It was all about Palatine on Saturday at Deer Grove East Forest Preserve.
Pirates junior Tess Wasowicz won the Class 3A Palatine Regional championship in a time of 17 minutes, 38 seconds, outracing teammate and second-place finisher Jessica Lincoln by 14 seconds.
"Last week I was thinking I could have done more," said Wasowicz, who finished second at the Mid-Suburban League meet to Prospect's Brooke Wolfe. "This week I wanted to really go after it on the second mile and take a risk."
Wasowicz raced to a seven-second lead at the 1.5-mile mark and extended it over the remainder of the race.
Palatine's Cassidy McPherson and Ellen Smith finished sixth and seventh, respectively, and the Pirates captured the team title with 38 points.
"When we have the two of us at the front, it gets everyone moving," Lincoln said. "I think it motivates the entire team."
"We've got two really good girls who are going to be in the mix for all-state spots," Palatine coach Joe Parks said. "Today was a stepping stone. It was about building momentum, and continuing to race hard."
Palatine was second at the state meet a year ago.
"We're bound so closely that it's impossible to enjoy winning if we're not doing it as a team," Wasowicz said. "All the experience of my freshman and sophomore (years) is helping me, and we're running well together at a good time, so it feels like everything is coming full circle."
Barrington's Rebecca Batliner finished third to lead the Broncos to second place and a spot at next week's Schaumburg Sectional at Busse Woods.
Top 3 teams: Palatine 38, Barrington 45, Lake Zurich 60.
Top 3 finishers: Tess Wasowicz, Jr., Palatine, 17:38; Jessica Lincoln, So., Palatine, 17:52; Rebecca Batliner, Jr., Barrington, 18:01.