By Michael Newman, ILXCTF.com Editor

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The opening session of the 2017 Illinois Top Times Championships features Class 1A athletes. In some states, the small school athletes are not noticed on the national scene. In this state, you have three-time indoor All-American Kathleen Young and nine-time state champion Anna Sophia Keller leading the way.

Young is in a class by herself in the Shot Put. The senior is currently ranked second nationally in the event and has won at this meet for the last three years. Keller won the 800 and 1600 Meter Run in a span of 75 minutes in last year’s meet. She will attempt to do that again but he field will be a little tougher in the 800 Meter Run.

The Boys 1A Meet could be a jump into the spotlight for Connor Artman of Illini West. The junior was spectacular at the Jacksonville Class 1A Invitational on March 4 winning three individual events. Artman will be the favorite in the Long Jump and could also be on top in the 60 Meter Dash and 60 Meter Hurdles. The high-hurdle event is new for Artman. In his first race at Jacksonville, he ran the fastest 1A time in the state in his win.

Here is a look at each of the events that will take place on Friday. You can also watch the meet via the LIVE WEBCAST on RunnerSpace +PLUS.

1A Meet Program

Field Events

Shot Put

Girls – Kathleen Young of Warrensburg-Latham is the big favorite in this event. Young finished second in the Shot Put on March 11 at the New Balance Indoor Nationals. She has won this even three years in a row and should make it a fourth. Young could also shatter her own record (49-1.25) that she set in 2015. It is a possibility since she has gone past the 50-foot mark seven times in this indoor season with 52-4 her seasonal and personal best. Chloe Lindeman of Fulton has the only other seed mark over 40-feet (43-5) in this field.

Boys – This should be a great event with three athletes over 53 feet and within a foot of each other. Dillon Birch of Shelbyville has the best mark in this field (53-8) followed by Russell Nelson of Rockford Christian Life and Andy Bird of Hamilton/Warsaw. Nick Olson of Flanagan/Cornell and Jackson Harkness of Elmwood-Brimfield could surprise in this event.

High Jump

Girls – This event should come down to two athletes. 2016 IHSA 1A State champion DaeLin Switzer of St. Teresa cleared 5-7 at the Decatur Area Invitational at the beginning of the month and has the second-best mark in the state. Lucy Rulon of St. Thomas More is one of five athletes to clear 5-6 this indoor season and should be Switzer’s chief challenger. No other athletes in this field have cleared 5-2 indoors in 2017. 

Boys – This event is wide open but could be the best 1A field event on Friday. Seven athletes that will be competing at this meet have cleared 6-4 or better in this event. They are led by the 6-7 cleared by Nathan Kiger of Palestine last Saturday at the Charleston Boys Invitational. Tristen Tewes of Pleasant Plains, Jace Norman of Illini West, and Cameron Getz of Macon Meridian all have cleared 6-6 and capable of winning. Nick Schultz of Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley has only cleared 6-4 in 2017 but the 6-7 that he cleared last year at the IHSA State Meet is on his resume making him a threat to win. Joe Wooten of Madison and Quinn Halversen of Rockford Christian would be other athletes that I would keep an eye on.

Pole Vault

Girls – Kristin Slaughter of St. Anthony cleared 12-0 to win the event last Saturday at the Gene Armer Invitational and should be the athlete to watch Friday afternoon. Four other athletes have gone past 11-0 indoors including Emma Smith of Carlinville and Maddie Kelly of Bloomington Central Catholic. I would keep an eye on them. Hanna Atwood of St. Joseph-Ogden has a 10-7 seasonal best but could be in the top three in this meet.

Boys – Defending meet champion Curtis Gordon of Vandalia has been sidelined al indoor season with an injury preventing him to compete in this meet. Andrew Glynn of Staunton and Cameron Witts of Williamsville are the only athletes in this field that have been past 14 feet indoors and the ones to watch. Andrew McWhorter of Teutopolis opened his season last week in Charleston clearing 13-6. He has a 14-3 personal best from last year’s state meet and could be on top of the podium by night’s end.

Long Jump

Girls – Lucy Rulon has jumped 17-3.75 this season and could be the athlete to watch. Maddie Meyer of Argenta-Oreana and Whitney Smith of Stewardson-Strasburg have seasonal bests within four inches of Rulon and will push for the win. Cora Wilkinson of Seneca could be the dark horse in the event.

