Neuqua Valley's Maya Neal is one of over two dozen Prairie State performers ready for action in NYC (Don Rich photo)
For the majority of the country and especially on the east coast its indoor national championship weekend in New York City. The Big Apple will be a comforting site for some stout Illinois athletes who the 700+ mile trek to compete in the world famous New Balance Armory.
Let’s take a peek inside for the happenings (all times listed Eastern Standard Time):
Boys-
60m (Saturday 3/15- 9am)
Heat 3-
Cole Henderson (Sr., Pekin)
Terry McGee (Sr., Chicago North Lawndale College Prep)
Outlook: It will be a tall order for these two outstanding sprinters to make the final that is loaded with the nation’s top talent. They draw US#3 Malcolm Johnson (Sr., Sylvania Southview, OH) in their heat. He has run a sizzling 6.76. Henderson enjoyed a wonderful 2013 season as Illinois’ top speedster winning the 60m Illinois Top Times indoor crown and duplicating it by the taking the Century title outdoors at state. Although Henderson has a personal best of 6.85 he will make his season debut in a Lion’s den. McGee on the on the other has several races under his belt including a personal best 7.04 achieved at Texas A&M back in January.
200m (Saturday 3/15- 5pm)
Heat 10-
Cole Henderson
Outlook: No one in the US top 50 in Henderson’s heat to be concerned about. Hopefully, for Cole he can rip a great run out in lane 5 using the banked track to his advantage. Hot or not he should be able to eclipse the Illinois best of 22.39 that Terry McGee holds.
60H (Saturday 3/15- 10:10am)
Heat 1-
Imani Payton (Sr., Chicago North Lawndale Prep)
Outlook: Payton is IL#2 at 8.23- just off of the top 50 hurdlers. Payton is more of long hurdles specialist and 400m speedster so competing in this event will be good preparation for the outdoor season.
Long Jump (Saturday 3/15- 12pm)
Flight 2-
Cole Henderson
Outlook: Henderson will jump seventh in the second flight. Look for him to sky a serious mark. Perhaps he will be able to leap into the mid 22-foot range and be ready for the Top Times in several weeks.
Pole Vault (Saturday 3/15- 12pm)
Jack Denby (Sr., Carlinville)
Outlook: The University of Wisconsin bound Denby completes a busy week that has him easily traveling over 1000 miles. His journey started at the Jacksonville Invitational last Saturday morning and then a pit stop in Chicagoland at the Rolling Meadows High School Windy City Pole Vault Summit. The final stop is the bright lights of the Big Apple. Denby has cleared 16-4.75 this season and that should put him in the thick of the All-American picture.
Triple Jump (Sunday 3/16- 1pm)
Flight 3-
Ja’Mari Ward (So., Cahokia)
Outlook: Something will have to give in arguably the field events most exciting event. Ward is the national indoor record holder as a freshman and now a sophomore when he the board for a springy 50-2.5 on February 22. His coach Leroy Millsap claimed he barely scratched on a 51-foot jump. If he can legally repeat what Millsap claims his superstar pupil can do, then the nation’s top ranked leap frogger John Warren (Sr., Prince George, MD) will go down. Warren’s stock has risen mightily since transferring to the DC area from Topeka, Kansas last year.
Emerging events:
Terry McGee (200m)- Coach Zontavious Johnson said of McGee: “Terry will have a good shot to medal in the 200 if he dips into the 21’s.”
Imani Payton (Long Jump)- ”I expect Imani to jump 22-5…. He has been on the big stage for three years now,” says coach Johnson.
Shabari Bailey (Sr., Minooka)- Bailey makes his second national trek of the season. He competed at Arkansas in January.
Girls-
60m (Saturday 3/15- 9am)
Heat 2-
Meghan Marias (Sr., Frankfort Lincoln-Way East)
Heat 3-
Alexis Hyshaw (Sr., Frankfort Lincoln-Way East)
Outlook: It will be interesting how things go for both sprinters. The prognosis doesn’t look well for either one of them to make the final. Getting to the semi-finals would have to be a victory in itself against a stacked field that will feature US#1 Mikiah Brisco (Baton Rouge, LA).
