Special season for C-G, Anderson

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Cary-Grove girls track and field coach Mark Anderson sensed it before the season.

“We knew we were going to be a strong team and could be a special group,” Anderson said.

The Trojans definitely were special. They won the McHenry County Meet by the narrowest of margins, three-quarters of a point over Huntley, then went on to take local track and field’s triple crown, winning the Fox Valley Conference Meet and the Huntley Sectional.

For C-G’s achievements, Anderson, for the third time, is the Northwest Herald Girls Track and Field Coach of the Year.

“It was fun,” Anderson said. “We had a lot of good story lines with those girls.”

One of the best was at the county meet. Junior Kelly McCoy fell across the finish line to win the 100-meter high hurdles. Junior Lindsay Young, seeded second in the 800, was so sick she finished seventh, earning no team points, and was sent home.

“I sent her a text after we won, but she didn’t even read it until 11 the next morning,” Anderson said.

C-G took a large group to the IHSA state meet, and McCoy won two medals.

Anderson knows he will miss the seniors’ leadership, but the Trojans will be loaded with most of their top athletes returning next year.

“It was just fun to be along for the ride this year,” he said. “You can’t assume because we’re young and have a bunch of people coming back that we’ll be this great.”