton Kelly (16th, 19:23) and Dante Domenella (31st, 20:00) completed the scoring team. The Wolfpack totaled 48 points, behind Loyola’s 23 points but ahead of Brother Rice (74), Providence Catholic (101), Mount Carmel (145) and St. Rita (160).
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Sophomores 2nd at CCL Championships
10/19/2011
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Varsity
Taylor Dugas finished third to lead the Wolfpack to a second place team finish at the Chicago Catholic League Championships on Saturday, at Midlothian Meadows. Matas Blekys (7th, 18:16), Patrick Manglano (8th, 18:18), Mickey Smith (10th, 19:03) and Patrick Kennedy (17th, 19:25) completed the scoring team for Ignatius. The Wolfpack totaled 41 points, beaten by Loyola Academy’s 36 points.
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Wolfpack Fourth at Wheeling
10/11/2011
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Varsity
Last year a third place finish at the Wheeling Wildcat Invitational, behind highly-touted Belvidere North and Lake Zurich but ahead of a strong Barrington team, started the Pack on its end-of-season march to the Chicago Catholic League championship and then a spot in the IHSA state meet. On Saturday, the Wolfpack ran its best race of the season, finishing fourth behind those teams. Junior Jack Keelan dueled to the final steps with Barrington’s Erik Peterson for the individual win, with Keelan losing out by a second after a furious sprint in a strong time of 14 minutes and 57 seconds. Senior co-captain Patrick Santino, in his second race back after a foot injury, started the race carefully in 30th place and then moved up to 18th at the finish in 16:20. Senior co-captains Peter Devitt (27th, 16:36) and Clifford Vickrey (39th, 16:59) had good races for the Wolfpack. Sophomore Chris Korabik (47th, 16:59) completed the scoring for Ignatius. Sophomore Taylor Dugas (50th, 17:06), senior Mike Tonner (17:07), and, in his first varsity race, freshman Andy Weber (54th, 17:10) also competed for the Wolfpack varsity. Belvidere North, the state’s top 2A team, scored 47 points to win the 17-team meet followed by Barrington (62), Lake Zurich (63), Saint Ignatius (132), Whitney Young (140) and Brother Rice (170).
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Frosh Soph Ninth at Wheeling
10/11/2011
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Frosh
Sophomore Conor Dunham was the top finisher in 30th place for the Wolfpack in the frosh-soph race at the Wheeling Wildcat Invitational on Saturday. Dunham ran 14 minutes and 44 seconds for 2.5 miles. Freshmen Brian Santino (41st, 14:58) and Joey Connelly (43rd, 15:00) and sophomores Matas Belkys (45th, 15:03) and Mickey Smith (67th, 15:37) completed the five-man scoring team for the Wolfpack. The Wolfpack scored 211 points behind winner Hersey (61 points).
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Keelan Wins Pat Savage Niles Invite
10/03/2011
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Varsity
Junior Jack Keelan ran away from the pack at the Pat Savage Invite on Saturday, October 1, winning in a time of 15 minutes and 21 seconds on a muddy, wet and windy course around the Niles West High School athletic fields. As a team, the Wolfpack finished third in the meet’s White division with 105 points behind Niles West (41) and Wheeling (81)—seventh overall behind Lake Park. Senior co-captain Peter Devitt was 17th (16:48) in the White division and senior co-captain Patrick Santino, in his first race of the year, was 21st (16:59). Senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey was 28th (17:07) and senior Mike Tonner was 38th (17:25) to complete the scoring team for the Wolfpack. “Times were slow with the mud but we made some progress today in terms of how we competed against other teams,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “Now we have to make more progress every week.”
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Sophomores Third at Niles West
10/03/2011
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Varsity
Sophomore Chris Korabik competed for the lead from the start to the final steps of the race in the sophomore competition at the Pat Savage Invitational at Niles West High School on Saturday, October 1. He had to settle for second place at the end in 17 minutes and 6 seconds for 3.0 miles. Teammate Taylor Dugas also ran a strong race, finishing fifth in the White division (17:23) with Conor Dunham 11th (18:02). Matas Blekys (21st, 18:38) and Mickey Smith (22nd, 18:49) completed the Ignatius scoring team. The Wolfpack were third in the White division behind Oak Park-River Forest and Prospect—and third overall, as the White division teams dominated the 17-team overall competition.
