1) You must have a current physical on file in order to tryout or practice. There will be no acceptions. Physicals are good for one calendar year.

2) A participation fee of $100 per sport, $100 per season for cheerleaders (please indicate season on check), and $100 for pompons per season.

3) The Kaneland High School Athletic Department will host a mandatory pre-season meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 18, in the east gym beginning at 7 p.m. for fall athletes. One or both parents are required to attend the meeting with their athlete(s) in order to meet Kaneland High School’s eligibility requirements. Parents and students will meet with their fall coaches. The mandatory part of the meeting will be available on the Kaneland website as a podcast that fall parents and students must listen to by Aug. 27.

FOOTBALL— Equipment handed out on Monday, Aug. 9, from 5 to 6 p.m.

Football insurance is available to or parents may sign a waiver and use their own medical insurance.

Practice begins on Wednesday, Aug. 11. All levels will meet in the east gym at 7:30 a.m.

Practice will be from 8 to 10:30 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. (lower levels—bring your lunch. Practice for varsity is from 8 to 10:30 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m. Meetings will take place at 2:15 p.m.

VOLLEYBALL—Tryouts are Aug. 11 and 12, all levels 8 to 10:30 a.m. First practice is on Aug. 13, from 8 to 11:30 a.m. in the east gym.

TENNIS—Tryouts begin on Wednesday, Aug. 11, for all levels from 9 to 11 a.m. The location is at the tennis courts behind the high school.

GOLF—The opening meeting will take place on Monday, Aug. 9, at 8 a.m. in Room C114. You will not be playing at this time but will turn in physicals, receive practice schedules and go over team expectations. Tryouts take place on Wednesday, Aug. 11, and Thursday, Aug. 12, at Hughes Creek at 6 a.m.

SOCCER—Tryouts begin on Wednesday, Aug. 11. V/JV/Frosh from 9 to 11 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m. at the soccer fields. All players must purchase from the school a spirit pack for $30. Bring cleats, shin guards, water and gym shoes (in case of inclement weather).

BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY—Practice begins at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 11. The team will meet in the high school cafeteria. The XC team will also embark on an overnight camping trip on Thursday-Friday, Aug. 12 and 13. Parents with questions can e-mail head coach Chad Clarey at theclarey5@yahoo.com.

GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY—Practice begins on Wednesday, Aug. 11, at 6:30 a.m., meet in Room C117.

POMS—Mandatory practice begins on Wednesday, Aug. 11, from 8 to 11 a.m. Meet in the high school commons.

CHEERS—Mandatory practice begins on Thursday, Aug. 12, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Meet in the east gym balcony.

Mandatory fall sports meeting is Wednesday, Aug. 18, at 7 p.m.

Knights Under The Lights is Thursday, Aug. 19, from 6 to 8 p.m.

Opening Contests for KHS Fall Athletics

Football—
Friday, Aug. 27, at
Burlington Central,
7:30 p.m.

Volleyball—
Wednesday, Aug. 25, at
Wheaton North Tourney,
TBA

Tennis—
Tuesday, Aug. 24, vs.
Wheaton Academy,
4:30 p.m.

Golf—
Monday, Aug. 16, vs.
Wheaton Academy,
8 a.m.

Soccer—
Tuesday, Aug. 24, at
Marengo,
4:30 p.m.

Boys’ XC—
Tuesday, Aug. 31, vs.
W. Chicago/Wheaton Admy,
4:30 p.m.

Girls’ XC—
Tuesday, Aug. 31, vs.
W. Chicago/Wheaton Admy,
4:30 p.m.

For girls cross country, Shelby Koester and Lisa Roberson were recognized by the team as captains, while Shaela Collins and Jessica Stouffer won the most improved runners nods. Junior Andie Strang took home the Most Valuable Runner award and was also recognized for her all-Western Sun Conference nomination.

In Knights golf action, the varsity most improved player award was given to Adam Grams, while Most Valuable Player was Hayley Guyton. Rhys Childs took home the frosh/soph MVP, and Dan Miller was named the frosh/soph most improved player. Guyton was also lauded for her second-place finish at the girls’ golf State gathering.

