Lane Tech Boys will be among the Illinois notables down in Greensboro, NC at New Balance Outdoor Nationals
The second installment of the New Balance National High School Championship will commence June 13-15, in Greensboro, North Carolina. The venue is the spacious North Carolina A&T University Stadium in the heart of the beautiful campus. If you think the North Carolina weather is going to be hot, wait until you see the results of the competition on the track and in the field over the next three days.
For the state of Illinois this is one of a few chances that its athletes have full freedom to test their mettle against many of their brethren outside of state borders. It doesn’t appear as though this year’s state installment is as large or deep as in recent years, but it still be a respectable showing on the national stage.
Follow action via live feed: http://live.nbnationals.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/live.html ; twitter: https://twitter.com/milesplit ; Illinois: https://twitter.com/ILPTT
Check out the specifics of the Illini contingent:
[Girls]
West Aurora graduate Emma Spagnola will look to earn All-American honors this weekend
All times EST
200m-
Time: Sunday 6/15- prelims: @12:30pm; final: 5:10p
Brittany Thomas (Sr., Chicago Heights Bloom Township) is the only state athlete entered in a field that might as well be a lioness cage. Thomas has good credentials coming in with a legal 24.31 achieved at her state championship. Although this is a solid mark she may need to drop a few tenths in order to make the final. Diamond Spaulding (Jr., Ft. Lauderdale, FL; St. Thomas Aquinas) leads the entries with a sizzling 23.00w. Spaulding is the anchor of the national record setting 4x200m relay (1:33.43). There are a total of 12 girls with season best times under 24.00 including the legal US#2 super freshman Candace Hill of Rockdale County, GA. Hill smoked her older peers last month in the Georgia State Championship.
100H-
Time: Saturday 6/14 prelims- 10:55a; final- 7pm
Emma Spagnola (Sr., West Aurora) will just beginning her second season here in North Carolina. The University of Minnesota bound Spagnola will should easily make the final in arguably her best event. “Spags” dominated Illinois foes all season long with times continually at 14.00 or better; she has a personal best of 13.84 but her legal best is 13.90- easily one of the top marks in the field. Emma will square off against Alexis Duncan (So, DeSoto, TX) 13.36 nwi and US#2 legal 13.38 Ashley Miller (So., Cherry Creek, CO).
400H-
Time: Sunday 6/15
Emma Spagnola is the third rated long hurdler in the field after producing an IL#1 42.45 in her state meet. Spagnola has gone 59.69 in the longer race which puts her in good company against the likes of national leader Sydney McLaughlin (Fr., Union Catholic, NJ) who sports a very fast 56.91.
800m-
Time: Sunday 6/15/2014 - 1:25 PM
The 800m field has the second largest amount of female distance entries and the times will indicate how deep it is at the end of the day. It is not certain that the omnipotent Olivia Baker (Sr., Columbia, NJ) will actually run in this event because of the 400m and relay duties. But if she does, she is capable of coming close to her relay splitting 2:02. Alexandria “Alex” Martel (Sr., Chicago Lane Tech) will put her big personal best 2:11.93 to the test. Martel has great closing speed and if she hopes to be among the top 6-10 she will need to at least equal that. Corinne Myers (Jr., Westwood, NJ) leads all entrants with a US#5 2:05.80.
Heptathlon-
Time: Friday-Saturday 6/13-14/2014
Maya Neal (Jr., Naperville Neuqua Valley) is one of the most talented athletes in the state of Illinois boys or girls. Neal is a tremendously skilled athlete on the strength of being a very good soccer player- so good that she made the US Junior team. Neal is currently US#7 with a best of 4904 points from the Arcadia Invitational. Neal wants to top her season best and get on the podium of the top 6. She knows that Jordan Gray (GA), Jordan Fields (FL), Shaina Burns (MN), Brittany McGee (FL), and Allison Frantz (Montreal, Canada) will be her key competitors. Neal believes that Frantz will be her biggest challenge although Burns beat her at Arcadia. Regardless of who is going to be in the field, it will be a great two days for Neal.
4x800-
Time: Saturday 6/14 @ 8:10pm
Lane Tech is the lone wolf in this event that promises to be to a barnburner. The two-section final will include the likes of teams from a dozen states. The section 1 winner is expected to run in the 9:10 range. Lane Tech will have standout Alex Martel who did not run on the team that produced 9:21.08. The time differential could be significant with Martel in place. It will be very interesting to see how fast the Lady Indians can motor.
