2023 All-Area boys' cross-country: Meet the first team

Dec. 3—It's Year 20 for our All-Area Boys' Cross-Country first team:

Jackson Barrett

Tuscola senior

➜ Why he made the first team: Barrett came the closest of any area runner to claiming an individual state title, finishing third in Class 1A to lead the Warriors to their first team state championship in school history and finish off an undefeated season. He won the Spartan Classic in St. Joseph with a personal-best and meet-record time of 14 minutes, 12.5 seconds. Barrett also won the First to the Finish Invitational in a field of more than 500 runners and finished top three in the Central Illinois Conference, regionals and sectionals.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

➜ Before he competes, he drinks ... a Pedialyte.

➜ His dream career is ... a sports broadcaster.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... history.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Lucas Coll Rubio.

➜ His favorite thing to watch is ... random comedy movies.

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... John F. Kennedy, Nikola Tesla and Steve Prefontaine.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... attending the Olympics, winning a high school cross-country state championship (already crossed off the list) and breaking nine minutes in the two-mile run.

Will Foltz

Tuscola senior

➜ Why he made the first team: Foltz rounded out the Warriors' trio of seniors who led the pack in seemingly every race. He ran a personal-best time of 14 minutes, 51.3 seconds to finish sixth at the Class 1A state meet and help lead Tuscola to a 1A team state championship. The future Southern Illinois runner was the Central Illinois Conference champion, the team's top runner at the 46th annual Tuscola Classic and third at both regionals and sectionals.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... the NCAA outdoor track and field championships.

➜ Before he competes, he drinks ... a MiO-flavored water.

➜ His dream career is ... computer programming.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... history.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Ryder James.

➜ His favorite TV show is ... "Stranger Things."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... Ethan Hogan, Drew Rogers and Simeon Birnbaum.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... winning a high school track and field team state championship, visiting Europe and breaking four minutes in the mile.

Will Fuson

Cerro Gordo/Bement sophomore

➜ Why he made the first team: Fuson time of 15 minutes, 12.1 seconds at the Class 1A state meet was his personal-best — more than a full minute faster than his first race of the season — and earned him All-State honors for his 12th-place finish at Detweiller Park in Peoria. Before that, he placed fourth at the sectional meet, sixth at the regional meet and was the Lincoln Prairie Conference champion.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... the NCAA men's basketball Final Four.

➜ Before he competes, he eats ... scrambled eggs and toast.

➜ His dream career is ... an engineer.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... math.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Terrence Shannon, Jr.

➜ His favorite movie is ... "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... Adam Sandler, Michael Jordan and Will Ferrell.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... seeing the ocean, breaking 15 minutes in a three-mile race and running a marathon.

Josiah Hortin

Tuscola senior

➜ Why he made the first team ... Tuscola coach Neil Garrison said Hortin could have emerged as the Runner of the Year just as easily as teammate Jackson Barrett, and the results back it up. Hortin's personal-best time of 14 minutes, 13.2 seconds is just seven-tenths of a second off of Barrett. He was second in the Central Illinois Conference, won his races at the Class 1A Sullivan Regional and 1A St. Teresa Sectional and placed 10th at state with a time of 15:08.18.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... a Lil Baby concert.

➜ Before he competes, he drinks ... a Celsius energy drink.

➜ His dream career is ... a professional runner.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... English.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... LeBron James.

➜ His favorite TV show is ... "Snowfall."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... Jim Ryan, LeBron James and Kevin Hart.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... attending the Olympics, winning a high school track and field state title and winning a high school state basketball title.

Carson Maroon

St. Joseph-Ogden senior

➜ Why he made the first team: Maroon was the only area runner outside of Tuscola's top four to break the 15-minute mark, with a third-place, personal-best time of 14 minutes and 46.6 seconds at the St. Joseph-Ogden Spartan Classic. He never placed outside the top 10 in any race this season, winning five races, including the Illini Prairie Conference Championship, and taking ninth at the Class 1A state meet in a time of 15:06.55.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... a Joe Diffie concert.

➜ Before he competes, he eats ... a bagel and three fruit snacks.

➜ His dream career is ... becoming a Marine and starting his own business.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... guitar.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Ray Allen.

➜ His favorite TV show is ... "Family Guy."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... Mike Tyson, David Goggins and Jocko Willink.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... visiting more than 30 countries, running multiple ultramarathons and giving back to his family.

Caleb Mathias

Champaign Central sophomore

➜ Why he made the first team: Mathias became the first back-to-back state medalist in Central history with a 16th-place finish at the Class 2A state meet. His time of 15 minutes, 4.4 seconds at Detweiller Park was his personal-best and just 10 seconds off the program record. Mathias won four races throughout the season, was runner-up in the Big 12 Conference meet and at the 2A Richland County Regionals and took third at the 2A Jacksonville Sectional.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... Taylor Swift's Eras Tour.

➜ Before he competes, he eats ... run gum and can't race without it.

➜ His dream career is ... a business lawyer.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... math.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Ky Robinson because I love watching him kick it into gear in races.

➜ His favorite movie is ... "McFarland, USA."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... Steve Prefontaine, Yaseen Abdalla and Jay Johnson. I respect their work ethic, and they inspire me.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... skydiving, winning a high school state cross-country title and earning a pilot's license.

Blake McLeese

Tuscola sophomore

➜ Why he made the first team ... McLeese battled through nagging injuries in the Class 1A state final, but he gutted out a 30th-place finish to help the Warriors win their first-ever state title. McLeese ran a personal-best time of 14 minutes, 51.3 seconds at the Spartan Classic, placed fourth at the Central Illinois Conference meet and helped Tuscola become the first team to ever have runners place first through fourth at the First to the Finish Invitational by finishing third.

➜ He needs tickets to see ... the Super Bowl.

➜ Before he competes, he eats ... cereal.

➜ His dream career is ... an electrician.

➜ His favorite school subject is ... geometry.

➜ His favorite athlete is ... Tua Tagovailoa.

➜ His favorite movie is ... "Arrival."

➜ If he could have dinner with any three people from any time period, he would pick ... LeBron James, Tyreek Hill and Tom Brady.

➜ Three items on his bucket list are ... attending a Super Bowl, going to a College Football National Championship game and skydiving.