Winners abound at Buffalo Grove sectional

As Carmel Catholic’s Megan Paul could clearly see through her stylish, black-framed eyeglasses, fellow junior Laura Schweikert of Palatine edged her out in the 200-meter final.

“I came in second,” Paul said on a damp, windy and chilly Friday night at Buffalo Grove. “I think. Pretty sure.”

For absolute sure?

“She won. No, (I) won,” Paul said with a laugh and a purposely high-pitched voiced. “No, but, really, I came in second.”

No, she didn’t.

Officially, Paul clocked a winning 25-flat, just ahead of Schweikert (25.1).

“She won,” Schweikert said. “We were so close that I couldn’t tell, but they said she won.”

The truth? Both girls were winners.

What matters most on sectional night is qualifying for state, and both Paul and Schweikert did that in the Class 3A competition.

Want more proof that “winning” isn’t always the ultimate reward?

Lake Zurich senior Amy Polhemus placed second in the 300 hurdles to Zion-Benton’s Chelsea Maxey (44.6), but didn’t care about her finish.

“I ran a 44.7,” Polhemus said excitedly in between deep breaths after breaking her school record. “I’ve never ran that fast in my life.”

Polhemus pulled off her stellar time despite stumbling slightly on her last hurdle.

“My leg gave out when I landed,” Polhemus said. “I was scared for a second that I was going to fall.”

Palatine cruised to its 13th sectional championship with 121.33 points, way ahead of runner-up Waukegan (56). Lake Zurich (51) was third, qualifying three relays but not winning an event. Hersey (47) and Lake Forest (39) were fourth and fifth.

Palatine started the night by winning the 3,200 relay with Cassidy McPherson, Tess Wasowicz, Sarah McIntosh and Becca Sund (9:32.30. The Pirates capped the night by capturing the 1,600 relay with a foursome of Morgan Quinnett, Taylor Tenca, Meg Jump and Wasowicz (4:03.3).

In addition to the 200, Paul also won the 400 (57.8), with Schweikert (58.4) and Lake Zurich’s Marissa Wagner (58.8) also earning state berths.

“I’m just hoping to peak at state,” Paul said after the 200.

Stevenson junior Christina Pritchett was in disbelief after being one of six runners to qualify for state in the 200. Her 25.6 placed her fifth behind Paul, Schweikert and Waukegan’s Aliyah Reams and Lake Zurich’s Lindsey Moritz. Wheeling’s Sydney Keith was sixth.

“I’ve worked seven months, since winter, just to get here,” said Pritchett, who will be making her first state appearance. “The whole time through it, in my block, I was like, ‘I just got to go.’ I had a good feeling about it. After my 100 — I got a 12.5 (just missing the state-qualifying time) — I said, ‘I can do it. I can get a good time in the 200.’ My whole team was supporting me. They’re just great. My coach. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Palatine seniors McIntosh (season-best 5:06.5) and Sund (5:17.7) went 1-2 in the 1,600 run. They were the only runners in the race to make it out.

“We wanted to work together, take the race out hard and be under state-qualifying,” said McIntosh, who’s been to state all four years.

Stevenson senior Rachel Redmond rebounded from an “off” night at the North Suburban Conference meet (fourth in the discus, second in the shot put). She won both the shot put (40-feet-7) and discus (117).

“I was really nervous coming off last week because I didn’t think I was really going to be able to do it,” Redmond said. “And when the weather (rain, wind) came, I really started to freak out.”

She overcame the elements to earn a trip downstate for the third year in a row.

“As soon as we started throwing discus, it started downpouring,” Redmond said. “It is so hard to throw discus in this soaking-wet rain. There were puddles in the ring. I probably could have done better, but I was trying to not slip and fall and embarrass myself.”

A thrilling 100 hurdles final saw Mundelein’s Megan Geldernick win in 14.8, just ahead of Zion-Benton’s Maxey (14.9), Lake Forest’s Carolina Carmichael (15.0) and Hersey’s Dana Markech (15.1). All four qualified for state.

Wasowicz won the 800 by clocking a 2:17.2. Libertyville’s Carly Stewart (2:18.2) and Warren’s Gabby Nystrom (2:18.3) ran state-qualifying as well.

Stewart set Libertyville’s school record.

“I knew what it was and I knew qualifying for state meant the record,” Stewart said. “(The school record) is a bonus.”

Lake Zurich’s runners were ecstatic after finishing second to Waukegan in the 400 relay. The Bears’ unit was comprised of Teegan Hough, Kelly Doheny, Lindsey Moritz and Wagner.

“We’ve been working so hard for this,” the Colorado State-bound Wagner said. “This is icing on the cake. We really had high expectations.”

“We set the bar high for ourselves at the beginning of the season,” Doheny said, “to get where we are right now.”

Lake Zurich ended the night by qualifying for state its 1,600 relay, as well. Wagner, Madeline Jordan, Emily Trittschuh and Moritz made up the foursome.

The high jump saw four girls advance. Fremd’s Stephanie Uhrich (5-3) won, followed by Libertyville’s Haley Becker, Warren’s Alyssa Phillips and Mundelein’s Lauren Ozimek, all of whom tied for second at 5-1.

Warren’s Amber Cook won the triple jump (36-1).