By james art KEARNEY—Generations of Fremont cross country, four years of training and a full season of training culminated in the fastest time the course at Kearney Country Club had even seen at a state meet on Friday.
Senior Juan Gonzalez blasted his way into the history books with a 14:52.1, shaving six seconds off the previous fastest time at the state meet to claim his third straight Class A individual title.
“I knew it was going to be just me and the clock,” Gonzalez said. “I didn’t want to let someone else take the race because I knew it was in my hands. As soon as I got out, I followed him. I didn’t want to waste time staying with anyone.”
Gonzalez escaped the opening jam and immediately began to put distance between himself and the rest of the Class A field.
After a mile, Gonzalez had a four-second lead on the field. A mile later it was up to 20 seconds. The final gap ended up being 50 seconds between him and Lincoln North Star’s Josiah Bitker, who came in at 15:42.2.
Fremont’s Juan Gonzalez chases his only race in the Class A state cross country meet – the cart – Friday at Kearney Country Club. Gonzalez set the state meet record with a winning time of 14:52.1, six seconds faster than the previous top mark.
Randy Speer Fremont Tribune
In the build-up leading up to the race, McMahon challenged Gonzalez to make his final run “on film,” superimposing the moves he’d made in past races, even without anyone to do them against.
“When you’re racing up front, you always have to keep your foot on the gas, don’t think about what’s behind you,” Gonzalez said. “You almost make something up in your head, you know, like there’s someone in front of you and you always have to go after them.”
The senior won his first two titles, running stride for stride with his challengers before burying them with a late sprint – his first title coming by winning the final 100m sprint to the finish line.
The other figurative runner Gonzalez was trying to track down was former Hartington runner Carson Knocker. He set the previous state meet record of 14:58.3 and holds the overall course record of 14:51, which would be the cherry on top Friday for Gonzalez.
Gonzalez had two other chances to set the course record, both times denied by less-than-ideal weather. Friday’s early afternoon temperatures around 60 degrees put the record-chasing plan in full motion.
“We’ve been talking about this for the past weeks and months,” Gonzalez said. “That was the goal, but when we realized the weather was going to be great today, it all came together.”
The senior recalled a nostalgic way as he crossed the finish line for the last time, dispelling the weight of all the fictional runners he passed during his record-breaking time.
“Crossing the finish line first for the third time at state, it’s almost like deja vu,” Gonzalez said.
The senior leaves Fremont as one of the most decorated cross country runners the school has ever seen. Three HAC championships, two district titles, three state titles – two that earned him all-class gold honors, including this fall – and a scoring member on all four state teams, three took home team titles, in addition to all school records, broken during the way.
“It all goes back to his overall work ethic and what he works for and the people that have mentored him, because that’s where he runs for all of them,” McMahon said.
His only finish outside of first place at the state meet was ninth as a freshman.
McMahon remembers the first time he saw Juan Gonzalez run. Eager to follow his older brother Jose, a standout runner for the Tigers, Gonzalez joined the Tigers’ track and field club in third grade.
“You know a lot of it is about having fun and having little dates in town with six, eight other kids, but he was burning with the desire to run fast from that young age and be like his big brother,” McMahon said. “You never say well this kid is going to set state records, but we knew he was going to be awfully good and we knew he had the family that was going to support him and support him and that’s four years of absolute, total unity of purpose.” “
His third state title moves Fremont into a tie for the most individual state champions, matching Kearney with seven.
Gonzalez joins seven other runners in the tri-state title club and becomes the fourth Class A runner to reach the milestone along with Lincoln Southeast’s Nate Nielsen, Kearney’s Colby Wissel and Lincoln North Star’s Liem Chot.
“The kid hasn’t missed a mile,” McMahon said. “He takes care of his body. He makes sure his teammates are prepared to go to practice. He’s always watching the others split and asking questions and the last person to leave. And when he gets home. It’s all about taking care of yourself and getting ready for the next day.
Gonzalez’s season is officially over at Nebraska State, but he will compete again later this fall in two regionals with ambitions to return to the national stage as he did after his junior season.
He is currently ranked as the No. 7 high school boys running back in the nation by DyeStat’s Keenan Gray.