By Michael Newman, ILXCTF.com Editor

[email protected]

The team favorite to win the 3A title is not clear with up to five teams capable of winning. What will be interesting to watch are the journeys of three athletes that will try to do some special things.

Jaimie Robinson has the top sectional performances in four events. Can she win those events and help Homewood-Flossmoor win the 3A state title? Sophomore Dajour Miles is in position to win three events and could race Robinson in the finals in tow of those events. Let’s not forget about Amira Young. She is the defending 100 and 200 Meter Dash champion. While the spotlight could be on Robinson and Miles, Young could win again. The sprints in this class will be wild. We could see a new face as queen of the Illinois sprints by the end of Saturday.

Katelynne Hart has gone undefeated in distance events this season. She made even more news last week anchoring Glenbard West to a come from behind win in the 3200 Relay, hen going out to run state best times in the 3200 and 1600 Meter Run. Can she get a win in all three? If so, are there records in those races?

Jelena Rowe has the best mark in the United States in the High Jump clearing 6-1 indoors and then 6-1 at Glenbard West in April. Will conditions warrant a record attempt in her final IHSA State Meet?

Here is a look at the events that will take place on Friday and Saturday in Charleston.

FIELD EVENTS

Long Jump

This is where Jaimie Robinson of Homewood-Flossmoor’s quest for four individual state championships starts. Robinson has the best sectional mark 19-11) as well as having the top jump this season in the state (20-0). There is no qualifying athlete in 3A that is within a foot of her. Kameesha Smith of Thornwood finished second behind Robinson last week (18-10.5) and could go past 19-feet in this meet. Isabelle Kennedy of Lake Park and Maddie Manganiello of Downers Grove South along with Downers Grove North’s Isabelle Maletich all could finish second (or better). The one athlete that Robinson should watch out for is Hannah Morris of Bloom Township who is the defending champion. She missed most of outdoor season with an injury. The only meet she competed in outdoors was last week when she jumped 18-7 at Homewood-Flossmoor. She just needs one big jump. Remember, she jumped 19-9.5 indoors and jumped 20-1.75 last June at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals.

Triple Jump

It is hard to imagine that anyone will get close to Jaimie Robinson in his event. The senior has the best jump in the state (42-8) and is close to four feet ahead of anyone else in the field. Her “worst” outdoor jump this season was 39-9.5 at New Trier in rainy conditions. That is still one foot better than the field. Quincy’s Maggie Schutte had a 38-11.5 mark last week at Belleville West and could be Robinson’s closes competition. This will be a battle most likely for second with Timber Terrell of Wheeling, Natasha Schaffer of Prairie Ridge, Isabel Maletich, Isabelle Kennedy, Britany Walker of Belleville West, and Rachel Blumensein of Hinsdale South he main athletes challenging for a top three position.

High Jump

Just like Robinson in the Triple Jump, it is hard to see anyone ahead of Jelena Rowe of Bloom Township in this event. The senior has the top clearance in the nation (6-1) and is undefeated both indoors and outdoors in 11 meets. She has cleared 6-0 or higher seven times. Kameesha Smith cleared a personal best 5-9 last week behind Rowe. She could put some pressure on Rowe. Ololade Ayoola of Lincoln-Way East, Katie Mans of Alton, Sydney Anderson of Yorkville, Claire Young of Bolingbrook, and Tabor Gleason of Cary-Grove should challenge for the second spot behind Rowe.

Pole Vault

Ali Munson of Benet Academy and Lauren Seaver of Normal University should challenge for the event championship. Munson, who won the 2A championship last spring, has cleared a 3A state leading 12-6. She cleared 12-4 last week at the Downers Grove South Sectional. Seaver cleared 12-3 at her sectional meet and could surely challenge Munson. Nikki Ogorek of Bloomington is the only other athlete to clear 12-0 and could challenge Seaver and Munson. Brooke Misukonis of Bloomington, Micah Brady of Wheaton North, Sam Fisher of Prairie Ridge, and Nicole Cho of Niles West are some of the athletes that could challenge for all-state spots.

