Boys track and field: Scouting Lake County

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY CONFERENCEANTIOCH SEQUOITSCoach: Chris Bailey (8th season)

Last season: 3-3; 6th in Class 2A Vernon Hills sectional

Returning athletes: Landon Keefover, sr. (110 HH, 300 IH, relays, sprints), Pat Schoenfelder, sr. (hurdles, relays, sprints), Marc Gillespie, sr. (hurdles, relays), Sebastian Scofield, soph. (middle distance), Xavier Sanchez, soph. (shotput, discus), Nico Fier, soph. (pole vault, sprints), Kevin Vettese, sr. (1600, 3200), Quinn Landl, sr. (high jump), Brandon Etayem, sr. (jumps)

Newcomers: Trevon Arnold, sr. (jumps, sprints), TreShawn Watson, fr. (sprints, jumps), Charlie Smith, fr. (1600, 3200), Javen London, jr. (sprints, relays, jumps)

Outlook: The scenery will be changing a little bit for the Sequoits this season. Not only is Antioch a part of the new Northern Lake County Conference, but instead of being in Class 2A, Antioch has been bumped up to Class 3A. Last year, the Sequoits placed sixth in the 2A sectional at Vernon Hills. Senior hurdler Landon Keefover had a lot to do with Antioch's success last year. He placed seventh in state in the 110 high hurdles. Pat Schoenfelder and Marc Gillespie also return after qualifying for state as part of Antioch's 4X400 relay team. Sophomore Nico Fier returns after a promising freshman season on the pole vault. He's already cleared 12-feet. Another sophomore, Xavier Sancez, is putting up big numbers on the throws. He's thrown more than 46-feet in the shot put. Charlie Smith and Sebastian Scofield will be among the top distances and middle distance runners respectively.

LAKES EAGLESCoach: Jason Ellerman (1st season)

Last season: sectional champion, 5th place at state

Returning athletes: Cameron Ruiz, sr. (sprints, jumps), Diego Torrez, sr. (throws), Shemar Gladden, sr. (sprints, jumps), Leon Small, sr. (sprints), DeAngelo Hardy, soph. (sprints, jumps), Jeremy Wallace, sr. (distance), Parker Canning, jr. (sprints), Ethan Greenfield, jr. (sprints, hurdles), Kael Moran, jr. (distance), Nick Garcia (pole vault, sprints, hurdles)

Newcomers: Jeff Milostan, jr. (sprints), Talon Knauf, fr. (middle distance), Leighsean Triplett, fr. (sprints, jumps), Brad Cherry, soph. (jumps), Ethan Schommer, soph. (distance), Jack Erwin, soph. (distance), Charlie Halberg, soph. (distance), Carlo Picchietti, soph. (distance)

Outlook: What can senior Cameron Ruiz do for an encore? Ruiz won two events at the state meet last year and is looking for more. The jumps were good to Ruiz, who will be playing football at Northwestern next year. He won the long jump (24-feet) and the triple jump (50-feet-6) at state. Ruiz also took sixth place in the 400 meter sprint with a 48.89. First-year head coach Jason Ellerman inherits not only Ruiz but a Lakes team that finished fifth overall at state last year. Along the way, the Eagles won the Lake County meet as well as the sectional. "We are hoping to be competitive in every meet we go to," Ellerman said. "Our goals are to win conference and to qualify as many athletes as we can for the state meet."

GRANT BULLDOGSCoach: Tom Evans (6th season)

Last season: 6-0 NSC Prairie, North Suburban Conference champions, 2nd place Class 3A DeKalb sectional, 8th place state

Returning athletes: Omid Navidzadeh, sr. (sprints, relays), John Schmidt, sr. (distance, relays), Josh Polark, sr. (hurdles, sprint relays), Emmaunuel Echeverria, sr. (throws), Richie Kolle, sr. (sprints, relays), Kyle Kowalski, sr. (sprints, relays), Nick Kouvelis, sr. (jumps), Juwain Poellinetz, sr. (jumps), Chris Wojslaw, sr. (pole vault, jumps), Carlos Zavala, sr. (sprints, relays), T.J. Fugelseth (sprints, relays), Henry Halverson, jr. (jumps), Alvin Nash, jr. (throws), Nick DiCosola, jr. (pole vault), Dylan Flucke, jr. (throws), Joey Nunes, jr. (sprints, relays), Simon Rozalski, jr. (sprints, relays), Bobby Cayet, soph. (hurdles, sprint relays), Michael Smith, soph. (jumps, sprints, relays)

