Neuqua Valley Mens Cross Country

 

 

 

Evan Roberts, David Krist, and Ben Barron

 

 

2001 Season

 

·         55 started the season with 51 receiving awards

·         47 men participated in the summer running program

·         27 men went to the summer cross country camp in Oregon, Illinois.  We were joined by 9 WVHS members, had Al Carius, head coach at North Central as our guest speaker, and took a charter bus.

·         Men on the team got together every day of the summer except Sundays.  Coaches met with the athletes 3x-4x a week.

·         Weight training occurred on Monday and Thursday evenings.  A short run usually followed the weight lifting. 

·         The men took the initiative to get together to run on Sundays during the season.

·         Repeated as sophomore champions at the Hornet Red Devil Invitational

·         10th place finish at the Crete Monee Invitational.

·         Three men broke 15:30 for three miles at Detweiller.

·         Six men broke 16:03 at Detweiller.

·         Twelve men broke 17:00 at Detweiller.

·         A new manager named Kinzie – she is awesome!!!!

·         Runner-up finish at conference at the varsity and frosh/soph levels

·         3rd place at the IHSA regional – highest finish ever!

·         5th place at the IHSA sectional – first time a NV team qualified for state as a team!

·         10th place at the IHSA state meet – WOW!!!

 

Memorable Moments 2001

 

1.                  Coach Vandersteen gives Evan Roberts a ride home after practice one day.  Evan spots a young blonde running through Ashbury Park.  He comments in an eager fashion, “Who is that?” As the car approaches he realizes it is …..?

2.                  The first day of official summer running has 46 participants – our most ever!

3.                  The coaches have a meeting with just the seniors in late May.  Brad Swinson and Greg Wittendorf are elected captains.  A strong commitment is made to run together on non-official days by the seniors.

4.                  Our first 400 workout on June 12th is a great workout. Eleven guys run as fast as Matt Bailey the year before!

5.                  100 track and field participants show up for our track and field camp.  Many guys from the team help with the camp. 

6.                  Ben Barron and Lee Mills are waiting to be picked up by their parents.  Ben encourages Coach Vandersteen to go ahead and leave.  Ben comments that he and Lee can take care of themselves.  Coach Vandersteen says, “So, you won’t be kidnapped if I leave?”  Ben says, “We will just run from them.”  Lee says, “However, we won’t run if they have candy.”

7.                  Darren and Nick “happily” return to the mess hall to clean a table at camp.

8.                  The girls one-up the men one last time by putting shaving crème on the door handle as we were packing to leave.

9.                  Coach Vandersteen participates in Nut Ball.  He quickly finds out the actual pain the men are going through.  A warning is given not to repeat this game when the team returns to Naperville. 

10.              Sliding in the stream at White Pines State Park.

11.              Coach Orange hits a shot over John Kulp to win a basketball game at camp.

12.              Disco bowling!!!

13.              Three times, when it looked like Rob was going to get a strike while bowling, the gate came down to block the ball from hitting the pins.

14.              Running through the log cabin deemed the Blair Witch cabin.

15.              Ordering eleven pizzas on Friday night of camp.  A strategy was worked out to get the pizzas for half price until it was discovered it was a young girl.  A large tip was given instead.

16.              Lee continually complaining about his sticky bed.

17.              When the lights went out on Thursday night of camp, the next sound heard was the popping of an opened Coke can by John Kulp.

18.              Coach Carius telling the team that Coach Dickerson’s name is really “Jims.”

19.              Wrestling basketball in the pool.

20.              Coach Vandersteen and Mrs. Melee’s trip to the KSB hospital in Dixon, Illinois. Zach Arnold and Amy Radostits are treated for pink eye.

21.              Lee Mills wipes out on the dining hall floor running to get in line for food.

22.              The Barbie song that woke us up at 5:45 a.m. to do our best hill workout ever!

23.              Al Carius gives another memorable “short” talk.

24.              Tempo run at camp is the most successful ever.  Seven guys run faster than Bailey and Goode from the year before.

