Girls track and field: Geneva, West Aurora win UEC division titles

Geneva's Georgia Reed took the baton for the last lap of the 1,600-meter relay in second place, well behind Batavia's Alexa Andrews.

Moments later, she emerged from the dusk in the last 100 meters with the lead, crossing the finish line to a roar.

Turns out, the Vikings needed that effort to win the River Division team title of the Upstate Eight Conference meet Thursday at Elgin's Memorial Field.

Thanks to Reed, Geneva finished with 161 points - 1 better than the Bulldogs. St. Charles East and North tied for third with 96. West Aurora won the Valley Division title with 164 points, with Glenbard East the runner-up at 132 and South Elgin third at 105.

"I just knew as I got the baton that I had to win this for the team," said Reed, who also won the 300 hurdles (46.50).

The Vikings won 8 events Thursday, the most of any school. McKenzie Altmayer was the only dual individual champion, winning the 1,600 (4:59.35) and 3,200 (10:42.10).

"It's beyond words what these girls did," Geneva coach Peter Raak said of the River title. "We needed every last bit."

Batavia was a tough opponent for the Vikings, winning 4 events. Tori Ortiz (25.50) and Hannah Schlaman (25.82) went 1-2 in the 200 dash. Samantha Healy (35 feet, 6 inches) won the shot put and Jada Jones-Martin did the same in the discus (135 feet, 5 inches), shattering the school record set in 1988. The Bulldogs also won the 400 relay (49.29).

"We knew it was going to be a battle," Batavia coach Justin Allison said. "Geneva is a very strong team. They turn it on at the right time of the season."

West Aurora was led by junior Tamia Rayford, who won the 400 dash (58.08), while Rajiah Andrews did the same in the 100 hurdles (15.52). The team also took first in the 800 relay in 1:48.21. Winning the Valley was a relief for coach Teresa Towles for one reason.

"We had some big players out due to injuries, so I am very pleased with how they performed tonight, because it was looking grim coming in," she said.

Glenbard East proved to be the Blackhawks' stiffest Valley competition. The Rams were led by Kionnah Weaver, who took second in the 300 hurdles (46.89), fourth in the 100 hurdles (17.06). She also led her team to second in the 800 relay (1:49.63) and third in the 400 relay (50.82).

"It took a lot for me running four events to run as fast as I could," Weaver said. "But I needed to do it for my team, so I pushed myself as hard as I could."

South Elgin got a great effort from Kennedy Wells and Laureen Toussaint, who finished 2-3 behind West Aurora's Rayford in the 400 dash, while Bridgette Williams took second in the shot put (34 feet, 10 inches).