The senior covered the 3.0-mile course on the Willowbrook High School campus in 16 minutes, 11 seconds to earn all-conference honors.

The strong finish also put Alvarez in prime contention for this Saturday's IHSA Class 3A Lake Park Regional in Roselle.

"Regional will be fun," Alvarez said. "Hopefully, our team gets out and makes it to sectional. Otherwise, I will be there. My goal is to get downstate."

"Herald ran a great race and was one of the only bright spots for us," Eagles head coach Richard Mason said. "The team and I were disappointed in the way we ran as a group. They know we need a stronger effort to make it out of our regional."

Leyden finished fifth in the team standings with 100 points. Downers Grove won the event with 43, while Hinsdale South placed second with 60. Morton was third (66) and Willowbrook finished fourth (82). Addison Trail placed sixth (185) and Proviso East had zero.

With a 3-3 record in conference dual meets, Leyden finished tied for fourth place with Willowbrook in the overall league standings.

Hector Patino was the second Eagle to enter the chute, placing 20th in a time of 17:00. Arthur Williams was one spot behind Patino in 17:06 and Fernando Ramirez finished 26th in 17:27. Daniel Pitts (31st, 18:09), Roberto Gonzalez (32nd, 18:13) and Amaury Michel (33rd, 18:22) rounded out the field for Leyden.