For soccer, Kevin Szatkowski, Marcos Dorado, Joe Garlinsky and Genaro Garcia were recognized as captains, and Alex Dorado and Sam Rymarz were given coach’s awards. Jake Tickle won the most improved player award, while J.P. Minogue was named team MVP thanks to his play in goal. Marcos Dorado, Derek White and Minogue were named to the All-WSC squad, while Dorado was also named the 2009 All-Sectional team.

For the tennis troops, Randi Bader, Lindsay Jurcenko and Kelsey Lenhardt were recogznied as garnering the best individual records this season with 18-7 records. Most Valuable Player awards were dished out to Jurcenko, Olivia Emmanouil and Liz Webb. Bader, Webb, Megan Cline and Mel Mazuc were recognized as captains. Jordyn Withey took home the team spirit award, while Stephanie Rosenwinkel and Jess Woodward nabbed the most improved player honors.

For the State-going boy cross country, Joe Levita, Edgar Valle, Dominic Furco, Matt Reusche and Logan Markuson were recognized as captains.

Trevor Holm and Reusche took the most valuable runner awards, while Levita was named most improved runner. Valle and Markuson were given the Larry Eddington Award for Courage, Leadership and Strength. The Golden Knight award, given to one representative of each grade level, was given to freshman Brad Kigyos, sophomore Jake Ginther, junior Tommy Whittaker and to Furco, a senior.

Reusche and Holm were lauded for their nomination to the all-Western Sun Conference team.

John Meisinger, Ginther, Billy Hart, Nate Rehkopf, Conor Johnson, Holm, Reusche, Levita, Valle, Furco, Markuson, Whittaker and Clayton Brundige were recognized as State qualifiers.

For the playoff-going Knight football team, Brock Dyer, Ryley Bailey, Brett Ketza, Eric Dratnol and Derek Bus were recognized as captains, while Kyle Davidson won the most improved player award. Dratnol was named the Most Valuable Player. Bailey was named the offensive MVP and Taylor Andrews won the defensive MVP award.

Bailey, Joe Camaliere, Andrews, Tyler Callagahan, Dratnol, Ketza, Jimmy Boyle and Blake Serpa were given all-WSC honors, as mentioned in last week’s Elburn Herald.

In volleyball, Jessica Lubic was named the Most Valuable Player, while Katy Dudzinski was given the top offensive player nod. Kylie Siebert won the top defensive player nod. Tara Groen was named best server, and Meredith Ament took home the spirit award. Mackenzie Curran won the most improved player nod, and Lubic and Dudzinski were nominated for the all-Western Sun Conference roster.

Photo: Tennis asset and tri-MVP Lindsay Jurcenko was one of the many KHS athletes noted for exceptional play during the fall season. File Photo

The finish bettered last years’ eighth place finish, and was the highest finish for the Knights since 1999, when they placed second in the class 1A field.

Led by junior Trevor Holm, the team featured a 36-second split between their lead runner and junior Grant Alef, Kaneland’s fifth and final scoring team member—a historic feat according to head coach Chad Clarey.

Clarey was pleased with how his team faired overall.

“These boys put themselves right among the best in the school’s great history at the state finals,” he said. “Every bit of this awesome performance was satisfying.”

Holm earned personal accolades, placing 23rd overall with a time of 15 minutes, 35 seconds, which was good enough for All State—the 10th Knight in school history to achieve the honor.

“Holm got into medal contention early, held on for All State, and gave us the strong start in team points,” said Clarey.

In the 2008 state finals, Holm placed 100th, 53 seconds behind his 2009 time.

The 2009 boys cross country team after the state meet. Courtesy photo

Belvidere North won the team title with 77 points behind individual winner Paul Zeman, followed by Normal University’s 119 and Springfield’s 132, to round out the trophy winners. Peoria Notre Dame’s 168 and Kaneland’s 192 rounded out the top five.

