Girls track: Benet's Munson ready for step up in class
Ali Munson feels no pressure.
The defending Class 2A pole vault champion steps up to Class 3A for Friday's preliminaries at the Girls Track and Field State Finals in Charleston.
She sounds ready.
"I've been training so much and so hard this past season for it, and it's just a huge process," said Munson, who at Downers Grove South recorded the highest sectional vault regardless of class at 12 feet, 4 inches.
"I'm learning new things all the time as I go along, and I'll continue to learn as I continue my track and pole vault career in college," she said.
Treasurer of Benet's National Honor Society chapter and among the school's "First Honors" students all four years - earning an A average both semesters each year - Munson will attend Princeton.
She said Princeton coach Michelle Eisenreich will allow her to compete in long jump her first two years with the Tigers before strictly focusing on pole vault the last two years. Munson is seeded 20th in Class 3A long jump at 17-8½, qualifying in both long jump and pole vault for a second straight year.
Munson, who shortened Alexandra to "Ali," took her official visit to Princeton in September. She also visited Yale, Johns Hopkins, Minnesota and Villanova. She applied to Princeton's biomedical engineering program but as of Tuesday hadn't received word if she was accepted. If not, she'll major in neuroscience with the goal of becoming a doctor.
It's a taxing regimen, but then so is pole vault.
"I'm very focused and determined and a little bit of a perfectionist, but this sport definitely taught me to dial back on that side of life. I don't know, just the feeling I get when I get a jump very sound and technically correct is very gratifying, and it just makes me love the sport even more," said Munson, who lives in south Naperville.
A gymnast from ages 3-13 who swam for Benet through her junior year, Munson ended gymnastics in eighth grade after picking up cross country and tiring of sprained knees.
Gymnastics translated to pole vault, though obviously not immediately to the 12-foot heights Munson now routinely clears. She recalled completing her first meet freshman year with a mark of 7-6. A fast learner, as a sophomore she placed sixth in Class 3A at 11-9.
Over the years she's trained with Bob Cervanka of the Jump High Athletic Club. The 1976 Class AA high jump champion out of Downers Grove North, Cervanka's international high jump and pole vault clientele extends to the Olympic level.
A coach in South Africa for nearly 20 years, in 2007 he returned stateside to coach eight Illinois champions including Munson last season at 12-9, tied for fifth in state history. Her best this season is 12-6, April 21 at Neuqua Valley.
A three-time East Suburban Catholic Conference champion, Munson's focus this season has been getting a solid plant of the pole in the pole box. Being a highly technical event it's not as easy as it sounds.
"It all starts with the plant, and if you don't get that quite right the rest of the jump doesn't happen," Munson said.
Instead of pressure Munson brings a pie-in-the-sky attitude to Charleston. Normally seeking a personal-best, she's set her sights on the IHSA state record of 13-4 set by Harrisburg's Lindsey Murray in the 2014 state finals. The top mark listed by the IHSA is 13-5 by Pontiac's Emily Grove in 2011; official state records are achieved only at the state meet.
"It's a lofty goal but it is doable," Munson said. "I did clear a 13-foot bar in practice the other day. My coach said I had quite a bit of hip height, I've just got to do the right technique. It's just a matter of it all coming together for that one perfect jump."
Every point counts:
Homewood-Flossmoor and East St. Louis are considered the favorites to win the Class 3A title, but several DuPage County teams are among the best of the rest, according to the coach of one of them, Dan Iverson of Naperville North. He also points to Glenbard West, Downers Grove North and West Aurora, while Hinsdale Central qualified all four relays and a handful of individuals.
"Our strengths are that we are relying on a number of different athletes in a number of different events for points, and that we have a number of places where we could potentially chip away with an extra point here or there," said Iverson, whose downstate roster includes 2016 finalists Halle Bieber in the 300 hurdles and triple jumper Elise Chao plus the Huskies' noted distance talent.
"At a meet like the state meet," he said, "the potential to grab an extra point here or there is very important, and our team does have that potential if we work together as a team all weekend long."
Top seeds:
In Class 2A, where Cahokia and Dunlap look good to go, Wheaton Academy junior Karyn Best is the No. 1 seed in the 300 hurdles at 43.98 seconds, overall the second-fastest sectional time in the state. Bieber is No. 2 in Class 3A at 44.27 seconds.
Glenbard West freshman phenom Katelynne Hart is the Class 3A top seed in both the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs. DuPage boasts the top three girls in the 1,600 with Hart followed by Naperville North senior Claire Hamilton and Hinsdale Central junior Reilly Revord.
Also joining Benet's Munson as a No. 1 seed in Class 3A, Downers Grove North junior Emma Moravec ran the fastest 800 meters at 2 minutes, 13.64 seconds.
Metea Valley senior Courtney Morgan enters the state meet as No. 2 seed in both shot put and discus. The defending and two-time shot put champion, Morgan hasn't placed lower than fourth in either throw in her three prior seasons.
A reason why Naperville North's Iverson likes Homewood-Flossmoor: Senior Jamie Robinson is seeded first in long jump and triple jump by more than a foot and is also the No. 1 seed in both the 100 and 200 dashes.