For distance running fans, distance powers from Prospect, Naperville North, Minooka, and more will be on full display. Photo by Rich Smott
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Friday promises to be a hot evening of track and field courtesy of a slew of distance races. The host, Batavia, will unveil a tirade of 800, 1600, and 3200 meter races. The switch back between fast and slower sections leading off events will keep you on your toes.
Girls-
800: There are five performers with seed marks under 2:20. Top-seeded Korima Gonzalez (Sr., Dekalb) placed fourth last year with a time of 2:21.01. She would later go on to earn all-state honors. In her most recent competition, Gonzalez finished runner-up at the Cabin Fever Invite at 2:21.64.
Catherine Hany (Sr., Arlington Heights Hersey) was a 2:17.70 performer with state meet experience from a year ago.
Janellisa Oceguera (Sr., Joliet West) was a state meet participant last year but has yet to run an 800 this indoor. She has a 2:19 personal best and ran the 400 in 59.95 recently. This shows great potential on Friday.
Illinois State U commit Madison Harmsen (Sr., Rockford Guilford) should be among the leaders. She is ready to lower her 2:25.89 season best.
1600: This will be a long event with eight sections of action. Things will get serious in section six with Lizeth Montes (Jr., Chicago), who possesses the top time at 5:20.01. Several other low 5:20s seed runners, like Lucy Schlachtenhaufen (Sr., Lake Forest) and Lola Satre-Morales (Jr., Naperville Central), are ready to bust out.
If no one breaks 5:10 out of section six, it likely will occur with Delilah Helenhouse (Jr., Benet Academy), the top seed in section seven, who has clocked a personal best at 5:13.50 on the season. Sophia Baumert (Jr., Streamwood) could challenge for the win.
The girls' meet concludes with the fastest section of the 1600, which is headlined by pairs of Prospect and Naperville North runners. Fresh off the first and third legs of the state-leading 4x800 as well as a even-paced 11:10 together at their last Batavia appearance, Lily Ginsberg (Sr.) and Veronica Znajda (Jr.) as a strong bet to finish 1-2. Znajda has earned the heavy favorite title with her recent running, including a state #3 open 800 time and the fastest split at Mustang in 2:13 low. Emma Berres (Jr.) and Julie Piot (Sr.) are Naperville North's response to the Prospect duo. Berres in particular, broke 5:00 at this meet in 2022 and was less than a second behind race winner Grace Schager. With a recent strong 5:04.5 performance at North Central, Berres is in good form to chase her all time PR and perhaps even a race win.
The rest of the fast section field is filled with athletes who have run the 5:14 to 5:18, with Maine South's Olivia DeLuca (Sr.) sporting the best SB of that group in 5:14.71. There should be a handful of girls who break 5:10 behind that front group of three or four.
3200: There are two sections of the 3200, at the start of the meet and in the middle of the meet. The best performances to date in the first section are from Annabelle Reeder (So., Yorkville) and Ava Dughetti (So., Lincoln-Way Central) who have both broken 11:50.
The fast section should feature an interesting duel between Annika Swan (So., Saint Ignatius) and Meg Peterson (So., Prospect). While Peterson is the defending champion in this event at Batavia winning in 10:57.63 last year, Swan has never competed in this event indoors. Swan did run 10:45.45 in April and has run 2:16 and 4:57 recently, so she and Peterson look to be in close competitive quarters. The meet record here is 10:34 and is probably the most vulnerable girls' meet record tonight, albeit will still be difficult to beat.
The fastest season's best in the field is Danielle Jensen (Sr., McHenry) who ran 11:05.92 at Lakes last week, and has also broken 11:00 outdoors. The fastest personal bests outside of the aforementioned are Holly Johnson (Jr., Downers Grove South, 10:52) and Jane Lynch (Jr., Loyola Academy, 10:50), who are both in good form after returning from injury. Naperville North features three athletes in this fast section: Shania and Rianna Tandon (So.), and Kayla Marx (Sr.).
Boys-
800: The meet begins with the fastest sections of the 800. Although only four athletes have run under 2:00 FAT so far this season in the field, that number should balloon to nearly 20 after the night ends. Liam Naughton (Sr., Hersey) has the field's best time of the season in 1:57.09, his all time personal best. He runs in the first section against 800 all-staters John Ihrke (Sr., Glenbrook North) and Payton Whitehead (Sr., Lakes). Both Ihrke and Whitehead have run under 1:55 and could easily steal the top section. A few other names to watch for include Kendall Easterly (Sr., Whitney Young), Griffin Schneid (Jr., Benet) and cross country all-stater Tim Jochum (Sr.).
It's not out of the question that a subsequent section could have a winner sneak into the top-3 of the merged results. In section two, Conor Foley (Sr., Maine South), Gaven Corpin (Sr., Conant) and Preston Ellis (Jr., Chicago Payton) have all broken two recently and are in good form. Ben Combie (Sr.) wins the 'most traveled' award coming up from Lincoln to race this section of the 800. He's run 2:02.15 so far.
1600: It is probably going to take a sub-4:20 time to win this event, which will be exciting as that would produce a devy of personal bests in the final race of the night. Dekalb junior Jacob Barraza has the best time of the season so far in 4:23.31, a hair better than his performance at this meet last year. Last year's runner-up Foster Shelbert (Sr., Naperville Central) is the top returner in the field and runs his first interscholastic 1600. He has run 4:18.15 and features a lethal kick. But The best PB in the field is Nicholas Strayer (Sr., Lyons), who has multiple all-state showings. This field is wide open, as Charlie Halden (Sr., Glenbard West), Mohamed Abdullahi (Sr., Mather), Joe Bregenzer (Jr., Barrington) Alex Krieg and Carter Hayes (Palatine) and Rory Gaan (Jr., Fremd) all could come away with a win here.
Keep an eye on Max Sudrzynski (Jr., Jacobs) and Josiah Narayanan (Jr., Wheaton South) who are in the penultimate heat but are fit to run a winning time out of that section.
3200: The 16-lap race features perhaps the best overall distance runner of the meet early in his season: Sterling's Dale Johnson. Although Johnson has not raced a 3200 yet this season, he has one of the most impressive PB's in any event with his 9:08.77 best from his runner-up spot at state. He is also fresh off a 14:21 third-place finish at cross country in 2A. He takes on 3A competition in Tommy Nitz (Jr., Huntley), Hirsi Hirsi (Sr., Mather), and Owynn Garrelts (Jr., Maine South), as well as a few other potential race winners in Weston Forward (Sr., Rockford-Christian) and Josh Weeks (Sr., Morton). However, if he's in good form, Johnson will be difficult to beat, as he ramps up to compete in an incredibly top-heavy 2A class at distance.