MONDAY MORNING FINISH LINE

 

May 17, 2021

 

 

 

By Michael Newman

 

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There are some states that have concluded their track seasons with their state meets. In Illinois, we are just getting started. The abbreviated two-month season is halfway through in this state with the excitement continuing to grow with every meet that takes place.

 

We are starting to see more fans in the stands at meets. I am loving seeing that. We still can’t drop our guard and stop wearing masks. Things are getting better, but we are not home yet.

 

I have been asked on who are the top teams are in the state. Let’s not start the foolish speculation when in some cases there have been team’s that have not revealed their full lineup. I can give you some teams that have been running great and you would believe it. At the same time, I am sure I would be able to convince you buy some property in the swamp lands of Louisiana.

 

The state meets held again in Charleston this June will be different than we have ever seen in this state. Six days over two weeks will determine six team champions as well as 108 individual and relay events. It will be different in 2021. The IHSA scheduled each classification to be held on one day. Instead of preliminary events on Thursday and Friday like has happened in the past, one day of finals run or competed in flights and sections.

 

Preliminaries for the state will happen in the sectional meets that happen the week prior. Coaches will be able to double and triple athletes this season. Remember when Katelynne Hart won her memorable three distance events in 2019? She had to run five races (2 prelims on Friday, 3 on Saturday) within a span of 24 hours. In this format in 2021, she would only have to run in three races.

 

We have said of past state meets about that one athlete that has carried their team to a state title. This could be more prevalent in 2021. Let’s take Brandon Battle of Edwardsville as an example for this year’s state meet. Battle currently has the fastest times in Class 3A in all three sprint events. Put him in a relay and he would run in only four events. In the old “pre-COVID-19” state meet, he would be in eight races in that 24-hour span.

 

Let’s face this that the Illinois High School State Track and Field Championships are perhaps the most unique high school state meet in the United States. One week of qualifying meets followed by a state meet where distance runners are tested and then shine on State Finals Saturday. We can look at Georgia, for example that has two weeks of qualifying and then a three-day state meet. Sully Shelton of Harrison HS GA ran 8:50  for the 3200 Meter Run, 1:54 for the 800 Meter Run, and then 4:15 for the 1600 Meter Run over a three-day period. His two wins and a second place in the 800 helped his team finish third in the Class 7A State Meet.

 

Marius Bakken ran the same triple in the 1996 IHSA State Meet running 9:10, 1:54, and then 4:12 in winning the same races that Shelton did. Consider that Bakken did that in one day and ran two prelim races the day before that.

 

I could over analyze and give you some teams to watch for in this age where people want that info now instead of later. Let’s see how coaches play their cards in the sectional meets. All I can say is the two weeks in June could be the most anticipated weeks we have seen in Illinois in this sport.

 

Heats vs Sections

 

I like to use the term “shenanigans” at a track meet when things seam to go out of control. I said that at the first meet that I was at before the meet even started when the host school could not determine where the starting line was for the 100 Meter Dash. SCHENANIGANS! It is a term that the TV show South Park used in one of their episodes that has been part of my vocabulary especially at track meets.

 

I used it again on Saturday to the coach that was getting athletes to the starting line and was calling the races “heats” when they were in fact “section” races. He corrected himself one time apologizing to me knowing how that confusion of the use of those two words drives me crazy. Then, he went back to call the next race a Heat. Shenanigans sir.

 

So, let’s explain the differences of the two track terms. It is easy to distinguish. Trust Me.

 

A preliminary heat qualifies an athlete to the finals of an event. In the Olympics, the athlete needs to meet a qualifying place or fastest non-winning time to move them along to the finals. A section, which most Illinois meets are run, use performances on the track regardless of the race in the event are run, to determine the winner of the event. We will see that at Charleston where we will run sections to determine a state champion. For example, a runner that runs in the slowest of the seeded sections can run the fastest time of two sections and be crowned state champion.

 

The terms are mixed up all the times at meets. If you are at a meet and I am there, I go medevil when I hear the terms used wrong. At one meet this year, I asked the host coach about that. His reply was that this was an assistant football coach that had volunteered to help. I can accept that. But, when the heat sheets that shows what race the runners are in says section and does not use the term “Heat”, then you can understand my frustration in that use.

 

There was one meet in between events where I ran over to the press box. “When are the finals of that event you just announced?” I asked the announcer. It was like I asked a question about quantum physics to the guy as his eyes rolled up into his head. “We just finished those races,” he would respond to me. I would then explain the differences of the two.

 

I would walk out of the press box with a smile on my face. Then I would hear “We are ready for the first heat of the 100 Meter Dash” over the PA. I shake my head. Go figure.

 

The two things that can make a track meet great (besides the athletes competing) are a great clerk of the course that gets the athletes organized and to the starting line and a great announcer who is educated about the sport using terminology correctly and keeping the fans below informed. We do not see that a lot. There are a few announcers that I know that get themselves ready for the event and give you the facts (not the ones that you think I am thinking of). They also use heat when there are heats and sections when there are sections of a race.

 

I know I am being picky, but I am a track geek that wants things to come out right. I’m a York dork. I was educated by some good coaches.

 

If I ever announce a meet or you hear me call a section on a video that I shoot a heat, feel free to call shenanigans on me. I can take it.

