Batavia back on top

It was a new twist to a longstanding rivalry.

There was neither a football nor basketball in sight, but Batavia and Geneva went toe to toe for 18 events at the Western Sun Conference girls track and field championship Friday night.

With the host Bulldogs enjoying a slender lead entering the penultimate event -- the 200 dash -- Batavia superstar Natalie Tarter polished off her unrivaled evening.

The junior cruised to her fourth individual title of the night, and Batavia, by virtue of Kathryn Warner finishing third in the event, sealed its eighth league title in the last nine years.

Batavia defeated the game Vikings 142.5-136; Glenbard South, which ended the Bulldogs' seven-year conference run last year, was a distant third with 75 points.

Kaneland was solidly in fourth with 63.5 points, followed by Sycamore (52), Rochelle (40), DeKalb (25) and Yorkville (24).

Tarter, undefeated in any event in the outdoor season, duplicated her accomplishments from the inaugural Western Sun meet last year: the sprinter and hurdler swept the two shortest dashes as well as the 100 and 330 hurdles events.

"We really came together tonight (as a team)," Tarter said. "The crowd was really loud. I ran a (personal record for the season) for every event."

Tarter eclipsed the 12- and 25-second barriers, respectively, in the 100 and 200 meters, and the expected showdown with fellow reigning state-finalist Lindsay Gierke in the 300 hurdles resulted in another Tarter triumph.

"(Gierke) is really good competition," Tarter said of her Kaneland rival.

The junior had to settle for runner-up status to Tarter in the two dashes, too, and Batavia junior Melissa Norville edged Gierke for second in the 100 hurdles.

"Not really what I was looking for, but I went out there and ran my hardest," said Gierke, a six-time state qualifier who accounted for nearly half of the Knights' team points. "My body is getting used to (the four-event sequence)."

Tarter nipped Gierke in a scintillating 100-meter final, and the tone of the meet continued afresh when Batavia sophomore Alexis Sampson and Geneva freshman Kat Yelle were pitted in an equally tense 800-meter showdown.

The two underclassmen broke from the pack early, but Sampson never surrendered her early edge with her triumph in 2 minutes, 16.43 seconds.

The Bulldogs' superlative quartet of Tarter, Norville, Warner and Sampson exceeded the century mark in points for the squad -- and the combined 13 top-three performances were needed to hold off the Vikings.

The Vikings dominated the distance races to augment their balanced attack in the field; Kelly Whitley and Tess Ehrhardt went 1-2 in the 1,600 run, and the duo of Kelly Shogren and Liza Tauscher were first and third, respectively, in the 3,200.

Three meters separated six runners at the gun lap of the 1,600 meters, but the two Geneva freshman stormed to the forefront over the closing 300 meters.

"Tess and I later broke from there (the 1,300-meter mark), and we just let our nerves take over from there," Whitley said.

Geneva had four other championship efforts on the night: Lexie Tomchek soared 5 feet, 4 inches in the high jump; Allie Pace cleared 10-6 in the pole vault, and the 800 and 3,200 relays were studies in precision.

But the Vikings could not subdue Batavia in the end.

"They wanted (the conference title) back home," said Batavia assistant coach Mike DiDomenico, filling in for Chad Hillman. "It's probably one of the best female teams we've ever had."

Glenbard South did not seriously challenge to defend its title, but the Raiders' Libby O'Brien shined for her third consecutive conference championship.

The junior retained her unblemished record at 400 meters in conference history and also anchored the 400 and 1,600 relays to victory.

"For the 400 I set two goals and hit them both," O'Brien said of her aim to break 26 seconds in the first 200 meters before finishing strong down the stretch. "I want to be in the 56s."

The two-time all-state 400 runner anchored various combinations that featured Erin O'Brien, Kim Iacobazzi, Sarah Schumacher and Sarah Englehardt for the two championship sprint relays.

"(The goal) was actually trying to get state-qualifying (times) for the 4-by-1," said Erin O'Brien, a member of each relay champion. "Next week at sectionals we want to do even better."

Jasmine Simpson was another plus for Glenbard South; the junior thrower was third in the discus, only to save her best for the shot put: an outdoor personal best 40-3 heave.

Simpson defended her conference championship in the shot put.

"Everything was fast (on the winning throw), and it came off the right way," Simpson said.

Alicia Englehardt also placed in both throwing events for Glenbard South.

"(Our team finish) was pretty much what we expected," Glenbard South coach Mark Tacchi said. "We graduated 10-12 seniors who were exceptional athletes."