“We wanted to leave Detweiller Park leaving everything on the course, and with no regrets,” Clarey said. “We accomplished everything we set out to do—and five seniors will savor this day the rest of their lives. We are so grateful for all they’ve given.”

The Knights cross country team says goodbye to seniors Furco, Levita, Markuson, Jemmar Parrenas, Reusche, Nick Sinon and Valle.

file photo

The Kaneland boys cross country team rose to the occasion at the Class 2A Belvidere Sectional and took care of business, nabbing a fourth-place finish en route to a State berth at Detweiler Park this coming weekend.

Kaneland’s 144 point total was behind Belvidere North (36), Prairie Ridge (113) and Sycamore (142). Marmion Academy also qualified (148).

Leading the way for the state-going Knights was Trevor Holm, in 13th place with a time of 16:40, and Matt Reusche in 23rd.

“Course conditions were very slow with all the recent rain. Every point counted today,” Clarey said.

Dominic Furco finished 25th with a time of 16:52. Edgar Valle was 36th-best at 17:06, while Grant Alef finished 57th at 17:23. Throw into postseason fire, freshman Billy Hart contributed to the Knights’ effort with a 75th place time of 17:47.

They’ll take it all the way to sectionals.

Thanks to a 15-second edge by Marmion Academy’ sixth runner, the Cadets took the Aurora Central Catholic Class 2A regional competition on Saturday at Oakhurst Forest Preserve in Aurora. Kaneland matched Marmion’s total of 66 points, however.

Crystal Lake Central finished third with 70, and won a tiebreaker with Prairie Ridge, while Burlington Central took fifth with 152 points.

Marmion and Kaneland advance to next Saturday’s 2A sectional in Belvidere.

“It’s such a loaded field there that anything can happen,” KHS coach Chad Clarey said. “We need to stay healthy, focus on our pack split, and go to Belvidere ready to run.”

Crystal Lake Central’s Ryan Alvarez won the course with a time of 15 minutes, 17 seconds. The top Kaneland runner was junior Trevor Holm, who continued his exceptional pace this season with a 15:28 effort on Saturday.

“He’s a leader and a racer in every sense of each word,” Clarey said about the leading Knight from Saturday.

Matt Reusche of Kaneland finished eighth overall at 15:42.

Dominic Furco of Kaneland finished third- best for the Knights at 17th overall at 16:05. Teammate Logan Markuson was 18th at 16:12.

With a second-place finish at Kishwaukee Junior College in Malta on Saturday, the Knights secured their finest finish in the four years of the meet.

While Geneva (49 points) took the meet, Kaneland finished second with 71 points.

Sycamore, Batavia and Glenbard South rounded out the top five, while Yorkville, Rochelle and DeKalb finished in the 6-7-8 slots.

Geneva’s Kevin Sparks won the course at 15 minutes, 27 seconds, but Kaneland’s Matt Reusche and Trevor Holm continued their consistent turnout.

Reusche finished fifth at 16:03, while Holm finished 16:07. Both earned all-WSC nods.

Teammates Edgar Valle (16:24) and Dominic Furco (16:39) finished 16th and 20th, respectively.

With 53 points the JV crew also earned second behind Yorkville. Nate Rehkopf took a 17:17 race to seventh place. Freshman Billy Hart finished eighth at 17:19, and Clayton Brundige took 10th at 17:26.

On Wednesday, Oct. 7, the boys competed at the Byron Handicap Invite with staggered starts and came away with a first-place showing of 22 points.

Meanwhile on Saturday morning, the Knights went to Sterling and finished seventh out of 26 teams wuth 190 points.

At Byron’s hilly course, Tommy Whittaker (17:40), Jemmar Parrenas (18:02), Tyler Howland (18:10) and Matt Reusche (18:14) took four of the first five spots.

At the home of the Golden Warriors, Trevor Holm was 14th at 16:08.

“Our peaking week is this week or next week,” Holm said. “We’re getting people back, and we’re recovered from injuries.”

Reusche continued his strong season with a 16:35 output.

