Area Sports Roundup: Orland Park’s Krysta Stanko wins Liberty Run

By Jeff Vorva
Staff Writer

Out-of-state runners have been doing well recently in the men’s division of the Orland Park Veterans Liberty Run.

In 2021, Minnesota Resident Owen Ford was a close second in the running of that race.

This year, another out-of-state athlete did one better.

Brett Hulliberger, of Waukesha, Wisconsin, won the 2-mile race at Centennial Park  in 10:50.8 seconds.

Hulliberger has some Illinois connections, as he is on the cross country and track teams at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais. He was on his way from Wisconsin to a family vacation in Michigan when he stopped to see his girlfriend in Orland Park and signed up for the race.

“I just wanted to have fun,” he said. “It’s a cool event.”

The woman’s champ was Orland Park resident and Andrew student Krysta Stanko, who placed eighth overall with a time of 13:02.7.

Her father, Dave, ran cross country while he was a student at Oak Lawn High School and placed 18^th in the state in 1986.

There were 160 runners who finished the race and several that walked on a one-mile course. There was a 50-yard kids dash.

Brett Hulliberger of Wisconsin won the Veterans Liberty Run, held in Orland Park’s Centennial Park on July 1. Photo by Jeff Vorva

A list of the age group medalists in the Liberty Run:

Male 9-under: Connor Gregorson, Colin Young and Dylan Ahmer.

Female 9-younger: Taylor Bogdan, Elena Wilkins and Addison Bogdan.

Male 10-14: Dylan Straka, Colin Stack and Pounds Rylan.

Female 10-14: Samantha Barry, Kaylee Woods and Katie Ahmer.

Male 15-19: Saulo Mateo Ramiro, Peter Mulligan and Brayden Block.

Female 15-19: Krysta Stanko, Daniela Iraci and Charlotte Gallian.

Male 20-24: Brett Hulliberger, Patrick Gannon and Andrew Szmanski.

Female 20-24: Julia Dalmann and Stephanie Gaspardo.

Male 25-29: Tyler Guzinski and Zack Lundquist.

Female 25-29: Elyse Janosz, Michaela Trail and Cassandra Noonan.

Male 30-34: Trevor Noonan.

Female 30-34: Michelle Lally, Sarah Janosz, Stephanie Nolan.

Male 35-39: Colin Nolan, Scott Gerretse, Nick Gregorson.

Female 35-39: Kaitlyn Yoder and Katie Smith.

Runners (left to right) Andrew Heilman, Gavin Hanley and Colin Stack get ready for the Liberty Run. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Male 40-44: Dariusz Lisowski, Nicholas Janet and Jakob Luckhard.

Female 40-44: Courtney Luckhard, Mary Beth Casarez and Erica Bogdan.

Male 45-49: Michael Young, Benedyct Szymanski and Michael Turk.

Female 45-49: Bridget Young, Bridget Quinn and Elizabeth Aguinaga.

Male 50-54: Krzysztof Wasik, Sean McNamee and David Bruce.

Female 50-54: Paula Gaspardo, Erika Garcia and Sonya Levoy.

Male 55-59: Patrick O’Connell, Richard Rugett and Jim Downey.

Female 55-59: Vilma Elizondo.

Male 60-64: Doran Phillips and John Janosz.

Female 60-64: Laura Mniszewski-Krull, Kathy Jurcenko and Susan Janosz.

Male 65-69: Richard Schopper.

Female 65-69: Beverlee Dallmann.

Male 70-older: Alan White, Geoffrey Tryon and John Jurcenko.

Female 70-older: Paula Scheiwe, Kathy Kleczkowski and Judy Hetzel.

Orland Park’s Krysta Stanko (right) won the women’s division of the Liberty Run. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Heading to junior Olympics

The new Illinois Lightning Track team is already in a position to make some national noise.

Two athletes from the Palos Heights-based club qualified two athletes to the AAU Junior Olympics, which will be held July 30-Aug. 6 at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Richards’ Julia Niemeyer and Shepard’s Kyla Motley qualified at a recent qualifier in the heptathlon with Niemeyer scoring 3,520 points and Motley 3,291.

Rose ready for PDP League

Brother Rice catcher Zion Rose, who just completed his junior season helping the Crusaders to a third-place finish in the state in Class 4A, is one of 100 players invited to the Major League Baseball Prospect Development Pipeline League which wrapped up Wednesday in Cary, North Carolina.

Rose will also compete in the MLB-USA Baseball High School All-American Game at Dodger Stadium during All-Star Week.