A trio of runners from the Waubonsee Community College cross country team will participate in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCCA) Division I National met in Fort Dodge, Iowa, Saturday.
Daphne Kolody from the women’s team and men’s team’s Tony LoPresti and Dalton Klignensmith qualified last weekend in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC) meet in Palos Hills.
Waubonsee runners closed out the coronavirus-abbreviated regular season by participating at the Kishwaukee College Halloween Hootenanny meet Saturday, Oct. 31.
Coach Rebecca Goldsmith’s Chiefs, along with runners from the College of DuPage, Joliet Junior College, and the host Kougars, battled the elements and blustery conditions in tackling the wide-open course laid out at the Sycamore Park District Sports Complex. With the temperatures in the upper 30s, the runners had to fight through strong headwinds during several stages, including the beginning 300 yards and the final 300 yards.
Kolody, Waubonsee’s lone competitor in the women’s race, took fifth place fifth by covering the 5K course in 23:42. Joliet’s Tiffany Lehman easily outran the rest of the field, in 21:17, nearly 36 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.
In the men’s 8K run Waubonsee was led by freshman Tony LoPresti who took fifth place. The Aurora Central Catholic High School product, who competed for the Chiefs’ golf team earlier this Fall, finished in 29:41 for a 5:58 pace per mile.
Waubonsee’s Dalton Klingensmith took 10th place overall in 31:39. The Chiefs’ Xander Lundblad placed 15th and teammate Austin Curtis was 22nd overall. In addition, freshman Seth Nosek competed as an unattached runner, and finished in 13th overall.
The College of DuPage’s Jackson Bukala took the top spot in 28:45, well ahead of second place finisher Julian Rosenbach (29:07) from Joliet.
—Waubonsee Community College