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Ignatius Third at Niles West
10/03/2011
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Frosh
Andy Weber finished second to lead the Wolfpack freshmen to third place in the White division at the Pat Savage Niles West Invitational on Saturday, October 1. Weber ran 11 minutes and 12 seconds for 2.0 miles. Brian Santino (5th, 11:53) was second runner for the Wolfpack followed by Joey Connelly (8th, 12:03), Crofton Kelly (27th, 13:07) and Niko Polite (33rd, 13:15). Wheeling was the winner in the White division and Evanston won the overall race while the Wolfpack were fifth overall out of 19 teams.
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Keelan a Close 3rd at Palatine Invite
09/26/2011
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Varsity
Junior Jack Keelan was disappointed in his fourth place finish two weeks ago at the Peoria Woodruff Invitational, not so much for the place but because he fell off the pace in the last mile and did not compete for the win. On Saturday, at the Palatine Invitational, Keelan had a chance to win in the final steps of the race as he finished third in 14 minutes and 36 seconds on the three-mile course at Deer Grove East Forest Preserve. Keelan, winner Leland Later of New Trier, and second place finisher Todd Ford of Loyola finished just a second apart in a furious final sprint. Keelan’s time matched his personal best—and he has closed the gap on Later who beat him by 25 seconds at Woodruff. As a team the Wolfpack were 19th out of 30 teams with 540 points as Palatine triumphed with 110 points followed by Rock Bridge (the top-ranked team in Missouri), York, Niles North, New Trier, Prairie Ridge, Loyola, Lake Zurich and Barrington. After Keelan, the next Wolfpack finisher was senior co-captain Peter Devitt (116th, 16:23). Senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey (136th, personal record 16:38), senior Mike Tonner (16:44) and junior Tim Hatzopolous (150th, 16:57) completed the five-man scoring team for Ignatius. Two final finishers, senior Jack Durkin (167th, 17:31) and junior Andrew Musur (270th, 17:35), set personal bests. Palatine is a new meet on the Wolfpack schedule—and it was a feather in the team’s cap just to get an invitation. “This race arguably puts Jack among the top five contenders for the state title in November,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “But if the team wants to be there racing with him in Peoria, we are going to have to take some big strides in the coming weeks.” The Wolfpack races next at the Niles West High School Invite where they face at least two teams they will have to beat in order to qualify for the state meet - Niles West and Niles North.
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Sophomore Team 10th at Palatine Invite
09/26/2011
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Varsity
The Wolfpack finished 10th out of 25 teams in the sophomore race at the Palatine Invitational. Chris Korabik led the team with his 24th place finish in 16 minutes and 39 seconds. Taylor Dugas also ran a strong race near the front for the Wolfpack, finishing 33rd in 16:50. Korabik and Dugas were followed by Conor Dunham (64th, 17:26), Matas Blekys (97th, 17:56), Patrick Manglano (99th, 17:58), Paddy McCabe (142nd, 18:41) and Mickey Smith (146th, 18:44). There were 336 total finishers. The Wolfpack scored 295 points to finish behind champion Hersey (52 points), York (68), Lyons Township (75), New Trier (122), Waubonsie Valley (206), Palatine (209), Barrington (225), Crystal Lake Central (261) and St. Charles North (280). “With a little bit better day, we finish in the top 5 against some of the top programs in the state,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “They beat Loyola today and they have a chance to win the sophomore title at Catholic League.”
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Pack 7th at Palatine Invite
09/26/2011
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Frosh
Andy Weber finished fourth to lead the Wolfpack to a 7th place finish out of 20 teams at the Palatine Invitational. Weber, who started out as far back as 12th in the early going, rallied with a strong final mile to run 13 minutes and 41 seconds on the 2.5 mile course at Deer Grove East Forest Preserve. Brian Santino finished second for the Wolfpack in 14:54 for 45th place followed by Joey Connelly (56th, 15:05), Niko Polite (63rd, 15:16), Crofton Kelly (67th, 15:19) and Connor Widelka (70th, 15:21). There were 259 finishers total. The Wolfpack scored 228 points to finish behind New Trier (63 points), host Palatine (82), York (102), Loyola (140), Hononegah (180) and Libertyville (195). “These are some of the top cross-country schools in the state and our young guys showed us they can run with them,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “They’ve got three weeks before the Catholic League meet to catch Loyola.”
