Proviso West Boys 55th Invite Is Ready To Be Explosive

Davon Boldon of Thornridge comes into the Proviso West fieldhouse and takes apart the competition with a solid 50.75 clocking.

The vicious start of last year's One Mile Run won by Thomas Shilgalis of Naperville Central

The distance races will be the centerpiece of the 55th Annual Invitational-

Throughout the history of this great meet, the distance races have always stood tall from the 800m to the 3200m that produced national leading marks. Even the 600m record of 1:21.9 is extremely stout and one that middle-distance aficionados claim as their very own.

On the cusp, the 3200m does not appear to be one of the best in terms of times and heavyweight. Well, the "championship" section should populate leaderboards after it's over. 3A Cross country all-stater Jack Ehlert (Sr., Lyons Twp.) has the top seed time and is ready to pounce on his peers and be awarded the gold medal. Teammate Owen Hays (Jr.) will battle with him as does Canyon Stage (Sr., Downers Grove South) and many more.

Last year's 800m was a tactical affair won in 2:02.02. Things should be very different this time around. Michael Moriarty (Sr., York) and Jack Burns (Sr., Chicago Lane Tech) last met in last year's 3A 4x800 relay final. Both runners have 1:56 personal bests and big meet experiences on their resume. Hopefully, one of them can come away with a state-leading mark when the dust settles. Sam Rodriguez (Sr., Sandburg) and Kembre Daniel (Sr., Chicago Lincoln Park) add depth and were both in the 2019 state track and field finals.

There are four sections of the 600m and it's the final one that could produce some very fast times. Daniel Klysh (Sr., York) has run 1:25.27 and will be ready to push the pace. But watch out for Jayden Arquines (Sr., Hinsdale South) who placed second a year ago with a fine time of 1:24.88. Nathan Polizzi (Sr., Chicago Lane Tech) is expected to challenge the competitors for the win. This will be a good one that you don't want to miss.

The 1600m is a pick 'em with some at-large flavor among the entrants. Chicago Jones seniors Ian Bacon and Anthony Maida are rated first and third in the field and could get close to 4:25 under the right circumstances. Colin Hill (Jr., York) is still building his impressive resume and will fight hard. Matt Cull (Jr., Maine South) ran 4:29.76 back in January at the Showcase. Please don't leave him out... York has entered their 4x800m with a state-leading 8:06.1. The Dukes hold the meet record at 8:00.6.

The speed game is second to none-

Let's start things off in the 55m which contains three of the top 10 performers in the state led by Isaiah Tyler (Sr., Proviso East) at 6.54. The multi-talented Tyler is comfortable in competing at the Proviso West barn as it's his de facto indoor home track. Not to be outdone is Kaleb Brown (Sr., Chicago St. Rita), Rapharoah Dallas (Sr., Oak Park-River Forest), and Jailon Welch (Sr., Nazareth Academy). What should be noted in the field is the state's top-ranked speedster Jermarrion Stewart (Sr., Collinsville) who raced for the first time last weekend and clocked 7.01 (60m). In fact, the entire nine entry final section field is loaded!

Brandon Battle (Jr., Edwardsville) comes with the third-best 400m time in the state at 50.35. He will have an opportunity to get under 50-seconds if the competition is on its game.

If all holds true in the 200m, it will be a show between Stewart and Christopher Radcliff (Jr., York). Stewart, of course, is the state's top returning half-lapper clocking 22.85 on the young season...  4x200m relay should be a good one with York leading the charge. The Dukes enter with the third-fastest time to date in the state at 1:32.80... could we see some marks dropped heavy on the 4x400 leaderboards? There is a slew of teams listed under the top 10 3:34.87. Lane Tech, Proviso West, York, Lyons Twp, Wheaton North, and Rockford Christian are the ones to watch. 

Let's not forget about the field events-

Isaiah Tyler will be back on the field in the high jump where he rates #2 in the state with a leap of 6'6." Tyler is the defending champion and has a personal best of 6'9" indoors.

The long jump may be the deepest event outside of the track. Kenyon Johnson (Sr., Edwardsville) comes in with the top seed at 23'1". Dillon Peters (Sr., Andrew) is right behind him seeded 22'1"... Peters and Jayden Lambert (Sr., Downers Grove South) will duel in the triple jump. Both premier athletes are among the best in the state in this event.

Stay tuned to see if the 3A defending state pole vault champion Zach Frye (Sr., Lake Park) has a better showing than the 13'11.25" from last weekend's Greg Foster Invite... Peter Skoronski (Sr., Maine South) enters his first major competition in the shot put this season but he has a robust 56'11" all-time best effort.