Fenwick’s 71 points was tops for team points.

Kaneland’s frosh/soph unit was second with 71 points, thanks to a fourth-place showing by Clayton Brundige (17:07) and a sixth-place by Nate Rehkopf (17:10).

Kishwaukee Junior College is the site of the WSC meet on Saturday, Oct. 17.

The annual event, hosted by Freeport High school, yielded a productive outing, with six of the top 10 varsity finishers representing the Knights in a first-place team finish.

With 26 points as a team, KHS beat Rock Falls (79) and Rockford Boylan (93) out of the top three.

Junior Trevor Holm won the course with a time of 16 minutes, 19 seconds, followed by Boylan’s Matthew Melloch at 16:20. Following him was Knight Dominic Furco in third at 16:30. Joe Levita finished sixth at 16:45, while Logan Markuson took seventh at 16:45.

Edgar Valle finished ninth with an effort of 16:49, while Matt Reusche finished 10th at 16:51.

The Knights’ younger crew also found victory with a 22-point, first-place effort in the frosh/soph race, beating Freeport (62) in the five-team gathering. Nate Rehkopf, Conor Johnson and Clayton Brundige finished 2-3-4.

Overall, KHS coach Chad Clarey had much to be pleased with.

“We continue to have our work cut out for us,” Clarey said. “To see them carry out the plan for each race was exciting. A day like today was not possible without the full summer’s worth of training.”

With a full lineup, the Knights could be a force to be reckoned with come postseason.

“Trevor Holm won his first varsity race, and dominated from the start. He’s taken some nice initiative this fall, and is clearly becoming an important piece of our puzzle,” Clarey said.

Belvidere North (49), Normal West (58) and Geneva (88) took the top three spots, while the Knights’ 225 point total was in between Dixon (192) and Freeport (268).

Geneva’s Kevin McDowell was first in line with a time of 15 minutes, nine seconds.

Kaneland’s Trevor Holm continued his rise with a 16:35 race, good for 27th. Dominic Furco took 47th with a time of 17:18, followed closely by Grant Alef at 17:19 for 48th. Teammate Nate Rehkopf finished 50th at 17:25.

“With some regulars out, we filled in with some youth and still landed in the top half. Trevor Holm raced tough and started our third consecutive sub-60 second split,” KHS coach Chad Clarey said.

Holm’s Rock River time was 40 seconds better than last year’s time.

The Knights’ frosh/soph unit earned third with 109 points.

Freshman Conor Johnson finished 15th at 17:37.

Saturday had the Knights finishing fifth out of a tough 16-team field. With 122 points, the Knights finished ahead of Westmont (157). Crystal Lake Central took the Eddington crown with 92 points, followed by Geneva (93) and Dundee-Crown (97). Additional Western Sun Conference rival Sycamore finished fourth.

Trevor Holm of Kaneland provided a nice showing with a 16th place finish (16 minutes, 47 seconds) to be the top Knight runner. Dundee-Crown’s Anthony Manfrin took the race at 15:40. Logan Markuson of Kaneland finished 23rd at 17:06. Next for the Knights was Edgar Valle at 25th with a time of 17:10.

“I think there’s a ton of great competition at meets like this,” Markuson said. “It’s still kind of early in the season. We have some of our top runners out. I think we’re pretty close to what we’ll see later in the season. A lot of people ran well.”

Dominic Furco was 28th at 17:17.

On the F/S side, the Knights won the 12-team mix with 69 points. Clayton Brundige of Kaneland finished seventh at 18:00.

Strang, Dodis key girls XC at Eddington
MAPLE PARK—Kaneland girls had a productive finish at the Eddington Invite at Elburn Woods on Saturday.

But so did at least eight other teams in the annual event hosted by KHS.

While Kaneland nabbed 231 points, ahead of Westmont’s 267 in the 17-team girls battle, Geneva, with four top-10 finishes, earned the prize (27 points), followed by Lisle’s Benet Academy (91) and Glenbard East (145). Western Sun Conference rivals Rochelle (198) and Sycamore (207) finished seventh and eighth, respectively. Lady Viking Kelly Whitley won the Elburn Woods course with a time of 18 minutes, 49 seconds.

