<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1nh9FI_0vjzNgn900" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1nh9FI_0vjzNgn900" width="1200" height="920" ><figcaption>Members of Central’s boys cross country team shortly after finishing their race at the Red Devil Invitational in Hinsdale on Sept. 7. The varsity team finished seventh among a field of 22 teams. (Photo Credit: Steve Stack via X)</figcaption></figure>Naperville Central’s boys cross country team has started off on a strong foot this season with a large underclassmen roster making a big impact on the team’s performance.“This freshmen class is something special,” said captain Patrick Clune, a senior. “They’ll definitely keep climbing through.”The team’s roster is led by Clune, followed closely in time by sophomore Manny Nejara.“We’ve got some really hungry freshmen and sophomores,” assistant coach Steve Stack said. “I think that’ll inspire some of our juniors and seniors.”Central’s varsity roster has high ambitions for the postseason.“Our goal always is to qualify a team to state,” Stack said. “A team that everyone thinks about, you expect that team to be at state every year.”At the First to the Finish Invitational in Peoria on Sept. 14, Central placed 15th in a field of over 45 teams in the varsity race. Clune led the Redhawks with a time of 15:28.4, placing 28th in a race with over 300 competitors.“We got second at our first invite, and then we’re slowly going through the rankings,” Clune said. “We started out unranked, and now we’re finally ranked.”Central is ranked No. 24 in Illinois by ILXCTF.“If we can walk away as conference champions or top two in the conference, that tells us we are doing a lot of things really well,” Stack said.</div></body>

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Underclassmen make large impact on Central’s boys cross country team

Naperville Central’s boys cross country team has started off on a strong foot this season with a large underclassmen roster making a big impact on the team’s performance. “This freshmen class is something special,” said captain Patrick Clune, a senior. “They’ll definitely keep climbing through.”