Batavia, Burlington Central girls rule sprints
Hannah Schlaman and Tori Ortiz earned their first all-state Class 3A girls track and field medals last spring in Charleston.
Thursday night in Batavia, the girls used a little home cooking at their notorious fast indoor track to ease to three combined sprint titles.
In their only races, Schlaman won the two shortest dashes - 55 and 200 meters - and Ortiz made her season debut at 400 meters to claim her title.
"(The Upstate Eight) Conference (indoor meet next weekend at Batavia) was definitely on my mind," Schlaman said of her sweep at the Bulldogs' Fast & Quick Meet. "I wanted to get a good time (at 55 meters) for conference (seeding). (The times) were not what I wanted them to be."
Schlaman won in 7.56 and 26.77 seconds, respectively.
Ortiz, who teamed with Schlaman and Darby Edmonson to earn eighth in the 800 relay last spring, is the two-time defending indoor conference champion at 200 meters.
But the Bulldogs' three-year sprint stalwart failed to break the 60-second barrier at 400 meters.
Ortiz had to settle for a time of 61.13 seconds in winning her title.
"It was good to get back into it," the Bulldogs' junior said. "I can't wait to see what we can do for the rest of the indoor season."
The coed meet was not scored from a team perspective.
But the Batavia girls definitely dominated the meet with other championships from freshman Tsunami Smith at 300 meters, Brittany Wall in the 55 hurdles, Samantha Healy in the shot put and Riley Glavich in the high jump.
The Burlington Central girls do not even have the luxury of a having an indoor conference meet.
But Megan Safranski and Chloe Bilyk changed their stripes for one night to help the Rockets win the two sprint relays.
Safranski, all-state in Class 2A last year at 3,200 meters, and Bilyk, typically a middle-distance runner, were instrumental to the Rockets winning the 800 and 1,600 relays with respective times of 1:52. 47 and 4:21.32.
"You have to learn how to pace," said Bilyk, a member of both units. "We are all are very versatile. I just love running, no matter what the distance is."
"I am so happy to run with my team, with girls I love," Safranski said of her leg on the 1,600 quartet.
Megan Goehrke was also on both winning Central relays.
Nikki Capetillo, Lexi Saletta and Hannah Overmyer were the other Central sprint-relay members.
St. Charles North jumper Hayden Buerster joined Schlaman as a double-winner.
The North Stars' field leader swept the long and triple jumps.
"She is a very talented young lady," first-year St. Charles North coach Kate Mehalic said. "She can actually triple jump on both legs."
The North Stars' Natalie Galvan won the 600.
In the boys division, Batavia once again set the tone.
Jay Hunt soared 6 feet, 7 inches to win the high jump for the Bulldogs after beginning his night with a runner-up finish to returning Class 2A all-state sprinter Israel Ideoti of Plano at 55 meters.
"I wanted to come in at a higher height," Hunt said. "(Six-four) is the highest I have ever come in. I didn't want to waste energy at a lower height."
The Bulldogs' Michael Stanley and Charles McMarrow swept the 300 dash.
"It was the first time I have ever run (that distance)," Stanley said of the nonstandard run.
Kaneland standouts Clayton Hannula and Matt Redman were particularly impressive in the shot put and 600.
"I knew it was a (long throw) right away," said Hannula, who eclipsed 55 feet by three-plus inches to establish a new career best. "The extension and everything was there."