Distance Storylines to Follow in the 2022 IHSA Girls Sectionals

 

By Michael Newman [email protected]

 

Photo: Allison Ince will go for three sectional wins Thursday at Danville (Kevin Dorsey photo)

 

We will know by the end of Friday which of the elite runners of Girls Distance Running in Illinois will have earned a trip to the IHSA Girls State Championships in Charleston beginning on May 19.

 

There are so many interesting storylines to watch for in the distance events in all three classes.

 

Allison Ince of Normal Community last year won state titles in the 800 Meter Run and the 1600 Meter Run. This year she has added the 400 Meter Dash to her meet schedule along with the 4x400m Relay which she anchored her team in the title late Saturday night.

 

The 2A distances are highlighted by the fact that Ava Parekh of Latin School will not defend her 2A title in the 3200 Meter Run. She will look for titles in both the 800 and 1600 Meter Run. The 3200 is loaded led by Tatum David of Richland County and Delaney Fitzpatrick of Normal University.

 

Father McGivney could make a run for a 1A trophy led by Elena Rybak in the 1600 Meter Run and a 4x800m Relay quartet that could challenge for the title in that relay. Winnebago still has depth in the distances and will look to capture anther trophy. The Indians finished second last season.

 

Here is a look at all 36 sectionals and what to look for in the distance events.

 

Class 3A

 

Lake Park (Thursday)

 

This could be the deepest qualifying distance sectional in Class 3A. All four distance races should be great. Four runners are all under 11-minutes in the 3200 Meter Run. Grace Schager of Glenbard North ran 10:34.21 (3A #3) at her conference meet last Saturday ahead of Katrina Schlenker of Batavia. Schlenker’s season best is 10:35.09 (3A #4). York’s Katelyn Winton (3A #9) and Brea Bennis (3A #11) also ran times under 11-minutes last week and should qualify. Jenna Buchanan of Bartlett is under the qualifying standard and could advance. Nicole Poglitsch of Wheaton-Warrenville South could be the surprise in this race and could get under the 11:07.4 qualifier.

 

Audrey Allman of Glenbard West is entered in both the 800 and 1600 Meter Run in this meet. The question is if she will run both. Allman is also on the relay card in both the 4x4 and 4x8. Allman is the top seed in the 800 Meter Run with her Arcadia race of 2:12.94 (3A #2). Brooke Berger of York ran 2:14.95 (3A #5) and finished ahead of Allman last week at WSC-Silver. Annie Macabobby of Wheaton-Warrenville South ran 2:19.43 (3A #18) last week but will need to run under 2:19 to make it to Charleston. Amelia Bellizzi of St. Charles East is another runner that could hit the qualifying time in that event.

Schager, Allman, and Schlenker all have times under 5-minutes and will be the favorite in the 16600 Meter Run. York’s Winton and Katherine Klimek are both under the time standard and should be in the hunt. Glenbard West has the fastest time in the state (9:26.99) heading into this race. Allman anchored that time in 2:14 two weeks ago and could get the Hilltoppers downstate. York, St. Charles East, and Batavia could also punch their ticket to Charleston in this race.

 

Danville (Thursday)

 

The biggest story in this meet overall is Allison Ince of Normal Community going for a triple along with anchoring her team in the 4x400m Relay. Ince has the top times in the state in the 800 Meter Run, 400 Meter Dash, and the 1600 Meter Run. She should qualify and win in all three of those races. Ince has the top seed time by 14 seconds in the 800 Meter Run ahead of Anna Scheuring of Quincy and Alex Reinhart of Normal West. Ince will have company in the 1600 Meter Run with O’Fallon’s Peyton Schieppe at 4:57.60 (3A #8) close by. Julia Monson of O’Fallon and Emily Nuttall of Edwardsville could be close or under the 5:08.10 qualifying time in this race. Schieppe is the top seed at 10:44.53 (3A #7) with Quincy’s Anna Schuering at 11:02.32 (3A #18) her closest competition. Edwardsville is the top seed in the 4x800m Relay and should qualify. Normal Community ran 9:36.38 (3A #4) two weeks ago, but that was with Ince anchoring. She is on the relay card but is doubtful to run in this relay. Chatham-Glenwood ran 9:44.58 (3A #11) at Collinsville and could challenge Normal Community for the second qualifying spot.

