Belvidere North sweeps team and individual titles
Tony Jones & Victor Terrazas
Class 2A Boys State Recap
In the three years since Belvidere North opened its doors back in 2007, the Blue Thunder have scored third, second, and now first place trophies for their school coffers. The pre-season #1 team from the farthest north part of Illinois did not disappoint the pundits and more importantly, themselves. The final tally was a resounding victory over runner-up Normal University 77-119.
Top 5 teams-
 | Paul Zeman scores a double victory in winning the
individual title while leading his team to 1st place
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Belvidere North 1,9,15,24,28 (30), (36)= 77
Normal University 11,12,27,31,38, (79), (84)= 119
Springfield H.S. 3,4,23,33,69, (101), (122)= 132
Peoria (Notre Dame) 8,20,37,50,53, (62), (75)= 168
Maple Park (Kaneland) 18,34,45,47,48, (56), (97)= 192
Summary: it’s hard to beat a loaded team that has the individual champion on its roster. It’s even more difficult to defeat a team that has all seven runners in the top 50. The team 1-5 split was a solid 44 seconds. The team 1-7 split was an incredible 50 seconds. That is not a misprint. Logan Volkey was the team’s seventh runner in 15:59.
Normal University held off Springfield 119-132 with incredible pack running. The Pioneers used a 31 second 1-5 split to earn the runner-up trophy. As for the third place Senators, it was the strength of the front running Justin Lee and Michael Simon placing third and fourth respectively.
-Individ ual look-
No one in the field wanted the individual title more that Clay “CJ” Elward. After all he was the pre-season #1 runner and the league’s top runner throughout the year.
The opening mile featured some of the top runners besides Elward in Paul Zeman, Ed McDaniel (Oak Forest), Simon, and Metamora’s Stephan Rauh. McDaniel appeared to hit the first mile mat in 4:45. Elward and several others were essentially there too. The race really didn’t open up until the runners hit the “Bermuda Triangle” when Elward opened up and cleared himself of the field. He surged hard and had a 7-second lead at the halfway point in approximately 7:08. At this point, it appeared everyone else was running for second place honors. As Elward came out the back loop he was still in control and the pack seemed content in letting him get away. Elward raced through the two-mile marker in 9:42- more than 13 seconds ahead of the nearest competitor. Meanwhile, Zeman began move away from the comfort zone and began to run his race. Still, it was Elward in the lead with just ½ mile remaining. Elward had a slight grimace on his face as he motored past a flock of Notre Dame fans but no real signs of danger. Zeman was about 9-seconds back but with the look of a champion. It was reported that Elward began to break down with less than a quarter mile to go. “[Elward] started moving side to side,” said Terrazas who was on the scene to witness the debacle. Zeman did not show any pity as he blew Elward, who was still staggering. The strong scent of the finish line carried a surprised Zeman to a five second victory over Rauh 15:09-15:14. Elward finished a very disappointing 72nd. He apparently suffered from dehydration due to lack of proper hydration.
Afterwards, among the large crowd Zeman talked about his team winning the team title more than himself taking individual honors. That’s a true mark of a champion on a championship team.
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