Girls track and field: West Aurora looking for more success at state level
Just like the Geneva girls track and field team from a year ago, West Aurora enjoyed a banner year during the regular season.
The expression "Triple Crown" occupies a unique status on the athletic landscape.
But that it is exactly what the West Aurora girls accomplished this spring with its triumphs at Kane County, Upstate Eight Conference and the Class 3A Bartlett sectional.
A decade-plus back, the Blackhawks struggled to reach double digits at the DuPage Valley Conference championship.
But with such extraordinary athletes such as Emma Spagnola and Shanice Andrews, it has been an entirely different story in the last seven years.
West Aurora will clearly be the team to watch from the Fox Valley area this weekend at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston for the Class 3A state finals.
The Blackhawks qualified a pair of relays and 9 individuals to dominate the Fox Valley area state participants in the largest class.
"If we finish in the top five, I will be happy," West Aurora coach Teresa Towles said. "We have a lot of top seeds. I told the girls that (Eastern) is a really fast track and anything can happen."
Dajour Miles is the centerpiece of the West Aurora program.
Like Spagnola and Andrews before her, the sophomore will seek to become the third four-event all-state athlete in program history.
The Blackhawks' superstar is ranked first in the 400-meter dash at 56.14 seconds, and state-medal worthy in the 100 and 200 dashes.
Miles anchored the Blackhawks' 400 relay to the seventh-fastest time in the state at Bartlett.
"For the 400 I want to get back to 53-something," Miles said. "I want to run a 54-something for prelims. For the 200 I want to be a state champion. For the 100 I want to get into the 11s."
West Aurora senior stalwart Tamiya Rayford, the last state-scoring link to the Blackhawks' state runner-up team from three years ago, is ranked fourth in the 400.
"I can't explain it," Rayford said on Tuesday afternoon after being the fourth seed at 400 meters while in a walking boot. "I was really surprised coming into the sectional and running the time that I did."
The Blackhawks' Rajiah Andrews has the distinction of being a four-event state qualifier in the two horizontal jumps and 100 and 300 hurdles.
"I hope to go out there and do what I can do best," Andrews said.
There are so many other intriguing storylines this weekend in central Illinois.
Aurora Central Catholic and Rosary are blocks apart in their Aurora neighborhood.
In the Class 2A 800 state semifinals on Friday, Abbey Fioresi, an ACC senior, holds a two-plus second lead over Rosary junior Brooke Delahanty for the top spot.
The Xavier-bound Fioresi, who also qualified in the open 1,600 and state-leading-contender 1,600 relay, has able company from her program from the likes of Loyola-bound senior Alex Johnston in the relay.
"Brooke is actually my really good friend," said Fioresi, who will attempt to become the third 800 champion at ACC in the last four years. "I'm not actually sure if I'm going to do the mile. If I want to get the all-time state record (in the 800), six races would be a lot in two days."
Bella Uscila gave Miles everything she could handle at Kane County in the 100 and 200 dashes before settling for runner-up.
Unlike West Aurora, the St. Edward coaches can only dream about having almost 4,000 students to choose from their athletes.
But the Green Wave junior is in a prime position to be a state champion this weekend in Class 1A in the two dashes.
Uscila is ranked third - less than a tenth of second separates the only all-state athlete in program history - from her top-two competitors.
"That's something I need to work on is being more explosive out of the blocks," Uscila said of her focus. "I am very excited for this Thursday. It definitely stinks I don't have teammates to run down there with me. I will be able to be with them, if not physically, on the track."
Megan Safranski is only the third athlete in Burlington Central history to be all-state in both cross-country and track.
"I am glad I am able to focus on my favorite event, the 2-mile, and focus everything on that," Safranski said after missing the state cut in the 1,600 last week in the 2A at Genoa-Kingston. "I am going to have focus for my last high school meet ever."
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee-bound senior is the fourth seed in the event.
Batavia's Hannah Schlaman, Darby Edmondson and Tori Oritz are also looking to reclaim all-state berths as the three members seek another medal-winning bid in the 800 relay in Class 3A.
"Essentially for Hannah and Darby, I told them to leave everything on the track, for this is but the last high school track meet before they go off to college," said Ortiz, a junior.
In Class 2A, Kaneland is a shared state champion from a season ago.
Nicole Sreenan is an athlete like few others in recent years.
The Grand Valley recruit, after missing the state series her sophomore year with an injury, is a perfect 8-for-8 in claiming medals in her two state meets.
"It will be good to get (freshmen Avery Smith and Emma Stoker) before Carley (Elliott) and I leave," the Knights' senior star said of qualifying in both the 400 and 800 relays.
Sreenan is an impeccable 12-out-of-12 in qualifying for state in three official attempts after also making the cut in the 100 and 200 dashes last week.
"It should be pretty close to top-five-wise," Sreenan said of her two individual events.
The Knights' Cierra Kuipers' 12-foot effort in the pole vault is worthy of tying for the top seed, and the Kaneland 3,200 relay is No. 2 this weekend.
Streamwood junior Maddi Exline is a top seed in the 800 in Class 3A after breaking the school record of the one and only state champion - 1,600 victor Gabby Juarez - in program history last week at Bartlett.
"My No. 1 goal will be to make it out of the semifinals and make it to Saturday," said Exline, who also qualified for the 1,600 run.
"(Exline) has a good enough closing speed to get in (the finals)," Streamwood coach Denny Lau said.