Boys track: Top talent primed for Red Ribbon
Should the weather help out, Waubonsie Valley's Red Ribbon Classic boys track meet on Saturday should be good, and fast.
Warriors coach Kevin Rafferty has assembled a 14-team meet that brings heat with seven sprinters clocked under 11 seconds FAT in the 100-meter dash. They include Waubonsie's Tre'Von Petty and Haneef Spikener, Metea Valley's Alonzo Taylor-Jones and Wheaton Warrenville South's Cedric Rowzee. Neuqua Valley's Myles Gascon has run it in 10.6 seconds, hand-timed, to tie the Wildcats' program record.
Rafferty's goal is not to load up one event.
"I feel like we've got good representatives from most teams in most events," he said.
Wheaton Warrenville South has thrived with this approach. First-year coach Chris Arthurs' Tigers have won three invites in as many weekends, two being multilevel meets that accent depth.
In addition to Rowzee, their diverse talents include middle-distance and distance runners Kyle Thompson, Joe Kratz, Mike Hanson and brothers Sean and Scott Maison, jumper Ashton Jones, thrower Pyai Aung, hurdlers Joe Zubak and Colton McGlynn, vaulter Tom Ansiel, sprinters Danny Schricker and Trent Schweitzer, multi-events weapons Erik Stubner and Christian Harris, and many others.
Facing defending Red Ribbon champ Neuqua Valley for the first time since trailing the Wildcats by 32 points at the DuPage Valley Conference indoor championship, it's a test of WW South's depth against Neuqua's high-scoring headliners such as Isaiah Robinson, Jake McEneaney, McKenzie Mitchell and junior Kai Larson, back and running a strong 400 after tearing an ACL during sophomore football.
As well, Homewood-Flossmoor, Hoffman Estates and St. Charles East will be hard to top.
Last year's Red Ribbon was certainly a classic, in the sense of man versus nature. A day that started rainy, windy and cold ended wetter and colder. Of the 16 teams originally entered only four varsity and three junior varsity squads remained to run the conclusive 1,600-meter relay. After a gutty 800-meter win, Waubonsie Valley's Wes York looked like he ran through a car wash.
"There's a lot of good stuff that could go on, we've just got to get the weather to cooperate," Rafferty said.
Getting there:
When Lisle coach Ken Jakalski said before the outdoor season began that he "may have a guy to match Aaron Harris," it sounded hard to believe.
Harris, now on the team at the University of Illinois, ended high school winning the Class 2A 200- and 400-meter titles and was runner-up in the 100.
At least in the 400, Lisle senior Isaiah Hunter may be on track.
In three big outdoor meets Hunter has clocked under 51 seconds each time. His time of 49.95 seconds at Yorkville's Matt Wulf Invitational ranked sixth in Class 2A on the Dyestat board and 21st overall.
"He's the real deal," Jakalski noted this week.
Reigning Rainy:
The lone female coach of a DuPage County boys track team, Westmont's Rainy Kaplan will become the school's athletic director starting next school year. She'll replace Megan Wojtulewicz, whom Kaplan said wishes to spend more time with her family.
Kaplan is married to a retired teacher and coach in Schaumburg, Bob Kaplan, and is the mother of two sons who coach track and cross country - Brad at St. Charles East, Matt at Huntley.
In addition to athletic director duties, the Hinsdale South graduate will continue to teach four hours of Spanish and coach the boys track team.
"I have no life," she said.
She sought the position to "give back" to Westmont's sports programs. She said she'd like to create a "superfan club" to increase student involvement, increase student-athletes' community service efforts and - with an eye toward track and field - enhance athletic participation.
"I'd like to see more kids do multiple sports at our school. There's a lot of football kids who are lifting right now that should be on my team, so I'd like to encourage more multiple-sports participation," she said.
"We have so many athletes in our school and so many of them don't do athletics."
Quote of the week:
Downers Grove North senior Tariun Triplett has been plagued by recurring hamstring pulls and strains over his four years, including a pull this indoor season.
Last Friday at Downers Grove South's Bob Cohoon Invitational Triplett won the 100-meter dash in 10.94 seconds and returned to anchor a second-place 800 relay.
It was the first time he'd run more than 100 meters at a meet since heading outdoors, Trojans coach Eric Buhot said.
"If fatigue is a 21.5 (-second relay) split, I'll take it," Buhot said.