By Carl Zielinski
Gargoyle staff reporter
Posted Thursday, Oct. 12, 2006, The OG, sports

AMBOY — On an unusual 2.9-mile course, the Uni girls placed fifth among numerous top-ranked teams at Monday's Amboy Invitational, despite having only one day of rest after the Mahomet-Seymour Invite, at which Uni placed second.

Ahead of Uni (196 points) were meet champion Elmwood/Brimfield (108), Winnebago (133), PORTA (134), and Aurora Christian (153). Those four schools are currently ranked first, third, fourth, and fifth in Class A respectively. Thirty-six teams scored in the event.

Having competed in a swim meet the day before, usual top runner Michelle Mehnert finished third on the team with a time of 19 minutes 17 seconds, in 36th place. She finished behind fellow junior Shivani Khanna (18:49, 17th) and freshman Elizabeth Russell (18:58, 22nd place).

Despite the extenuating circumstances, Uni's performance at Amboy cost the team two spots in the latest Illinois Prep Top Times Class A rankings. Uni is now ranked No. 6 in the state, after holding the No. 4 position the last two weeks. Mehnert has dropped out of the individual top 20 after spending two weeks ranked No. 14.

The other Uni runners' times at Amboy were:

— Elaine Gu, sophomore, 19:18, 37th
— Samantha Nguyen, junior, 21:27, 113th
— Isaure Hostetter, freshman, 22:28, 158th

The girls ran with only six runners, as junior Jennifer Roloff was auditioning (successfully) for all-district musical honors. Uni's top four all came home with medals, as they all finished in the top 50 runners.

Coach Doug Mynatt seems to think that timing was part of why the girls didn't run with the very top of the pack.

“Two races in three days definitely has an effect,” he said. “And when you throw in that Michelle had a swim meet on Sunday, that makes a difference.”

The girls have no more regular-season meets scheduled. They begin the postseason with the St. Joseph regional Oct. 21 at Kickapoo State Park. The Stanford Olympia sectional will follow on Oct. 28, and the state final will take place Nov. 4 at Detweiller Park in Peoria.

2006 VARSITY RESULTS
(Meets at the U of I Illini Meadows in bold; courses are three miles unless otherwise indicated)

Aug. 29: Kickapoo Kickoff Classic, 1st (27 pts)
Top Uni runner: Elizabeth Russell, 1st overall (20:34)

Sept. 2: Chrisman Cowchip Classic, 2nd (18 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 2nd in No. 2 flight (19:57)

Sept. 5: Twin City Championship, 1st (32 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 1st overall (20:29)

Sept. 9: Peoria Woodruff Invitational, 3rd (122 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 8th overall (19:34)

Sept. 12: Home Meet, 1st (16 pts)
Top Uni runner: Shivani Khanna, 1st overall (20:46)

Sept. 16: Tuscola Invitational, 1st (56 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 4th overall (19:20)

Sept. 19: Clinton Quad Meet: 1st (22 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 2nd overall (20:47)

Sept. 23: St. Joseph-Ogden Spartan Classic, 2nd (105 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 6th overall (11:50, 1.97-mile course)

Oct. 7: Mahomet-Seymour Invitational, 2nd (76 pts)
Top Uni runner: Michelle Mehnert, 6th overall (19:23)

Oct. 9: Amboy Invitational, 5th (196 pts)
Top Uni runner: Shivani Khanna, 17th (18:49, 2.9-mile course)