131 news: East High senior David Galvan qualifies for state cross country meet
Tuesday, November 3 2015 - IHSA 3A Sectionals - West AuroraNEWS RELEASE
East Aurora High School senior David Galvan will represent Tomcats in state cross country meet
AURORA – East Aurora High School senior David Galvan will run in the boys cross country state championships this weekend, after qualifying as an individual. Galvan finished 17th at the tough West Aurora Sectional, finishing the 3-mile course in 15:54 during a steady downpour.
The boys 3A IHSA cross country meet is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 7. The race is held in Detweiller Park in Peoria, Ill., and is open to the public. More information is available here.
Galvan was the sixth of seven individual runners to qualify out of the highly competitive sectional held at the Stuart Sports Complex in Montgomery. A week earlier, Galvan finished 13th (16:41) at the regional meet. Galvan finished 7th (15:35) in the Upstate Conference meet on October 17.
Head cross country coach Shane Gillespie said Galvan is a lead-by-example runner.
“If you’re not sure what to do, look at what David’s doing and that’s what you should be doing,” Gillespie tells the other Tomcat runners. “He’s a good student and a great kid.”
Galvan’s top three-mile time his freshman year was 21 minutes, 39 seconds. When East Aurora runner Felipe Nino qualified for the state meet in 2013, Galvan was inspired. Galvan dedicated himself over the winter of his sophomore year and ran a 4:46 in the 1600-meters, announcing his presence in the Fox Valley.
Galvan was the team’s top runner as a junior. He was All-Conference both his junior and senior years in cross country, and All-Conference in track as a junior. He finished 20th in the sectional in 2014.
Gillespie said the goal is for Galvan to run around 15 minutes flat at the state meet. Earlier this year, Galvan ran 15:17 at an invitational on the same course, running faster each mile.
For Gillespie, Galvan’s success lifts the whole team. Prior to Nino making the state meet in 2013, it had been more than two decades since a Tomcat had qualified for state. This year, both the boys and girls Tomcat teams both qualified for the sectional meet for the first time in the school’s history.
“David is making the state meet a concrete thing for the other runners,” Gillespie said. “It takes the fantasy and fiction out of the state meet. It’s good for the entire crew.”
The boys finished 13th at sectionals and the girls finished 14th. The girls team was led by Jazmine Reyes (50th place), Jennifer Lopez (81st) and Stephanie Nino (88th).
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For more information:
Matt Hanley, Community Relations
desk 630.299.5534 cell 630.536.4024
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