Boys track and field: Batavia, West Aurora class of the Upstate Eight
As dusk fell Thursday, there was grinning Batavia head boys track and field coach Dennis Piron, looking for someone - anyone - to hug or shake hands with.
And why not? His Bulldogs had just won the River Division of the Upstate Eight Conference meet with 172.5 points, well ahead of second-place Geneva (118) and third-place St. Charles East (104.5).
Batavia did it with depth in the meet held at St. Charles North. The Bulldogs won just three events - Will Akers in the 300-meter hurdles (41.19 seconds), along with the meet-starting 3,200 relay (8:21.84) and the meet-capping 1,600 relay (3:25.63). But they added 8 third-place finishes, along with 1 runner-up and 2 fourth-places.
"(Our depth) been able to keep us fresh and healthy, we've been able to work out - our workouts have been great," Piron said. "We haven't had to beat guys up much. We're really pleased with how our season has gone."
But wins still matter, and perhaps none was more impressive than Akers in the 300 hurdles, as he had to lean forward at the finish line to just nip Geneva's James Cooper by .10 of a second. That said, team depth has been key, he said.
"Compared to other schools with big-time guys, like state champions, we've got guys who are getting seconds and third consistently," he said. "I think we score in basically every event."
West Aurora was solid in winning the Valley Division with 170 points, behind 5 event winners, the most of any school. Bartlett was the runner-up with 96.5 points, while South Elgin was third with 86.
The Blackhawks were led by their leapers, going 1-2 in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. The Cross brothers did the most damage, with DaVion winning the triple jump (47 feet, 3 inches) and taking second in the long jump (21-10), while DaQuan finished second in the high jump (6-3). DaQuan also helped the 400 relay team win its event in 43.09, just .16 ahead of South Elgin.
As far as the Cross brothers were concerned, the UEC meet is just a springboard to bigger and better things.
"It's a setup for sectionals, to get us right, and do anything we need to do, to practice on," DaQuan said.
Geneva finished third in the River with 4 winners, including a pair from Justin Taormina, who won the 100 dash (10.98) and led off the 800 relay that win on 1:30.14. He also finished second in the 200 dash (22.71), but it was that 100 that stood out.
"All week we've been working on starts, because that's my weak point, and I think I made it my strong point this week," he said.
St. Charles East took third in the River behind Michael Gerkin's win in the 3,200 run (9:49.15). Host St. Charles North was fourth thanks to a 1-2 finish by Cam Wright (14 feet, 4 inches) and Hank Zimmer (13 feet, 7 inches) in the pole vault.