Goal setting pushes Panthers to reach goals

BY DANI TIETZ
dani@sjodaily.com

What are your goals and where can they take you?

Although they may not realize it yet, runners on the St. Joseph Middle School cross-country team are realizing the answer to this question as they prepare to compete at the IESA State level on Saturday.

For the first time in school history, St. Joseph Middle School captured the IESA Class 2A Sectional title.

Eighth-grader Helene Jones said, “after all seven of our runners finished, Coach P (Corey Plotner) pulled us to the side saying we just made St. Joe history! There has never been a St. Joe 2A cross-country team win a sectional before.”

After the St. Joseph Middle School boys’ cross-country team finished with five runners in the top 10 spots at the sectional, the Panthers were on their way to sending both teams to the 2A IESA state meet at Maxwell Park in Normal.

The catalyst for the teams’ accomplishments has been goal-setting.

Many of the participants began running in fifth grade, looking to beat an older sibling, to have something in common with a parent or to hang out with friends, but it didn’t take long for each runner to find some intrinsic value to their time spent on the course.

“I’ve kept with it because I enjoyed the coaches, people, and I realized I did enjoy running,” Jones said. “After the first season, I knew I had to do next year.”

Coming into her third year on the Panther team, Jones decided that if she puts her mind to it, she might be able to finish the 2-mile course in under 13 minutes. With that time, Jones believed that she would be included on the Sectional roster, and it would be another step to her whole team making it to the State finals.

“All of the goals I had set were crushed,” she said.

With the same mindset, Jones wanted to finish a race to get onto the Panthers’ “board.”

“The board contains the top 20 boy and girl runners of St. Joe Middle School history,” she said.

Currently, Jones sits at No. 12.

But that wasn’t enough for the athlete who knows that time in junior high is short.

Coming into the IESA Sectional on Oct. 12, Jones wanted to finish in the top five of the 86 competitors.

Coming in at 13 minutes, 13.74 seconds, she finished in second place.

Finishing right in front of her at 13:06.69 was teammate Savanna Franzen.

In her seventh-grade year, Franzen had her teammates on her mind as she crossed the finish line.

“I felt a rush of joy because I knew my teammates were not far behind,” Franzen said.

The Panther runners are encouraged to give 100-percent throughout the season.

“My coaches have supported me by telling me when I need to push it, giving me advice for my legs, and being with me every step of the way,” she said.

Keeping her individual goals in sight, Franzen has also encouraged her teammates throughout the year to do the same as the Panthers had their eyes set on a team state-bid from the very beginning.

Jones and Franzen will work to place in the Top 25 runners at State while the entire team looks to place among the top 10.

The St. Joseph Middle School boys’ team also believes it has what it takes to finish in the top 10 on Saturday.

In fact, they’ve set the goal of finishing in the top four teams at State.

Leading the seven-member Panther pack consistently throughout the season has been Carson Maroon.

Maroon finished the two-mile IESA Sectional course in 11:38.23.

“I felt great!” he said. “I knew then that I couldn’t have accomplished anything more.”

Finishing in first place, at sectional ticked of a goal box for Maroon — now he hopes to accomplish his other two goals, finishing in the top 25 at State and finishing a race under 11 minutes.

Being part of a fun team that challenges each other day-after-day is not only what keeps Maroon coming back year-after-year, but he also believes it’s the recipe to finding success.

“The better we do individually the better we are as a team,” eighth-grader Spencer Wilson said.

Wilson finished third at the IESA Sectional meet with a time of 11:57.10.

Finding out he is “pretty decent at running” came on the back of working with great coaches.

“Coach P and Coach G (Michele Guido) are great coaches! I’m glad I got to run with them the last four years “

For Wilson, though, the reason he started cross-country in fifth grade is the same reason he still loves to come to cross-country every day.

“The best part about being on the team are game days and being with my friends,” he said.

The girls’ Class 2A state race is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday, followed by the boys’ race at 11:45 a.m.