 

Hinsdale Central (Friday)

 

Some of the top distance powers in this state will race in this sectional. Catie McCabe of Hinsdale Central is scheduled to run in two individual events in this meet. We could see five qualifiers in the 800 Meter Run. McCabe ran 2:14.76 (3A #4) last week at the WSC-Silver Meet and is this meet’s top seed. Emma Berres of Naperville North has run 2:16.37 (3A #7) and will push McCabe in this race. Erin Milligan of Hinsdale Central, Jackie Liu of Naperville North, and Katie Roche of Sandburg all could go under the 2:19 qualifying standard. McCabe is entered also in the 1600 Meter Run. The junior is seeded second in this meet at 5:03.48 (3A #14). Sofia McNerney of Downers Grove South ran 4:51.14 (3A #3) at Palatine in April and is the top seed. Her teammate Brooke Johnson ran 4:57.21 (3A #7) at Palatine is also in this field and could be one of the qualifiers. Catherine Sommerfeld of Lyons Township has been coming on strong in the last month could go under five minutes in this race.

 

There is promise of multiple qualifiers in the 3200 Meter Run. Eight runners in this field in 2022 have run under the 11:07.40 qualifying standard. Catherine Sommerfeld won Palatine in 10:37.74 (3A #5) and is the top seed in this event. Six other runners have run under 11-minutes including Holly Johnson, Sarah Fischer of Hinsdale Central, Julie Piot of Naperville North, and Naperville Central’s Liv Phillips and Ava Hendren. Sophia McNerney finished second in this event in last year’s state finals. McNerney has been running great over the past few weeks. She should be with the leaders in this meet. Sarah Maggio of Metea Valley and Logan Brennan of Naperville North could also punch tickets to Charleston in this sectional race.

 

Sommerfeld anchored the Lyons Township to the second fastest time in the state at 9:32.30 in winning at WSC-Silver last week. Sommerfeld is on the relay card, but her concentration are on the 3200 and 1600. Hinsdale Central is seeded second at 9:35.60 from indoors. That was with McCabe and Fischer on that quartet. Downers Grove North is a good best to advance to the State Meet. Naperville Central, Naperville North, and Downers Grove South could also make it Charleston. Downers South has Johnson and McInerney on their relay card. Both runners on that team could position the Mustangs for the relay win.

 

Minooka (Wednesday)

 

Jocelyn Host and Gabriella McCollom will run on their home track as the top two seeds in the 3200 Meter Run. The one runner that will be missing is Caroline Schoen of Homewood-Flossmoor. The junior missed most of the outdoor season. We can’t wait to see what she does on the cross-country course this fall. Audrey Boles of Minooka is the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run by 11 seconds. The next five runners are within seven seconds. Minooka (3A #3) and Lincoln-Way East are the only 4x8 teams under 10-minutes in this sectional. The next closest team is within 31 seconds of the Griffins.

 

Rolling Meadows (Wednesday)

 

Not a particularly strong distance sectional. It becomes a good sectional with Prospect and Barrington positioned at Rolling Meadows. The Lady Knights could put themselves in state trophy contention with great performances in this sectional. Prospect has the top seed time by 27 seconds and will not have to load it up to advance in Wednesday’s race. Hersey and Barrington will fight for the second spot. Both could go under the qualifying mark. Scout Storms of Barrington is the top seed in the 3200 Meter Run by 31 seconds ahead of Anna Harden of Hersey. Both runners should advance in this race. The key to watch is that the time for both needs to be under 11-minutes to be positioned in the second section in Charleston. The 1600 will be a good race led by Storms at 4:50.85 (3A #2) and then Hailey Erickson of Prospect, Naomi Ruff of South Elgin, Harden, and Heather Durrant of Elgin Larkin. The qualifying standard is 5:08.10. All of these runners could go under that. Lily Ginsberg and Audrey Ginsberg of Prospect are close to locks to advance in the 800 Meter Run. Ruff could go under the and could be a time qualifier. Natalia Plewa of Hersey is also a possibility.