Shot Put

This could be a crazy event with six 3A athletes going past 44-feet his outdoor season. Courtney Morgan of Metea Valley is the defending champion and has won the state championship twice in this event. Her best outdoors is 45-3 accomplished in early April. She did win the Bartlett Sectional with a 44-11 throw. Evangelynn Harris of East St. Louis-Senior has the best 3A outdoor mark throwing 45-11. She threw 44-11.25 last week which is one quarter of an inch ahead of Morgan. Abena Atuobi of Warren Township had two over 45-foot throws at the beginning of April. Her best throw since that point was 43-0 last week. Brooklynne Wilson of Waubonsie Valley, Lauren LaDere, and Ellie Weltha all went past 44-feet outdoors. Any of these three athletes could win this event.

Discus

Jazzmine Poole of East St. Louis threw a personal best 149-6 at last week’s Belleville West Sectional giving her the best sectional mark by 12-feet. Brooklynne Wilson threw 148-0 in the middle of April. Her best throw since that point was 133-1 at her conference meet. She does have the talent to challenge Poole. Jalah Morris of Zion-Benton is the only other athlete to go pas 140-feet. She could challenge for the win. Courtney Morgan is on a hot streak throwing a seasonal best 137-6 last week. I would keep an eye on her. Quincy’s Tori Tyler and Arriana Benjamin, along with Alisa Fallon of Maine West and Kyla Denwood of Willowbrook all could challenge for a top three finish if they are hot on Friday and Saturday.

SPRINTS / HURDLES

100 Meter Hurdles

Thornton’s Mya Robinson has been invincible at this distance this spring going undefeated with the 14.29 win last week at Homewood-Flossmoor her best. Tauja Foreman of Evanston and Rokelle Stanley of East St. Louis-Senior have the next two fastest 3A times but they were wind-aided. Stanley ran 14.53 last week in her sectional and could be Robinson’s chief competition. Foreman ran 14.88 to win at Loyola last week. Kelvi Searcy of Belleville West, Kayla Walters of Bolingbrook, Ella Rosa of Oak Park-River Forest, and Soren Umali of Downers Grove South could all challenge for all-state spots.

100 Meter Dash

This is a full field with a record 55 athletes advancing out of sectionals. The talent in this field is incredible. There is no clear favorite. Jaimie Robinson ran 11.80 last week to win by two hundredths of a second ahead of Danville’s Ameia Wilson. The week before at the Big 12 Conference Meet, Wilson ran 11.80. Amira Young of Whitney Young is the defending champion. She won the Chicago City Championships running a state leading 11.73. Dajour Miles of West Aurora was slowed down by a hamstring injury indoors. She has been coming on strong the past month running a seasonal best 12.11 in winning last week at Bartlett. I would not count her out in this event.

Lyn’Nikka Vance of Crete-Monee ran 11.89 finishing behind Robinson and Wilson last week and could challenge for the state title. Ozzy Erewele of Springfield finished third in last year’s state finals. Her 11.87 time at her conference meet puts in her in a good spot to challenge for the championship. Nya Carr of Buffalo Grove, Tamya Houston of O’Fallon, Lauren Kroll of Addison Trail, and Brimonet Buggs of DeKalb could all make the finals. Anyone mentioned here has that chance. Nothing would surprise me in this event. Nothing.

400 Meter Dash

Defending 3A champion Kylie Welch of Bloomington has the fastest 3A time this year (54.90) and will be one of the favorites in this event. This distance could be the strongest for Dajour Miles. She continues to improve this season running an outdoor seasonal (and sectional) best of 56.14 last week. She ran 54.21 indoors before her hamstring injury. If Welch does not win this event, Miles will.

It is up for grabs after these two with Tamia Rayford of West Aurora, Jaclyn Greci of Lockport Township, Jariah Turner of East St. Louis-Senior, and Khari Thompkins of Mundelein all having a good chance to finish third.

