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Yorkville Middle School Cross Country

2012 YMSXC Alumni

December 22, 2016

 

 

Each year we recognize the graduating Yorkville High School seniors who ran cross country at the high school and also participated in Yorkville Middle School's cross country program. We consider these runners to be our All-Time Greats. They committed to run on one of the most competitive teams in the state, and whether they were the fastest runner on the team or the slowest they deserve to be recognized for their commitment. The year listed sn the last year they ran cross country at the middle school. While most runners have not committed to run in college at this point, we will always update our All-Time Greats page to indicate athletes who go on to run cross country in college.

Piper Buyansky, YMSXC Class of 2012

Piper joined middle school cross country in 8th grade, and immediately made an impact on the team. She not only impacted team spirit as one of the most enthusiastic members on the team, but she also made great strides to improve her running during the year. Piper ended up with a P.R. of 13:27 and was an alternate on a State team that finished 8th in the first year of a three-division IESA State final.

During Piper’s sophomore year in high school cross country she ran on the State championship team that secured four straight State championships for the girls. Piper finished in 32nd place at State with a time of 18:10. Piper still has the upcoming track season to contribute to Yorkville distance, but her spirit will definitely be missed after this school year.

Piper Buyansky: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012
Maddie Dearborn: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012

Maddie Dearborn, YMSXC Class of 2012

Maddie was a two-time team captain, two-time IESA State qualifier, and the team’s unofficial leader during her two years on the middle school team. She ran the most miles on the team in 2012 and was also our Captain of the Year that year. During 7th grade, Maddie has perfect attendance and was our Recruiter of the Year. Maddie had a P.R. of 12:25 in middle school and still holds one of the top 10 fastest times for our team at the Troy Invite.

In high school, Maddie attended IMSA for a semester, but couldn’t stand being away from her Yorkville family so she transferred back to Yorkville. Maddie ran in the State meet three times finishing 29th as a freshman in 18:20, 81st as a sophomore for IMSA in 18:49, and 35th as a senior in 3A in 17:30. Maddie ran at State for the 1600m in track during her sophomore year and also ran in the prestigious Arcadia Invitational in California during her junior year as a member of the 4x1600 and distance medley relays.

Alexis Grandys, YMSXC Class of 2012

Alexis didn’t join cross country until 8th grade, but she left a mark on the cross country program as one of Yorkville’s best runners. She was the middle school’s first ever girl All-State athlete when she finished 3rd in the 2012 IESA State meet with a time of 11:45. She also holds team records for our now-retired home course at Hoover (12:48) and the Channahon Invite (11:33). Alexis was also the first Sectional individual champion for either gender in team history.

Alexis didn’t run cross country her freshman year, but she came back her sophomore year and became one of the high school team’s top runners. She finished 2nd in State with a time of 17:12 during her sophomore year, 3rd with a time of 17:01 her junior year, and 25th in 17:23 her senior year in the highest division of 3A. All three years Alexis was an All-State athlete. Alexis also competed in track during high school and was a part of the 2016 4x800 and 4x1600 teams that traveled to California for the Arcadia Invitational. Alexis has committed to run at Division I Central Michigan University to continue her running career after high school.

Alexis Grandys: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012
Jake Martin: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012

Jake Martin, YMSXC Class of 2012

Jake joined cross country in 8th grade and ran a P.R. of 13:06 at the Prairie Conference meet after starting the season running 18:05. Jake's sarcastic sense of humor fit right in with the Yorkville cross country coaches.

Jake continued cross country and track in high school, running a 3 mile P.R. of 18:58, a 1600 P.R. of 5:27, and an 800 P.R. of 2:27. He was also incredibly adept at tracing unicorns on the whiteboard wall in Coach Miller’s classroom.

Julia Megazzini, YMSXC Class of 2012

Julia was one of the most influential leaders in Yorkville’s cross country program over her six years running cross country. She was a two-time captain for the middle school and was named Captain of the Year in 7th grade. In 8th grade, she was named Recruiter of the Year and became the second cross country runner from Yorkville to win the IESA’s Scholar Attitude Award. She qualified for IESA State both years at YMS and ran a 13:29 in 7th grade and 13:18 in 8th grade for two top ten teams.

In high school, Julia remained a strong leader on the team even though she did not run at State until her senior year. She ran on the 2nd-place 3A team and finished in 129th place with a time of 18:38.

Julia Megazzini: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012
Alexx Nauman: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012

Alexx Nauman, YMSXC Class of 2012

Before Alexx, the middle school cross country team workouts were purposefully easier so as not to discourage kids from joining cross country in high school. It was up to Coach Muth to implement the killer workouts at the high school level. Runners like Alexx, though, showed they were committed to the sport and wanted to be challenged, so in 8th grade Alexx began running workouts more similar to the high school runners. Top runners since him have been running high school-like workouts to build on our successful program. While Alexx did not make State in 7th grade, he made it on the 7th place State team in 8th grade and ran 11:09 to finish as an All-State athlete in 16th place. Alexx holds team records for the Belvidere Central Invite, Channahon Invite, and Troy Invite for the middle school.

Alexx ran at State on two trophy-winning high school teams his sophomore and junior years and also ran at State his senior year in 3A. Alexx finished 64th with a time of 15:38 his sophomore year, 58th in 15:41 his junior year, and 151st in 15:44 his senior year. Alexx will always be remembered as one of the runners who helped push Yorkville’s cross country program forward.

Tyler Rios, YMSXC Class of 2012

It seems like there were a lot of runners in the 2012 class who didn’t join cross country until 8th grade. Tyler was another runner who started in 8th grade. He started the season running 19:20 in the second time trial and finished with a P.R. of 14:11 at the Prairie Conference meet.

In high school, Tyler continued to run cross country and track and quietly worked hard to improve. Tyler ran a P.R. of 18:31 in cross country, 5:28 in the 1600, and 2:29 in the 800. Tyler was a fun-loving presence who helped inspire those in his workout groups to improve.

Tyler Rios: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012
Brendan Zeinstra: Yorkville Middle School Cross Country Class of 2012

Brendan Zeinstra, YMSXC Class of 2012

Brendan ran one time trial in 7th grade before an injury ended his season. However, Brendan continued to show up for meets and practices and just missed making our post-season roster in 8th grade with a P.R. of 12:19 at the Prairie Conference meet.

Brendan continued cross country in high school and ran a P.R. of 17:37. In track, Brendan focused more on sprint events and became one of the go-to 400 runners on the team, running a P.R. of 57.16 in the open 400. Brendan showed his dedication to Yorkville cross country by sticking with the team during his injury, and that type of dedication is something that showed off Brendan’s impeccable character.






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