 

Buffalo Grove (Thursday)

 

Some great distance races in this sectional will happen. Three runners are ranked in the top 16 in Class 3A in the 3200 Meter Run. It should be a fantastic race up front with Aly Negovetich of Grant at 10:28.75 (3A #2) and Brooke Johnston of Lake Zurich at 10:40.71 (3A #6). Mia Pasha of Warren has run under the 11:07.4 qualifying standard and should advance in this race. Abigail Jordan of Palatine is also a possibility at this distance. Negovetich (3A #5), Johnston (3A #7), and Pasha (3A #9) all have run under five minutes outdoors and will challenge for the win. Brenda Torres of Wheeling could make it to Charleston along with Palatine’s Jordan. Bella Domier of Grayslake Central at 2:16.21 (3A #8) is the top seed in the 800 Meter Run with Jordan Miller of Mundelein (3A #14) her closest competition. Domier will be part of Grayslake Central’s 4x800m Relay team (3A #13) that is the top seed in the event. Palatine, Grant, and Wheeling are the teams that will challenge for the second qualifying spot.

 

Plainfield North (Thursday)

 

Audra Soderlind of Oswego will be the runner to watch in the distance events. The senior enters this meet having run 10:50.43 indoors this season. She ran 10:54.78 (3A #11) last week at her conference meet. Carissa Hamilton of Neuqua Valley is within four seconds of the 11:07.40 qualifying standards. Ava Galloway of Yorkville will also challenge for the second qualifying spot. Four runners are under 5:14 in the 1600 Meter Run. Anna Hunter of Yorkville is the top seed in this race. Soderlind and Margaret Hunter of Yorkville are within a second of the 5:08.10 standard. Both could make it in. Yorkville’s Allegra Triner and Katie Melzer are top seeds in the 800 Meter Run at 2:21. Janellisa Oceguera of Joliet West and Sydney Williams of Oswego East are within three seconds of the Yorkville duo. Yorkville, with the Hunter sisters along with Triner and Meltzer are the top seed in the 4x800m Relay at 9:32.79 from their indoor season. Plainfield North at 9:40.40 (3A #9). The Tigers only have five runners on their relay card. If illness or injuries befall this team, Plainfield North would not be able to run in Charleston if they qualify. Oswego East is the closest team to Plainfield North.

 

Deerfield (Wednesday)

 

Isabella Marasco of Lake Forest might be the runner to watch in this sectional. Marasco has the top time by six seconds in the 800 Meter Run at 2:17.27 (3A #10). Three runners are under 5:11 in the 1600 Meter Run led by Marsico at 5:02.28 (3A #11), Morgan Mackie of Loyola Academy and Audrey Luell of Zion-Benton. CSL Rivals will face off in the 3200 Meter Run. Sofia Arcuri of Maine South is the top seed at 11:06.01 (3A #24) followed by teammate Olivia DeLuca and New Trier’s Samantha Fellman and Josie Cahill. The 4x800m Relay stats the meet and could be the top race of the day. New Trier, Maine South, and Loyola Academy are within five seconds of each other. The relay times have not dropped yet. The weather this week could see all three teams go under the 9:36.90 qualifying mark. Lake Forest could also be a surprise in that relay.

 

Huntley (Wednesday)

 

Breanna Burak should be a big favorite in the 3200 Meter Run on her home track. Burak is currently 3A #22 outdoors. Isabella Gonzalez of Crystal Lake South should be Burak’s chief competition. McHenry is the top seed in the 4x800m Relay. Their top two runners on that relay, Alyssa Moore and Peyton Stinger, have the fastest two times in the 800 Meter Run.

 

Proviso East (Wednesday)

 

Josephine Welin of Oak Park-Forest has missed all of the outdoor season due to a stress fracture. She has been running now for almost a month gearing up for this sectional. She is entered in both the 3200 Meter Run and 1600 Meter Run in this meet entered at “No-Time”. If she makes it to Charleston, great! If not, I look forward to achieving some great things at the next level. Her teammate Katie Stabb is the top seed in the 3200 Meter Run at 11:05.56 (3A #23) by more than a minute. Natalie Quinn of Oak Park-River Forest is the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run (5:18.95) by 15 seconds. Mother McAuley and Oak Park-River Forest are close to locks in the 4x800m Relay. Three runners are under 2:30 in the 800 Meter Run led by Mother McAuley’s Evelyn Rowan at 2:28.71.

