Arcadia Invite Preview: IL Ready To Shine On The Big Stage

IL girls all-time bests

The forecasts for Arcadia, CA, on Friday, April 5, and Saturday, April 6, are cool and breezy but still ripe for an excellent outdoor opener for some of the best athletes that Illinois has to offer, including one of the elite girls' teams from the city of Chicago. Here are some top storylines to follow as the Arcadia Invitational approaches.

Can Illinois continue 800 Meter Run dominance - 

Illinois completed a clean sweep of the 800m national titles at New Balance Nationals Indoor when Ali Allison Ince (Sr., Normal Community) won her second consecutive title. Patrick Hilby (Sr., Aurora Central Catholic) followed that with his first. 

Ince's 2:03.85 was the indoor national leading time by almost three seconds, and Hilby's 1:48.47 led by more than a second. Both open their outdoor season campaigns in their signature event, competing in the invitational race.

For Ince, she may get a challenge from either L'Mio Edwards (Sr., Claremont, CA) or Paige Sheppard (Fr., Union Catholic, NJ). Still, only Sadie Engelhardt (Ventura, CA) has joined Ince in the sub-2:04 range in 2024, and Engelhardt will be running the Mile.

For Hilby, Andreas Dybdahl (Sr., Santa Barbara, CA) has an impressive outdoor mark to challenge Hilby, but the Aurora Central Catholic Charger will still look to lead wire-to-wire.

The Illinois athletes joining Ince and Hilby in the 800 are a good storyline to follow in these events. Ahry Comer (Sr., Golconda (Pope County)) was 16th overall at NBNI in 2:11.92 and joins Ince in the Girls' Invite field. Trey Sato (Sr., Grayslake (Central)) rides a remarkable 1:51.96 performance, good enough to win 3A Top Times, into the Boys' fast section with Hilby. Both Sato and Comer can come away with medals, which are awarded to the top 5. 

Barak Goldstein (Sr., Highland Park) makes his first trip to Arcadia to race in the Open 800. He ran 1:56.15 to narrowly miss qualifying for finals in the 800 at the 2023 State Meet and has run 1:59.84 this season. 

Dylon Nalley joins the fray in the deepest 3200 field ever - 

It's only the start of April, and Dylon Nalley (Sr., Marion) has already had his best track season. Nalley celebrated his recent commitment to Indiana University with a solo effort, winning the Top Times 2A 3200 in 8:54.01. However, his mettle was tested at Notre Dame, finishing fourth in the Golden Dome Two-Mile in 8:50 on the oversized Fighting Irish track behind eventual National Record Holder Drew Griffith (PA). Nalley joins Griffith and others in the iconic 3200 Invitational, which habitually ushers boys under 9:00. Even a top-15 finish for Nalley should be good enough for a PR, perhaps even in the 8:45 range. 

Plenty of other Illinois boys will give their run at 3200 PRs in the other 3200 sections. Gavin Genisio (Sr. Benton) brings his 9:05 2 Mile PR to the Seeded section of the 3200, which runs before the Invitational, and Camyn Viger (Sr., Plainfield (South)) races in the Rated 3200. These state champions can break 9:00 in the clear California air before returning to Illinois. The Open 3200 will include Will Kozlowski (Sr., Lane (Tech)), Rory Gaan (Jr., Palatine (Fremd)) and Tuscola duo Josiah Hortin (Sr.) and Will Foltz (Sr.). 

The 3200 is also the best-represented event on the Girls' side for Illinois. Molly Farrell (So., Marshall) and Mia Kotler (Jr., Chicago (Latin)) make return trips to California to headline the Seeded 3200, in which they are the first and second bibs. This will be Kotler's first 3200 since she ran 10:46 at Arcadia in 2023, and Farrell most recently ran 10:50 to finish runner-up to Isabella Keller (Fr., St. Anthony) at Top Times. Farrell is the defending 1A 3200 champion and ran 10:37 for 2 miles last year. Jane Lynch (Jr., Loyola Academy) has been running strong to end her indoor season and races in the Rated 3200. 

Whitney Young contingent using California competition as early-season Barometer - 

The #1 Ranked 3A Girls team in Illinois (by the MileSplitIL Power Rankings) is Chicago Whitney Young. The Dolphins already opened their season at Belleville West, finishing runner-up, and now gear up even more, taking 15 different events to Arcadia. The Girls bring nine individual events and three relays, while the boys take two relays and one individual.

The Dolphins' attack is quite balanced on the field event side, and with competitors in the long jump, shot put, triple jump, and high jump, expect the early Illinois leaderboards to be filled with some of Young's marks. However, it is hard not to highlight Angelena Bullocks (Jr.) as the athlete to watch after her dominating 24.02 200 win at Lady Maroon to grab the early outdoor state lead. Bullocks has inside lanes in the 200 and the Invitational 100, where she competes against some of the greatest sprinters in the state. Can Whitney Young validate the early season rankings with their performances at Arcadia?

Other events to watch - 

Annika Swan (So., Chicago (Saint Ignatius)) was the Top Times 3A 1600 champion, and slots into the fastest section of the Open 1600 where her 4:52.82 seed time is the third fastest in her section. She is joined by Saint Ignatius teammates, who will compete in the DMR later in the day. 

Lyons Township joins Whitney Young as schools to send both genders to Arcadia. Nicholas Strayer (Sr.) leads the way in the Open 1600, and Leigh Farrell (Jr.) competes in the Pole Vault. Farrell has vaulted 10' several times, and Strayer has run 4:16.85 in the 1600. 

Ince's classmates Jazmin West (Sr., Normal (Community)) will join Ince on the plane to California so she can represent the Ironmen in the Open 100m. West ran 12.26 in the 100m last year and has topped out at 7.78 in the 60m, winning the Big 12 Conference indoor title.