PALATINE – Crystal Lake Central senior Alex Baker provided new meaning to the term “finishing kick.”

Baker ran the last mile of the Palatine Cross Country Invitational with his left heel riding on the back of his shoe. Finally, with about 400 meters remaining, he kicked the shoe off and ran with one socked foot for the remainder.

That added degree of difficulty did not seem to matter much as Baker, who moved up several spots in the second half of the race, took third place in 14:53.9 on the 3.0-mile course at Deer Grove Forest Preserve.