 

St. Ignatius (Thursday)

 

This is one of those sectional meets where we could see two automatic qualifiers in distance events and that is it. The 3200 Meter Run could be the most fascinating race of the four with Evelyn Hett of Jones Prep and Nikki Chopra of Whitney Young within four seconds of each other. Neither runner is under the state qualifying standard. Both could achieve that on Thursday. Charlotte Muller of Lane Tech and Xochitl Lopez of Whitney Young both lead the field in the 1600 Meter Run. Both have seed times at 5:24. Anna Jablonski of St. Ignatius is tops in the field in the 800 Meter Run. Her time of 2:23.59 is almost five seconds ahead of Jade Lavallee of Whitney Young and Lillianna Konrad of Lincoln Park. Lane Tech, St. Ignatius Prep, and Whitney Young will battle for the two qualifying spots in the 4x800m Relay. Lane Tech enters with a seed time of 9:51.60 which was achieved indoors.

 

Class 2A

 

Chicago Latin School (Thursday)

 

The big news in this sectional is that Latin School’s Ava Parekh will not defend her 2A Championship in the 3200 Meter Run. The senior raced last Saturday in her league meet. Minor injuries have kept her sidelined since her last race at Arcadia at the beginning of April. Parekh is entered in both the 800 and 1600 Meter Run. She ran 4:55.47 (2A #3) to easily win the ISL title in the 160 Meter Run. Mia Kotler (2A #8) and Ellie Anderson (2A #11) should give Latin School a 1-2 finish in the 3200 Meter Run. Parekh, Gabrielle Walker of DePaul College Prep, and McLaine Leik of Latin School could all qualify in the 800 Meter Run. Parekh and Kotler should also qualify in the 1600 Meter Run. Josephine Dziedzic of Payton Prep has run under 5:20 and could also make the trip down Charleston. DePaul College Prep and Payton Prep are within two seconds of each other in the 4x800m Relay. Latin School’s seed time is 45 seconds behind the top two teams. If Parekh runs, it could get Latin School closer.

 

Mundelein Carmel (Wednesday)

 

The 3200 Meter Run could be a great race if both runners choose to toe the line. Mary Grace Hegberg of St. Viator had a great distance triple in her conference meet last week that included a 10:38.97 (2A #4) win. Elia Ton-That of Northside Prep also ran a great time in winning the CPL Championship in 10:43.75 (2A #6). Both runners in this race could create some fantastic times. Paige-Elicia Caruth of Lakes is well under the 11:45.90 state qualifying time and should also advance. We could also see Izzy Bing of Carmel and Veronica Dworak of Resurrection also making it to state. Both Hegberg and Ton-That are both under 5-minutes in the 1600 Meter Run and should advance to Charleston. Ton-That comes into this meet as the defending 2A state champion in this event. Madison Twarling of Lakes needs an average race to make the state meet on time. Lucia Ton-That of Northside Prep and Madison Perez are at 2:24 in their seed times and within a second of the automatic qualifier time of 2:23.20 and are the favorites to advance in the 800 Meter Run. Northside Prep, with Lucia Ton-That on the quartet, ran the fastest 2A state time at 9:40.39 in the CPL Championships. They should advance with Lakes a team that should also advance.

 

Tolono Unity (Thursday)

 

Some have waited for Tatum David of Richland County to make her first appearance to the Big Blue Oval for the state meet after winning the 2A XC Title in the fall of 2019. She should make her first appearance to EIU next week but first most qualify. She should be able to do that. With Parekh not running in the 3200 Meter Run, David now has the fastest active 2A state time (10:25.51). David will be a big favorite in the 1600 Meter Run with the second fastest 2A time in the state (4:49.65). There was a thought that David would also run in the 800 Meter Run. She was entered until Sunday morning when she decided not to run in that event this year according to her father Rob.

 

Erica Woodard of Tolono Unity ran 11:03.45 at Illinois Top Times and should make the short trip to EIU. Celia Barbieri of Urbana is within four seconds of the auto qualifying standard and could also qualify. Sofia Munoz of Mt. Zion, Mabry Bruhn of Monticello, and Woodward all have times under the qualifying standard and should qualify with close to season best times. It should be a good race in the 800 Meter Run with Ashleigh Anderson of Mt. Zion at 2:18.71 (2A #6) and Bruhn (2:21.56, 2A #9) leading this field. Mt. Zion, Tolono Unity, and Monticello all have seed times under the state qualifying standard. Mahomet-Seymour and Clinton could get close to a state qualifying position.

