Photo: Oswego celebrates winning their first conference championship since 1995.

 

By Michael Newman

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Optimal weather brought us some great performances across the state over the past weekend.

Most of the meets that we looked at are Girls Conference Championships except for the Chicago Public League Championships which was Co-Ed.

Here are some of the highlights from some of the conference meets from the past week. You can read about the DuPage Valley Conference Championships here.

 

Big 12 Conference @ Urbana

While Normal West scored 127 points to win team title ahead of Bloomington (109 points) and Urbana (103 points), all eyes were on Danville’s Ameia Wilson. She had a memorable meet winning three individual events. The junior started her night by jumping 19-0 to win the Long Jump by almost two feet ahead of Normal West’s Whitney Bozarth. Wilson was electric on the track. Her 11.89 win in the 100 Meter Dash was more than a half second ahead of second-place Bailey McGill of Bloomington (12.58). It was the same placings in the 200 Meter Dash between the two athletes. Wilson’s state leading time of 24.02 was more than two seconds ahead of McCall (26.47).

Danville’s Shanice Garbutt won a hard fought 3200 Meter Run (11:23.09) eight seconds ahead of Urbana’s Libby Cultra (11:31.62). Garbutt came back to run 5:16.84 to win the 1600 Meter Run ahead of Urbana’s Olivia Rosenstein (5:22.28).

Bloomington’s Ellie Weltha had a great night in the ring. She threw a personal best 141-5 (IL #3) to win the Discus. Her 44-6 mark won the Shot Put. Hannah Johnson of Normal Community (41-3) and Kelsie Johnson (41-2) were also over 40-feet in the event.

 

Central State Eight Conference

The sprints gave us an idea of what we should look for in state in a couple of weeks. Three runners were under 12-seconds in the 100 Meter Dash as Springfield’s Ozzy Erewele ran a personal best 11.78 for the win ahead of Serena Bolden of Springfield Southeast (11.93) and Decatur Eisenhower’s Tina Martin (11.99). It was Martin that had the edge in the 200 Meter Dash as she ran 24.32 for the win ahead of Erewele’s 24.32. Bolden had a fantastic night in the jumps starting with a state leading 20-1.25 to win the Long Jump. She came back to jump 40-3.25 to win the Triple Jump. Bolden was also a part of Southeast’s 400 Meter Relay team that ran 49.30 for the win just two hundredths of a second ahead of crosstown rival Springfield Lanphier (49.32).

Chatham-Glenwood’s Mackenzie Bray threw 122-3 to win the Discus and then a personal best 40-1 mark to win the Shot Put.

 

Central Suburban League North @ Highland Park

Host Highland Park won the divisional title scoring 143 points ahead of Deerfield (113 points). Taylor Gilling had a double win for the Giants running 12.15 to win the 100 Meter Dash and 24.89 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Highland Park also got a double win from Stephanie Kriss as she ran 2:15.56 to win the 800 Meter Run eight seconds ahead of Vernon Hills’ Lauren Katz. Kriss came back to run 5:26.13 to win the 1600 Meter Run less than two seconds ahead of Vernon Hills’ Carly Sear.

Vernon Hills’ Jordyn Bunning was in control of the hurdles. She ran 16.13 to win the 100 Meter Hurdles. Bunning came back to run 46.93 to win the 300 Meter Hurdles. Maine East’s Keren Parra jumped 17-1 to win the Long Jump and then jumped 34-1 to win the Triple Jump. Maine West’s Alisa Falcon achieved a seasonal best 40-3 to win the Shot Put. She came back with a personal best throw of 134-7 to win the Discus by almost 36-feet.

 

Central Suburban League South @ Maine South

New Trier again won the divisional championship (147 points) ahead of Glenbrook South (127 points). Raelyn Roberson of Glenbrook South had the best performance of the night winning three events. She achieved a personal best 18-8 (IL #10) in winning the Long Jump. On the track, Roberson ran 12.69 to win the 100 Meter Dash and 26.25 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Enyaeva Michelin just ran the 400 Meter Dash. She ran 58.64 to win the event ahead of New Trier’s Marne Sullivan (59.74). Sullivan had run 2:18.39 earlier to win the 800 Meter Run ahead of teammate Savannah Noethlich (2:19.45).

Two days later at the New Balance Invitational at Farmington High School in Michigan, Michelin ran a solo 10:16.58 (IL #2) to win the 3200 Meter Run by almost 50 seconds.

 

Chicago Public League Championships

Whitney Young scored 151 points to win the Girls city title ahead of Lane Tech (101 points) and Kenwood Academy (90.5 points). Imani Carothers of Brooks College Prep, in her final CPS Championships, ran a state leading 13.81 (US #14) to win the 100 Meter Hurdles. Carothers was also queen of the jumps. She had a 18-2.50 leap to win the Long Jump and had a 38-8.50 effort to win the Triple Jump.

