Annually held at beautiful Detweiller Park in Peoria, the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) boys and girls state cross country meet ranks among the nation’s very best.

Every fall, the top harriers in the Land of Lincoln converge on this fairly flat field located north of Peoria in fervent pursuit of treasured IHSA state championships. On November 7, both boys and girls in three enrollment classifications (Classes 1A, 2A and 3A) will compete for 2015 state titles on this three-mile course.

On the boys’ side, defending state champions are Monticello in Class 1A, Yorkville in Class 2A and Hinsdale Central in Class 3A.

Meanwhile, St. Joseph-Ogden in Class 1A, Yorkville in Class 2A and Naperville North in Class 3A will seek to defend their crowns on the girls’ side.

The first boys state meet was held in 1946 with just one enrollment classification. In that inaugural meet, Warren Dreutzler of LaGrange Lyons cruised to a 10:07.8 time on a two-mile course.

Paris claimed the first four boys state titles behind coach Ernie Eveland the first three years and then under the watchful tutelage of coach H.D. (“Deac”) Sweeley in 1949. Paris capped off its amazing five-year run the following season when it was runner-up to state champ Chicago Heights Bloom Township.

In 1968, the race was lengthened to three miles. The single-class format existed until 1976 when the IHSA expanded it to two classes (Classes A and AA), and then to three classes (Classes 1A, 2A and 3A) during the 2007 season.

Behind 2004 NFHS National High School Hall of Fame inductee Joe Newton, Elmhurst York has won a state-record 28 boys cross country state titles, along with 12 runner-up and five third-place finishes. Newton also led the Dukes to consecutive state titles streaks of six (1989 to 1994), five (1980 to 1984) and five again (2002 to 2006).

The legendary Newton coached York cross country and track teams to a combined 255 conference championships, and to more than 2,000 dual meet victories at a 96-percent winning percentage. The 86-year-old Newton has been at York since 1960, and his cross country program was featured in the feature-length documentary “The Long Green Line.”

Jorge Torres of Wheeling claimed a state-record three consecutive state titles in 1996, 1997 and 1998. Despite the fact that it was set 43 years ago (1972), Lebanon’s Craig Virgin still holds the all-enrollment classes state meet record time of 13:50.6. Virgin also won the 1971 state title.

Craig Virgin winning the 1972 IHSA state cross country meet

During the intervening 43 years, Virgin’s state-meet record time was seriously challenged only twice – when Chris Derrick of Naperville Neuqua Valley High School ran a 13:52 in 2007, and when Lukas Verzbicas of Sandburg Orland Park High School turned in a 13:54 in 2010.

Virgin, who also won three track state titles, set the national outdoor high school two-mile record of 8:40.9. He went on to win nine Big Ten Conference championships, nine All-American awards and the 1975 NCAA cross country championship at the University of Illinois.

“I am glad to say I set the state meet record,” Virgin said. “I have been told that it’s the oldest standing state meet record in the United States. It was a fast time – many states have switched to 5K and we haven’t. I’m kind of proud of that. Those top 10 or 20 times are almost like a hall of fame. I commend the IHSA for keeping that three-mile distance – I regard all those runners as being special. I have seen t-shirts listing the all-time top 10 times.

“I did a warm-down following the 1972 race as I wanted to enjoy it. However, I guessed that the record would be broken the next 10 or 20 years or so. I was there for both Chris’ and Lukas’ races.

“The course has become a magical draw – there are teams that gave up other races so they can run an invite during the regular season to prepare them for the state meet. There’s a lot of traffic on that course. It has assumed legendary status and has become a mecca of high school cross country. I can’t imagine the IHSA moving from there. Never did I race in the snow there, but there has been snow.

“Most years, I have made the pilgrimage back to the state cross country meet. The aesthetics of the setting is probably one of the things that set it apart from other courses. The course is on a big slope and it’s a big rectangle, but it narrows. It looks a little like a ‘figure eight.’ Spectators in the middle literally spring from side to side to watch the race.”