 

Genoa-Kingston (Friday)

 

Two time state cross-country champion Lianna Surtz of Rosary is the top seed in both the 3200 and 1600 Meter Run. Surtz enters the 3200 at 10:40.10 (2A #5) more than a minute ahead of her sister Chiara and Isabella Anderson of Boylan Catholic. Surtz should also win the 1600 Meter Run. Her seed time is 5:05.46 from the indoor season. Brooke O’Carroll of Wheaton Academy leads the rest of the field at 5:30.60. Isabella Orozco of Aurora Central Catholic has a 2:17.20 best (2A #5) leading the field in the 800 Meter Run. Orozco also has the top seed time in the 400 Meter Dash. Rosary, with Lianna Surtz possibly in this quartet, leads the field in the 4x800m Relay.

 

Dunlap (Wednesday)

 

Delaney Fitzgerald of Normal University in her first year of running track has emerged as one of the top distance runners in Class 2A. Her latest race gave her a 10:31.72 personal best (2A #3) in a solo conference win effort. She should qualify in this event along with the 1600 Meter Run in this meet. We could see five qualifiers in this sectional in this event with Zoe Carter of Normal University, Emma Skinner of Morton, Audrey Heil of Metamora, and Abby Tudeen of Dunlap. Fitzgerald is the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run at 5:03.93 (2A #6). We could see six total runners make the trip to state in this event including Carter, Skinner, Teagan Cover of Peoria Notre Dame, Sophie Krueger of Morton, and Saniya Mathew of Dunlap. Becca Heitzig of Lincoln has the fastest 2A time (2:11.8) in the state in the 800 Meter Run. Taygen Beyer of Morton and Anna Bieber of Stanford Olympia are 12 seconds behind Heitzig and lead a six runner pack between 2:24 and 2:30. Only one runner will go to Charleston unless any of them exceed the 2:23.20 qualifying standard. Dunlap, Peoria Notre Dame, and Morton are all within five seconds of each other in the 4x800m Relay. All three teams are capable of running under 10-minutes on Wednesday. All of these quartets could make it to EIU.

 

Geneseo (Wednesday)

 

Dixon could take the two qualifying positions in the 3200 Meter Run with Emily Conderman and Emma Smith leading the way. Smith has the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run with a 5:15.54 time (2A #16). The next three runners are within five seconds of each other but almost 30 seconds behind Smith. Hana Ford of Rock Falls, Avery Lynn Engle of Galena, and Emily Conderman will challenge for the final state qualifying position. Dixon, with Smith in their lineup, is the top seed in the 4x800m Relay with a 10:03.15 time (2A #6). Sterling, Geneseo, and Rock Falls will challenge for the second spot. All three teams have season’s bests nearly 30 seconds behind that of Dixon. Jaide Flowers of Geneseo has the top seed time in the 800 Meter Run (2:26.70). Brianna Admire of Galesburg leads the chase pack almost 5 seconds behind Flowers.

 

Glenbard South (Friday)

 

Louisa Diamond of Benet Academy should qualify in both the 3200 and 1600 Meter Run. Diamond’s time of 10:49.74 (2A #7) leads the field in the 3200 Meter Run. Bella Dailey of Fenwick has run 11:36.25 and should be a good bet to also qualify. The next closest runner to Dailey is 69 seconds behind. The same two runners should also advance for the same reasons in the 1600 Meter Run. Diamond’s best time this spring is 5:04.68 (2A #7). Jadie Chavez of St. Laurence is the top seed in the 800 Meter Run (2:30.14). Benet Academy and Fenwick have the top two seed times in the 4x800m Relay. Trinity, at 10:36.44, is the closest team to the front two quartets.

 

Troy Triad (Thursday)

 

Colleen Zeibert of Rochester finished third in the 2A 800 Meter Run at last year’s state meet. She is seven seconds ahead of the field in this sectional and should advance. Her freshman sister Brooke leads that pack with a 2:23.02 time. Kaitlyn Lee of Sacred Heart-Griffin is also a possibly of qualifying. Sacred Heart-Griffin and Rochester ran the second and third fastest 2A times in their conference meet last weekend. Both teams should make it to the state meet. Troy Triad and Highland have season’s bests close to the 10:09 state qualifying time. Both teams could advance to next weekend. Hannah Meiser of Civic Memorial at 11:33.73 (2A #18) has the fastest seed time in the 3200 Meter Run. Meiser also has the top seed time in the 1600 Meter Run at 5:11.91 (2A #10).