Amira Young led Whitney Young to the team title with two individual wins. The two-time defending 3A state champion in the 100 Meter Dash won that event (11.81, IL #3) ahead of Carothers (12.18). Young came back to run 24.83 (IL #8) to win the 200 Meter Dash ahead of Kenwood Academy’s Zakiya Johnson (25.22). Earlier in the meet, Johnson ran 59.04 to win the 400 Meter Dash ahead of Payton Prep’s Katelyn Hutchinson.

Lane Tech scored 95.5 points winning the Boys city title (95.5 points) ahead of Morgan Park (88 points) and Whitney Young (76 points). Clayton Mendez of Whitney Young used the City championships as a preparation for the state series in two weeks. He went out in a fast 57 seconds for the first 400 -meters of the 3200 Meter Run passing 1600-meters in 4:26. He won the race (9:23.48) ahead of teammate Charlie Nevins by 33 seconds. Mendez came back to run 4:20.86 to win the 1600 Meter Run ahead of teammate Sam Rivera by 11 seconds. Rivera earlier ran 1:56.58 to win the 800 Meter Run by two seconds ahead of Jones Prep’s Jeremy Brown (1:58.22). Brooks College Prep’s Justin Houston won two events running 11.0 (hand-timed) to win the 100 Meter Dash. Houston came back to run 21.96 (IL #9) to win the 200 Meter Dash.

 

 

Fox Valley Conference @ McHenry

A problem in timing system resulted in this meet being hand timed. McHenry’s Jenna Pauly won three events running 12.5 to win the 100 Meter Dash, 25.9 to win the 200 Meter Dash, and cleared 5-6 to win the High Jump. Natasha Schaffer of Prairie Ridge won two events jumping 17-0.75 to win the Long Jump and 37-11.50 to win the Triple Jump.

 

Mid-Illini Conference @ Morton

10 Meet records were set in this competition. Dunlap also flexed their muscles scoring 230.25 points to win the conference title ahead of Metamora (89 points). The Eagles won 15 out of the 18 events contested. Aanise Sajna won two events. She jumped 38-9 to win the Triple Jump and a season’s best of 18-11.25 (IL #9) to win the Long Jump. Kiara Pauli ran 12.28 to win the 100 Meter Dash and 24.82 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Both were a part of Dunlap’s two of four relay wins. The Eagles ran 48.10 to win the 400 Meter Relay and 1:42.14 to win the 800 Meter Relay by a margin of over ten seconds.

Dunlap also won the 3200 Meter Relay (9:32.06, IL #6) as well as winning the 1600 Meter Relay (4:02.71, IL #10). Campbell Petersen also won two events running 11:03.90 to win the 3200 Meter Run and 5:11.62 to win the 1600 Meter Run.

 

Mid-Suburban League @ Elk Grove

Barrington ran away with the team title scoring 134 points. The battle was close as only 5.5 points were separated the next three teams with Prospect second (107.5 points) ahead of Wheeling (105.5 points) and Palatine (102 points).

The night was perfect for Schaumburg’s Madison Marasco. The senior ran a 2:10.7 split on her anchor leg to lead Schaumburg to a state leading time in winning the 3200 Meter Relay (9:17.16) ahead of Barrington (9:26.84, IL #3). Marasco came back to run 2:11.53 (IL #3) to win the 800 Meter Run over a good field that included Barrington’s Jocelyn Long in second (2:14.37, IL #5), Wheeling’s Yailene Leon in third (2:15.56, IL #8), and Barrington’s Sophie Hoeltgen in fourth (2:18.31). Marasco also was a part of Schaumburg’s winning 1600 Meter Relay (4:02.73) ahead of Barrington (4:03.69) and Hoffman Estates (4:03.99).

Barrington’s Jocelyn Long ended her storied MSL career as the senior ran 5:00.95 to win the 1600 Meter Run ahead of teammate Alyssa Norris (5:11.39). Barrington also took the top two spots in the 3200 Meter Run as Molly FitzPatrick ran 10:53.31 for the win ahead of teammate Anne Berquist.

 

Mississippi Valley Conference @ Highland

Troy Triad scored 185 to win the conference title ahead of Highland 120 points. The top performance of the meet came from 2A Cross Country Champion Jenna Schwartz. The Waterloo junior ran 5:02.91 to win the 1600 Meter Run ahead of teammate Lauren Cooper by 46 seconds. Triad’s Kelly Pottorff was the meet’s only double winner. The senior threw 108-5 to win the Discus and had a 39-10 effort to win the Shot Put.

