(Above Photo: Katelynne Hart edges by Claire Hamilton in the final stages of the 1600 Meter Run.)

By Michael Newman, ILXCTF.com Editor

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Glen Ellyn – Occasionally, you will see an athlete win two distance events in a meet. It is tough to do but your top distance athletes will find ways to get accomplish that goal. Katelynne Hart of Glenbard West was told by her coaches seven days before the Sue Pariseau Invitational that they were thinking of her to run not one, not two, but three individual distance races on the meet schedule. Hart ran those races Saturday on her home track and won not one, not two but all three of those distance races in what was a memorable afternoon in Glen Ellyn on the shores of Lake Ellyn.

The freshman started out in the 3200 Meter Run and took the lead from the start. Knowing that she had two more races to go on the day, she conserved her energy just running hard enough to win. With runners like Naperville North’s Sarah Schmitt and Alex Morris along with teammate Lindsey Payne close behind, it was no lark in the park for Hart. She finished in 10:25.95 for the win ahead of Schmitt (10:31.74), Payne (10:37.38), and Morris (10:40.45). The key was that she had conserved enough energy for the two races yet to come.

The 800 Meters started 50 minutes after she had finished the 3200 Meter Run. Her main competition came from Hinsdale Central junior Reilly Revord who entered the meet with the fastest time in the state for the distance. Hart like she has done during this season was to take the lead right at the gun. Revord followed as the two followed through a 66.2 first 400-meters. Revord pulled up on Hart on the back stretch but the freshman refused to let her by. With 150-meters to go, Revord tried again but with no luck. The two runners ran side-by-side down the home stretch with Hart holding on to a slight lead. It stayed that way as they crossed the line together with Hart the edge (2:14.20) by just eight hundredths of a second ahead of Revord (2:14.28). Glenbard West’s Janie Nabholz also had a great race finishing third (2:17.80) with a personal best. For Hart, she had set a new meet record by more than a second.

“I felt pretty good before the start of the 800. I was kind of surprised,” Hart stated. “In the 3200, it was a long race and I think about things. In the 800, I didn’t. I just thought at the end I’ve got to go, I’ve got to go.”

The Sue Pariseau Meet simulates the state meet when it comes down to time between races especially with frosh-soph races in the schedule. It was one of the reasons why Glenbard West coaches Kelly and Paul Hass wanted to see how she would handle running these events. So far, so good after two races. The toughest was yet to come.

80 minutes had passed since the finish of the 800 Meter Run. Hart had some time to rest to prepare herself for the 1600 Meter Run in what proved to be the best race of the meet. Claire Hamilton of Naperville North had run 4:59 indoors and was going to be the one person to push the Glenbard freshman.

From the start, Hart and Hamilton separated themselves from the rest of the pack going through 400-meters in 69.4 seconds while the rest of the runners were already five seconds back. The same held true in the next lap as the two went through 800-meters as they ran side by side. The question became who would make the first move and when. That was answered when both approached the bell lap and crossed the line in 3:39.8. Hart had slowly gotten a slight lead as it seemed that Hamilton was starting to fade.

With 200-meters to go, Hart had opened close to a two second lead. Where was she finding this energy? This was her third race of the day. And what about the Naperville senior? Did she have one final move up her sleeve?

Hamilton was lurking just waiting for the right moment. That happened as the two came out of the final turn. Hamilton had closed the gap and made a surge out into lane 2. She had the lead but just slightly as they closed towards the finish line. I do not know where Hart found the energy to stay with Hamilton but she did. She dug down to find one more ounce of energy. The two were together and there seemed to be some contact with 25-meters to go. Hamilton lost stride for just a blink of an eye. That was the opening that Hart was looking for as she edged by. Judy Pendergast had run 4:51 after running 10:07 in last year’s meet. It seemed like that record would hold. But in a blink of an eye, that meet record was gone.

Hart crossed the line with her third win of the day (4:50.72). Hamilton was close behind (4:51.15) running a six second personal best and going under Pendergast’s meet record. Hannah Ricci of Naperville North finished third (5:04.61) while Lindsey Payne finished fourth (5:05.81) with a great double to finish her day. In most races, that third and fourth place finishing times would have won. Not on this day.

After the race, Kelly Hass was smiling ear to ear. “We wanted to see if she could do it and boy did she ever,” Hass said. “It makes our decisions in the next couple of weeks a little bit tougher. What a special girl.”

“I wasn’t sure what her (Hamilton) seed time was or PR was. I didn’t know what to expect. I was lucky I got the win,” Hart added. “I always think about this 4x4 that I did indoors at North Central College in February. I was leading and a Lyons Township girl passed me. My heart just freezes and I get an adrenaline rush. It was just like that. It kind of shocked me but it gave me a boost at the end.”

What was shocking was how she won those three races. It does not shock me that she did. You think how can she win these three races in such little time but this freshman finds a way to get it done. Hart does have that heart at the end of races to get across the line first.

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What was lost while Hart was doing what she was doing was at the High Jump area at the east corner of the track. Jelena Rowe of Bloom Township had the event won and had established a new meet record surpassing the old 5-7 height. She had the bar raised to 6-1. It was a height that she had cleared once in March at the Illinois Top Times Championships. In that meet, she did that on her first attempt. It happened again in this meet. She had a good approach to the bar and started to go over. She just nipped the bar but it stayed on the standards. The 6-1 clearance is the best mark in the nation and has the top two marks in the nation this year.

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This meet was so high powered where there were other great performances besides those of Hart and Rowe. Defending 3A sprint champion Amira Young of Whitney Young was in control of both sprint races in his meet. She had the lead 40-meters into the 100 Meter Dash. She cruised across the line in 12.77 to win by a half a second. Considering that the temperature was close to 50-degrees when the race started, the performance was outstanding. The same applied with the 200 Meter Dash. Young had the lead coming out of the curve and that just grew as she approached the finish line. Her time of 25.65 was a season’s best and more than half a second ahead of Wheaton Academy’s Karyn Best (26.29) who also had a great day. The junior ran the second-best time in the state (44.78) to win the 300 Meter Hurdles.

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The team battle came down to the 1600 Meter Relay to decide a team champion. Oak Park-River Forest’s win (4:03.94) just ahead of Hinsdale Central (4:05.96). That win in the final event gave the Lady Huskies the team championship with 85 points just one point ahead of Naperville North (84 points). Oak Park received two other event wins to help them with the team title. Ella Rossa jumped a personal best of 17-10 to win the Long Jump. Destiny White held off Lincoln-Way East’s Ololade Ayoola to win the 400 Meter Dash with a 57.97 personal best. Ayoola’s time of 58.11 was a seasonal best.

Lincoln-Way East finished with 80 points in third led by a win in the Shot Put by Lauren LaDere (42-1.75).  Glenbard West scored 78 points to finish fourth.