200m (Saturday 3/15- 5pm)
Heat 3-
Alexis Hyshaw
Briyahna Desrosiers (Sr., Chicago North Lawndale Prep)
Heat 8-
Megan Marias
Heat 9-
Brittny Ellis (Jr., Gurnee Warren)
The B-Side’s outlook: The lane draws for [Hyshaw and Marias is terrible] and not to mention that Hyshaw has Kianna Gray of Kentucky in her heat… Briyahna is set for the 200 final for sure. If Brittny is not in shape now it could be a long weekend for her and the Illinois sprinters… [editor note: did we mention Briyahna vs. Hyshaw in the prelims? Nice to meet in Manhattan in the middle of March don’t you think?].
400m (Saturday 3/15- 3:20p)
Heat 2-
Jasmine Berry (Sr., Belleville West)
Heat 4-
Brittny Ellis
Heat 6-
Briyahna Desrosiers
Heat 8-
Miranda Marry
Outlook: There is some nice Illinois talent here led by Desrosiers who dropped from US#1 to US#5. “My only fear is this will be Briyahna’s first time on a stage this big. I don’t want her to press too hard,” said Johnson concerned about his star sprinter not staying composed against the best field of sprinters in her career. But if Desrosiers goes out and does what she is capable of, she will be in line for a top three finish on Sunday. Ellis on the hand has been on the big stage since she was in the 7th grade and could be among the top eight girls running in Sunday’s final.
60H (Saturday 3/15- 9:45am)
Heat 2-
Emma Spagnola
Outlook: This week’s Milesplit Illinois athlete of the week should be ready to roll and make the final; Spagnola is ranked US#14 in the event that she has the most success at indoors. Dior Hall of Colorado is chasing the national record of 8.16. It will be fun for Spagnola to chase someone as great as Hall and possibly be a part of history at the same time.
4x200m relay (Saturday 3/15- 11:20am)
Rock Island
Outlook: The Lady Rocs could be the surprise team here in the Armory after running 1:43.32 late last Friday evening at SIU. The Salukies oval is not fast by any means so imagine what seniors Mystique Thompson and LaCresha Linton are thinking when they see the fast New Balance oval? Fast times but beware because US#2,3,4,7,9,11,12,13, and14 are all entered.
Spot Put (Saturday 3/15- 2pm)
Flight 3-
Lena Giger (Sr., Highland)
Outlook: The US#4 ranked Giger sits pretty in a great field with her 49-9 Illinois all-time best. The nation’s top three hurlers are seniors led by Raven Saunders (Burke, SC), Stamatia Scarvelis (Dos Pueblos, CA), and Ashlie Blake (Liberty, NV); the premier ladies all have seasonal bests over 52-feet. Giger is an ultra competitive type who is in the right place at the right time to reach the magical 50-foot mark this weekend.
Long Jump (Saturday 3/15- 4:30pm)
Flight 1-
Emma Spagnola
Maya Neal (Jr., Naperville Neuqua Valley)
Outlook: It should be a great day in the pit for the state’s top two leapers who are nearly identical. Neal has a season best 18-10.75 and Spagnola rolls in at 18-9. Both girls should be over the 19-foot range because awesome competition brings out the best in everyone who follows. Keturah Orji (Sr., Mt. Olive, NJ) is the national leader with a sick 20-8.75 standard. Orji will be after the national record in the triple jump later in the weekend as well.
Pentathlon (Friday 3/14)
Maya Neal
Outlook: This event used to be a two-day affair but now it’s condensed into one day. Maya Neal is used to doing four events in regular track meets, so adding one more should not be a big deal for one of the nation’s best all-around talents.
Pole Vault (Sunday 3/16)
Brooke Catherine (Jr., Normal Community)
Kassadee Ifft (So., Prairie Central)
Mackenzie Gallagher (Jr., Normal Community West)
Outlook: Three club teammates (Flying Dragons) and good friends from three different schools will oppose each other in flight 1. Catherine is the state leader at 12-6 with 13-0 in her sights. Ifft has cleared 12-0 this season and Gallagher has hit on 11-10.
Emerging events:
Emily Cowan (Sr., Aurora Metea Valley)- Cowan has her sights set on the 400m in May but will compete in the 60 and 200 this weekend.
Taylor McCammon (Sr., Kankakee McNamara)- the volleyball standout will compete in the 60H this weekend.