 

Salem (Thursday)

 

Brodie Denny of Anna-Jonesboro has the top seed times in all three individual distance events. Eris Nelson of Althoff Catholic qualified in all three distance events while her school was in Class 1A in 2021. Nelson again is in all three of those distance events. Denny, Nelson, and Danielle Mudd of Waterloo are all within seven seconds of each other in the 3200 Meter Run. The three runners are within from 5 to 12 seconds of the 11:45 qualifying time. Denny has the top seed time of 2:24.14 in the 800 Meter Run. Eislee Moore of Carbondale and Nelson are within six seconds of Brodie. Three runners in the 1600 Meter Run could all advance to the state meet led by Brodie, Angelynn Kanyuck of Waterloo, and Nelson. Mascoutah and Waterloo look to be the best bets to qualify for state in the 4x800m Relay.

 

Kankakee (Wednesday)

 

This could be one of those distance sectionals that could just have auto qualifiers advancing. Chloe Proffitt of Marengo is the top seed in the 3200 Meter Run and the only entrant that has run under 13-minutes in this field. Proffitt and Annie Tibbot of Joliet Catholic have times near 6-minutes and should advance in the 1600 Meter Run. Bella Morey of Providence Catholic, Claire Blotnik of Joliet Catholic, and Grace Sullivan of Chicago Agricultural Science have seed times within two seconds of each other in the 800 Meter Run. Three runners will challenge for two qualifying spots. Agricultural Science and Joliet Catholic have the top two seeds in the 4x800m Relay.

 

Chicago De La Salle (Thursday)

 

This is not the heaviest of distance sectionals with only five runners in each the 1600 Meter Run and 3200 Meter Run. Amanda O’Donnell of Chicago University is the most notable entrant in this meet. O’Donnell has the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run. Only two teams are in the 4x800m Relay. Chicago University and Lindblom are the only two teams entered.

 

Class 1A

 

Winnebago (Friday)

 

Winnebago will have home track advantage in their own sectional. That could result in high numbers of qualifiers for next week’s state meet. Winnebago has the top 1A time in the 4x800m Relay. They will look to improve to lower their time in this race. Harvest Christian Academy looks to be the top competition to Bago. Sophia Martino of Winnebago and Kelly Giardina of Rockford Christian are separated by only four seconds in the 3200 Meter Run. Both seniors should qualify for state in this event. There is close to a minute gap after these two runners. Grace Erb of Winnebago has run 2:18.18 and has the top 1A time in the state. The junior has the top seed time by 11 seconds ahead of Eva Camp of Harvest Christian Academy. You will also see Erb in the 4x8 and 4x4 in this meet. Winnebago has the top two seeds in the 1600 Meter Run. Kaylee Woolery leads all runners with a 5:15.74 seed time from indoors and is ranked 1A #9 outdoors. Teammate Marissa Roggensack is next at 5:18.32 (1A #10). Giardina and Ella Richter of Harvest Christian Academy could also qualify.

 

DuQuoin (Thursday)

 

The storylines are fantastic in the four distance events. Ahry Comer of Pope County in southeastern Illinois is a novice in track but has emerged as one of the top 1A runners in the state this spring. She could show even more in this meet as the top seed in all three individual distance events. Comer should cruise to the win in the 3200 Meter Run. Her seasonal best of 11:10.99 (1A #2) is more than 80 seconds ahead of the rest of the field. The 800 Meter Run should be a great race as Comer at 2:20.58 (1A #2) and Olivia Phillips of DuQuoin at 2:22.47 (1A #7) are the top seeds. Phillips finished second in last year’s state finals. Comer and Phillips should also be the top two runners in the 1600 Meter Run. Comer’s 5:03.60 (1A #2) at Palatine in April leads this field by 20 seconds ahead of Phillips. DuQuoin, with Phillips as part of their quartet, has the third fastest 1A time in the state at 10:02.48 in the 4x800m Relay. Pinckneyville should be the other team to earn the state qualifying bid.

 

Catlin Salt Fork (Friday)

 

Kate Ahmari of Urbana University is the top distance runner to watch for in this sectional. Ahmari enters the 3200 Meter Run with a 11:21.9 time (1A #3) with Aleigha Garrison of Judah Christian her closest competition. Ahmari has the fastest 1600 Meter Run time in this sectional with a 5:06.46 time (1A #3). Savanna Franzen of St. Joseph Ogden with a 5:16.17 seed time (1A #7) should be the closest to Ahmari. Ava Knap of St. Joseph-Ogden and Macie Russell of Salt Fork could also make it to state. Russell is also the top seed in the 800 Meter Run. St. Joseph-Ogden, at 10:05.70, is the top seed in the 4x800m Relay by more than 50 seconds. Urbana University and Milford will challenge for the second qualifying spots.