For the Lady Knights, Andie Strang finished 17th at 20:23, followed by upstart Abby Dodis at 29th, with a time of 20:48. Lady Knight Kris Bowen was next in the black-and-white at 21:00, good for 36th place. Shaela Collins took 70th at of 22:21.

“We have some top runners out,” KHS runner Andie Strang said. “We’re really not going to know how good we’re going to be until later. This race was OK, I wish I ran a little bit faster.”

The frosh-soph girls race was won by Geneva with 47 points, followed by Benet Academy at 67.

The site of the Class 2A State meet come the fall was also the site of the Peoria Woodruff Invite on Saturday, with the Knights finishing sixth in a field of 38 schools.

The 277 point total was ahead of rival Glenbard South (286) and Galesburg (292). Burlington High School of Iowa was king with 68 points, followed by Normal University at 196.

For KHS, Logan Markuson was tops with a time of 16 minutes, 17 seconds, good for 37th overall. Teammate Edgar Valle finished with the same time in 38th place.

Trevor Holm finished in 41st with a time of 16:18, and Joe Levita took 72nd with a time of 16:42.

“We were very pleased to finish sixth today. The talented field brought out the best in our team. Trevor Holm helped us to a faster start and his teammates responded,” Kaneland coach Chad Clarey.

Next on the schedule for boys cross country is the annual Eddington Invite at Elburn Woods, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 19.

KHS boys cross country spent it getting the upper hand over East Aurora (23-38) and Yorkville (15-50) at Elburn Woods.

Matt Reusche took the course with a 16 minute, 44 second time.

“I felt we did great as a whole,” Reusche said. “I felt I did pretty good. We’ve been training a lot harder this year, and the frosh/soph guys are really stepping it up.”

Trevor Holm was next for Kaneland in fourth with 17:44, followed by Joe Levita (17:50) and Logan Markuson at 17:58, good for sixth.

“We were seeing what our pack split looks like and wanted to make it through the meet healthy. It was a race for us and a good workout and helped us build our week. The boys were excited,” KHS coach Chad Clarey said.

See below for full gallery, or visit our photo website.

There’s seven more spots to move up.

Despite graduating runners like Ben Brown, Paul Davies and Matt Weaver, the Knights return talented runners and don’t seem to be hurting for depth.

Matt Reusche returns after finishing 14th in the state a year ago, as does Dominic Furco, who finished 37th overall.

“We have six of our top seven back; we had a really good summer with solid consistent training,” head coach Chad Clarey said. “We’re ready to get started.”

Seniors are Joe Levita, Edgar Valle, Jemmar Parrenas, Furco, Nick Sinon, Reusche, Logan Markuson and Tyler Howland.

Juniors are Trevor Holm, Tommy Whittaker, Grant Alef and Cory Gotteau.

Sophomores are Devin Swearingen, Jake Ginther, Kelvin Peterson, Frankie Furco, Clayton Brundige, Stelios Lekkas, John Michek and Nate Rehkopf.

Freshmen are John Meisenger, Nick Messina, Ryan Paulson, Gus Stott, Conor Johnson, Billy Hart and Brad Kigyos.

Developming the competitive mindset with the returnees was hatched in the spring during Knights track, according to Clarey.

“I think from last track season, these kids had some great experiences, both good and bad. Logan won at State, Matt had a good sectional race but didn’t qualify in the 2-mile. So they are more focused than ever, and it makes you hungrier,” Clarey said.

Levita, Brundinge, Ginther and Whittaker were pointed out by Clarey as returning members who could sneak into a higher profile in 2009.

What will determine a successful campaign for the crew always looking to go the distance?

“In the end, if all of our athletes are healthy and have had a full season of training, I anticipate they’d want to set their goals to surpass what they did last fall,” Clarey.

