2A-
Girls-
Like Kiara Wesseh in Class A, Symone Holman (So., Joliet Catholic Academy) moved back and forth from the track to the long jump pit. After qualifying in the 60m (7.82), "I was back to the long jump, mentally and physically exhausted," she said. On top of that, Holman was sitting in fourth place with one jump remaining. After saying a prayer, Holman dashed down the runway and hit the jumping board with precision, and boom, she connected and won the title with a personal best of 17'11.75."
Olivia Marshall (Sr., Geneseo) had a career day in the shot put, expanding on her state-leading mark and moving into the top 20 in the nation with a 44'11" banger. Marshall's last three throws were over 44 feet.
Brooklyn Kondritz (Jr., Mt. Zion) won the pole vault with a new PB of 12'6.25" and moved into the top 30 nationally.
A cross country reunion of sorts with Zoe Carter (Jr., Normal U High), Natalie Bierbaum (So., Normal U High), and Sundara Weber (So., Sandwich) battling in the 3200. They separated quickly from the field, with Carter and Bierbaum, except for Cameron Crump (Jr., Waterloo), hanging in there for the first mile (5:21). Carter, Bierbaum, and Weber stayed together until the final quarter mile. Carter pulled away and set a lifetime best 10:37.14. Bierbaum also ran well in second 10:40.01.
Morton trailed by three seconds after the first leg of the 4x800 relay, but it was smooth sailing thereafter with 2:22.3, 2:20.6, and 2:23.7 legs to win by 11 seconds with a time of 9:34.07.
The multi-talented Jamison Love (Jr., Mascoutah) pulled a tough win in the 60HH (9.04) over Gabby Graham (Jr., Tinley Park), who ran 9.07. Both came in with the fastest times from the prelims.
Kayda Austin (Sr., Cahokia) was a bit rugged near the end of her 60m prelim but still almost won it with a 7.77 time. She returned over an hour later to finish off the finalists in 7.66. Holman was a distant second in 7.75. Austin also won the 200m in 24.73.
Becca Heitzig (Sr., Lincoln) will be a major headline during the outdoor season. However, due to a long basketball campaign, this was only her second meeting during the indoor season. To get lathered up, she contested the 800 and 1600. It was smooth sailing from the gun, and she won easily in 2:12.86, the fourth fastest time in the state. Later, she played possum with Sundara Weber and strided out the final lap to win by a second in 5:04.13.
Madalyn Marx (So., Mahomet-Seymour) had been in hiding for much of the IHSA season regarding performances. She hit the big stage in section four of the 400m and won comfortably with a time of 57.55.
Boys-
Aidan Wyzard (Jr., Sycamore) picked the perfect time to perform well in the long jump and connect on a lifetime best 23'2.50." He previously fouled on four consecutive attempts before landing a 22'8" to take the lead. But the final one was the deal stealer.
The high jumper Drew Rogers (Jr., Paris) scored an upset over Noah Gilmore (Sr., Robinson) and Matt Pluff (Sr., Freeport). Being injured for a portion of the key part of last year's indoor season, Rogers won with a 6'7.50", the same as Pluff but with fewer misses. Gilmore, who competed and won as a Class A competitor last year, took third.
Indiana University bound Caleb Smith of Salem had two throws over 59 feet, including a final one 59'5.50"- good for IL#5.
Hype surrounded the 60m prelims, with St. Laurence having five entrants. Four of the five competed, and three made the final. Quinton Williams led the charge with a time of 7.00. The Chicago Catholic League produced the top four times to the finals.
In the final, David Coffey (Sr., Chicago) prevailed, finally getting the best of the St. Laurence crew in 6.93. This was arguably the best performance of the event in 2024.
Arion Hill (Jr., Centralia) came into the meet as the state's top 60H, and he departed on top over three classes with a thrilling, hurdle-crashing final that prevented him from going under 8.00. He took 8.04, and moving on to the outdoor season is perfectly fine.
One of the oldest records in the books was 3200m. It was a surprise to see Dylon Nalley (Sr., Morton) in the meet program, considering he had already run 8:47 and 14:21 (5K). There was nothing to prove except to provide a thrill for the crowd. An opening 4:25 mile was all needed to dispatch Tim Keller's mark and replace it with a new 8:54.01.
After anchoring his team with a 1:55 split to win the 4x800, Patrick Hilby (Sr., Aurora Central Catholic) participated in the 400 and trotted home comfortably in 49.32.
Gavin Genisio (Sr., Benton) had minimal resistance in the 1600, winning in one of the fastest times in meet history, 4:10.07.