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Wolfpack Second at Inaugural Ignatius-Fenwick Invite
09/19/2011
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Varsity
It was a day for celebration as the Wolfpack boys played host to their first “home” cross country meet in approximately 15 years in the inaugural Ignatius-Fenwick Cross Country Invitational on Saturday. Of course the “home” course was actually Midlothian Meadows, a distant, though wonderful, location for a cross country race, south of the city, and Jones played the role of party crasher, defeating the second place Wolfpack 30 to 43 (low score wins in cross country). Junior Jack Keelan took the individual honors, running 15 minutes and no seconds, exactly. Senior co-captain Peter Devitt was seventh (16:23). The Wolfpack pack of senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey (10th, 16:49), senior Mike Tonner (12th, 17:02), junior Tim Hatzopolous (13th, 17:03) and sophomore Chris Korabik (14th, 17:04) gave Ignatius six of the top 14, but Jones was better with all five scorers in the top nine. Ignatius did top third place Fenwick (60 points) and seven other teams. In the future the meet will be known as the Jim Connelly and John Polka Invitational, named after long-time Illinois Hall of Fame coaches Connelly of Ignatius and Polka of Fenwick.
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Pack Dominates Ignatius-Fenwick Invite
09/19/2011
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Frosh
The Wolfpack were rude hosts at the first Ignatius-Fenwick invitational at Midlothian Meadows on Saturday, taking nine prizes out of the top 13 to win with just 25 points and topping Fenwick (34), Brother Rice (80) and Jones College Prep (111). Freshmen Andy Weber (3rd, 17:21) and Joey Connelly (4th, 17:58) led the way for the Wolfpack, followed in the scoring by sophomore Patrick Manglano (5th, 18:00), freshman Brian Santino (6th, 18:06) and sophomore Matas Blekys (7th, 18:16).
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Keelan 4th, Wolfpack 22nd at Peoria Woodruff
09/12/2011
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Varsity
The Peoria Wooduff Invitational, featuring a half dozen or so of the state’s top cross country teams, was supposed to be the Wolfpack’s second meet of the year, but at the Leavey Invite last week, fire department and park district officials cancelled the race because runners collapsing in the heat in earlier races used up the St. Charles area’s ambulance and emergency room capabilities. When junior Jack Keelan and his teammates lined up to run at the Peoria Woodruff Invitational, they were running into unknown territory-- their first races in three months going back to the spring track season. Keelan, the number six returning finisher from the state championship last year, ran with the leader Garrett Sweatt of Edwardsville for the first half of the race. They went through two miles in 9 minutes and 36 seconds, faster than he ran at the state meet last November where Keelan finished just a second behind Sweatt. Falling off the pace over the last mile, Keelan finished fourth in 14:48 - his second fastest race ever - but well behind Sweatt’s remarkable 14:21. Behind Keelan, five Wolfpack runners ran personal bests for three miles: senior Mike Tonner (16:33, 116), senior co-captain Clifford Vickrey (16:43, 138), sophomore Chris Korabik (16:45, 143), sophomore Taylor Dugas (16:51, 149) and junior Tim Hatzopolous (16:51, 151). Senior Jack Durkin (18:08, 225) completed the Wolfpack top seven. “To run faster in the first race of the year than you have ever run before is an accomplishment,” said Coach Ed Ernst. “It tells us how these guys have worked hard over the last year to make themselves better runners. So it is a good first race.” Finishing 22nd out of 37 teams, the Wolfpack ran without senior co-captains Patrick Santino, out with a foot injury, and Peter Devitt, who took the ACT exam. A big concern for the Wolfpack: the surprise meet winner, much improved Niles North, is a likely sectional rival in the IHSA lineups that will be announced this week.
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