Gators repeat as FVC champs
The results of Thursday's Fox Valley Conference girls track and field meet meant different things to different people.
For Huntley sprinter Coryn Marzejon, winning the 200 -- her favorite event -- over rival Sarah Ross of Jacobs meant redemption.
For Ross, who beat Marzejon head-to-head in the 100 earlier in the meet, held her off in the anchor leg of the 400 relay and also set a meet record in the pole vault, the results meant elation.
And for host Crystal Lake South, winning a second straight conference crown by 36 points over Huntley meant domination.
The one-on-one duel between Marzejon and Ross held the most intrigue, but the Gators took any suspense out of the team competition by winning nine of the 18 events to finish with 135 points. Huntley finished with 99, followed by Jacobs (61), Cary-Grove (56), Prairie Ridge (50), Woodstock (43) and Dundee-Crown (42).
The Gators took relay titles at 3,200 meters, 1,600 and 800 and were sparked by two wins apiece by twin sisters Kellie and Aimee Schuh and distance champ Kristina Aubert.
Aimee Schuh won the 100 hurdles (15.28) and the long jump (17 feet, 3 inches) while Kellie broke her own meet record in the 300 hurdles (46.08) and set a new FVC record with a triple jump of 37 feet, 9 inches.
"It just kind of clicked this year," said Kellie of the triple jump, an event in which she cleared 38 feet in her last two meets. "I was really excited, but I didn't do quite as well as I wanted to tonight. I was really looking for another 38."
Aubert, the defending Class AA champion in the 3,200, easily won the two-mile event in 11:06.13. She later won the 1,600 in 5:15.24.
Marzejon and Ross first squared off in the anchor leg of the 400 relay. Ross received the baton a step ahead of Marzejon and kept that lead all the way to the finish line.
About 35 minutes later the duo lined up for the 100 dash, which ended with a similar result. Ross gained a step on Marzejon by the 50-meter mark and held her off for the victory in 12.89 to Marzejon's 13.08.
Marzejon rebounded by blowing away the field in the 400 in a time of 58.67, which was 2.45 seconds faster than second-place teammate Denita Brown.
That set up the race of the night: the 200. Marzejon, who lost to Ross in the 200 at the McHenry County Meet last week, got a step on Ross in the first 100 meters and maintained that lead down the stretch to win in 25.87, slightly quicker than the 26.06 turned in by Ross.
Asked if Ross brought out the best in her, Marzejon said, "She does. Any good competition will bring out the best in anyone else that they're going against. That's what I need to get better, good competition."
Some friendly advice helped, too.
"My dad and I talked right before the race," Marzejon said. "He said don't let people in my head and fight for what you want. I think that helped a lot, too."
Ross also set a meet record in the pole vault by clearing 12 feet, a new personal best that capped her stellar evening.
"It's been a good senior year so far but with this meet I can definitely be satisfied with what I've done my senior year," Ross said.
Cary-Grove's Madeline Aufmann outlasted Crystal Lake Central's Haley Staples to win the FVC title in the 800 meter run in 2:23.71.
Dundee-Crown's Kateleigh Pilson, who missed three weeks recently due to illness, had enough strength to win the shot put with a heave of 35 feet, 6 inches.