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Boys-
Lane is the clear underdog but will fight hard, relying on the strength of their distance corps. They will strike with the 4x800 relay, hoping to gain an advantage based on seed times. Whitney Young, Payton, and Mather will provide strong opposition.
Lane will have firepower in the 3200 (Paul Neely), 1600 (Anan Bauman), and 800 (Mathew Melo). Add in middle-distance runner Ewan McPhilliamy, and the Champions will make things interesting. The throws, relays, and nickel-and-dime points from the sprints and field events hope to add up to an interesting affair.
It will be a bonus for Kenwood to score in any distance event. They will gobble up an advantage through their superb field events crew. The Broncos have the state's leading long jumper, Parrish Hartley Jr, who has leaped over 23 feet this season. In addition, watch for high jumper Logic West, he has cleared over 6-5.
The Broncos are the favorites on the track in the 4x200 and 4x400 relays. West and Kendall Norris will be the favorites in the 400. Hartley and Armond Boulware will contest the 200 with authority.
Girls-
Let's start with the deepest 60m corps in the state, holding the top three spots courtesy of Mariyah Robinson (So., Simeon), Angelena Bullocks (Jr., Whitney Young), and Kee'lani Whitlock (Jr., Kenwood). Robinson and Bullocks are rated in the top 50 nationally. Five CPL speedsters are in the top 20, making it a pure meat grinder.
Bullocks is the state leader in the 200m (24.52), with Robinson, Jordan Hamb (So., Chicago South Shore International Prep), Whitlock, and Leah Smith (Jr., South Shore International Prep) in the top 10.
The hurdles feature state leader Hamb (8.74), and her rival Simone Bernard (Jr., Whitney Young) ranked third (8.90). They have battled all season, with Hamb getting the best of Bernard.
Let's not forget about the 400m. Robinson and Smith are ranked in the top 10 in the state, 58.21 and 58.26, respectively. Harmony Brown (Sr., Kenwood), Ella Sweatt (Jr., Whitney Young), and Charlotte Price (Sr., Lane Tech) are among the top 20 performers in the state.
Distance running in the city is still in its emergence stage. With that in mind, watch middle-distance runners Sophie Mullins (Sr., Lane Tech) and Hannah Diete (Sr., Taft). Mullins leads the charge in the 800 (2:20.02). Meanwhile, Diete heads up the 1600 (5:08.27).
Fast relays are no stranger to the girls. In the 4x200, Whitney Young is almost two seconds faster than Neuqua Valley with a blistering 1:41.80. Kenwood sits in the fourth position statewide at 1:43.95. WY is the only team in the state under 4:00 at 3:57.30. Kenwood and Lane Tech hold the third and fifth spots with solid 4:00.65 and 4:02.54 marks. For the distance-minded 4x800, Lane sits #11 with a 9:42.54 time.
Let's not forget about the field events.
The triple jump is represented well, with three girls in the top 10 and five in the top 20. Layla Bonilla (Jr., Whitney Young) has come on the scene with a 38-8.50, good for #3 in the state. Bonilla is also a solid high jumper as well, leaping 5-3 this season. The Dolphins have a top shot putter in Chidiogo Odeluga (Sr.). She has several tosses over 39 feet, including a #10 39-6.5