CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini Men's Cross-Country Class of 2016 signee Jon Davis added another accolade this weekend as he prepares to join Head Coach Jake Stewart's squad this fall. The Oakwood High School senior was named the Gatorade Illinois State Runner of the Year after winning his fourth straight IHSA Class 1-A Cross-Country State Championship.
Davis won this past season's state title by 46 seconds with a three-mile time of 13:59.3, the sixth fastest time in the history of the Illinois state meet at Detweiller Park. Later in November, Davis won the NXN Midwest Regional and then finished 13th at the Foot Locker national meet. On the track, Davis has won the 1600m and 3200m events at the IHSA State meet each of the last two years. After winning the 2014 state title in cross-country, Davis went on to place eighth at the Footlocker Midwest meet and 37th at Footlocker Nationals. As a freshman, Davis placed in the top-30 at the state cross-country meet and had podium finishes in the 800m and 1600m at the state track meet during the spring. Davis has been honored with the 2013 and 2014 News Gazette Runner of the Year.
This is the second straight year Coach Stewart has signed the Gatorade State of Illinois Runner of the Year after Jesse Reiser garnered the honor in 2015. This past fall, Reiser was named Big Ten Freshman of the year after he had the best freshman performance at Big Ten Championships, placing 11th overall.
Head Men's Track Coach Mike Turk on Jon Davis
"We are super excited about Johnathan's commitment and what it means for our distance program," said Turk. "He is one of the top distance runners in the country and will be a big part of what we do especially in cross country as we continue to elevate that area of the program. Adding Jon and his talent to the distance squad is the perfect next step from what we've done the past couple of years."