 

NIC-10 Conference @ Rockford Auburn

Belvidere North dominated the varsity team race scoring 209 points for the title ahead of Machesney Park Harlem (127.5 points). They were led by a 1-2 finish in the High Jump by Brookelyn Messenger (5-6) and Madison Diercks (5-4). Diercks came back to run 5:19.40 to win the 1600 Meter Run ahead of Hononegah’s Taylor Frommer (5:20.40). Diercks was also a part of their winning 3200 Meter Relay team with Sabrina Elder, Kayla McGuire, and Olivia Zaluckyi. The quartet ran 9:33.81 (IL #9) to win the event ahead of Hononegah (9:37.72).

 

Northern Lake County Conference @ Grayslake Central

The spotlight was on Taylor Tilmon of Lakes Community as she won three events. Tilmon started by running 12.48 to win the 100 Meter Dash. She came back to run 1:00.32 to win the 400 Meter Dash and 25.39 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Fatima Giron of Round Lake also won two events running 11:20.10 to win the 3200 Meter Run as well as 5:18.74 to win the 1600 Meter Run.

Grant Community scored 121 points to win the conference title ahead of Grayslake North (108 points).

 

Southwest Prairie Conference

A thunderstorm hit the area around the Joliet Memorial Stadium Wednesday night just as the 3200 Meter Run was finishing. Only seven runners crossed the line when the race was halted. Meet organizers had to change the scoring from eight places to six.

Oswego built up a big lead only to see Plainfield North and Minooka close the gap with only three events remaining. A 1-3 finish by Oswego’s Isabelle Christiansen and Grace Pagone, a fifth-place finish from Jennah Rogers in the 200 Meter Dash and a fourth-place finish in the 1600 Meter Relay solidified a conference win for Oswego for the first time since 1995. The Panthers scored 102 points ahead of Minooka (97 points) and Plainfield North (92 points).

Christensen had a good meet running 10:57.23 to win the 3200 Meter Run ahead of Plainfield North’s Juliana Stogsdill (10:59.72) and Oswego’s Grace Pagone (11:15.08). Christensen came back to win the 1600 Meter run (5:06.02) again ahead of Stogsdill (5:08.66) and Pagone (5:12.63). Romeoville’s Kaniyah Rush was a double winner running 12.29 for the 100 Meter Dash win and running 25.11 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Plainfield South’s Miranda Cadwell also won two events. She had a 40-1.50 put to win the Shot Put and threw 116-4 to win the Discus. Oswego’s Jennah Rogers also picked up two wins running 15.30 to win the 100 Meter Hurdles and clearing a personal best 5-6 to win the High Jump.

 

Southwest Suburban Blue Division

Homewood-Flossmoor showed why they will be one of the favorites in the IHSA 3A State Meet in two weeks. The Vikings won 12 of the 18 scored to win the divisional championships with 181 points. Bolingbrook (144.5 points) and Lincoln-Way East (130.5 points finished second and third.

Their three sprint relays looked good in this meet showing they could pick up some big points in Charleston. Homewood-Flossmoor ran 47.29 to win the 400 Meter Relay. It is the fastest time in the state as they won by over two seconds. Their team in the 800 Meter Relay ran 1:43.62 for the win by over four seconds. The Vikings finished the evening by running 4:04.54 to win the 1600 Meter Relay.

Jacqueline Bassey of Homewood-Flossmoor was the meet’s only double winner. She ran 12.55 to win the 100 Meter Dash, then coming back to run 25.41 in the 200 Meter Dash edging teammate Olivia Oliver by four hundredths of a second. The best race of the night came in the 400 Meter Dash as only five hundredths of a second separated Homewood-Flossmoor’s Ashanti Denton and Lincoln-Way East’s Taylor Wright. Both ran personal bests with Denton running 57.83 for the win.

 

Southwest Suburban Red Division

Host Thornton ran away with the divisional title scoring 154 points ahead of Lincoln-Way Central (127 points). Thornton’s Ranyah Hodges led the way winning three individual events. The freshman ran 16.67 to win the 100 Hurdles, 12.56 to win the 100 Meter Dash, and 1:01.60 to win the 400 Meter Dash. Teammate Linda Griffith also picked up two wins running 46.36 to win the 300 Hurdles and 25.99 to win the 200 Meter Dash.

Jasmine Mitchell of Thornwood tuned up for the state series with a pair of wins in the weight events. Mitchell had a 43-0 put to win the Shot Put. Her teammate Morgan Reed and Alexis Hutchins of Thornton tied for second both with 42-0 efforts. Mitchell came back to throw 139-4 to win the Discus.

 

Southland Athletic Conference

This small conference churned out some big performances in this meet Wednesday evening at Kankakee. Hannah Morris of Bloom Township won the Long Jump with a 19-10 jump (IL #2). Lyn’Nikka Vance of Crete-Monee joined Morris in the over 19-foot club as she jumped a personal best 19-5 to finish second. That was just the beginning for Vance as she was a part of three more wins. Vance easily won the 100 Meter Dash as she crossed the line in 12.32. She was a part of Crete-Monee’s winning 800 Meter Relay that ran 1:42.84 just ahead of Rich East (1:43.28) and Bloom Township (1:44.32). Vance’s final win came in the 200 Meter Dash. She ran a hand timed 24.6 for the win ahead of Rich Central’s Jayla Campbell (24.8) and Rich East’s Makiah Sherman (24.9).

