By Michael Newman

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The morning session of the 2019 Illinois Top Times Championships on Saturday features Serena Bolden of Springfield Southeast. The senior could win three events in this meet as well as helping her school win the 800 Meter Relay.

It could be the distance races that steal the show in the Boys Meet. Riley Wells won the 1A 800 Meter Run in a new meet record. Now in Class 2A, he will look for the win in that event as well as helping Rockford Christian in the 3200 Meter Relay and 1600 Meter Relay.

 

Here is a look at every 2A Event. Field events for the meet start at 9:00 AM.

 

WATCH THE MEET LIVE | 2A Meet Heat Sheets

 

GIRLS FIELD EVENTS

 

Long Jump – 9:05 AM

ITT Record – 19-8.50 – Erika Furbeck, Geneseo, 2018

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 19-4.5 – Raelyn Robinson, Glenview Glenbrook South

2019 2A Indoor Best – 18-11 – Serena Bolden, Springfield Southeast

Preview – Serena Bolden is looking for three wins in this meet. She is a good bet to win this event. Bolden got her seasonal best of 18-11 last week at the Gene Armer Invitational. She has competed in four events this season. He shortest meet mark was 18-4.25. Bolden jumped 19-4.75 to finish third last year. We could again see her in the 19-foot range.

Tanya Young of Rantoul jumped 18-2.75 in the same meet that Bolden was in last Saturday. The sophomore started the season jumping 16-4 improving by almost two feet. Her jump last Saturday was almost a foot better than her previous seasonal best.

Watch for these two jumpers in this event. No one else in the 13-athlete field has jumped further than 17-3.50 this indoor season.

 

Pole Vault – 9:05 AM

ITT Record – 13-3 – Sarah Bell, Bloomington, 2013

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 13-1.25 – Samantha Spencer, New Lenox Providence Catholic

2019 2A Best – 13-1.25 – Samantha Spencer, New Lenox Providence Catholic

Preview – This could be one of the top field events in the entire meet with the top two athletes in the state in this event heading the field. Samantha Spencer wowed the crowd at the Windy City Pole Vault Summit at the beginning of the month clearing a meet record of 13-1.25. Now she has the chance to go after Sarah Bell’s six-year old meet record of 13-3.

Rhiannon Held of Mt. Zion will be the one athlete pushing Spencer. The sophomore has cleared 12-feet or higher three times this season. Her best came when she cleared 12-6.25 in winning the Emerging Elites Division at the New Balance Indoor Nationals two weeks ago. Spencer and Held could push each other into record territory.

Lianna Ifft of Prairie Central is the only other athlete over 12-feet this season. She has cleared 12-1. Six other athletes in this event have cleared 11-feet or higher led by Landis Barndon of Monticello and Sawyer Schoon of Normal University.

 

Shot Put – 9:05 AM

ITT Record – 48-7 – Latavia Maines, Centralia, 2017

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 49-8 - Chloe Lindeman, Fulton

2019 2A Best – 43-7 – Aliyah McDaniel, Tolono Unity

Preview – This field event could also be a good one. There are four athletes that have their best seasonal marks over 42-feet led by the 43-7 put from Aliyah McDaniel. Daija Range of Galesburg, Jayden Ulrich of East Alton-Wood River, and Mye’joi Williams of Rantoul are closer to 42-feet and almost 18 inches behind that of McDaniel.

Also keep an eye on Chandler Hayden of Pittsfield. She has only a 37-10.50 seasonal best. The senior did earn All-American honors by finishing fifth in the Weight Throw at the New Balance Indoor Nationals. Hayden has a 44-8.50 personal best outdoors. And finished third last spring in the 1A State finals.

 

Triple Jump – 11:00 AM

ITT Record – 40-5.25 – Serena Bolden, Springfield Southeast, 2018

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 40-4.25 – Riley Ammenhauser, Naperville Neuqua Valley

2019 2A Best – 40-1.50 – Serena Bolden, Springfield Southeast

Preview – Could this be Serena Bolden’s second win of the meet? Bolden does hold the 2A Meet record when she jumped 40-5.25 for the win last year. The defending champ could make it two in a row on Saturday morning.