 

Acknowledgements

 

I know in the weekend highlights that I write up there is more focus on the 3A athletes that are producing great performances. I try to put Class 1A and Class 2A athletes in there, but it seems I fail. I’m sorry.

 

I thought it would be interesting this morning to look at some of the athletes in those smaller classes that you should know more about as we head closer to the state meet.

 

Let’s start in Class 1A.

 

Aidan Laughery of Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley put his name on the map as a freshman in the 2019 State Meet when he was all-state in two individual events and all-state in the two relay events that he was in. He ran the 1A fastest time in the 100 Meter Dash (10.87) at the Salt Fork Invitational on May 11. I am sure his name will start to pop up in other events as we get closer to state.

 

I have been inspired by the performances that have been delivered by Mathew Olech of Harvest Christian Academy in the distance events. He did run 9:03.81 for the 3200 Meter Run at Distance Night in Palatine. He ran 4:18.42 last Saturday at the Rockford Christian Invitational. D1 schools: if you are not recruiting this student/athlete, what are you doing then? Miles Sheppard of Hamilton (COOP) and Justin Mumford of Trenton-Wesclin you have probably heard about. Olech could be the runner that steps into the spotlight when we get to Charleston.

 

We are going to see student/athletes that missed their junior year in 2020 because of the pandemic but have worked to the point to put them among the best. One of those athletes is Hayden Knott of St. Joseph-Ogden. Now a senior, Knott has the top 1A performances in the Shot Put (56’ 2.75”) and the Discus (176’ 2.5”). Dustin Roberts of Carlinville is one of those senior athletes to watch for in the field events. He just cleared a personal best of 14’ 0” in the Pole Vault at a triangular meet last Thursday.

 

We knew about what Atleigh Hamilton of St. Joseph-Ogden has done in her first two years of high school in being all-state eight times with four of those times as state champion. She should add four more all-state medals to her collection in June. She has top five performances in all of the sprint events along with the Long Jump.

 

How about the core of distance runners from Winnebago? We have praised them for their accomplishments during cross-country. Now we get to talk about them on the track. The Indians have four of the top five times in Class 1A in the 800 Meter Run. The group is led by Grace Erb who ran 2:19.37 at Distance Night in Palatine. Natalia Martino, Katherine Erb, and Marissa Roggensack all have run under 2:26. They also have the fastest 1A time at the 4x800 Meter Relay (9:48.93). They have incredible depth in the distances that could win them a state trophy in June.

 

Tyra Taylor of Hope Academy and Alyssa Williams of Tuscola are the two athletes that could emerge in the sprint events in this classification. Taylor has the fastest time at 200-meters (25.30) while running 12.51 in the 100. Williams has a 12.39 1A best at 100-meters while running 26.25 in the 200.

 

On to Class 2A.

 

That Friday in Charleston in the 2A finals could be three of the top distance races we will se in the Boys state program. Drew Rogers of Herscher after his win in Palatine put in an impressive 4:15.80 solo race in a home dual meet on May 13. Brock Drengenberg ran 4:17.33 at Rockford on Saturday after his 1:56 at Palatine. Could he double in both of those events at state?

 

Rogers, Wilson Georges of Limestone, Chris Cherry of Taylorville, and Alex Partlow of Carbondale all ran great times at Palatine in the 3200 Meter Run. Let’s add in Benton super freshman Gavin Genisio to that mix. Genisio ran a solo 9:19.2 at the distance at an open Meet at Murphysboro last Wednesday. We know about his times at the two shorter distance races. Could he do the 32/16 double when we get to June?

 

The Boys hurdles in this classification should be dynamite when we get to the state series. CJ Shoaf of Mahomet-Seymour and Devontae Ford of East St. Louis-Senior are the top two hurdlers in the state. Ford has emerged and will do big things on the big blue oval for the Flyers. He has a 49.59 state leading time in Class 2A at 400-meters.

 

Aden Sears of Eureka could be the runner to watch in the 400 with Ford most likely concentrating on the hurdles and relays for his team. Sears has run 49.89 and jumped 22’ 6” in the Long Jump. You know Sears will be part of the Hornets’ relays.

 

We’ve talked a lot about Colton Naffziger in the Pole Vault. The Normal U-High senior cleared 16’ 4.75” last Friday at Olympia. He is ranked #15 nationally in the event.

 

Lauren Doerr of Dunlap is ready to make a statement in the 2A sprints. Maybe she already has. Doerr has run 11.7 hand timed, 12.11 FAT in the 100 Meter Dash. She has run 25.1 hand timed in the 200 Meter Dash. Add in a 18’ 3.25” leading mark in the Long Jump. You know she will be a part of Dunlap’s sprint relay. She could also win three state titles in her final trip to Charleston.

 

We know about the dominance of Jayden Ulrich of East Alton-Wood River in the weight events. We know that Ava Parekh of Latin School should be the top runner in both the 3200 Meter Run and the 1600 Meter Run. Annie Wirth of Geneseo is making her name known in her first year of high school track & field. The sophomore is the Class 2A and state leader with her 5’8 clearance in the High Jump. She also has a 17’ 11.25” 2A #2 Long Jump mark to her credit.