Meanwhile, the female harriers got their start in 1979, when Wheeling claimed the inaugural girls’ state title under the leadership of coach Jim Nagel. Nagel then led the Wildcats to the runner-up finish in 1982, followed by state titles in 1983, 1984 and 1986.

Leading Wheeling’s remarkable mid-1980s run was Dana Miroballi, who won four consecutive state titles from 1984 to 1987. Miroballi, who was inducted into the NFHS’ National High School Hall of Fame in 2009, also won the eighth-grade state title in 1983 while running for Prospect Heights MacArthur Junior High School to give her five cross country state championship trophies. Also a track standout with four consecutive 3,200-meter state titles and two 1,600-meter state titles, Miroballi went on to become a cross country and track standout at Indiana University. Although a petite 5-foot-1, Miroballi was a giant on any cross country course on which she set foot.

Dana Miroballi on the cover of the 1988 IHSA state cross country meet program

“I started running cross country at MacArthur Junior High School the beginning of seventh grade,” Miroballi said. “I just wanted to run, and a friend got me to come out for the team. As an eighth-grader, I won the Illinois Elementary School Association cross country state title, and the following spring, I won the mile run in track.

“Back then, the distance for high school girls was 2.1 miles. My times during my first three years were remarkably consistent – 11:29.6, 11:29.5 and 11:31.

“During my freshman year, with a half-mile to go I was in tenth place. I just gave it all I had and came from behind to beat those runners, including Downers Grove North senior Tracy Laughlin in the chute.

“After winning as a freshman, people said all the time ‘Can she win four consecutive state titles?’ I tried to do my thing. Since I was on a very talented team, if I won, I was helping the team.

“My senior year was the only year they let me go on my own, and I ran an 11:16. My goal was to win, but also to set the state record, which was 11:22.9 at that time.

“I loved Detweiller Park. It was a state meet – the epitome of where you wanted to go in high school. It was a flat course - I liked that because I like track and it was more like track. It was an easy course where you couldn’t get lost. I loved it because it was the beginning of November and it was very pretty. The starting area was very open – you could get out and not get banged by people.

“These days, I am part of a group that runs at 5:00 a.m. We go on group runs. It’s fun – not running ‘old days fast’ – but it’s also not slow. Having recently turned 45, I just run for the enjoyment and to be healthy.”

For the past 11 years, Miroballi has been an attorney for the Department of Justice. Her husband, Dave, is a program manager for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. They have two sons – Tyler, who is four, and Luke, who is almost six.

In addition to Miroballi, Katelyn Bastert of Carthage also won a state-record four state titles, claiming hers from 2003 to 2006.

Winnebago leads the state with 12 girls cross country state titles between 1989 and 2008, while Palatine (seven) and Naperville North (six) trail the Indians cross country program in that particular record category. Winnebago also holds the record for consecutive state titles with five between 2005 and 2009.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Winnebago coach Roger Frederickson holds the state record for most state titles by a coach with seven. Under the direction of Joe and Janet Erb, Winnebago also won five consecutive state titles from 2005 to 2009.

Madeline Perez of Glen Ellyn Glenbard West set the all-enrollment classes state meet record time in 2012, when she cruised to a 16:02 clocking – a full 10 seconds ahead of the runner-up in that particular record category.

An interesting fact regarding the state meet is - with the exception of the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney - there has been a Detweiller Park state cross country championships alumnus (not necessarily the winner) on every U.S. Olympic team since 1976.

The "Unofficial Father of the Detweiller Cross Country Championships Course” is Bob LaCroix, who was track and field and cross country coach at Peoria (Illinois) High School and Peoria (Illinois) Richwoods High School for 38 years. LaCroix’s combined dual meet record of 485-64 is the most in Illinois state history.

LaCroix laid out the original 2.75-mile course at Detweiller Park, made the bid to bring the state meet there in 1970, and helped change it to 3.0 miles. In addition, he helped bring in the girls state meet and the two-class system - which now has evolved into a three-class system for both boys and girls.

Chris Perry, who retired from Peoria (Illinois) Central High School in 2010 after a 35-year career, currently heads up the local organizing committee for the state meet. He took over that responsibility after LaCroix retired.