The closest athlete that could catch Bolden is Tiera Robinson-Jones of Evergreen Park. The junior has already gone 39-1.50 at Argo at the beginning of March. She has the big meet experience having finished second in last year’s 2A outdoor state finals. Robinson-Jones finished eighth last year in this meet. Keep an eye on both all-state athletes. They are three feet ahead of the rest of the competition heading into this meet.

 

High Jump – 11:00 AM

ITT Record – 5-9 – Diamonasia Taylor, Urbana, 2018

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 5-8 – Jenelle Rogers, Oswego; DaeLin Switzer, Decatur St. Teresa

2019 2A Best – 5-6 – Sarah Flight, Charleston; Carly Tucker, Metamora

Preview – It’s Sarah Flight and Carly Tucker that have garnered the attention in the 2A High Jump this winter ahead in the leaderboard with 5-6 bests. Two-time meet champion Diamonasia Taylor has been silent most of the indoor season. She competed for the first time in 2019 last week at the University of Illinois clearing 5-4. Taylor has jumped no lower than 5-8 the two times she has jumped in this facility. The meet last week could prove as a rust buster for Taylor as she jumps on Saturday.

Macie Gebhardt of Sterling and Abby Reakes of Geneseo both have cleared 5-3 in 2019 and could be surprises in this event.

 

BOYS FIELD EVENTS

 

Long Jump – 9:05 AM

ITT Record – 25-3.50 – Ja’Mari Ward, Cahokia, 2016

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 23-5.75 – Tate Walcott, Colfax Ridgeview

2019 2A Indoor Best – 22-4.50 – Ryan Curington, Chicago De La Salle Institute

Preview – Two athletes are over 22-feet entering this meet. There are eight other athletes that have jumps of 21-feet or better making this horizontal jump event interesting to watch. Ryan Curington has the best mark coming to this meet but that was done in early February. He is the most consistent of the jumpers with marks of 21-11 or better on his seasonal resume. Jayden McCulskie of Sandwich is having a banner indoor season. The sophomore comes into this meet with a 22-0 best.

Leondre Pollard of Thornridge has a 21-9.75 best but could pop a jump well over 22-feet. David Emuze of Springfield Southeast jumped 21-11 in December at the University of Chicago. He is an athlete to keep an eye on. Jamonny Skinner of Monmouth-Roseville, and Skylar Bennett of Mt. Zion are some of the group of athletes that could sneak up to finish in the top three.

 

High Jump – 9:05 AM

ITT Record – 7-0.25 – Darryl Sullivan, Marion, 2016

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 6-9.25 – Zachary Pluff, Freeburg

2019 2A Indoor Best – 6-9.25 – Zachary Pluff, Freeburg

Preview – Zachary Pluff has demonstrated he is the dominant Illinois athlete in this event. Two weeks ago, at the New Balance Indoor Nationals, he cleared a personal best of 6-9. He bettered that last week at the Gene Armer Invitational when he cleared 6-9.25. We could see him go higher on Saturday morning.

His main competition should come from teammate McKallen Smith. The junior cleared a personal best of 6-7 at Illinois College at the beginning of the month. The two Freeburg athletes are the only athletes to clear 6-5 or better.

Keep an eye on Karl Wright of Springfield Lanphier. He no-heighted in his first meet of the year but followed up clearing 6-4 last week at Charleston. He did clear 6-9 at last May’s state meet. That was after clearing a best of 6-6 heading into that meet. Aaron Shepard of Marengo cleared 6-4 last week in Wisconsin. He also has cleared 6-7 outdoors making him a threat in this meet. Pluff finished second while Wright finished third in last year’s meet.

 

Triple Jump – 11:00 AM

ITT Record – 49-2.50 – Ja’Mari Ward, Cahokia, 2015

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 49-1.50 - Quinton Stringfellow, Homewood-Flossmoor

2019 2A Indoor Best – 46-6.5 – Andra Ward, Cahokia

Preview – This is a hard event to read what could happen. Andra Ward has the top mark in this field. He has not competed since he jumped 46-6.50 at Proviso West over a month ago. Whether he is healthy or not, we will find out during the warmups before the start of the event.

