Two runners, 2 tales
They represented opposite ends of the high school sports spectrum.
On one end was Johnsburg sophomore Kelly McNeely, who didn’t run on land for almost five weeks after suffering a stress fracture in her left foot, yet cranked out an eighth-place finish at Saturday’s IHSA Class 2A Belvidere Sectional Cross Country Meet, and earned a trip to state.
On the other was Marengo’s Katie Adams, one of the area’s premier runners, a freshman who beat Woodstock’s Beattie sisters at last week’s Freeport Regional. Adams was hit last week by a cold or flu, she wasn’t sure what, and missed a trip to state by less than a second.
One remarkable, uplifting performance that makes you feel good. Another so depressing it makes you feel sick in your stomach, kind of like Adams did the past few days.
No doubt McNeely, who was right behind Kayla and Elise Beattie and Adams in early races, wondered whether her season was over a few weeks while she aqua-jogged to keep up her cardio workouts and work her legs without taking the pounding. She did not race from the Wauconda Invitational on Sept. 12 until the Fox Valley Conference Freshman-Sophomore Meet on Oct. 19.
“My legs felt like Jell-O the last 400,” McNeely said. “I just knew I had to get in the top 10. I just ran as uncomfortable as I could take.”
For McNeely, it was enough. She will run at Peoria’s Detweiller Park on Saturday in the IHSA State Cross Country Meet, and will have an excellent chance at a top-25 finish and All-State honors.
“When I saw the pack I wanted to be with, I kept telling myself, ‘I can do this,’” McNeely said. “It was positive thinking that got me through the whole race.”
Adams might have been able to think more positively if she had awakened Saturday able to speak normally. Afterward, finding words was tough for another reason.
“Today, it’s hard to talk about it,” said Adams, who showed great poise and still tried. “I was feeling pretty sick this morning. I tried to be as confident and positive as I could, but I felt so tired. My legs felt so heavy. I was trying to fight this cold or whatever it is. I had just really bad luck today.”
Adams gutted out a 14th-place finish, which was admirable, but also two spots short of qualifying. Her teammate, Ava Henning took 12th, which was good for the final individual berth. Marengo coach R.J. Meyer hoped that just enough of the top runners’ teams would qualify and Adams would sneak in.
So, Adams will attend state as a spectator.
“I want to be there and support Ava,” Adams said. “This is her first big meet and I’ve been to a lot of big meets. I think I can help her. And I want to see some of the other girls, like the Beatties and Kelly too.”
This is one time where there ought to be an exemption for a great runner and a consummate sport who incurs rotten luck.
• Joe Stevenson covers high school sports for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached at 815-526-4513. He also can be reached by fax at 815-459-5640 or by e-mail at jstevenson@nwherald.com.
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