 

Altamont (Wednesday)

 

Will Marshall win all four distance events in this sectional? It is a possibility since Marshall does have three of the top four top seed times.. Brooklyn Bender is the top seed in the 3200 Meter Run with a 11:23.37 time (1A #4). Teammate Isabel Arthur and Kyra Griesemer of Red Hill are both under the 12:19.90 seed time. Three runners advancing out of this sectional are a possibility. Arthur has run 2:23.97 this spring (1A #10) and leads the field in the 800 Meter Run. It could be close as Ella Tingley of Robinson and Rylea Borgic of Newton are within three seconds of Arthur. It will take 5:36.90 to advance in the 1600 Meter Run. Bender is the top seed and should make it in. Either or both Katelyn Jones of Robinson and Jasmyn Self of Casey-Westfield could also be toeing the line in Charleston next weekend. Robinson is ranked 1A #6 in the 4x800m Relay with their 10:08.30 time. Marshall is a good bet to also make it to State.

 

Nashville (Thursday)

 

Father McGivney has an outside chance for a top five finish in next week’s state meet. They will need to get their power runners to Charleston first. Elena Rybak has the fastest 1A time in the state at 4:58.13. The champ from this March’s Illinois Top Times should roll to the win. She has the top seed time by 40 seconds ahead of Ella Sager of Fairfield and Jane Cummins of Father McGivney. All three runners are freshmen. Cummins and Alexis Kampwerth of Breese Mater Dei are the top runners in the 3200 Meter Run. Sarah McKowen of Centralia Christ Our Rock Lutheran also has a good chance to qualify. Kaitlyn Hatley of Father McGivney has run 2:21.87 (1A #4) in the 800 Meter Run. The sophomore is 15 seconds ahead of the rest of this sectional field. Cummins, Hatley, and Rybak all should be running in the 4x800m Relay. The Griffins are currently ranked #2 in Class 1A. Breese Mater Dei is seeded second but a full minute behind Father Mac.

 

Bloomington Central Catholic (Wednesday)

 

Nora Brady of Bloomington Central Catholic is the favorite in the 3200 Meter Run. The junior’s season’s best of 11:36.72 (1A #8) is more than a minute ahead of the rest of the field. The 1600 Meter Run should be closer as Brady leads the field with a 5:15.64 (1A #5) season’s best. Trixie Johnson of Paxton-Buckley-Loda could also win this event. Her top time outdoors is 5:20.42 (1A #11). Kaitlyn Burge of Deer Creek-Mackinaw also has a good chance to qualify for state at that distance. Johnson is currently ranked 1A #5 in the 800 Meter Run. She is seven seconds ahead of Anna Zlatic of Bloomington Central Catholic and Burge. Bloomington Central could have Brady and Zlatic part of their 4x800 Meter Relay quartet. They are favorited in the event. BCC has a seed time over 50 seconds ahead of the rest of the field.

 

El Paso-Gridley (Thursday)

 

Anna Perry of Eureka has her eyes set on two qualifying spots in the distance events. Perry has the fastest time in Class 1A in the 3200 Meter Run (11:10.12). She will be favored in this sectional. Nellie Melick of El Paso-Gridley at 12:07.70 from indoor season should also qualify. Perry and Melick should also qualify in the 1600 Meter Run. Perry’s seed time is 5:16.94 (1A #8). Evita Martinez of Kankakee McNamara is within five seconds of the qualifying standards and could make it to Charleston with a good race. Eureka has run 10:13.40 (1A #7) in the 4x800m Relay. The Hornets time is more than a minute faster than the rest of the field. Perry will also try to qualify in the 800 Meter Run. She has run 2:24.93 this season and has the fastest seed time by eight seconds ahead of Martinez and Meika Bender of Eureka.

 

Beardstown (Friday)

 

The top two runners are separated by only three seconds in the 3200 Meter Run. Arianna Neisen of Liberty and Louisa Wilson of Williamsville will challenge for the sectional title in the event. Both runners are more than a minute ahead of the rest of the field. The two runners are back in the 1600 Meter Run and should also advance to Charleston. Niesen is again the top seed at 5:31.87 almost seven seconds ahead of Wilson. Abigail Wolters of Pleasant Plains is the favorite in the 800 Meter Run. The freshman enters this sectional with a 2:22.48 seed time (1A #8). There is an 11 second gap before six runners that are between 2:33 and 2:36. Meg Simmons of Astoria leads that pack. Pleasant Plains is the favorite in the 4x800m Relay with a 48 second gap before Williamsville, Rushville-Industry, and Winchester.