If Ward is healthy, he could be tough to beat in this meet. Ward is feet better than the rest of the competition. If not, this event could be up for grabs. . Jayden McCulskie of Sandwich I the best of the rest with a best of 44-4 at Sycamore a month ago. Jamonny Skinner of Monmouth-Roseville jumped 43-8.50 last week at Monmouth. He should be someone to keep an eye on. Datavious Brown of Cahokia, Kahlil Ross of Springfield Lanphier, and Elijah Pena of Woodstock North all have jumps over 43-feet and could threaten for the top spot.

 

Pole Vault – 11:00 AM

ITT Record – 16-7 – Logan Pflibsen, Streator Township, 2010

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 16-0 – Chandlar Ifft, Fairbury Prairie Central

2019 2A Indoor Best – 16-0 – Chandlar Ifft, Fairbury Prairie Central

Preview – Chandlar Ifft is the class of the field with a state best of 16-0 to his credit, He may be entering the event when the last vaulter has exhausted their attempts. Ifft usually likes to enter at 15-0.

The thing to watch in this event is who will get second. Mitchell McKelvey of Metamora is the best of the rest with a 14-9 personal best. Kyle Mulhern of Peoria Notre Dame and Dayton Black of Charleston both cleared 14-6 last week at their respective meets. Eli Badger of Mt. Vernon and Eli Grundman of Princeton are the only are the only other athletes with bests of 14-0 or better.

 

Shot Put – 11:00 AM

ITT Record – 62-8.50 – Sam Sikon, Carbondale, 2017

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 63-0.25 – Sam Liokumovich, Deerfield

2019 2A Indoor Best – 58-2.50 – Hunter Hendershot, Mahomet-Seymour

Preview – We could see a big put from Hunter Hendershot in this meet. The defending meet champion and state champion leads the field by four feet with a 58-2.50 best. He exploded with a 60+ put in last spring’s state meet. We could see something similar to that in this meet.

This is a good field behind Hendershot with five more athletes at 50-feet or better. The best of that group is Rich South’s Tyler Sudduth who had a 54-8.50 personal best two weeks ago at Rolling Meadows. Elijah Nitz of Rockford Christian and Grant Edwards of Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin have also gone past 52-feet and could challenge for the second-place spot.

 

GIRLS RUNNING EVENTS

 

60 Meter Hurdles – Prelims: 9:45 AM; Finals: 11:25 AM

ITT Record – 8.54 – Imani Carothers, Brooks College Prep, 2018

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 8.60 – Kayla Walters, Bolingbrook

2019 ITT 2A Indoor Best – 9.13 – Emelia Ness, Monticello

Preview – Meet record holder Imani Carothers has graduated which means a new queen of the 2A hurdles needs to be crowned. Monticello’s Emelia Ness appears the athlete to be crowned. The junior enters the meet with the fastest 2A time (91.3) and ahead of the field by almost two tenths of a second.

Brooke Barkocy of Burlington Central and N’Dia Jackson of Springfield Southeast could be the chief competition for Ness. Jackson hold the fastest time for the 55 Meter Hurdles (8.73). It could be up for grabs behind these three athletes led by Alyssa Dolan of Plano, DeJae Hudson of Mascoutah, and Ali Rapps of Geneseo.

 

60 Meter Dash – Prelims: 9:55 AM; Finals: 11:40 AM

ITT Record – 7.45 – Ebony McClendon, Brooks College Prep, 2014

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 7.57 – Serena Bolden, Springfield Southeast

2019 2A Indoor Best – 7.57 – Serena Bolden, Springfield Southeast

Preview – This could be win three for Serena Bolden in this meet. The senior has the fastest time in the state (7.57) and is ahead of the field by over two tenths of a second. In distance event terms, it is similar to a 100-meter lead.