Newcomers: Jacob Lotz, jr. (jumps, hurdles), Justin Splitt, fr. (distance, relays), Jason Thormo, soph. (sprints, relays)

Outlook: It should be another exciting track season at Grant, which won the competitive North Suburban Conference last year out of the Prairie Division with a 6-0 record. The Bulldogs had nine state qualifiers, including Octavian Wells, who won the state championship in the 400 meters. Wells has graduated but Grant returns plenty of athletes from that successful team, including fellow state qualifiers Omid Navidzadeh (4X400) and John Schmidt (4x400). "After graduating eight seniors, and five of them earning a total of eight state medals in 2016, we will be relying heavily on the leadership of this year's junior and senior classes," Grant coach Tom Evans said. "We will also be relying on the work ethic each athlete brings with them every day in order to meet our yearly expectations of competing at a high level in our conference and at the state meet."

ROUND LAKE PANTHERSCoach: Kevin Brady (13th season)

Returning athletes: Alex Valladares, sr. (sprints), Tabieas Young, sr. (jumps), Jameson Hamlin, sr. (sprints, jumps), Moises Acosta, sr. (distance), Jonathan Sanchez, sr. (throws), Francisco Villanueva, sr. (hurdles), Brett Kneeland, jr. (throws), Jesse Enriquez, jr. (throws), Eduardo Vega, jr. (throws), Devon Horton, jr. (sprints), Demetrio Lopez, jr. (sprints), Andres Ponce, jr. (sprints), Daniel Lopez, jr. (distance), Sam Ruiz, jr. (distance), Marco Hernandez, jr. (distance)

Newcomers: Justin Langwinski, jr. (sprints), Jonathan Cermeno, fr. (sprints, jumps), Anthony Iniguez, soph. (sprints), Kevon Elzey, soph. (jumps), Marco Barcenas, soph. (distance)

Outlook: Round Lake will be young and might have some growing pains this season. "We have had some bad luck with some of our key contributors from last year getting injured," Round Lake coach Kevin Brady said. "We will need to find new members to step up and take key roles if we want to be successful this season. We are looking to build on the success of our freshman and sophomore group from last year." Seniors veterans Alex Valladares, Tabieas Young, Jameson Hamlin, Moises Acosta and Jonathan Sanchez will provide the young Panthers with some much-needed leadership.

WAUCONDA BULLDOGSCoach: Megan Zemanek (15th season)

Last season: 4-6

Returning athletes: Adam Fox, jr. (distance), Antonio Acosta, sr. (sprints), Orlando Hernandez, sr. (sprints).

Outlook: Wauconda coach Megan Zemanek has seen a lot in her 15 years of coaching, but she's not exactly sure what to make of the young Bulldogs so far this season. That's because "65 percent" of her roster is filled with underclassmen who have limited experience. "Our season will include many new talents not yet seen in competition," Zemanek said. "The returning leadership is very dedicated, healthy and looking forward to our many contests after Spring Break." Wauconda showed some promise at the first-ever Northern Lake County Conference indoor meet recently. Junior Adam Fox got a fourth in the 3200 meters while Antonio Acosta got a fourth in the 55 meters and a fifth in the 200 meters. Orlando Hernandez got a sixth in the 200 meters. The goal this year for the veterans as well as the many new members of the team is to get a qualifier downstate. That eluded the Bulldogs last year. Tyler Theel almost got downstate in 2016 but just missed. He is now competing in college for Wisconsin-Whitewater.

GRAYSLAKE CENTRAL RAMSCoach: Brent Pitt (14th season)

Last season: Placed second in Fox Valley Conference; division champions

Returning athletes: Jack Aho, sr. (distance), Matt Aho, sr. (distance), Eli Miniski, jr. (middle distance), Luke Reblin, jr. (middle distance), Larry Reed, jr. (sprints), Max Martinez, soph. (sprints), Brian Fedrico, jr. (pole vault), Parker Troy, jr. (pole vault), Mikey Andrews, sr. (throws), Johnny Chum, sr. (throws), Max Campbell, jr. (throws)

