Hinsdale Doings — Nov. 3, 2005 Devils return to state with high aspirations BY BILL STONE , SPORTS WRITER Senior Ashley Soltwisch's 2004 Hinsdale Central girls cross country season supposedly was over by sectionals. When a teammate suffered an injury, however, Soltwisch rejoined the lineup to compete at the Class AA state meet. Despite nagging injuries herself, Soltwisch finished 136th and was the fifth finisher for the Red Devils, who took seventh to match the highest state finish in program history. "If Megan Heenan wasn't injured, I would not have run at state," Soltwisch said. "I hadn't raced the week before, so it was better because I hadn't put a lot of stress on (my injury)." As the Red Devils prepare for this year's state meet at 12:15 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, at Peoria's Detweiller Park, Soltwisch is a stronger, healthier and more experienced tri-captain. And she's not the only one looking to accomplish even more. The Red Devils showed that again Saturday as they finished a strong fourth at the Bremen Sectional to secure their fourth straight state team appearance. "You all build up to state, and you want to do your best then. We're hoping to do our best because we want to have the best finish for our school," Soltwisch said. "I'm really excited to improve on last year, and I'm excited because it's my senior year. I want to do well, and it's my last chance. I've already been through it, so I already know what to expect." Freshmen Roey Hines (17 minutes, 52 seconds) and Lauren Zumbach (17:52) finished sixth and ninth in the 3.03-mile sectional race for the Red Devils, followed by Soltwisch (21st, 18:22), freshman Heather Stevens (38th, 18:55), junior Jenny Laser (43rd, 19:05) and seniors Megan Gleason (61st, 19:41) and Kristina Truedson (20:32), whose place was undetermined because of confusion at the finish chute. The Red Devils (117 points), ranked sixth in this week's state coaches poll, nearly beat No. 4 Sandburg (112) and No. 5 Lockport (106) for second place. Defending state champion and top-ranked Naperville North won with 63 points. The Red Devils' top-five finishers all ran their fastest 3.0-mile equivalent times of the season. Truedson made her varsity debut in place of junior Gina Kapusta, who had been battling illness and was diagnosed with mononucleosis. "Teamwise, we were very happy with our race. We pride ourselves in running well in big meets," Hinsdale Central coach Mark McCabe said. "There's seven teams in the state that are in the mix (to excel), and I think we're one of them. Nobody has to be Superwoman, but if everybody goes down and runs a solid race, like they have all year, good things will happen because all of the teams won't do that." Truedson's parents helped to resolve most of the chute confusion. Awaiting their daughter, they videotaped the finish of the race, and officials used that to verify several finishers. This week's videotape will be even better -- Truedson competing at state after being a standout for the conference championship junior varsity team. At Detweiller last year, Truedson won the open race of the Notre Dame Invitational. "I'm excited because all of my races that I've had (at Detweiller) I did really well," Truedson said. "I'm still not completely like, 'I'm going to run.' It's different. I was injured at the beginning of the season. Just the experience of running a varsity race another time should be fun." Hines also will receive senior support from her sister, Madeleine, who also was a key member of the JV. "During every meet, she's always there cheering me on at every turn, and she's just been a role model to me this season," Roey Hines said. "It's such an overwhelming experience, and I never could have imagined as a freshman I was going to be able to run at state and come this far. We'll all remember all of the hard work we put into this season and just use all of that to do the best that we can do (at state)." Copyright© 2005, The Doings