Lake Park makes the points add up

As the rain began to fall again, the Lake Park girls track team huddled on the track, almost alone in the Waubonsie Valley stadium, anticipating good news coming over the public-address system.

Waubonsie Valley placed second at the Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division meet. By process of elimination, that left only the Lancers for first place.

The Lancers finished with 127 points to host Waubonsie Valley’s 111.5. Neuqua Valley took third with 98 points, and Metea Valley was fourth with 90.

All of Lake Park’s first-place finishes were in the field events. Sophomore Tyshai Freeman in the high jump, going 5-foot-4 as the only girl to break the 5-foot barrier. Maya Golliday won the pole vault at 10 feet, and Monica Smith won the discus with a throw of 108-8.

The Lancers still scored a number of points on the track however, the biggest of them coming in the 1,600, where sophomore Kaylee Flanagan placed second and classmate Brianne Murphy third.

“That mile double-up at the end was pretty nice for them,” Waubonsie Valley coach Dave Gowing said. “That was huge. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back there.”

Waubonsie Valley junior Morolake Akinosun won the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes, then jumped into the 1,600 relay in hopes it would help the Warriors to the team title. The placed third behind Bartlett and Neuqua Valley in the meet’s final event.

So when did she learn she would run the 1,600 relay?

“After I crossed the finish line from the 200 and I looked at Gowing and asked him if we needed it,” Akinosun said. “He said, yeah, and I said, all right, let’s go.”

Running two races in a row like that is rare. That Akinosun is nursing a bit of a hip flexor injury didn’t help.

“It was hard going 200, 4x4,” she said.

Gowing and Akinosun will have to decide by next week’s sectional if she’ll try to do it again at state. Time is running out on the season, despite what the weather suggests.

“I’d love to get the 4x4 down there,” Akinosun said. “I’d so much fun, and the other four girls have worked really hard for it too.”

“It’s on to next week,” Gowing said. “We need an 80-degree day and they’ll be fine.”

Akinosun defeated Neuqua Valley’s Savannah Carson in the 100 and 200.

“I love it. It’s always a challenge,” Carson said of chasing Akinosun, her good friend and Aurora Flyers teammate. “I love her. She’s kind of like a big sister to me.”

Bartlett placed fifth with 82 points. South Elgin came in sixth with 24.5, edging East Aurora’s 24 points.

Bartlett was led by senior Alyssa Schneider, who won the 1,600 meters in 5:05.13 as the meet restarted following a 45-minute weather delay, holding off Lake Park sophomores Kaylee Flanagan and Brianne Murphy.

“The mile is my favorite event,” Schneider said. “I’m really looking to break five (minutes). I knew things were a little off with all the delays and everything, but once you’re on the line, you forget about everything. Gotta reach.”

The delay didn’t help matters, however.

“I feel like I’ve been moving for four hours,”Schneider said, relieved to be done. “I think I have. But it felt good.”