25.              Paintballing!!!

26.              Neuqua men write WVHS on the girls’ mirror at camp.  Nobody is fooled.

27.              Ben Barron rolls a bowling ball between his legs and records a strike.

28.              Coach Vandersteen explains to the team they will eat breakfast in a building called The Eagles Nest.  Lee Mills asks, “Will we be having eggs?”

29.              Top Gun!

30.              Coach Vandersteen hears his name yelled repeatedly every time Naperville North is around.  He later finds out that Naperville North’s number one man (Adam Kendrick) is supposeably a mirror image of a young Vandersteen.

31.              Joe Newton, head coach of York, tells us we kicked their butt during a mid July practice.

32.              Joe Newton telling his team, “You are the worst team I’ve ever had”

33.              Hector!!

34.              Pojman gets pushed in the mud – can you believe it?

35.              Ben forgets his shorts at Crete Monee.  He quickly runs over to the camp and borrows a pair immediately before the race begins.

36.              The men are caught toilet papering Coach Vandersteen’s house.  He heaves rolls of toilet paper at their cars as they drive by.

37.              The lunch lady at camp.

38.              Big Al.

39.              The pocket on Vandersteen’s shorts – what’s its purpose?

40.              The ugly “moon” at DuPage River Park.

41.              Coach McCoskey to Kruszka on Halloween, “Shouldn’t you be at the Riverwalk?”

42.              Greg accidently drives from Argonne to Chicago when his intention was to drive home.

43.              The bus at conference getting stuck in the mud.

44.              “Let’s get after it”

45.              Patrick Brackett loses his shoe at The Peoria Notre Dame Invitational and runs the last 2.5 miles with one shoe.

46.              Coach Vandersteen has the team’s full attention before practice.  Evan passes some gas – rather loudly!

47.              The Braveheart sprints at the end of a practice at Ashbury Park.

48.              “Tough as nails”

49.              Coach McCoskey gets the team’s attention on the way to Peoria, only to point out his house about 10 miles away.

50.              The Moose that yelled at the team.

51.              Our annual trail run at the Peoria Notre Dame Invitational.

52.              “That’s private property….get the hell off.”

53.              Doing 400’s with Brad Swinson’s car stereo blaring at DuPage River Park.

54.              The midnight run down 95th street to Knoch Knolls.

55.              Greg and Steve show up to practice in matching flag shorts.

56.              John Kulp attempting to drink a 64 oz. soda in less than 5 minutes.  He gets about 62 ounces down and then throws it all up.

57.              Finding and decorating the famed chair of NV Men’s Cross Country.

58.              Evan falls at Sectionals and still gets a medal – 10th place.

59.              Ben Barron takes a short 20 second nap at the 2.25 mark at Sectionals.

60.              Aviators!!!

61.              Team wears the famed denim shirts before state.

62.              Evan “loses it” at practice before state.

63.              David Krist wakes up in the middle of the night and screams gibberish.

64.              Coach Dickerson falling to the ground after pretending to run into a road sign.

65.              Zach Arnold inadvertently throws a glue bottle up in the air to have it hit a moving car – oops!  He apologizes for this error.

66.              The grumpy Burger King employee after the York Invite. 

67.              Kevin Pojman visits a Burger King for the first time in his life after the York Invite.

68.              Coach McCoskey becomes forever known as “Champ” when guys during the summer couldn’t remember his name.

69.              Swinson, Barron, and Kulp put on a play for the pizza guy.

70.              Mr. Orange, “You better be quiet or I will tell coach about your comic book”

71.              Coach sends the varsity team on a mission to chew out the walking freshman after a workout.

72.              The Mele’s hospitality!!!

73.              Coach Vandersteen and Rob Long battle it out on the bench press during the summer – Coach Vandersteen always wins.

74.              The moment coach Vandersteen announces to the team they placed 10th in the state meet.

75.              After being told Greg W. is sick, coach Vandersteen tells the team he will run the freshman in the regional meet if he has to.

76.              Our regional finish, beating Naperville Central for the first time in our history.

77.              “Freshmen, triple up.”

78.               There is no M-A-R-I-S-A in team.”

 

Dave Walczak

 

 

 

 

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