The boys cross country season kicks off on Tuesday, Sept. 1, against West Chicago and Wheaton Academy at Elburn Woods, while the Eddington Invite takes place on Saturday, Sept. 19.

The regular season is scheduled to end at Rochelle for the Western Sun Conference Invite on Saturday, Oct. 17.

At an informational meeting open to the public where two community members, one student, and 20 coaches attended, the School Board heard a presentation on the reasons for switching from the Western Sun Conference to a newly formed conference with schools as far away as Dixon.

“With the new conference proposal we will still be able to compete against schools of our size and IHSA classification on our area,” Superintendent Charlie McCormick said.

The schools in the farther-reaching districts have enrollments closer in size to Kaneland’s, so presumably Kaneland could win more games than it has been able to do with Geneva, Batavia and Glenbard South, in its current conference.

“It’s in our best interests for what we have. It’s good that every school’s the same size,” head girls cross country coach Doug Ecker said. “The conference will give good competition and Kaneland kids can all compete.”

Board member Cheryl Krauspe had questions about the cost of the switch.

“Here’s the question that I continue to ask—how much is it going to cost? It will cost more to drive to Geneseo than it does to Geneva, and you know transportation is the one area where the state reimbursements are not coming in,” Krauspe said.

Financial implications will be discussed further at the regular board meeting Tuesday, May 26.

Enrollment comparison

Division #1 (new) Ottawa 1,602, LaSalle-Peru 1,280, Streator 1,030, Sterling 1,033, Dixon 969, Geneseo 914

Division #2 (new) DeKalb 1,710, Yorkville 1,295, Sycamore 1,162, Rochelle 1,116, Morris 1,075, Kaneland 1,040

WSC Geneva 1,978, Batavia 1,858, DeKalb 1,710, Glenbard South 1,421, Yorkville 1,295, Sycamore 1,162, Rochelle 1,116, Kaneland 1,040

Travel comparison from Kaneland

Proposed conference (miles) DeKalb 14, Sycamore 16.4, Yorkville 18.6, Rochelle 32.9, Morris 38.8, Ottawa 51.2, Dixon 55, Streator 67.1, Sterling 68.5, LaSalle-Peru 71.4, Geneseo 112

WSC (miles) Geneva 11.3, Batavia 12.2, DeKalb 14, Sycamore 16.4, Yorkville 18.6, Glenbard South 27.5, Rochelle 32.9

Now, in the spring of 2009, the Western Sun Conference looks as if its going supernova.

In late-April, Kaneland met with 11 other schools to draw up plans for a new 12-team conference that would kick off in the fall of 2010. The administration will recommend to the Kaneland School Board at the Tuesday, May 26, meeting to exit the eight-team Western Sun Conference.

Joining the exodus of the WSC with Kaneland would be DeKalb, Rochelle, Sycamore and Yorkville.

The proposed unnamed conference would also potentially include old SPC rival Morris, which is slated to join the North Central Illinois Conference in the fall. The new conference would only have Morris as an NCIC school for one year after leaving the Southwest Prairie Conference.

NCIC schools Dixon, Geneseo, LaSalle-Peru, Ottawa, Sterling and Streator, which make up the NCIC’s Reagan Division would round out the rest of the conference.

The shift would lead Western Sun rivals Batavia, Geneva and Glenbard South looking for new conference homes.

In the Western Sun Conference, KHS ranks eighth in enrollment with 1,140. Geneva’s 1,978 was first in the group.

The new conference would have Kaneland sixth out of 12. DeKalb’s 1,710 students would be at the top of the list, while Geneseo’s 914 would be at the rear.

The conference would likely use two six-team divisions, with the WSC schools pairing up with Morris for one of the divisions.

- Have your voice heard -

Kaneland Board of Education
Special Public Workshop
Monday, May 18 • 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Kaneland High School Library

District personnel will address Kaneland’s history of conference affiliations;
several reasons why a change in conferences is being considered at this time;
and, various aspects of the option being considered.
Questions and comments from the public can be heard.
The board will not consider the recommendation for conference change until Tuesday, May 26