IHSA reverses decision in Girls 3A State Meet

St. Charles East placed in third place tie with Naperville North.

After the Girls 3A state meet on Saturday afternoon at Detweiller Park, the decision was made to give 3rd place to Naperville North according to a sixth runner tiebreaker over St. Charles East.

On Monday morning, the IHSA reversed this decision. 

According to a statement sent to Dyestat Illinois,  Assistant Executive Director Ron McGraw said:

It was suggested that we review the original decision we made to break the 3rd place tie.  That decision was based upon the NFHS tiebreaker rule 9-2-4 . (Ties in team scoring shall be resolved by comparing the sixth-place finishers from the tying teams.  The team with the best sixth-place finisher shall prevail.  If one team does not have a sixth-place finisher, the team with the sixth-place finisher shall prevail.) Our review of past results showed that in recent years we have not been consistent in our interpretation of our terms and condition dealing with team ties in XC. Therefore, the right thing to do for the girls was to provide St. Charles East with a third place trophy and medallions. The topic of team ties will be reviewed so we are all clear on this question going forward.

In the IHSA Coaches Manual that is on the ihsa.org site, In Section X, it states:
3.Ties: If a tie occurs for first, second or third place, both tied teams will receive the appropriate medallions and trophy.

The meet that was used as evidence to prove St. Charles East's point was the 1999 Girls AA State Meet. Ironically, Naperville North was also involved tying with Lake Forest.

The decision was great news to the St. Charles East Girls team and Coach Denise Hefferin. She sent us a beautiful reply to sum up everything that has happened in the last 36 hours. Instead of me summing it up, it would be more proper to use her thoughts instead:

The ADs (Jack Drollinger and Jim Block) were phenomenal.  They were at the meet on Saturday to support the girls and contacted the IHSA to file the protest on our behalf.  They were diligent about due process being followed and the ladies getting what they received.  They're not from an XC background and didn't know all of the rules by heart but they are so focused on doing what's best/right for kids and that really showed on Saturday.

I was asked on Saturday night what my balance of pride v disappointment on the day was, obviously quite a few tears were shed when announcing the news but I was very clear with the girls that my tears were not tears of disappointment in them -- their performance was 100% prideful for me and all SAINTS supporters.  The race was interesting because while we lacked an individual stand-out (what we typically rely on to help us compete with teams like NN and WWS) we had our best TEAM race of the year (47 second split 1-5 and a solid average).  

It's fitting that while we didn't receive any individual all-state honors on Saturday that it was our TEAM that will get the hardware for a job well done.  This team has been through the gauntlet time and again over the last four years -- they've been told they got "lucky" in 2008 and then in '09 they struggled to match their '08 efforts. 2010 was a season of injury and illness alike, further supporting the nay-sayers claims that we "stole" the trophy from more deserving teams in '08.  Honestly, these girls have never felt like outsiders understood or respected them -- but instead of being jaded or mean-spirited they've simply become a more close-knit group that leans on each other and supports and trusts each other and never has that been more evident than on Saturday. 

A lot of people saw us leaving before the awards ceremony on Saturday (we have a long-standing tradition of singing "Heaven is a Place on Earth" when entering and exiting the park) and I'm guessing most people assumed we were bitter on the way home --> actually it was the complete opposite:  not having any awards to get on stage the girls wanted to hurry out of the park, not to sulk, but to get back to Elmhurst to see our girls volleyball team play in the super-sectional. 

These girls are selfless -- they were obviously disappointed that we were leaving without a trophy (especially one we felt they deserved) but instead of wallowing in their sorrows, they knew their efforts were better spent supporting their sister-sport qualify for state (which they did!! We made it just in time for games 2 and 3, both of which they won!!).  It was the perfect nightcap on what could have been a somewhat disappointing day.  In our team circle-up after arriving back at school the outpouring of emotion from the girls was amazing -- they were (like always) so supportive of one another and positive about the entire season's experience.  I have never felt more pride than I did that night listening to them talk about each other. 

Our protest to the IHSA wasn't about getting any kind of special exception or bending of the rules -- we simply wanted their own written rules to be properly and consistently enforced.  If it was written in the by-laws that ties were broken by a 6th runner then I would have been disappointed, but accepting of their decision.  If in past practices, this have been the procedure, I would have accepted it. (Neat tidbit -- I was a senior in '99 when NN and Lake Forest tied for 3rd.  Some of my best friends then (and now) were on that Lake Forest team and I remember them sharing the awards with NN -- that was the first thing that popped in my head on Saturday when they let us know). 