Boys – Two athletes have stood out in Class 1A this season and the favorites in this event. Connor Artman of Illini West jumped a seasonal best of 22-2 at Jacksonville at the beginning of the month and could get close to 23-feet in this meet. Jordan Rowell of IC Catholic Prep has had a minimal indoor season schedule but has still managed a 21-9 jump making him a threat to win.

Triple Jump

Girls – Tarynn Mays of DuQuoin is the athlete to watch in this event. Her jump of 37-2 to win at the Southern Illinois University Invitational on March 3 is the best mark in this field by over two feet. Danielle Taets of Orion and Natasha Bernett of Luther North are two of the others to watch.

Boys – Jason Duncan of St. Teresa has the top seed mark (42-2.25) by almost a foot. Jared Meents of Clifton Central and Jacob Donaldson of Colfax Ridgeview are the only other athletes entered that have gone past 41-feet.

Sprints / Hurdles Events

60 Meter Hurdles

Girls – Parker Francisco of St. Joseph-Ogden finished fourth last year in this event. She enters this meet on Friday with the fastest seed time (9.16). Alayna Stalter of Fisher, Natasha Bernett, and Emery Podowicz of Clifton Central have the next best times and could be threats to win. Jayden King of Danville Schlarman finished third last year. She could be a surprise in the finals.

Boys – It shocked some at Jacksonville on March 4 that Connor Artman of Illini West was in the field for this event since he has only specialized in the 300 Intermediates outdoors. He ran the fastest 1A time (8.60) in winning in what his first time running the event. It is a tough field for Artman as Trey Miller of Lewistown, Mason Barr of Colfax Ridgeview, and Dontez Pittman of Madison are among the athletes to keep an eye on in the front.

60 Meter Dash

Girls – Last year’s winner in the finals and 2016 IHSA 1A 100/200 Meter Dash state champion Courtney Sockwell of Rockford Christian has the fastest seed time (7.80). Tarynn Mays of DuQuoin is the hot 1A athlete right now and could be the chief challenger to Sockwell. Mya Tinsley of Colfax Ridgeview has run 6.81 and could win this race. Frankie Izard of St. Joseph-Ogden and Jada Williams of Luther North are sprinters that are also capable of winning.

Boys – This is a loaded field that could come down to a number of sprinters winning. Dionte Lewis of Warrensburg-Latham has the fastest 1A time at this distance running 7.07 to win at Charleston last week. Connor Artman will be coming right back from the hurdle race but remains a threat in this race. Jordan Rowell has competed in small tracks this indoor season with a 6.4 hand-timed 55 Meter Dash at Lockport on March 11. His resume as a multi-all state athlete shows he will contend for the title in this race. Easton Bianchi of Sterling Newman and Jason Duncan are some of the other athletes to keep an eye on.

400 Meter Dash

Girls -  This event is wide open with the top ten athletes in this event all within a second of each other. Three of those athletes in the final two sections will be coming back from the 800 Meter Run contested just 60 minutes before this one. Marguerite Hendrickson of St. Thomas More has the fastest seed time (1:02.47) and one of those athletes doubling back. Arielle Summit of Urbana University is also in the final section and coming back from the 800. She could end up winning. Kayla Armstorng of Luther North could end up being the favorite having a seasonal best within 18 hundredths of that of Hendrickson.

Boys – Mason Barr has the fastest seed time and is doubling back from the 60 Hurdles. This will be Jordan Rowell’s third event of the meet and he could be a threat here. The one athlete that I would keep an eye on is Camden Coleman of Urbana University who ran 51.87 in February and has the third fastest overall time in Class 1A in this event.

200 Meter Dash

Girls – Courtney Sockwell ran 26.43 last week a Champaign and has the top 1A time in the state. Luther North’s Kayla Armstrong and Jada Williams along with Warrensburg-Latham’s Taylor George have the ability to upset Sockwell in this event.

Boys – Jordan Rowell will be in the second section of four in this event. He is there because he has been running on indoor tracks smaller than 200-meters this winter. He could end up with the fastest time in the end. Camden Coleman, Dionte Lewis, and Mason Barr running in the final section could end up winning. Lewis has the fastest 1A time (23.02) this season.

Distance Events

3200 Meter Run

Girls – Daly Galloway of Dwight ran 10:55.50 to finish fifth at Batavia Distance Madness on March 10. She should be the big favorite in this race having the fastest seed time by 38 seconds ahead of Liberty’s Katelyn Robbins. Freshman Caroline Jachino of Pleasant Plains could be close to Robbins in this race along with Haley Weidner of Bureau Valley and Faith Provost of Bishop McNamara.

