College Achievers: Aurora Central grad maintains fast times at Wisconsin
On Jan. 28, the Big Ten Conference highlighted Aurora Central Catholic graduate Patrick Hilby as one of its men’s indoor track and field athletes of the week.
A sophomore at the University of Wisconsin, Hilby ran the 800 meters, his specialty, in a winning 1 minute, 47.36 seconds at the Penn Elite in Philadelphia.
His indoor personal best, it was the fastest time in the Big Ten to that point in the season and the second-fastest 800-meter time in the nation, according to the Track & Field Results Recording System.
Hilby’s time also was the second-best indoor 800-meter time in Badgers history, behind Abdullahi Hassan’s 1:46.61 in 2024.
Hilby, 19, finished the Penn Elite by running the second leg of Wisconsin’s 1600-meter relay. It finished in 3:10.83 — well down on the list nationally (45th) but still the fifth fastest by a Big Ten school.
Hilby noted that the season is just heating up.
“This weekend there’s a lot of good races, so the rankings will definitely shake up after this weekend, for sure,” he said.
Hilby started his season with a personal-best mile time of 4:01.53 in Boston, then ran on a couple relays at Indiana University “to get work in,” he said.
In the best aerobic shape he’s ever been, he said, Hilby ran his first open 800 of the season at the Penn Elite.
“I was pretty happy with it,” he said. “Obviously I’m going to have to go a little faster if I want to make the top-16 for indoor nationals.”
He brings NCAA finals experience both indoors and out from his freshman year at Wisconsin.
Hilby helped the Badgers’ distance medley relay take eighth place at the 2025 Indoor Championships. He placed 19th in the 800 at the Outdoor Championships to earn honorable-mention All-America honors.
Some of his best running occurs out of season.
In June he ran 1:46.83 outdoors at the Portland (Ore.) Track Festival. That ranks sixth all-time at Wisconsin.
Before going to college, his time of 1:47.55 at the 2024 New Balance Nationals Outdoor in Philadelphia stands as the fastest by an Illinois boy and at the time was the sixth-fastest in United States prep history.
Likewise, his 1:48.47 at the 2024 New Balance Indoors National in Boston ranks as the fastest indoor prep time in Illinois, No. 7 all-time on the Track & Field News list.
Times like these, plus his two state championships at Aurora Central Catholic as a senior were why the City of Aurora declared his 18th birthday, July 23, 2024, as Patrick Hilby Day. He also earned Gatorade’s 2023-24 Illinois boys track athlete of the year.
At Wisconsin, he lives in a house near Camp Randall Stadium with some teammates and has declared a major in finance.
Hilby likes the old-school coaching style of track director Mick Byrne. He maintains Illinois ties with teammates such as Joe Bregenzer (Barrington) and Micah Wilson (St. Charles East).
He also noted former teammate Bob Liking (St. Charles East), who in December placed 10th at the USATF Cross Country Championships representing Hoka Northern Arizona Elite.
“I feel like if I can hang with the top guys indoors it’ll give me a lot of confidence,” said Hilby, set to come to the Badger Windy City Invitational this weekend at Gately Stadium in Chicago.
“I really like my teammates, I’m getting good training, and hopefully I can stay healthy. It’s going to be a fun season.”
Early notice
In other Big Ten news, the conference named Penn State junior utility player Michela Barbanente (Lake Park) to its preseason list of softball players to watch.
A two-time Daily Herald DuPage All-Area Softball honorary captain, Barbanente was the Nittany Lions’ primary second baseman in 2025, making 49 starts in 51 appearances.
Academic All-Big Ten as a sophomore, Barbanente hit .300 against league foes and .284 overall. Of her 33 hits, 14 went for extra bases, including 8 home runs. She had a .401 on-base percentage in 2025 and finished fourth on Penn State with 36 RBI.