The IHSA can never replace that feeling of being up on stage for these girls -- but they've done the best they can to remedy the hard-feelings from Saturday, and we appreciate it.  Our school has been so supportive of them as well -- upon arriving to the volleyball game on Saturday night the entire crowd cheered as they ran into the student section (in their uniforms!) and they even got a group picture with the state-bound Saints volleyball team upon winning the 3rd game.  It was an unforgettable night and I'm just SO proud of the girls

Tiebreaker loss can't spoil state for St. Charles East girls cross country

By BILL LIESSE - editorial@kcchronicle.com

PEORIA – The most disappointed people at any state cross country meet are the individuals who come in 26th and the teams that place fourth.

Top 25 gets you an all-state medal and the top three teams carry home huge trophies.

The St. Charles East girls took that one step further Saturday at Detweiller Park, tying Naperville North for third place in the girls Class 3A finals, but losing on a tiebreaker (sixth runner) and leaving without any hardware.

Don't try telling the Saints they should be disappointed, however. The girls sang out their bus windows coming into the park, and they sang out the windows leaving.

Don't tell coach Denise Hefferin it wasn't a good day, either. Hefferin was asked a few hours after the race how much she felt pride and how much of her felt disappointed.

"As far as the performance today, it's 100 percent pride," Hefferin said. "They ran awesome. It actually is the best team race we ran all season."

 Winnetka New Trier won with 82 points. Wheaton Warrenville South was next at 144. Naperville North and St. Charles East each scored 183. Naperville's sixth runner was 62 spots better than East's, so the Huskies stayed at the awards pavilion in the corner of the park while the Saints crooned and drove home.

 "Just so you know, according to IHSA bylaws, if you tied for any place, they shouldn't break that tie," Hefferin said. "So we have filed a protest.

 "I'm not a rules fanatic. I don't know every bylaw. But I had a lot of coaches call me and say maybe something hadn't been enforced correctly today. So we're looking into it."

While the Saints did not boast a number of season bests, the girls ran at or near their best times and Hefferin was delighted with how they competed.

 "I don't think of cross country as a time sport," she said. "I think of it as a place sport. They competed for spots today. The girls were (overtaking) runners at the end.

 "To be in the mix with Naperville North, it's a big honor," Hefferin continued. "They're legendary in cross country and I have so much respect for coach Dan Iverson."

Freshman Torree Scull led the way for the Saints, running 17:38 to score 18 in the team race and place 29th among all runners. One spot behind was St. Charles North senior Sydney Stuenkel, part of a 17th-place team finish for the North Stars.

4th at State

PEORIA — St. Charles East's girls cross country team had a special season, and the Saints came so close to securing a trophy at the Class 3A state meet.

New Trier placed three runners in the top 11 to secure the Class 3A title with 82 points on a sunny day at Detweiller Park.

Wheaton Warrenville South (144 points) took second followed by Naperville North and St. Charles East, which tied with 183 points. Naperville North was award the third place trophy on a sixth runner tie-breaker.

Naperville Central senior Amanda Fox won the Class 3A title with an impressive 16:24, followed by defending Class 3A champion Ariel Michalek (16:37) of Oswego East and Lake Park junior Kaylee Flanagan (16:43).

Despite missing a trophy, St. Charles East coach Denise Hefferin was proud of how her girls finished the season.

“Rules are rules, and that is why you run seven runners,” said Hefferin of the tie-breaker. “They ran tough and they put themselves in great position to compete for a trophy — that's all you can ask for.”

Freshman Torree Scull (17:38) led the Saints charge by taking 29th place, followed by junior Sarah Hill (17:48) and senior Mallory Abel (17:50) in 42nd and 44th place.

Abel ended her senior campaign on a high note after being injured and missing the state meet as a junior.

“It's hard to be that close and not get it,” said Abel of the Saints' fourth place finish. “But I'm really excited how we ran so hard. I didn't get to run last year, so I'm happy I got to finish this year.”

St. Charles North finished 17th with 394 points, highlighted by a solid 30th place effort from senior Sydney Stuenkel (17:39) and a 51st place performance from sophomore Ashley England (17:57).