Bolden does have the competition to push her close to Ebony McClendon’s meet record of 7.45 seconds. Seven Hicks won the Class 1A 100 Meter Dash and 200 Meter Dash in last May’s outdoor state meet for Peoria Heights. The junior transferred to Peoria Richwoods over the summer. She has the second fastest time in 2A (7.84) and could push Bolden. Samantha Spencer of Providence Catholic, Treasure Keyes of Lindblom Academy, Melody Jones of De La Salle, and Jayla Campbell of Rich Central are some of the runners that could challenge for a top three finish.

 

3200 Meter Run – 10:15 AM

ITT Record – 10:15.06 – Kayla Beattie, Woodstock, 2011

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 10:02.46 – Katelynne Hart, Glen Ellyn Glenbard West

2019 2A Indoor Best – 11:15.21 – Payne Turney, Clinton

Preview – 2A List leader Payne Turney is not in this event concentrating on the 800 Meter Run and 1600 Meter Run. This race does have defending champion Jenna Schwartz of Waterloo who ran 11:03.46 in her win last year. Schwartz has a 11:15.40 at Principia College under her belt and will be the runner to watch.

Katie Castelli of St. Viator, who finished fourth as a freshman last year in this race, has the second seed time running 11:21.09 last Friday in Wisconsin. Lydia Roller of Staunton could be the one runner to push Schwartz. The sophomore ran 11:24.54 in the same race as Schwartz and should be closer to the defending 2A state champion in this race.

There is close to a 20 second drop off from the above three with the rest of the pack. Jordan Harmon of Tolono Unity, Maya Stovall of Macomb, and Rachel Koon of Monticello should lead that pack.

 

3200 Meter Relay – 10:50 AM

ITT Record – 9:41.63 – Dunlap, 2018

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 9:20.49, Downers Grove South

2019 2A Indoor Best – 9:58.93, Normal University

Preview – Three teams have run under 10-minutes this season headed by Normal University led by Ella Bittner and Kendy Ummel. Monticello and Fenwick both have times under 10 and will also push for the win. Last year’s outdoor champion Eureka will be in the mix led by 1A State XC champion Emma Argo along with Alexi Fogo. Their season best of 10:04 is only six seconds back of U-High. Eureka finished 9:49 to finish second behind Dunlap last year. The Hornets might need to run 9:45 or faster to win the event.

 

800 Meter Run – 11:50 AM

ITT Record – 2:13.05 – Karina Liz, Aurora Central Catholic, 2015

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 2:11.47 – Erin Reidy, Downers Grove South

2019 2A Indoor Best – 2:20.78 – Payne Turney, Clinton

Preview – Payne Turney finished fourth in last year’s race. She has the fastest 2A time this year but is not a clear favorite in this race. Aspen Gordon of Morton ran 2:22.71 on this track last week and could challenge Turney.

The event is wide-open after those two runners. Maia Italia of Rosary and Alexis Cohn of Trinity lead the pack. Also watch for Josie Brown of Geneseo and Megan Garrett of Charleston. Both have outdoor personal bests under 2:20. They could be a factor in this race. Last year’s race was won in 2:16.50. It might take 2:18 or 2:19 to win this year’s edition.

 

800 Meter Relay – 12:00 PM

ITT Record – 1:45.06 – Dunlap, 2017

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 1:43.25 – Homewood-Flossmoor

2019 2A Indoor Best – 1:45.64 – Springfield Southeast

Preview – Serena Bolden’s last time on this track could be a memorable one. Bolden is scheduled to lead off for Springfield Southeast that enters this meet with the fastest 2A time (1:45.64). They will have company in the final section. Carbondale’s seasonal best of 1:45.77 run at Principia College is only 13 hundredths of a second behind Southeast. It should be close between the two teams with the possibility of a new 2A meet record being set in the process.

The rest of the field is almost three seconds behind those two teams. Keep an eye on Lindblom Academy, Rosary, and Monticello that could challenge if Carbondale or Southeast has a mishap.

