CLC’s McNeely hopes pool work pays off

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Kelly McNeely has spent enough time in swimming pools over the past year to sprout fins and gills.

McNeely, who was a sophomore at Johnsburg last fall, amazingly took 10th at the IHSA Class 2A State Cross Country Meet after missing five weeks of the season because of a stress fracture in her right tibia.

If they had held a state meet for running in a pool, McNeely likely would have won.

“Aqua jogging is great if you’re hurt,” said McNeely, who transferred to Crystal Lake Central this year. “It keeps you at about 85 percent.”

As a freshman, McNeely took seventh in the Class 2A 3,200-meter run at the IHSA Girls State Track and Field Meet. She followed that with the remarkable comeback last fall.

Now, if only her right leg can take the pounding of the cross country season. She returned to running in late July but hopes her training base, with the water running, will pay dividends.

“I think it will hold up,” McNeely said. “I gained a lot of knowledge. I went to a running camp, but I didn’t run.”

Instead, she aqua jogged and rode a stationary bike.

McNeely joins a Central team that has three runners – Molly Flood, Rachel Bush and Madie Edwards – who have run in two state meets. The Tigers were third in the Fox Valley Conference. If McNeely remains strong, Central could accomplish a lot in the postseason.

Heat of the moment: The McHenry County Cross Country Meet at Woodstock’s Emricson Park was called off Tuesday after the boys varsity race because of high temperatures and humidity. Two boys runners went down late in the race, and two ambulances were called from the Woodstock Fire Department.

At that point, race officials met and decided to call off the varsity girls, freshman-sophomore boys and freshman-sophomore girls races because they could not afford to call any more ambulances.

It was quite similar to the 2007 county meet, which was called after the freshman-sophomore girls race on an extremely hot and humid day.

Many coaches were frustrated the racing had to stop, and most competitors who had not run still ran the course as a workout. Marian Central boys coach Dave Marrinson made a pre-emptive strike and raced all his boys – varsity and freshman-sophomore runners – in the varsity race, anticipating what might happen.

This could be a subject the area coaches approach later in the season regarding future scheduling. The county meet is a nice way to kick off the season, but there is no way of predicting how hot and humid it will be so early in the season.

Since most schools already have their weekend meets planned well ahead, perhaps the coaches will look at moving the county meet back a couple of weeks and running it on a Monday or Tuesday. That time period could make a difference with the weather, thus alleviating a lot of frustration.

• Joe Stevenson covers high school sports for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached by e-mail at jstevenson@nwherald.com.