Campbell ran 57.91 to win the 400 Meter Dash by almost three seconds. She finished third in the Triple Jump (37-6.50) as Bloom Township swept the first two spots. Kyja Griggs jumped a personal best 39-0 to win the event ahead of teammate Bria Armstrong (37-9).

 

Upstate Eight Conference @ St. Charles North

Dajour Miles won three individual events helping West Aurora win the conference title with 134.33 points ahead of Batavia (112.33 points). Each of the three sprint races were a battle between Miles and Batavia’s Tori Ortiz. The two took the top two places in each of the races.

Miles ran under 12-seconds for the first time this season running 11.99 (IL #6) for the win ahead of Ortiz (12.06, IL #10). Miles ran a state leading 55.15 to win the 400 Meter Dash followed by Ortiz (58.68) and South Elgin’s Alyssa Miulli (59.43). Miles ended her night by running 24.47 (IL #4) to win the 200 Meter Dash once again ahead of Ortiz (25.27).

The other athlete that had a great night in this meet was Glenbard East’s Lauren Huber. The freshman started her night as part of Glenbard East’s winning 3200 Meter Relay (9:37.70) that finished ahead of Batavia (9:40.06). Huber won the open 800 Meter Run (2:16.75) with teammate Cailyn Biegalski (2:19.33) and Geneva’s Taryn Christy (2:20.23) next. Huber was also a part of Glenbard East’s winning 1600 Meter Relay team (4:01.36, IL #6).

 

WSC-Gold Division @ Proviso East

Downers Grove South won another conference title scoring 165 points ahead of Morton Township (126 points). Leyden’s Esther Aldana was the queen of the sprints in this meet running 12.48 to win the 100 Meter Dash and 25.33 to win the 200 Meter Dash. Hinsdale South’s Rachel Arellano won two in the field events. Her throw of 120-1 in winning the Discus was a personal best. She also had a 38-6 effort to win the Shot Put.

Downers Grove South won all three distance events as well as running a solo 9:39.96 to win the 3200 Meter Relay ahead of Hinsdale South by almost 50 seconds. Erin Riedy ran 2:18.86 to win the 800 Meter Run by eight seconds ahead of teammate Kennedy Warden.

 

WSC-Silver Division @ York

Downers Grove North won the team title (114 points) ahead of Lyons Township (103 points) and Glenbard West (97 points) in a meet full of great performances. Katelynne Hart of Glenbard West was a double winner in the 800 and 1600 Meter Run. Hart ran a personal best 2:13.42 (IL #4) to win the 800 ahead of Hinsdale Central’s Grace McCabe (2:16.65). Hart came back to run the state leading time in winning the 1600 Meter Run (4:47.80, US #5) ahead of York’s Sarah May (5:08.24). Glenbard West’s Lindsey Payne, in her final WSC-Silver meet, ran 10:50.52 to win the 3200 Meter Run ahead of teammate Katie Hohe (10:54.23).

Kimberly Brent led Downers Grove North with a double win in the sprints. Brent ran 12.34 to win the 100 Meter Dash by five hundredths of a second ahead of Proviso West’s Tanayea Kimbrough (12.39). Brent ran 25.34 to win the 200 Meter Dash ahead of Proviso West’s Zacaria Fisher (25.63). Brent finished second in the 400 Meter Dash (58.44) behind race winner Destiny White of Oak Park-River Forest (58.26).

Sonia Slusarczyk of Lyons Township won both the 100 Meter Hurdles (15.32) and the 300 Meter Hurdles (46.35). Isabel Maletich of Downers Grove North won both horizontal jump events. The senior jumped 36-11.75 for the win in the Triple Jump by only half an inch ahead of Oak Park-River Forest’s Passion Worsham. Maletich jumped 17-10.50 to win the Long Jump. Hinsdale Central’s Dior Nicholson was a double winner throwing 116-1 to win the Discus and had a 40-0 put to win the Shot Put.

The relay events produced top ten Illinois times in all four relays. Hinsdale Central ran 9:26.18 (IL #2) to win the 3200 Meter Relay ahead of Lyons Township (9:32.09, IL #7). Proviso West ran 48.44 to win the 400 Meter Relay ahead of Downers Grove North (48.58). Proviso West ran 1:43.23 (IL #6) to win the 800 Meter Relay. Lyons Township ended the night by running 3:59.67 (IL #2) to win the 1600 Meter Relay ahead of Proviso West (4:01.24, IL #5).