 

400 Meter Dash – 12:35 PM

ITT Record – 56.06 – Elizabeth Drab, Arlington Heights St. Viator, 2017

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 55.09 – Dajour Miles, West Aurora

2019 2A Indoor Best – 55.51 – Jayla Campbell, Olympia Fields Rich Central

Preview – Jayla Campbell ran her 55.51 early in January at the University of South Carolina. She has the fastest time in this event by close to five seconds. Campbell has not run a 400 this indoor season since the South Carolina meet with times before that in the 57’s.

It will be hard to beat this senior. Raven Moore of Springfield Southeast has that big meet experience and could challenge for the win. The event is up for grabs after these two runners. Keep an eye on Tya Morgan of Lindblom Academy, Akira Custer of Carbondale, and Summerlyn Smith of Mattoon as some of the runners that could get under that 60 seconds mark.

 

1600 Meter Run – 12:55 PM

ITT Record – 4:51.06, Kayla Beattie, Woodstock, 2011

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 4:44.42 – Katelynne Hart, Glen Ellyn Glenbard West

2019 2A Indoor Best – 5:09.93 – Payne Turney, Clinton

Preview – This race is going to be great even though the majority of runners will be doubling back from other races. Payne Turney ran her time on this track over a week ago. The question will be how much effort will she exert in the 800 Meter Run one hour before this one. Aspen Gordon is in the same situation coming back from the 800. Lydia Roller of Staunton, Jenna Schwartz of Waterloo, and Jordan Harmon of Tolono Unity will all be racing the 3200 Meter Run and will have close to two hours of rest. Ella Bittner of Normal University and Emma Argo of Eureka lead a group of runners coming back from running the 3200 Meter Relay.

Two runners will be fresh not running in any other event. Olivia Rosenstein of Urbana missed most of last year’s cross-country season due to injury. The junior appears to be healthy having run 5:15 two weeks ago at Charleston and then 2:24 for 800-meters last week at the U of I. Amelia McLain of Benton will also be fresh. She has not raced much this indoors but did run 5:17.82 for a full mile at Kentucky in February. We could see her come away with the win.

The question will be who will respond best on their second race of the day. This could be a tactical race wanting to wait for a kick to decide the winner. That could be Argo, or Turney, or someone else in what could be a firecracker of a race.

 

200 Meter Dash – 1:10 PM

ITT Record – 24.58 - Ebony McClendon, Brooks College Prep, 2014

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 24.80 – Ameia Wilson, Danville

2019 2A Indoor Best – 25.78 – Seven Hicks, Peoria Richwoods

Preview – The final section of this event should be a good one led by list leader Seven Hicks. Add in Jayla Campbell of Rich Central and Tiera Robinson-Jones to that section and it could be hundredths of seconds that decides the winner.

Mia Tolbert of De La Salle, running in Section 3, could find her way into the top three overall. Raven Moore of Springfield Southeast and Tanaya Young of Rantoul are runners to watch that could also find a top five finish to their liking.

 

1600 Meter Relay – 1:35 PM

ITT Record – 4:01.37 – Maple Park Kaneland, 2016

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 3:59.92 – Homewood-Flossmoor

2019 2A Indoor Best – 4:02.41 – East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – With list leader East St. Louis-Senior not competing in this meet, all eyes will be on Carbondale in the final 2A Girls race of the meet. The Terriers enter with the top seed time (4:07.01) with Burlington Central the only other team in this event having run under 4:10. Mattoon and Rosary could be the two teams that could challenge Carbondale or Burlington Central.

 

BOYS RUNNING EVENTS

 

60 Meter Hurdles – Prelims: 9:45 AM; Finals: 11:25 AM

ITT Record – 7.92 – Brett Dannis, Peru St. Bede, 2017

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 7.94 – Victor Cameron, Crete-Monee

2019 2A Indoor Best – 8.26 – Andrew Johnson, East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – List leader Andrew Johnson will not be competing in this meet. The one athlete that should step up is Freeport’s Jaden Johnson. The senior has the fastest 55m hurdles time (7.70) run last week in Wisconsin. Connor Wagner of Burlington Central has run 8.31 at this distance. He will be a threat for the title.

