Once again it was open season on the premier of relay running for a plethora of schools from around the surrounding Chicagoland area. Proviso West played host to a large relay only meet.
VIDEOS I RESULTS I PHOTOS
Girls-
4x200: There were eight total sections in the mix to kick off the show. It wasn't until section 5 that Bolingbrook "B" went under two minutes with a narrow victory over Chicago Lane Tech in 1:59.52. The Raiders "A" team raised the stakes in section 7 to 1:51.74. With the final race to be decided and with the energy of the home crowd, Proviso West went out and took the final section with a time of 1:51.16.
4x800: There were just three sections to decide a champion. Chicago Taft led things off in #3 with senior Sydney Partyka moving her team into the lead with a 2:27 leadoff leg. The lead was short-lived as West Chicago took control. However, Chicago Jones came on during the second half to win comfortably in 10:26.83.
4x400: The final event of the day contained eight sections. It was quite a bore rest until the penultimate section as Bolingbrook won a comfortable race in 4:20.95. However, the thriller conclusion came as Proviso West and Jones pulled away from the rest of the field early. The host Lady Panthers took a four-second lead on the anchor leg. Jones would not give in quite easily and began to chop into the deficit. The Eagles got even at the end of lap one and later took a slight lead with 150m remaining. The crowd was on its feet but Jones prevailed 4:19.06-4:19.20.
Boys-
4x200: No team broke 1:40 until section 6 where Lyons Twp ran 1:37.32. In the final race #8, defending champion Chicago (St. Rita) got the lead on the strength of sophomore Kaleb Brown's blistering leg. But the Mustangs soon squandered things due to their second man's inexperience-outgoing exchange issues and cutting over to lane one. Proviso West and Maine South would fight things out for the next two laps before the Panthers won comfortably in 1:34.55.
4x800: Lyons Twp "B" got a second section win in 8:38.89. But it was the third and final section that would decide things. Maine South and Chicago Whitney Young motored out front and set the tone with 2:00 and 2:02 legs. Maine South would settle down and lose the lead momentarily to Lyons Twp "A." The Hawks were able to over the Lions before the end of the exchange and cruise home for the win in 8:14.79.
4x400: "The Showstopper" turned out to be the highlight and most competitive race of the day. Dekalb led off with two blistering legs ahead of Lyons Twp and Proviso West. The Lions closed the gap on the third leg but could not quite get there entering the final stanza. Proviso West anchor senior Katrell Askins moved from third into second and appeared as though he could head up Dekalb's Aidan Donohue. Robinson's 49.7 leg was not good enough as the Barbs hold on for the win in 3:30.94-3:31.19.