300 Meter Hurdles

Rokelle Stanley ran a personal best (43.82) and the fastest 3A sectional time last week at Belleville West. Halle Bieber of Naperville North and Mya Robinson were within a tenth of a second of each other (44.27-44.37) in their sectional wins and will push Stanley in this event. Also keep an eye on Tauja Foreman, Haley Click of Lake Forest, Maggie Schutte, Rachel Hunter of Yorkville, Georgia Reed of Geneva, and Maddy Zednick of Lincoln-Way East. If the conditions are good, the winning time should be in the low 43’s.

200 Meter Dash

Seven 3A athletes have run under 25 seconds this season. The fastest being Jaimie Robinson who ran 24.11 to win her sectional ahead of Ameia Wilson (24.25). Defending 3A champion Amira Young ran a wind legal 24.46 in her sectional win in which the closest runner was more than a second behind. Do not count out Young in this race. Dajour Miles will be a factor in his race having run 24.63 last week. Kylie Welch, Ozzy Erewele, Lyn’Nikka Vance, and Glenbrook North’s Hannah Wilson could find their way into the first five. This race will have team title implications. We could see winning times under 24 seconds.

DISTANCE EVENTS

3200 Meter Run

It is hard to see Katelynne Hart of Glenbard West losing in this race. The freshman ran 10:14.47 at the York Sectional last Friday. This was 30 minutes after running a 2:13.2 split on her team’s 3200 Meter Relay. She currently has the tenth fastest time nationally at this distance. She is the second fastest freshman in the United States heading into this weekend. She should go faster in this meet.

This is a good field. Sarah Schmitt of Naperville North leads that pack having run 10:31.74 this season. Naperville North’s Alex Morris, Minnoka’s Emily Shelton, and Glenbard West’s Lindsey Payne have run within six seconds of Schmitt. Keep an eye on Shelton. She ran 10:33.81 to win the Ottawa Sectional and will be a factor in this race. Other runners to watch include Jocelyn Long of Barrington, Brooke Wilson of Prospect, Melissa Manetsch of Libertyville, and Emily Henkel of Lyons Township. Hart should break Maria Cicero’s 3A record of 10:17.28 (2001). Does she get close to Kayla Beattie’s epic record of 9:56.96 run six years ago?

800 Meter Run

This event is wide-open as seven runners have run 2:15 or faster this track season. The one mystery is Highland Park’s Stephanie Kriss. She has the state’s fastest time (2:12.83) in her race at Palatine on April 22. She followed that up running 2:14.01 to win the CSL-North title. She finished seventh at Loyola last week.

Emma Moravec of Downers Grove North has the fastest sectional time (2:13.64) in her win at Downers Grove South. Madison Marasco of Schaumburg ran 2:13.86 in her sectional win last week and Emily Stegmeier of Elk Grove had a 2:13.96 in her sectional win. All three have state meet experience which will help this weekend. You do also have to watch for Jenna Lutzow of Belvidere North in this race. She ran a seasonal best of 2:18.51 in winning her sectional race. That was after her leg on her team’s 3200 Meter Relay. She did run 2:11.80 to finish second a year-ago after running 2:15 at sectionals. I would keep an eye on her in this event.

Avryl Johnson of Libertyville, Emma Milburn of Lake Forest, Margot Dooley of Loyola Academy, and Janie Nabholz of Glenbard West will be in the mix all capable of running 2:14 or faster. Moravec ran 61-seconds in her first 400-meters last week. Stegmeier and Marasco have great kicks. Kriss is the unknown factor. The winning time will be near 2:11.

1600 Meter Run

Katelynne Hart has been running some amazing doubles/triples this outdoor season. Why should it change in this meet? In her third race last week, Hart ran 4:47.54 to win her sectional. She pushes the pace from the start. Who will take a chance and go with her from the start?