Steven Harris of Cahokia and Brayden Forrest of Dixon are both within a tenth of a second to both Johnson and Wagner. Watch for them to impress on the track. Marvin Broomfield of Springfield Lanphier, Noah Williams of Freeburg, and Noah Fulcomer of Rockford Christian are some of the athletes to watch to make the finals. Also watch for Finnigan Schirmer of Marengo. He was a three-time all-state athlete last spring including the 110 High Hurdles. He ran 8.48 at Huntley at the end of February while he was still playing on the school’s basketball team. He should be in track shape and could be dangerous in this race.

 

 

60 Meter Dash – Prelims: 9:55 AM; Finals: 11:40 AM

ITT Record – 6.79 – Jonathan Boey, Decatur MacArthur, 2013

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 6.65 – Marcellus Moore, Plainfield North

2019 2A Indoor Best – 7.00 – Brailyn Johnson, Burbank St Laurence

Previews – This will be a “too close to call” kind of event. Brailyn Johnson, who is the top finishing returner (3^rd), also has the fastest 2A 60-meters time. There are five other athletes within a tenth of a second of Johnson including Leondre Pollard of Thornridge and Keegan Cullison of Plano.

Ryan Curington of De La Salle and Kaleb Brown of St. Rita both have times under 7.10 and could be threats for the win. Staunton’s Carson Rantanen and Mike Mboyo of Urbana lead the other runners with hopes of making it to the finals.

 

3200 Meter Run – 10:15 AM

ITT Record – 9:13.84 – Clay Elward, Peoria Notre Dame, 2010

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 9:18.06 – Tyler Cushing, Bolingbrook

2019 2A Indoor Best – 9:24.11 – Garrett Dixon, Monticello

Preview – This could be one of the top distance events of the entire meet. Mathias Powell of Mahomet-Seymour started his track season last week at Charleston by running a solo 9:30.17 for the win. Garrett Dixon ran a solo 9:24.11 to easily win his race at Southern Illinois University. The two raced each other last fall in the Richard Spring Invitational. Powell ran 14:44 to finish third. Dixon was 14 seconds back in 11^th. The two had success at state in November with Powell winning the 2A State title while Dixon finished second in the 1A race.

The two runners won’t be separated by 14 seconds in the Shirk Center. It could be on who makes the big move at the right time and holds that move to the finish. Both runners should be under 9:20 maybe scaring the nine-year old 2A meet record.

Powell and Dixon are 20 second ahead of the rest of the field. Kyle Bell of Providence Catholic, Dawson Smith of Rock Falls, and Alex Partlow of Carbondale are some of the runners that you could see leading that pack.

 

3200 Meter Relay – 10:50 AM

ITT Record – 7:58.68 – Belvidere North, 2011

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 7:57.92 - Naperville Central

2019 2A Indoor Best – 8:13.20 – Burlington Central

Preview – Burlington Central may have the top 2A time entering the race, but they may not be at full strength. Anthony Farmer, who was an all-state runner last fall, will not compete in this meet this weekend. he raced since a meet at Batavia at the beginning of the month. Enter Rockford Christian. The Royal Lions ran 8:22.29 last Friday in Wisconsin and had their state champion Riley Wells in that quartet. Wells is scheduled to run this relay along with the open 800 and the 1600 Meter Relay. If he is close to Burlington Central when he gets the baton, he could get the win.

This could be a closer race than people think. Mascoutah could be a threat with Casmir Cozzi in their lineup. Monticello, Eureka, Dixon, and Troy Triad are all teams that could be close to the front when the moment is right.

 

800 Meter Run – 11:50 AM

ITT Record – 1:56.45 – JD Lafayette, Normal University, 2014

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 1:55.91 – Andrew O’Keefe, Granite City

2019 2A Indoor Best – 1:58.63 – Riley Wells, Rockford Christian

Preview – Riley Wells will have less than an hour to recover after running the 3200 Relay. He will be the favorite in this race. His best time when he won at Batavia is two seconds ahead of Eli Ward of Waterloo. Ward’s teammate Jackson McAlister will also be a threat in the front along with Decatur MacArthur’s Micha Reed.

