Maria Cicero got the party started.
The York senior pulled away in the first mile and won the girls Class AA state cross-country crown in 13 minutes 49 seconds, the fastest time at Detweiller Park since the Illinois High School Association switched to the 2.5-mile course in 1998.
“Did we win?” she asked immediately afterward.
Yes, York’s girls team won the team championship, its first ever, with 82 points to 108 for runner-up Naperville North and 140 for third-place Lyons Township.
York’s boys team then gave the school a sweep of the state finals, a first in Class AA, by winning its 21st state championship and second straight.
“It wouldn’t be complete without them winning,” Cicero said of the boys’ championship. “Elmhurst is going to go nuts.”
Several hundred Elmhurst residents were “going nuts” in Peoria. Mayor Tom Marcucci was among them, greeting Cicero at the finish line with an enormous York flag, which the girls proudly carried amid cheers.
“That is fantastic,” York girls coach Larry Bassett said when he saw his team with the flag. “This is their first chance to do that.”
It was about time for York’s girls to join the celebration. Bassett, in his 21st year, has led York to the state finals 17 times, a Class AA girls state record, and his team has been in the top 10 for 11 straight years.
Last year’s runner-up finish was the closest Bassett had been to a state title until Saturday, when he and his runners hoisted their championship trophy.
“If anyone deserves it, you do,” York girls track coach Annette Schultetold him.
Bassett’s runners shared the sentiment.
“He’s put in so many hours with us,” said Kelly Forst, who finished 46th. “I feel great for him.”
True to his style, Bassett spoke softly of the championship.
“It feels like there’s 1,000 pounds off your shoulders,” he said. “The expectations were so high, and we’ve been disappointed before. The kids are such great kids. I didn’t want to suffer a disappointment. They deserve more than to be disappointed.”
The championship capped an undefeated season for York’s girls, who had two All-State runners in Cicero and sophomore Kara Henry. Sophomore Allison Billhardt, who fell early in the race, just missed All-State honors, finishing 26th. Runner-up Naperville North also had two All-Staters in Lisa Bonistalli, who finished eighth and was the only freshman in the top 20, and junior Joanna Veth, who finished 21st despite a stress fracture in her right leg.
“I’m not disappointed,” Naperville North coach Dan Iverson said of his team’s second-place finish. “I don’t know if we were capable of a lot better than that.”
Some questioned Cicero’s chances for a state title when she finished third in a sectional meet last weekend. It only motivated her in the state final.
“I said to myself, `What have you been working for?'” she said. “What have you wanted? You’re not going into this race to get second, third or fourth. You’re going to win.”
Second place went to St. Viator junior Lori King, an All-State soccer player who switched to cross country this season. King finished in 14:07. Queen of Peace’s Delilah DiCrescenzo, the 1999 state runner-up, ran third in 14:14, followed by Deerfield’s Erika Odlaug in 14:24.
York’s girls had quietly left the park when the boys found out they were champs. The Dukes scored 126 points to Wheeling’s 138 and Downers Grove North’s 175.
“You can’t take anything away from York,” first-year Wheeling coach Tom Polaksaid.
The news of their championship prompted boys coach Joe Newton and his runners to celebrate atop a picnic table. It has become a York boys tradition.
“It never gets any better than this,” Newton shouted to fans. “This is a forever moment for these guys.”
The championship also brought some relief to the boys team, which battled injuries and ran in the shadows of last year’s state-championship team, considered one of the best in Illinois history. The Dukes lost twice during the regular season this year.
“This year was more exciting,” senior Adam Roche said. “We were underdogs this year.”
Roche, who had been a favorite for the individual title, ran fifth in 14:35 behind champion Dan Hautof Lockport. Haut won the 3-mile race in 14:12, seventh fastest of all time, and was followed by teammate Zac Sartori in 14:17.
Newton was going to retire as cross-country coach after the 1999 season but changed his mind after the 20th title. In August he said he would continue coaching on a year-to-year basis.
“I’m coming back next year,” he announced Saturday.
This means assistant coach Charlie Kern will wait at least another year before assuming the role of head coach.
“If he comes back after that, I’ll just wait another year,” Kern said. “If he keeps going, maybe I’ll retire before he does.”