The one runner to watch in this race is Claire Hamilton of Naperville North. She ran stride-by-stride with Hart at the Sue Pariseau Invitational on April 22 even taking the lead with 100-meters left. Hart responded passing back with only a one-second win. I think we could see that close of a race on the Big Blue Oval.

This is a tough field with five runners having gone under five minutes outdoors. Olivia Nizolek of Maine South, Hannah Ricci of Naperville North, Reilly Revord of Hinsdale Central, Isabelle Christensen of Oswego, and Mackenzie Callahan of Minooka all have been under that mark and could be towards the front. Emily Shelton and Lindsey Payne will be coming back from the 3200 Meter Run but will be factors in this race. Also keep an eye on Katherine Olsen of DeKalb and Madison Diercks of Belvidere North who could surprise in this event.

RELAYS

4x800 Meter Relay

This race could have a “West-Suburban” feel with Glenbard West, Naperville North, and Hinsdale Central three of the teams to watch up front. Glenbard West has the best time in the state (9:13.17) with Lindsey Payne in the line-up. They most likely will substitute her with Katie Hohe. The Hilltoppers do have Katelynne Hart anchoring so anything could happen with his team. Naperville North is deep with talent having at least six athletes capable of running sub-2:20 led by Claire Hamilton and Claire Hill. The Huskies could be near 9:10. Hinsdale Central has run 9:20.23 this season but ran 9:31 last week in their sectional. They did not load their lineup in that race. They are the defending champions with Reilly Revord and Grace McCabe in their lineup. I would not count them out.

New Trier ran 9:17.03 in their sectional and will be a team to watch. Belvidere North, with Madison Diercks and Jenna Lutzow in their lineup, ran 9:19.49 last week and could be a factor. Schaumburg finished second last year and they return that lineup with Madison Marasco anchoring. His is a team worth watching. York, Lockport Township, Oswego, and Hoffman Estates are also teams that will be in the mix.

4x100 Meter Relay

O’Fallon could have a lock on his event if they can just get the sick around the track. The Panthers, led by Tamya Houston and Kersten Douglas, ran a state leading 47.09 last week to win at Belleville West. They have the fastest time by almost eight tenths of a second. I could see them in the 46’s in this meet.

Romeoville ran 47.84 to win last week at Downers Grove South and is the hot team in this field. Homewood-Flossmoor will need the points in this event. The Lady Vikings ran 48.03 without Jaimie Robinson who is concentrating on individual events. They still could be a factor. West Aurora has Dajour Miles as their anchor. If they are close, she could get them close to the win. Granite City and Springfield have the talent to get in the first three. Belleville West, Thornton, and Kenwood Academy could be surprises in this race.

4x200 Meter Relay

O’Fallon and Romeoville will again be the teams to watch in his event. O’Fallon’s sectional time of 1:39.91 is the fastest by a second ahead of Romeoville’s 1:40.95 sectional time. The next teams on the sectional list (Springfield and Homewood-Flossmoor) are more than a second behind Romeoville. Homewood-Flossmoor did run 1:41.32 at the beginning of April. East St. Louis-Senior ran 1:42.48 behind Springfield in their sectional and are capable of running in the 1:41’s. Downers Grove North and DeKalb are on the rise and could be surprise teams in this event.

4x400 Meter Relay

Nine teams ran under 4:00 at sectionals last week making his event wide-open. East St. Louis-Senior has the fastest sectional time (3:56.98) but ran the state’s fastest time (3:54.59) the week before at their conference meet. Downers Grove North, Belleville West, Lockport Township, Lyons Township, and Lincoln-Way East all ran in the 3:57’s last week in sectionals and will push for the win. I would keep an eye on Lincoln-Way East. They ran IL #5 3:57.73 without using 400-meter qualifier Ololade Ayoola. They could surprise some teams.

I would also watch for Hoffman Estates, New Trier, Hinsdale Central, Proviso West, O’Fallon, and Wheeling in this event. The prelims should be fun to watch. It could take 3:58.2 or faster just to make the nine-team final on Saturday.