Boys track and field: Fox area notebook

St. Charles North has so much good stuff going on, says coach Kevin Harrington, he doesn't know where to start.

Senior pole vaulter Josh Kolodziej could be a good one, having just cleared 15 feet.

But he's got plenty of company.

"We are having a great year at St. Charles North," Harrington said.

Paolo Gennarelli, a junior thrower, has surpassed state qualifying in both shot and discus.

Junior sprinter Joshua Duncan has done the same in the 100 and 200.

Duncan, along with seniors Cameron Conforti and Ethan Bridges, and junior Lucas Makishima, broke the school's 400 relay record last weekend - and are going under state qualifying as well.

Harrington said what is driving their team success in winning meets are horizontal jumpers Max Galvan and Tyler Bruns along with hurdlers Riley Tucker and Erik Andersen. They are all seniors and all "constantly provide a wall of points," according to Harrington.

Batavia update:

The Bulldogs have been getting better and better as the year goes on. The latest came last weekend at Minooka with the 800 (Scot Parker, Jacob Hohmann, Anthony Bradley and Reese Wheatley) and 1,600 relays (Hohmann, Tyler Piron, Bradley and Jonah Fallon) recording the best times in the state. The relays flew around the track in 1:29.41 and 3:21.82, respectively.

The 400 team of Parker, Hohmann, Bradley and Wheatley is 8th in Illinois.

Batavia took third as a team at Minooka.

"When everything started we had some idea we would improve and be competitive, but what happened last weekend, and has been happening to different parts of our team the past few weeks, has been so inspiring and fun," coach Dennis Piron said. "This last week it was just an awesome environment."

Other standouts include Jalen Buckley in the jumps, Casey Carlson and Aaron Moore in the high jump, and Fallon in the 400. Carlson has the third best high jump and Moore ninth; Fallon 11th in the 400, same as Buckley in the long jump.

Also, Ryan Mansour (1,600 and 3,200), Quinton Lowe (1,600), Spencer Prats (throws) and Nicholas Fortino (pole vault) have been making an impact, including Fortino top 15 in the pole vault.

Elgin update:

Sprinter Noah Mack is one of the Maroons to watch with top 15 times in the 100 (10.8) and 200 (22.7).

Alex West (55.45) also is running well in the 400 as is Yahya Arastu in the 1,600 and 3,200. Coach Anthony Mason said Tony Rios is one of the top five shot putters in the Upstate Eight.

Those four helped Elgin set a school record of 105 points at the Glenbard East quad against Bartlett, Glenbard East and Streamwood.

"We are having a really good year winning five of our six meets," Mason said.

South Elgin update:

The Storm are ranked second in their sectional complex led by Konrad Sacha with a time of 50.0 in the 400. The 800 relay - Ean Martin, James Head, Don Smith and Jaime Martinez - has run a 1:33. Jalen Jones is second in the sectional with a 6-1 high jump.

South Elgin has set several school records this spring and have won or placed second at several invites.

"Our guys really came together in this outdoor season," coach Anthony LaRue said. "PRs are happening at every meet across the board. They are focused on their events and are adapting well to the short season and logistics in a pandemic."

Burlington Central update:

The Rockets are ranked fifth in Class 2A by Mile Split after winning the Crystal Lake Central invite last week. Coach Mike Schmidt's team has some big goals including next week's FVC meet, trying to win the Glenbard South sectional and finishing top 10 at state.

"Huntley is the favorite but we hope to give them some good competition this year," Schmidt said of the FVC meet.

Jake Borman is ranked No. 1 in the state in the shot and second in the discus. He will throw in college at Illinois State.

Zac Schmidt is ranked third in the 400 and seventh in the 800. Yusuf Baig, while not ranked in the 1,600 or 3,200, is having a great year, according to Mike Schmidt, having not lost in either event.

Both the 1,600 and 3,200 relays are ranked sixth in state. Jacoby Haynes, Leighton Dietz, Nolan Milas and Zac Schmidt run on the 1,600. Schmidt and Dietz also are on the 3,200 joined by Joey Kowall and Tyler Didomenico.

Dundee-Crown update:

Senior triple jumper Drew Smith just jumped a FVC conference best of 42-0 to win the Crystal Lake Central Invite.

At the same invite, senior Sebastian Waz vaulted a school record of 15-0 to also take first place. That vault is currently tied for fifth in 3A.

The Chargers finished second as a team at Crystal Lake Central, and coach Matthew D'Angelo also was impressed with a fourth-place finish against a strong field that included Homewood-Flossmoor, Lake Park and Lockport at the Bob Nihells Invitational.

"We are a young team that has continually progressed throughout the year," D'Angelo said.

Huntley update:

The Red Raiders are young this year with only four seniors competing in most big invites.

Junior Evan Gronewold has been one of the team's standouts. His primary event is the 400 and he has consistently been in the top 10 in the state all year.

Gronewold's best time is currently 50.06 but coach Chris Maxedon said he has been under 51.0 four of the five times he has run it in meets this year. He also runs 100, and the 400 and 1,600 relays.

He has grown into a great leader for our team as well," Maxedon said.

Kaneland update:

Coach Andy Drendel is impressed with the leadership 16 seniors have brought to every practice and every meet. The Knights are the second smallest school in Class 3A.

"(They) have done an outstanding job of showing and leading our younger athletes how we do things at Kaneland and how we compete," Drendel said. "We do have to carry ourselves with a chip on our shoulder and not back down from any competition. Our team has taken that to heart and it's going to make for a fun last four weeks of the season."

Those seniors include Ted Allen, Aidan Gatz and Porter Conroy - all who will continue track in college. Allen, who will be competing at Northern Iowa, has pole vaulted 15-2 - third in 3A. Gatz (St. Mary's) is right behind at 15, and Conroy (Eastern Illinois) has high jumped 6-5, currently ranked No. 5 in Class 3A.

"These three have stepped into every meet looking to win their events," Drendel said. "They love competition and really get the rest of the team going early on in the meet."