1971 Cross Country (1999)

You do what you have to do. To be champions, the 1971 Cross Country Team knew that they would have to pay a price. Thus, the seeds of their championship season were planted during the balmy summer evenings of June, July, and August. Under the aegis of the "Laramie Track Club," the returning lettermen spent the summer crisscrossing the roadways and forests of the North Shore. They submitted them-selves to oppressive heat and rigorous self-denial during those dog days, their goal a League title. You do what you have to do. By mid-August, when the entire squad assembled for the official start of the season, the early birds were already running impressively in Chicago-area meets. After an encouraging preseason, Coach Bob Beuter's Bullets passed their first test of strength by defeating Fenwick, the defending Catholic League champions. The Ramblers never looked back as they rolled through an undefeated dual meet season, posting a 9-0-0 record which included five perfect scores. A triumph at the North Section championship put Loyola's harriers in position to reap the harvest of all they had endured since June. The League championship was next. On a brutally cold, windy, twenty-degree morning at Miller's Meadows, Loyola captured the Chicago Catholic League championship in stunning fashion, obliterating the field with the lowest point total in League championship history. Their winning score of twenty points still stands as a meet record twenty-seven years later (Loyola's 1995 team took the title with twenty-one points). Five All-Catholic League runners led the way. Future Hall of Famer Doug Smith, a junior, took the individual title, and was duly followed by captain and Most Valuable Performer Tom McDermott in third, Fran Mastroianni in fourth, Jim Basile in fifth, and Tom Skelly in seventh. All their hard work had paid off when it counted most. Loyola's second place at the All-City meet completed one of the greatest seasons in Loyola cross country history. 1971 Cross Country Team Varsity (left to right) First Row (kneeling): Doug Smith, Bob O'Brien, Kevin Barr, Tom McDermott, Fran Mastroianni, Tom Skelly, Joe Sullivan, Jim Basile. Second Row (standing): Coach Bob Bueter, Leroy Steinke, Tony Broccolo, Tom Victorine, John Bredemann, Tom Hillsman, Mike Faucher, Pat O'Connel, Manager Rick Wiermanski. Junior Varsity (not pictured): Pete Boesen, John Constable, Pat Cotter, Mike Daly, Pat Dollard, Pat Hinkamp, Pete McGivern, Tom Minwegen, Kevin Mullen, Mike Mullen, Mike Nugent, Bob Pates, Jim Reichmann, Jake Reiser, David Reisner, Manager Rick Wiermanski, and Coach Bob Bueter.