Girls track/Fox Valley state preview
South Elgin senior Jordan Tuin has plenty to be excited about these days.
Tuin is the first Storm girls’ track athlete to compete in the Class 3A state finals, which kick off today at Eastern Illinois University’s O’Brien Stadium in Charleston.
“It means a lot to be the first one,” Tuin said. “Our coaches are always really excited about state. They have been there before to experience it and watch it and are always talking to us about it. They make a big deal about it. They always tell us state is the goal. It means a lot to finally be able to do it because I’ve put so much work into it.”
Tuin will run in the 800 where she recently went under 2:20 with a 2:18.89 effort — a far cry from the 2:35s she used to run when she was younger.
“I really started to log miles for cross country,” she said. “I put in 45 miles of work a week in the summer. I worked out seriously. I worked out the entire winter and only took like a week break after cross country. I put in a lot of mileage and a lot of work.”
Tuin improved 4 seconds from the conference meet to sectionals.
“I have to keep it even and be disciplined out there,” she said. “That’s really what got me the 2:18 and the 4-second improvement.”
Tuin is just one of a bevy of Fox Valley-area athletes and relay teams that will be competing in Charleston this weekend.
Tuin is not the only school district U-46 athlete looking to make history. Streamwood senior Megan McGlone is seeded fourth in the triple jump (37-0 ½). McGlone is enjoying a strong track and field season after recovering from knee surgery to repair an injury suffered during a Streamwood basketball game.
“Coming off surgery and having everything repaired has really helped me out with the long jump,” she said.
McGlone’s rehab stretched into the beginning of this past basketball season, but she still competed in the cross-country and basketball seasons.
“Playing sports was more motivating than just doing the rehab,” McGlone noted. “I felt like with sports, there was always an end goal there.”
McGlone, who will continue her track and field career at Western Illinois, has improved the second phase of her jumping.
“That has improved dramatically since last year,” she said. “The drills I have been doing work.”
McGlone is thrilled to have a four-seed going into the competition.
“I was excited to make it down there with the seed placement I have,” she said. “My goal has been to get Top 4 or 5. As long as I continue to keep improving, I think I can be Top 3 or 4 if I want to.”
Bartlett senior Alyssa Schneider’s decorated high school running career will come to a close this weekend. She’s seeded second in the 1,600 in Class 3A (5:03.90) behind Hoffman Estates junior Haley Goers — the girl that finished ahead of her at sectionals. Schneider took sixth in the state in the event last year and has her sights set on going below 5 minutes.
Teammate Katie Lausen is seeded fifth in the shot put (41-2), while sectional champion Julie Cronin will run in the 400 (58.96) and will be part of the Bartlett 3,200 relay team that is seeded sixth.
“I’ve gotten better at going faster, longer,” Cronin said. “I’m able to keep up my speed for a longer time. Cross country helped get my endurance up.”
Cronin qualified for state in the 400 and 3,200 relay last year.
“The experience from last year will make me more relaxed instead of going into it really nervous,” she said.
In Cronin’s eyes, the key to success in the 3,200 relay is a simple one.
“We all have to run as a team and run our best on the same day and all be there mentally,” she said.
Senior Carly Loeffel, who is Notre Dame-bound for track and field, is one of many Cary-Grove athletes enjoying fine seasons. She’s seeded first in the high jump in Class 3A.
“I’ve been really consistent,” Loeffel said. “Last year my best was 5-4. I’ve hit 5-7 four times already this year, which is pretty nice. I did a lot of resistance training this year. I’ve learned that I am more of a power jumper and I’ve learned to have a mental approach. I’m able to drive it up better. I’m going more straight up and that’s helped a lot. I’ve learned to slow down and relax and not try to force the jump and go too quick.”
Loeffel will end her high school career with berths in eight state finals events. She’ll also be part of Cary-Grove’s 400 relay team.
“Our biggest goal this year was to get the school record and we did that at conference,” she said. “Hopefully we can run another personal record.”
Cary-Grove’s Kathie Wollney won sectional titles in both the 100 and 300 hurdles, while teammate Sarah Ryan won the sectional 100 and 200 titles. Ketura Taylor will compete at state in the discus (she threw 118-10 at sectionals). Fox Valley Conference and sectional champion Cary-Grove will also have its 800 relay team at state. Wollney is seeded 12th in the 100 hurdles.
Jacobs junior Allie Virgilio is seeded seventh in the triple jump (36-7 ½). Teammate Olivia Mayer will compete in the long jump.
Crystal Lake South veteran Marianne Collard will run in the 1,600. She won the sectional with a 5:12.88 effort. This is Collard’s fourth trip to state in track. The Cornell-bound Collard also qualified for state twice in cross country. Collard finished fourth in the state in the 1,600 as a junior.
She’s also part of South’s 3,200 relay team that won a sectional title in 9:43.06.
“We would like to get the relay team to the finals,” Collard said. “Three of us on the team are seniors. We’ve been with each other for a long time and we know each other well. It helps when you can all work together and have one goal.”
Collard said her fastest 800 split in the relay has been a 2:17.
“That’s with nobody in front of me,” she said. “I’m confident that if I have people running with me and I’m running after people, my time will go down.”
South’s Lexi Dahl won a sectional title in the pole vault (10-0) and will compete in Charleston, as will teammate Kamile Udrenaite (discus).
Huntley senior Haley Loprieno was second to Collard in the 1,600 at the sectional. This is Loprieno’s first individual state appearance. She also went down as a sophomore in the 3,200 relay.
“This means a lot to me,” she said. “I’ve wanted this so badly since I was a freshman. It’s pretty amazing.”
Loprieno switched from doing the 3,200 to the 1,600 this season.
“It was a huge change for me,” she said. “I started doing a lot more speed workouts. I started working out with the 800 runners. I focused on speed instead of endurance.”
Loprieno, who will run at Marquette, would like to reach Saturday’s finals.
“That’s a reachable goal,” she said. “I’m going to have to work for it, but I think it can be done. It’s a definite priority.”
Huntley’s Sarah Sheehan will compete in the pole vault, while sophomore Anthonia Moore will compete in the 400. Huntley also will have teams in the 800 and 1,600 relays.
In the Class 2A meet, Burlington Central sophomore Katie Trupp is seeded third in the high jump (5-4). She will also do the pole vault.
Senior Caille Thommes also will compete in the high jump. Thommes qualified for the high jump last year and ran in three relays at state.
“Katie Trupp pushes me to do well,” Thommes said. “She’s really good. She makes me want to do better.”
Thommes noted a vertical camp she attended in DeKalb has helped her with the high jump. She’s hopeful that improvement will continue to manifest itself this weekend.
“I want to place higher than last year and jump higher than I did last year,” Thommes said. “I would like to get a PR at state (her PR is 5-4).”
Central’s Autumn Conn will compete in the pole vault, while Kayla Wolf qualified in the 800 and Alexa Tovsen in the 400. Markelle Turk will wrap up a successful Central career by running in the 1,600. The Rockets also qualified their 3,200 and 1,600 relay teams in what has been a banner season for the team.
Hampshire’s equally impressive girls track season has resulted in the Whip-Purs qualifying both their 3,200 (Paige Membrano, Autumn Chomenko, Liz Sicheri and Cassie Kruse) and 1,600 relay (Membrano, Chomenko, Elizabeth Pagan and Kruse) teams.
Kruse will compete individually in the 800 and 1,600, while Sicheri will compete in the triple jump.
Kruse is seeded seventh in the 800, while the Whip-Purs’ 3,200 relay team is seeded fourth and its 1,600 relay team is seeded ninth. Central’s 3,200 relay team is seeded seventh.