Glenbard South makes it five straight
Taylor Blohm-Bivins was in the ideal position for Glenbard South.
The Raiders had long clinched their fifth consecutive Metro Suburban Conference girls indoor track and field title when the senior took the baton as the anchor leg in the 1,600-meter relay.
Enjoying a virtually unassailable position, Blohm-Bivins only increased the margin in the final event at Glenbard South in Glen Ellyn on Friday night.
When she crossed the finish line, the Raiders put the final touches on their 138-75 victory over Fenton.
"I told our (relay) team (Krista Kreshpanjk, Becca Everhart and TeJanae Tate) that all we had to do is run as fast as we can," Bloom-Bivins said. "We weren't running to beat anyone; we were running to beat our last time. That's all that matters."
Aurora Central Catholic, which had the outstanding individual athlete in defending Class 2A 800-meter champion Karina Liz, and Elmwood Park finished tied for third with 68 points.
Chicago Christian, Walther Christian, Timothy Christian, IC Catholic Prep, Illiana Christian and Riverside-Brookfield rounded out the field.
Wheaton Academy did not participate; St. Edward, Ridgewood and Guerin Prep failed to score.
Glenbard South scored in all 15 events and has captured every indoor conference championship since the Western Sun Conference dissolved in 2010.
"We did most of our scoring by double-scoring," Glenbard South coach Mark Tacchi said.
But the Raiders were also not bereft of champions.
Mercedes Whitaker and Caroline Arlasky had one-sided wins at the diametrically opposite end of the track and field spectrum.
The former, one of the top underclass throwers in the state, won the shot put by more than 4 feet.
Arlasky blew away the open 3,200-meter field by more than 25 seconds.
"I wasn't pleased with (my winning mark, 38 feet, 7 inches), to be honest, because I could have done better," Whitaker said.
"I just wanted to get up there and get some points for our team because this is my final (indoor) conference meet," Arlasky said.
Kate Rumel offered the Raiders' program another bonus by establishing a new indoor pole vault benchmark at 10-3.
Libby Kohout was runner-up for Glenbard South in the event.
Fenton is one of the smallest Class 3A programs in the state.
But the Bison had a breakout performer in Emelia Burris.
The junior broke her own indoor conference record in the long jump to begin her night and then proceeded to win the 55 dash and anchor the 4-by-160 relay to a third title.
"It was a really good feeling," Burris said of eclipsing the 18-foot barrier in the long jump by 2 inches. "I haven't been having a really good season. I haven't ever come close to 18 outside. I had to prove to my coaches and teammates (in the relay) that I wanted this."
Fenton high jumper Katrina Krebasch claimed another Bison title for the school.
Timothy Christian had a pair of champions.
Hannah Bosman and Olivia Hoekstra, the Trojans' two returning state qualifiers, won their specialty events.
Bosman was victorious in the triple jump, and Hoekstra burned the field in the fast heat of the 200 dash.
"I just pushed it at the end, because I knew there was a girl (Aurora Central Catholic freshman Therese Hein) coming up from behind me," Hoekstra said.
Liz, meanwhile, was ninth in the 800 meters at a national invitational last weekend.
The ACC junior, who has the top time at the distance regardless of class - and the other two 800 champions are both back - ran a pedestrian 2:18.76 to win by almost 12 seconds.
Liz came back to win the open 400 in 1:01.41; Hein was runner-up for the Chargers in the event.
"It is so hard to run alone," Liz said. "I try to get my 200- (meter) splits where I want to get them."
Abby Fioresi turned back a determined bid by Glenbard South junior Abby Schlenker to win the Chargers' third championship, completing a sweep between 400 and 1,600 meters.
"I had extra energy at the end," Fioresi said. "I wanted to win so bad."