Drab dives into track season with high hopes

Last May, St. Viator's Elizabeth Drab stood with her hands on her hips looking in disbelief at the O'Brien Stadium scoreboard on the campus of Eastern Illinois.

She had just won the Class 2A 400-meter title, pulling away from Cahokia's two-time defending champion Mariya Hudson in the final 50 meters and becoming the first girl to win a state title in track and field for St. Viator.

The results of the 400 and her two other state medals in the 100 (fourth place) and 200 (third place) were just as shocking for the crowd.

Those in attendance were trying to figure out who this girl was - the one who didn't even advance from the preliminaries in the 400 the previous year, but was now walking away with three state medals.

"No one really knew who I was until the state meet," Drab said of her breakout junior year. "So yeah, I guess I shocked a few people."

Shock may be an understatement.

As a sophomore, Drab's top time in the 400 was a 59.03 at the state preliminaries.

She participated in soccer for St. Viator her first two years.

But after breaking her hand during her sophomore season, she decided to drop soccer.

Drab started her junior track season by dropping to 58.02 at the Hononegah Girls Indoor Classic in March. She took fourth at the Illinois Top Times meet to finish her indoor season.

Her time kept dropping outdoors, culminating with a personal best of 55.10 in her title run at the state meet.

Kelli Wosick, a former St. Viator runner who graduated in 2011 and went on to run at Valparaiso University in Indiana, took over as head coach of Lions in 2016 and quickly found out what she was getting in Drab.

Drab relayed to her coach what she wanted her splits to be in the 400 race at the Hononegah Indoor meet.

She promptly went out and hit her mark each time, dropping her personal record by almost a full second.

"That was the race where I was like 'Oh my God, what is this girl doing?' " said Wosick of her early impression. "That really hit it for me."

Drab was also becoming a threat in the 200. She came from behind to pass four girls in the final 50 meters to secure her third-place state medal in a solid 24.80. She also proved to be a quick learner.

In only her fourth time running the 100 dash, Drab was able to secure a fourth-place medal in Class 2A.

Drab has not slowed down her senior year.

In 2015, she qualified to the state diving competition and followed it up last fall by becoming the first Viator girl to medal in diving in securing a fourth-place medal. Drab will continue her diving career after accepting a scholarship to UConn in November, where she intends to study biomedical engineering.

After drying off, the Viator senior started to heat up on the indoor track circuit.

Drab ran at elite level meets in Texas, Arkansas, and Ohio in January and February.

In early March, she set a new personal best in the 400 with a sizzling 55.0, securing first place at the USATF Hershey Youth Indoor Championship at the Ocean Breeze Indoor Track in Staton Island, NY.

That same weekend she hit a 55.90 at the New Balance National Indoor meet also in New York, finishing third in the Emerging Elite Class.

She currently holds the second-fastest indoor mark for the 400 in Illinois behind West Aurora sophomore Dajour Miles (54.25) and is the top returning 400 runner in state.

Last Saturday, Drab closed out her indoor season in fine fashion at the Illinois Top Times Indoor meet.

She took fourth in the 60 (7.83), second in the 200 (25.13), and set an ITT Class 2A indoor record by taking first in the 400 (56.06).

The previous record holder for the ITT Class 2A 400 was Lindblom's Shamier Little, who earned 14 Class 2A state medals, including eight state titles and holds the Class 2A record for the 200 (24.05) and 400 (54.19) during her fabulous run from 2010-1013.

Drab has positioned herself well and will be chasing that Class 2A 400 mark this May at Eastern Illinois and will also be in contention for titles in the 100 and 200.

It is a different feel for the Viator senior this year.

She is much more established, definitely faster and seems to be in the right zone.

"The part that feels different is this year I feel much more prepared and just more comfortable," Drab added. "Last year, the state meet was the biggest race. This past indoor season for track has been a great experience with the exposure at bigger meets and tougher competition. I'm enjoying it and I'm in a great spot."