Boys track and field: Rustay's races are a real breeze
CHARLESTON - A warm day with a stiff breeze at their backs is generally a favored set-up for the fleet of foot.
So when Hoffman Estates sophomore Declan Rustay stepped to the blocks in the prelims of the Class 3A boys track and field state championships at Eastern Illinois University's O'Brien Field, he couldn't have been happier.
With high humidity and temperatures in the 80s, Rustay had plenty of reason to be excited about leading up to his 100-meter dash effort.
Add in a 20 miles per hour wind at his back, and the excitement level continued to increase.
All this and Rustay hadn't even run yet.
"I love these conditions," he said. "Just a perfect way to race."
Rustay took advantage, from the start of the race to the very end.
He was the fastest in the heat. He crossed the line with a wind-aided 10.46 clocking.
When he glanced at the North end zone scoreboard, Rustay's big smile was topped by a big, joyous yell.
"All season long, I have had bad starts to my races," Rustay said. "But I knew with the wind I had to get after it and take advantage."
The wind benefitted the sprinters, as the times put up in the 100-meter dash alone were historic.
Had it not been for the wind, the times (including Rustay's) would have all been at or near the state meet record mark.
Rustay will be the No. 2 seed in the finals on Saturday behind Galesburg senior Josh Eiker (10.34).
Later in the day, Rustay took on the wind head on in the 200-meter dash. His 22.10 clocking earned him another spot in the finals on Saturday.
Rustay's teammate, Jelyn Hill, also qualified for the finals. By clearing the necessary 6-foot-4 in the prelims of the high jump, Hill earned another trip to the state finals as a Hoffman Estates senior.
Hill finished tied for sixth in the event as a Streamwood junior last season,
Fellow Mid-Suburban League competitors Dan Garcia of Palatine and Prospect freshman Michael Shafis also earned spots in the finals of the high jump. They, too, cleared 6-4.
Shafis did make it interesting, though, as he went to third attempts at 6-1 and 6-3 before clearing 6-4 on his second attempt.
"I had a lot of nerves going today," Shafis said. "Once I calmed down and got over 6-1, I relaxed more and focused more on my mechanics."
Prospect is synonymous for bringing a 3,200-relay to the state meet and leaving with a medal.
This year is no different.
Seniors Mike Cozine, Luke Filipic, Karen LeComte and MacKenzie Bach ran 7:48.57 on Friday to win the heat and earn a spot in the finals.
"We just wanted to come in today and run the time we needed to get to Saturday," Filipic said. "The goal was to get through and save our energy for tomorrow."
The Nebraska-bound LeComte also earned a spot in the 1,600 final, placing third in his heat in 4:18.29.
Prospect's Billy Matzek got himself into the shot put finals with a put of 55 feet, 8.25 inches. He sits in ninth place heading into the finals.
The shot put, long jump, triple jump, high jump, and pole vault were all contested indoors due to the impending threat of rain throughout the day.
John Stefan of Barrington and Ethan Hanson of Fremd qualified for the finals in their first trips to state in the shot put.
Stefan was just a tad bit better than Hanson, throwing 56-1.5 to 56-1 to Hanson.
Hanson's teammate, sophomore Jaden Jackson, earned his first finals trip by running 39.06 and placing seventh in the prelims of the 300 intermediate hurdles.
Though they failed to make the finals, Wheeling and the team of Dylan Draka, Kole Longsworth, Jason Shannon and Blake Greenberg ran a school record 42.55 in the 400 relay. The Wildcats finished 11th.
• In the 2A session, St. Viator senior Denzel Downing rebounded from a tough 110 high hurdles race to earn a finals spot in the 300 hurdles.
Downing ran 40.10 to earn the ninth qualifying spot for Saturday's finals.
Other area qualifiers who competed Friday included St. Viator's Jacob Bonanotte, Palatine's Brian Leonard, John Elischer and Courtland Cornelius, Fremd's Ben Konopka and Ryan McMahon, Barrington's Louis Cossio and Brad Warmen, Hersey's Jared Polfuss, Prospect's Kevin Sherwood, Anthony Kies and Jack O'Connell, Conant's Nick Elms and Eric Ellefson, Elk Grove's Fulton Wingba and Azeez Alabi, Hoffman Estates' Anijel Jones and Fiyin Alade and Wheeling's Lawrence Knish.
Relay teams from Palatine, Fremd, Barrington, Prospect, Hersey and Hoffman Estates also competed.