No boys cross-country fan is going to mistake Westmont for York.
York is the Illinois high school power with 26 state championships. Westmont has none.
York coach Joe Newton said 155 boys came out for the team this season — and he hoped to entice others to join once classes began.
Westmont coach Steve Wolf said nine boys — 146 fewer than showed up for the Dukes — came out for his team. And, he said, “no freshmen came out this year.”
Despite the disparities, each team could wind up with a state championship at the end of the season.
With an enrollment of 558, Westmont is in Class 1A. Last season the team finished second in the state, 14 points behind Elmwood, without placing a runner in the top 25.
“I really think we can do it this year,” said senior Kevin Barnacle, who led the Sentinels’ effort in 2008 by finishing 28th (teammate Henry Arndt was 29th). “We feel much more confident. We had a really good summer.”
Elmwood, Eureka and Winnebago have been among the small-school powers in the state, but Westmont came up with a stunning victory against Winnebago in the 2008 sectionals (and the prestigious Amboy Invitational).
What adds to Barnacle’s optimism is that three other runners, all juniors like Arndt, return: Scott Dvorak, Morris Jaspers and R. J. Pleva. During last spring’s state track finals, Barnacle finished sixth in the 3,200 meters; Dvorak took eighth in the 1,600.
Barnacle didn’t start running cross-country until 8th grade. He said his attitude toward competing has changed significantly since his freshman year.
“My goal this year,” Barnacle said, “is to get all-state (finish in the top 25) and, teamwise, to get first.”
First is where York, which hasn’t won a state title since 2006, seems headed. Returnees for the Dukes, ranked No. 2 in the nation according to one Web site, include Jack Griggs, Adam Cecil and Andrew Smith.
York missed its 27th state title last year after losing by a point in the Class 3A final to Naperville North.
