Steady diet of wins for Ellis, Warren
It's what Brittny Ellis does, besides winning sprints on a track.
"I always try to have pasta on meet day," the Warren senior said. "Always, always, always.
"And the night before (too). And actually for breakfast. My breakfast is noodles and eggs."
Thursday night at Lake Zurich, the great Brittny Ellis wasn't feeling so great. Before the 400-meter dash, she said she felt sick to her stomach, guessing it might have been her pasta-loaded lunch. While one of her teammates couldn't hold down her lunch, Ellis never lost it, so to speak.
"I felt like it," Ellis. "But I ran (the race) just to help, and I think it did help a little bit."
Ellis won the 400, unsteady stomach and all, and by the end of the Lake County meet, she and all of her teammates felt like ... celebrating.
Warren won the championship with 97 points, 20 more than runner-up Grant. Highland Park (52), Grayslake Central (50) and Stevenson (47) rounded out the top five in the 17-team field. Sixth-place Lakes (44) ran again without Drake-bound Brittani Griesbaum, who's been sidelined most of the season with a left-hamstring injury. Her twin Danielle, who was out two weeks with an injury to her right hamstring, won the 800 meters (2:17.99).
The Miami-bound Ellis breezed to wins in the 100 (12.14), 400 (56.66) and 200 (24.85) dashes.
"I'm feeling a lot better now," Ellis said after her 200 win, her final race of the night. "I'm glad I got my 200 in."
Grant's only wins came from its 400 (50.99) and 1,600 (4:06.87) relays. Delaney Basala took the lead on the final lap of the 1,600 relay for the Bulldogs. Grant's winning foursome also included Brooke Drabek, Roxanne Temple and Lauren Troemel. The Bulldogs' 400 relay was comprised of Basala, Emily Boyd, Morgan Race and Ariyona Wallace.
"We're really well-rounded," Grant coach Jackie Randall said.
Madison Romig ran a Grant school-record 5:09.28 in finishing third in the 1,600 run behind Highland Park's Charlotte Nawor (5:04.26) and Stevenson's Isabelle Sparreo (5:08.48). Romig, a junior, has set the school records in both the 1,600 and 3,200 runs this season.
"She's really coming on," Randall said.
Grayslake North's Allie O'Connell won the 100 hurdles (15.40), with Vernon Hills freshman Jordyn Bunning finishing second (16.01). Bunning set the school record in the low hurdles in the Cougars' first invite of the season. She also competed in the pole vault and cleared 9 feet, 6 inches (sixth).
"A lot of potential," Cougars coach Jason Rush said.
Grayslake Central's Katie Schroeder easily won the pole vault (12-0), two feet better than runner-up Alyssa Morello of Lake Zurich. Grayslake Central's Alexa Schmitt captured the 300 hurdles (47.36) ahead of Lakes' Erica Terry (48.68).
Lake Zurich's Caitlin Shepard ran the 3,200 in a winning 11:18.66, while Lakes' Kortney Schardt was second (11:21.42). Warren's Keely Knobbe (123-4) and Abena Atuobi (117-11) went 1-2 in the discus. Mundelein got a first-place effort from Katie Stanczykiewicz in the high jump (5-3.2).