Boys – This could be the best distance race of the night and a preview of what we could see up front next fall at Detweiller Park. Logan Hall of Arthur-Lovington ran 9:21.70 to finish second at the Charger Classic on March 4 behind Brayden Hamblen. Wyatt McIntyre of Athens is running with more confidence after a successful pair of races at the NXR Midwest Regional and the Foot Locker Midwest Regionals after last cross country season. He ran 9:26.17 in winning at Principia College on March 11. The two could push each other to fast times. It would no surprise me if we both going under 9:15. They are 30 seconds faster than the rest of the field.

800 Meter Run

Girls – Anna Sophia Keller of St. Anthony won both this race and the 1600 Meter Run in a span of 75 minutes in last year’s meet. She could do it again. The 800 could give her the biggest obstacle with last year’s top two finishers in this event in the 1A State Finals entered. Arielle Summit of Urbana University is the defending IHSA 1A State champion running 2:12 last May in Charleston. She has a seasonal best of 2:16.07 that was achieved at the New Balance Indoor Nationals on March 11. Audrey Harrod of Hinckley-Big Rock likes to take the pace out extremely fast. She went through the 400 in 64 seconds ending up getting nipped at the line by Jenna Lutzow at the Batavia Distance Madness Meet on March 10. She ran 2:17.50 in that race. Keller, two weeks ago, ran 2:19.62 in winning her first of two races at Charleston. She ran 2:15.98 in winning last year. It could take a time in the 2:14’s to win on Friday.

Boys – Riley Wells of Rockford Lutheran is the only 1A Boys athlete under two minutes in this event and should be the favorite. He ran 1:59.17 to win in Wisconsin last Friday. He will be doubling back from the 3200 Meter Relay less than an hour before this race. Tyler Pasley of Shelbyville will be doing the same double but could be Wells’ chief competition. Joseph Stone of Newton or Jason Landon of Carlinville could be the ones at the end that could win.

1600 Meter Run

Girls – Anna Sophia Keller’s last high school indoor race should be a dominating one. Keller ran 4:52 last year and is the huge favorite in this race. Claudia Magnussen of Pana, who finished second to Keller last fall at Detweiller Park, has the next fastest seed time but it is 23 seconds slower to that of Keller’s. Madison Franseen of Rockford Christian and Fran Hendrickson of St. Thomas More could challenge for one of the top three places.

Boys – Wyatt McIntyre doubles back from the 3200 Meter Run and will be one of the favorites in this race. Chris Ahlers of Sterling Newman and Justin Phillips of St. Joseph-Ogden have a seed time within a second of each other possibly making this a close finish. We could see a winning time under 4:24.

Relay Events

4x800 Meter Relay

Girls – St. Thomas More and St. Joseph-Ogden have the fastest two seed times and within a second of each other. Deer Creek-Mackinaw has the tradition in this event that could push the above two teams under 10 minutes. Keep an eye on Springfield Lutheran. They came in last year as an underdog and ended up winning this race four seconds ahead of Deer Creek-Mackinaw. We could see the same scenario Friday night.

Boys – The top two teams in last year’s 1A State Meet finals in Charleston should headline this event. Shelbyville is loading up their relay with Tyler Pasley and Ryan Skowronski leading the way. Rockford Christian should have Riley Wells anchoring. If he is close when he gets the baton, he could lead the Royal Lions to the win. Illini West, St. Thomas More, and Sterling Newman have the talent to get close to those two teams.

4x200 Meter Relay

Girls – St. Joseph-Ogden is the class of this event having the fastest seed time by close to three seconds. Warrensburg-Latham, Clifton Central, and Taylor Ridge Rockridge will be some of the teams challenging for the second spot.

Boys – Section 4 could be a fun race to watch with Illini West led by Connor Artman challenging for the event title with Madison, Rockford Christian, and Mercer County challenging. The first exchange in this event at this meet is always exciting to watch. Getting the lead at the first exchange usually gives you the race winner.

4x400 Meter Relay

Girls – St. Joseph-Ogden could be going for the sweep in the relays but will be challenged by Clifton Central for the title. The two schools are within a second of each other. Farmington could be the next team close to the top two.

Boys – A close final race of the night could be a perfect closer for the first day of this meet. Rockford Christian ran 3:32.83 last week in Wisconsin and has the fastest seed time by close to five seconds. Illini West  and Shelbyville will be the chief competition.