Boys track and field: Huntley runs away with DeKalb sectional crown

Since a horse is part of the Huntley athletic logo and Saturday marked the 141st running of the Preakness, it's fitting that the Red Raiders referenced "the Triple Crown" after winning the Class 3A DeKalb boys track sectional plaque.

However, Jim Rolando doubles as the school's golf coach, so he prefers to think in terms of a "Grand Slam."

Both Seth Conroy and Dubem Anikamadu noted their pride in capturing the Triple Crown - McHenry County, Fox Valley Conference and sectional titles - for the second straight year.

In Rolando's view, the FVC indoor championship constituted a fourth notable achievement for a second year that clearly necessitates making more room for track hardware in the school's trophy case.

With three first-place finishes and a second-place, all four Huntley relays qualified for the 3A state finals and the Red Raiders boast state qualifiers in 14 events. No surprise then to see their first-place total of 121 points - 32 ahead of second-place Grant. Meet host DeKalb (72.5 points) was third with Jacobs 10th (17), Crystal Lake South 13th (7.5), and Hampshire 14th (6) out of 15 schools.

South coach Nick Willhoit believes the ultimate list of qualifiers should expand due to the unusual circumstances of the meet.

While field events were completed Friday, there were issues with the electronic FAT (fully automated timing) system. Under IHSA rules, hand-timed results mean only first and second-place finishers can qualify for state. However, sectionals using FAT can advance place finishers who meet pre-determined state-qualifying times or distances.

"We ran .28 seconds under the (4x800 relay) qualifying time and we're submitting video evidence of that as part of our appeal," Willhoit explained. "I want to see our guys (Jack Becker, Miles Floydl, Doug Cain, and Jon Prus) get the opportunity they earned."

An apparent glitch with the system Friday failed to provide video confirmation on the 4x800 relay. It appeared to function for one heat of the next event, but failed in the second heat. At that point, IHSA meet officials and meet committee members decided it was best to postpone track events to Saturday, at which time another electronic system was used. As part of that decision, the track events conducted Friday were re-run Saturday, at which time the Gators finished fourth as unit in 8:18.80. That time was well above both Friday's 7:56.8 hand-timed effort and the state-qualifying time of 7:59.34.

If that issue is not resolved in South's favor, the Gators' lone representative in Charleston at Eastern Illinois' O'Brien Stadium will be pole vaulter Sam Peschke, who finished fifth, however, his 14-01.00 was above the 13-07.00 qualifying mark.

Jacobs' only state competitor is Steve Bellafontaine, who placed fifth in the 100 dash, however, his 10.93 was within seven runners who were under the 11.0 standard.

"For me it's proof that hard work pays off," explained Bellafontaine, a junior. "Now my aim is to continue practicing hard, eating right, and being focused. Qualifying for state isn't something that happens by chance. Hopefully my showing can serve as an example for more of my teammates next year, because we do have one of the hardest-working groups. We get more of our success from work ethic than talent."

"We came here looking for qualifiers and fell short of what we hoped for," Jacobs coach Jason Borhart said. "We competed hard and I'm proud of all those who had some PRs (personal records), but unfortunately we had some guys looking to make it back and didn't quite make it."

The meet marked a reset point for Hampshire which had a trio of 2A state qualifiers in 2015, but moved up to 3A.

"(3A) proved to be a big step up," admitted Doug Stuehler, who owns Whip-Purs school records for the triple jump and long jump, yet placed seventh and eighth, respectively.

Jacob Oury had Hampshire's best finish taking third in the 800, however his 1:57.45 was over the .18 above the standard.

"Not knowing the competition and not having run the 800, I can't wait to come back next year," said Oury, who competed in the 1,600 with teammate William Matushek. "I plan on really picking it up because I loved the feeling in the 800 that I still had energy down the stretch."

"I was pretty disappointed knowing I'm capable of more," Matushek said after placing seventh in the 1,600. "I'm pleased with how I've gotten faster, but I wanted to finish this season better. It'll be that much more incentive in the off season to rain a lot and always remember I could've placed higher."

In addition to the relay success, Huntley boasted event champions in Seth Conroy and Keagan Smith, plus runners-up in Jeremie Allen, Brandon O'Donnell and Tim McCloyn. However those medal winners will have plenty of company.

Conroy ruled the 1,600 in 4:23.21 while Smith took the blue ribbon in the 800 in 1:55.06. Conroy also led off the victorious 4x800 (7:54.40) unit handing to Smith, who was followed by Mike Grocholski with Zach Hollman anchoring.

"With everyone bunched up (in the 1,600), it was more of a tactical race that would come down to the last lap," Conroy said. "I was happy to win the event on a tough day but it's really good to have our team succeed two years in a row."

Allen was second in the 200 in 22.01 while O'Donnell ran 50.58 in the 400 for his runner-up showing and McCloyn's toss of 168-07 had him second in the discus. McCloyn was fourth (53-03.5) in the shot just ahead of teammate Dominic Swanson (52-10), but both were beyond the 52-8 qualifying cut.

Also advancing for Huntley from the high jump were Max Trinski and Henry Halverson, who both landed at the 6-03 cut mark in sharing fourth place. Jacob Riese finished third in the pole vault clearing 14-01, clearing the 13-07 qualifying height as did seventh-place Rafael Rivera.

Allen anchored the 4x100 and 4x200 relays teaming with Ben Marsh, Trevor Dell'Aquilla and either Eric Mooney or Duben Anikamadu.

"In the 200 (dash) I just wasn't able to close at the end, but I'm satisfied to qualify," Allen said. "I'm convinced I can do what I did here at state, but better."

"While my races were average in my own estimation because I believe I can do better, I'm proud of what the seniors have done this year," Marsh noted. "We knew last year's seniors would do well, for us taking the Triple Crown was proof of how hard we worked."

"Being only a sophomore, I want going to state to be a habit," Anikamadu added. "Most people do not realize how hard we train and practice. Our work ethic is what makes us win, people don't see how we earn the championships during practice. My dreams are to continue to be No. 1 as a team and for me individually, plus to run in college."

It's the fourth sectional title in nine seasons for Huntley, an achievement that Rolando believes is a credit to the Red Raiders.

"Sectionals is all about individuals qualifying for state, but with us seeing how we do as a team has always been a priority," Rolando said. "I don't believe track and field gets enough credit for being a team sport. We're lucky to have a core of coaches that have been together and we preach that winning a team title is a big deal.

"Continuing indoor success throughout the outdoor season doesn't happen without some real depth," Rolando added. "And you never know what other teams have developing, so we've had some luck plus we've stayed relatively injury free."

Rolando also complimented DeKalb for its handling of the meet and Barbs coach Tim Holt, whose crew boasted three event winners and a couple notable runner-up showings. Antonio Tate winning the 100 dash (10.60), 200 dash (21.88), and long jump (22-01) made him the meet's top performer according to Rolando.