Shot Put-
Time: Sunday 6/15
Lena Giger (Sr., Highland) has been solid and consistent but not dominant during the outdoor season. The Stanford University bound Giger once had big dreams of eclipsing the outdoor shot mark of 50-feet outdoors. Although Giger has dominant at times, she has yet busted out with a sensation effort that fans have expected. There hasn’t been any reported injuries for Giger who has thrown 48-3 this season. She will also compete in the hammer throw on Sunday (11am).
Kathleen “KD” Young (Fr., Warrensburg-Latham) is on target as Giger’s successor in the throws. Young won the Class A shot and discus state championships. She will be competing in both events here in Greensboro. Young will contest the discus on Sunday at Noon.
Emerging Elite:
• Alexis Pierre-Antoine (So., Lincoln-Way East) will begin her 2015 season this weekend by competing in several events-100HH which starts Friday @ 11:35am in the 200m on Saturday @ 11:50am.
• Betsy Lovett (So., Clinton)- Lovett sports a 11-6 best in the pole vault. Action begins at Friday- 1pm EST.
• Nikki Ogorek (Fr., Normal Community) is coming off of a 5th place finish in the 3A state meet in the pole vault (11-3) and will compete in the emerging elite pole vault on Friday- 1p EST.
• Aliyah Mickens (Fr., Homewood-Flossmoor) is entered in the LJ on Friday at 11am. Mickens has a personal best of 17-2.
• Maggie Schoelle (Fr., Chicago Lane Tech) is entered in the 2 mile. Schoelle will look to end a solid first year of high school. Her best time of the year is 11:26.30 from the indoor season.
[Boys]-
Luke Winder has been on a pole vault high all season
Pole Vault: Sunday 6/15 @ 2:30pm
• Luke Winder (Sr., Plainfield Central) is the big name for Illinois entrants. Winder has now entered his name among some immortals of this highly charged event. Winder is the state’s all-time best indoors and outside with a personal best 17-5i. Now the best vaulters will converge together on Sunday with names like Devin King (Sr.; Sumner, LA) and Brandon Bray (Sr.; China Spring, TX). Sumner eclipsed the indoor national mark and Bray is the outdoor national leader at 17-8.50. This should be a great affair to watch. Throw in Jack Denby (Sr., Carlinville) and Dylan Kuipers (Sr., Kaneland). Denby, who earned indoor All-American honors, sports a best of 16-3. Kuipers has made good on 15-3.5.
4x800: Saturday 6/14 @ 8:10pm
• Illinois’ premier event will see three teams entered in the name of Chicago Lane Tech, Hoffman Estates Conant, and Plainfield South. Lane Tech set a goal at the beginning of the season to run under 7:45, make the NBON championship field, and earn All-American honors. One of those team goals had been met. The rest will have to wait until Saturday night. The Indians finished 7th in the 3A state championship two weeks ago running a season best 7:47.52. The team has not stop training since that time. Conant will have its ace junior Zach Dale in tow. The Cougars posted a stout 7:51.51 mark in winning the MSL championship. Expect Conant to run a sweet time with Dale possibly on anchor. Plainfield South is also entered and will show the nation just how deep Illinois is with their 7:51.92. The Cougars missed out on making the state final so this event will serve as some sort of redemption. The field itself is so stacked that teams needed a sub 7:50 to get into the championship section. The US#1, 2, 3, 5 teams are entered not to mention a few more just outside of the top 10! Stay tuned on Saturday evening.
• 2-Mile: Dan Lathrop (Sr., Plainfield South) will serve the state’s hope here on Saturday at 5:20pm. Lathrop has been up and down this season. However, back in April, he was on a high when he ran a big personal best 9:06.71 at the Arcadia Invitational.
• 5000m: Zach Dale will test his mettle in this 12.5 lap race Friday night at 8pm EST. Dale does not have an official 5k track time on his resume but his distance credentials forecast a favorable outcome. Dale has run 8:56.35 and 4:08+ indicates at least a top 5 finish in an event that takes no prisoners in the hot and humid North Carolina evening.
• DMR: Lane Tech will conclude the IL high school team season on Sunday at 4:35pm. This unusually popular event has a dozen of the fastest teams in the country and winner is expected to run near 10:00. Lane Tech needed a composite time to get in and if all goes right, the Indians should be under 10:15. David Schmieg (Sr.) and Pavlo Hutsalyuk (Jr.) will act as starters and anchors for the Indian squad.
-Kevin Vroegh (Sr., Lansing Illiana Christian) has a goal to go under 1:54 in the emerging elite 800m Run that will take place on Sunday at 11:35am.
-Blake Evertsen (Fr., Hinsdale Central) is scheduled to compete in the freshman 2-mile on Friday, 7:35pm and in the 1-mile on Saturday, 3:15pm. Evertsen is among the best up and coming freshman in Illinois.