Also watch for Jacob Gray of Metamora, Adam Kries of Burlington Central, and Patric Natindim of St. Viator who could be challenging for the front. The question will be if anyone pushes the pace early. If no one wants to take the pacing duties, then it will come down to a kick. Wells, if he is in position, has the best kick in the state and should win the race.

 

800 Meter Relay – 12:00 PM

ITT Record – 1:31.33 – Cahokia, 2013

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 1:30.00 – East St. Louis-Senior

2019 2A Indoor Best – 1:30.00 – East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – The name of the game in an indoor 800 Meter Relay is have the lead at the first exchange and hold on to that lead. With no East St. Louis-Senior in this field, this race is wide open. St. Rita ran 1:33.22 at the end of February at Proviso West and have the top seed. Eureka will be tough. The Hornets are the only other team under 1:34 (1:33.87) and should push St. Rita.

Freeburg, with Zachary Pluff anchoring and St. Laurence, with 60 Meter Dash favorite Brailyn Johnson, could make it interesting in the front of the final section. Rantoul and Plano are among the teams that could finish in the top three if the final section gets a little messy with bad exchanges.

 

400 Meter Dash – 12:35 PM

ITT Record – 49.25 – Mac Melton, Chicago Northside College Prep, 2012

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 48.39 – Willie Johnson, East St. Louis-Senior

2019 2A Indoor Best – 48.39 – Willie Johnson, East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – Thornridge’s Devon Bolden enters the meet with the top seed time (50.75). Darreon West of Cahokia and Jerry Harper of Rantoul are within a second of Bolden and could challenge for the win. Connor Wagner of Burlington Central, Ismael Figueroa of Chicago University, and Alejandro Ochoa of Morris are other runners to watch for in the top five.

 

1600 Meter Run – 12:55 PM

ITT Record – 4:16.35 – Michael Clevenger, Decatur MacArthur, 2012

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 4:16.69 – Andrew O’Keefe, Granite City

2019 2A Indoor Best – 4:26.23 – Garrett Dixon, Monticello

Preview – Is this a Dixon double win in this event? Garrett Dixon will need to win the 3200 first but does have the top 2A time in the state entering this meet in this event. Brooks Harlan of Centralia had a breakthrough cross-country season that has carried over to the track. The sophomore ran 4:28.47 for the mile at the University of Kentucky in February and could be Dixon’s top threat. He did finish 11 seconds behind Dixon at Southern Illinois. He should be closer on Saturday afternoon.

Casmir Cozzi of Mascoutah is within three seconds of Dixon and will be doubling back from the 3200 Meter Relay. His finish in races could be a factor in this meet. Ryder James of Paxton-Buckley-Loda and Dawson Smith of Rock Falls will be running in the 3200 Meter Run earlier in the meet. Carson Schwable of Freeburg could be the surprise of the race.

 

200 Meter Dash – 1:10 PM

ITT Record – 21.88 – Josh Eiker, Galesburg, 2015

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 21.09 – Marcellus Moore, Plainfield North

2019 2A Indoor Best – 22.59 – Marcus Lampley, East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – There is no overwhelming favorite in this race. Ryan Curington of De La Salle has the fastest time in the field (22.68) with St. Rita’s Mick Doyle just one hundredth of a second back. Leondre Pollard is the only other runner in this event under 23-seconds. Keegan Cullison of Plano and Alejandro Ochoa of Morris would not be surprises if they finish in the top three places.

 

1600 Meter Relay – 1:35 PM

ITT Record – 3:24.61 – Cahokia, 2016

2019 Illinois Indoor Best – 3:22.09 – East St. Louis-Senior

2019 2A Indoor Best – 3:22.09 – East St. Louis-Senior

Preview – The final race of the 2A session should be a beauty. Eureka ran 3:28.95 on this track at the end of February finishing only two seconds behind East St. Louis-Senior. The Hornets have the top seed in this event. Burlington Central is two seconds back with Cahokia and Thornridge another two seconds back. Rockford Christian is also at 3:32 with Cahokia and Thornridge. They will have Riley Wells anchoring for them. So, hold onto your hats. The final two laps of this race should be memorable.