 

Seneca (Thursday)

 

Carly Manchester of IC Catholic Prep qualified for all three individual distance events in 2021 earning all-state honors in the 3200 and 1600 in Charleston. Manchester will look to repeat that task in Thursday’s sectional. Manchester and Ashley Alsvig of Seneca have the top two seed times and are almost a minute ahead of the rest of the field in the 3200 Meter Run. Manchester’s time in the 800 Meter Run has dropped to 2:22.46 (1A #6) and is the top seed with Evelyn O’Connor of Seneca at 2:28.23 her closest competition. O’Connor and Manchester should challenge for the win in the 1600 Meter Run. Alsvig also could qualify for her second event in this race. Seneca and Timothy Christian are good bets to qualify in the 4x800m Relay.

 

Mercer County (Thursday)

 

Eden Muller of Mercer County has run 11:48.79 (1A #12) and has the top seed in the 3200 Meter Run. Olivia Thomsen of Orion and Clarissa Otstrowski of Rock Island Alleman look to challenge for the second automatic qualifying position in the event. Mueller is also the top seed in the 1600 Meter Run with Tess Hendrickson of Rock Island Alleman her closest competition. Four runners are within a second of each other in the 800 Meter Run led by Hendrickson and Josie Bryan of Illini West. Sherrard and Knoxville are the top seeds in the 4x800m Relay. Stark County and Mercer County could challenge for one of the two auto qualifying spots.

 

Bureau Valley (Wednesday)

 

Kennady Anderson of Kewanee Wethersfield has the top seed time in all three of the individual distance events. Anderson at 11:35.13 (1A #7) has the top seed time in the 3200 Meter Run. Jolee Larson of Indian Creek and Miranda Reed of Cambridge are good bets to also qualify. Anderson and Larson should also advance in the 1600 Meter Run. Anderson enters with a 5:14.92 seed time (1A #4). The Wethersfield sophomore could be a factor at state in the 800 Meter Run. She is the top seed in this sectional with a 2:21.00 time (1A #3). Riley Packer of Erie at 2:27.70 is the closest runner to Anderson at that distance. Erie, anchored by Packer, has the top seed time in the 4x800m Relay (10:35.93) by more than a minute ahead of Fulton.

 

Sullivan (Thursday)

 

Aly Douglas of Okaw Valley has the top seeds in both the 800 and 1600 Meter Run. The freshman’s time of 2:25.84 (1A #16) is two seconds ahead of Heidi Huldt from Argenta-Oreana. Douglass and Anna Tynan of Shelbyville are the top two runners in the 1600 Meter Run. Brook Schutt of Shelbyville and Ellie Stahr of St. Teresa are 54 seconds and the only runners at 13-minutes or better in the 3200 Meter Run. Shelbyville is the top seed in the 4x800m Relay with St. Teresa the closest team at 35 seconds behind.

 

Gillespie (Thursday)

 

This sectional should have two qualifiers only in each of the four distance events. Alton Marquette and Litchfield are the only teams under 12-minutes in the 4x800m Relay. Kylee Eiting of Litchfield and Olivia Thoroman of North Mac are the only runners in the 3200 Meter Run that have run under 13:11 this season. They are more than a minute ahead of the rest of the field. Ava Certa of Alton Marquette and Caroline Peters of New Berlin are the top runners in the 800 Meter Run. Katie Johnson of Alton Marquette and Peters have the only times under 6-minutes in the 1600 Meter Run.

 

Hope Academy (Thursday)

 

Another sectional that should see two automatic qualifiers per distance event. There are only three runners entered in the 3200 Meter Run. Francoise Lechner of Willows Academy has the top seed time (12:03.66) by over two-minutes. Yanelise Santiaguillo of Beacon Academy has the top seed time in the 800 Meter Run (2:38.09). Erika Escudero of Horizon/McKinley has the top seed time in the 1600 Meter Run (6:27.71). Three teams are entered in the 4x800m Relay headed by Beacon Academy (11:47.32).