Glenbard West's Lederhouse lopes to 3,200 title
Mike Lederhouse looked like he had a lot left even as he won the 3,200-meter run.
The Glenbard West junior, a recent advocate of weight training that gained confidence and strength, had enough left to also win the 1,600 Friday night at the Red Grange Invitational at Wheaton Warrenville South.
Lederhouse had entered the “distance double” before, but had never won both races.
“I realized that I have a little more of a kick than I thought I did,” said Lederhouse, who won the 3,200 in 9 minutes, 27.54 seconds, and the 1,600 in 4:23.75.
“I'm happy about that, especially after doing the 2-mile. I felt tired, but in my mind I said I wasn't. It all worked out.”
Lederhouse, who finished in 19th place in the 3,200 at the 2010 Class 3A state meet, won both races with similar closing bursts.
Riding the right shoulder of Palatine's Anthony Gregorio most of the way in the 3,200, with about 600 meters left Lederhouse blew past him for keeps.
The Hilltoppers junior led in the 1,600, but just barely ahead of Palatine's Tim Johnson — until with about 700 meters left Lederhouse took off. WW South's Collin Fedor attempted to pass with about 120 left, but Lederhouse held him off.
“Yeah, I could hear him breathing, but I just put my head down and kept going,” Lederhouse said.
Lederhouse won his two battles, but WW South won the war. In a three-class meet that allowed the Tigers to show their depth, WW South scored 250 points to Prospect's 199. Batavia placed third with 171 points followed by Glenbard West (133) and Waubonsie Valley (124). Naperville North, Metea Valley and St. Francis also competed in the 14-team invite.
WW South won the 3,200 relay behind freshmen Luke Schroer and Zerihun Mueller and juniors Derek Anderson and Brian Barbieri, and also took the 800 relay with the more seasoned Titus Davis, Dan Vitale, Peter Karahalios and Charlie Pinedo. It was Davis in long jump who provided a huge thrill.
The senior, headed to Central Michigan to play football, jumped 23 feet, 11 inches, tied for the 15th best non-wind-aided effort in the country and the best in Illinois. Davis' first attempt went 23-2 and his third 23-7¼.
“The first one and the last one, they didn't feel right to me,” said Davis, who also was second-fastest in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes.
“They were still in the 23s, but I just felt like there was something wrong with my landing and everything. But the second one felt fine. I got my legs out and everything, it was fine.”
The crazy thing is, due to a little back stiffness followed by rest Friday was his first time jumping since the DuPage Valley Conference indoor meet March 18.
“I feel great, I feel like a hundred bucks right now,” he said.
Naperville North's Antonio Owens is getting there. Coming off a touchy knee from basketball season, the senior is in his fourth straight season as a four-event man.
The DVC's defending 400-meter champion finished third in his heat — behind Glenbard West's Mark Hiben, who teamed with Nick Burrello, Justice Odom and Josh Nibbe to win the 400 relay — and came on down the stretch.
“Coming down that last 400 I was happy how I pulled back because I died early, got gassed going into that 300 mark,” Owens said. “Going down that straightaway I just gave it everything I had. I had a little bit more gas left in the tank.”
Batavia ruled the hurdles, winning all three classes of 300 intermediates with Rob Mohr, Dave Voland and Gavontae Marshall.
Mohr also cranked it out in the 110 highs, showing perfect form to compile a time of 14.70 seconds.
“I just need to get the times going,” the senior said, and he returned to run the 300s in 38.83 seconds, just .05 off the team-record time he set last year.
Voland was most impressive. After two years battling injuries — a vertebra with a stress fracture, then torn tendons that pulled bone from his hip — he looked ready to roll.
Voland ran the second-fastest time in the 300 hurdles, at 39.95, then ran a 49.7-second split in his leg of the 1,600 relay to bring home a win for the team of Emund Kabba, Mohr and Jake Benner.
“Obviously,” Voland said, “it was wonderful seeing all my teammates do so well, but at the same time I wanted to get in there with them and PR and all kinds of things, like everyone else.”
Along with others like a happy Brian Wilson, second in Class A shot put at 51 feet, 7 inches, a Batavia highlight was Brian Rudelich coming out of the B Flight to win high jump, at 6 feet, 1 inch.
“It feels great, it really does. It feels amazing,” he said. “I had people saying, ‘Good job jumping, get higher.' Teammates coming by saying ‘Great job.'”