Newcomers: Ernesto Vargas, jr. (sprints), transfer from Round Lake

Outlook: Grayslake Central has been on a roll lately. The Rams have won three straight division/conference championships and are looking to keep the run going in their new conference, the Northern Lake County Conference. Leading the way will be two brothers who are no strangers to the bright lights. Jack Aho is a two-time defending state champion in cross country and twin Matt Aho was runner-up to Jack last fall. Jack will be running at Michigan next year, Matt will be running at Bradley. "They are both just fantastic, they both work so hard and are dedicated to always improving," Grayslake Central coach Brent Pitt said of the Aho brothers. "They have re-written the record books at Grayslake Central." Jack Aho holds both the mile and two-mile records at the school. He placed second in the state last year in the two-mile run. The Aho brothers will be counted on not only for their distance running but also for their leadership. They are two of just seven seniors on a team that includes 95 athletes. Another veteran back is senior Mikey Andrews, who qualified for state last year in discus. He had ACL surgery on his knee after football season in the fall but should be healthy and able to provide leadership in the field events. "We have a lot of sophomores, a lot of new kids," Pitt said. "Our goal is to compete and to develop and to get as many kids downstate as possible. The future is bright. We have a good tradition at Grayslake Central and even though we don't have a lot of seniors, their leadership is great and I think they are looking forward to passing on all of our traditions to the younger guys."

GRAYSLAKE NORTH KNIGHTSCoach: Matt Zaluckyj (2nd season)

Last season: 6th place Fox Valley Conference

Returning athletes: Griffin Gawenda, sr. (hurdles, jumps, sprints), Michael Cabahug, sr. (sprints), Liam O'Connell, sr. (distance), Alex Moran, sr. (high jump), Ryan Bernstein, sr. (throws), Jarod Hawksworth, jr. (sprints), Connor Brennan, jr. (distance), Connor Riss, soph. (distance), Logan Williams, soph. (sprints), Will Bauman jr. (pole vault), Brendon Connoy, sr. (high jump), Cam Detweiler, sr. (distance)

Newcomers: Grant Nickolson, sr. (sprints), Brian Donaire, fr. (sprints), Jacky Guo, fr. (sprints), Zach Chamberlain, fr. (jumps)

Outlook: It could be a historic year at Grayslake North. "We have one of our deepest and most diverse teams in school history," Grayslake North coach Matt Zaluckyj said. "We have the ability to score well in any event this year. Coming off one of our best finishes last year in the Fox Valley Conference, we look to build on that in our new conference (Northern Lake County Conference). We have already seen our improvement this season as we finished seventh at the 40-plus team Lake Michigan Invite." Football standout Griffin Gawenda returns after qualifying for state in the 110 hurdles. Meanwhile, Liam O'Connell, a state qualifier in cross country, will be tough in the distance events. Zaluckyj says his team's biggest improvement from last year can be seen in the field events. "Ryan Bernstein can finish top 3 in both throw events and has improved by over five feet already this year in shot put," Zaluckyj said. "Alex Moran and Brendon Connoy should both be over six feet in high jump and Griffin Gawenda has the ability to score in both the long and triple jump. He has already jumped over 22 feet this season."

NORTH SUBURBAN CONFERENCESTEVENSON PATRIOTSCoach: Andy Farrissey (21st season)

Last season: 10-2

Returning athletes: Noah Lukz, sr. (sprints), Jonathon Powell, sr. (jumps), David Goncharov, sr. (jumps), Paul Udoni, sr. (distance), Caleb Oh, sr. (distance), Jordan Eng, sr. (hurdles), Boler Wu, jr. (sprints), David Engstrom, jr. (jumps), Brett Lucas, jr. (distance), Nikita Smymov, jr. (distance), Ahmad Dinkins, jr. (sprints), Anad Batbaatar, soph. (throws), sam Herenton, soph. (sprints)

Outlook: Stevenson will be looking to fill the shoes of Jared Borowsky, who is running at the University of Colorado now. Borowsky was a state champion in the 3200 meter run last year. He helped the Patriots to 10 wins last year. A total of 14 athletes return from that team, including state qualifier David Goncharov (triple jump). "If we stay healthy, we think we have a chance to be competitive," Stevenson coach Andy Farrissey said.

LAKE ZURICH BEARSCoach: Randal Dunbar

Returning athletes: Brian Griffith, sr. (distance), Kyle Griffith, sr. (distance), Matt Pereira, sr. (distance), Jack Stevens, sr. (pole vault),Matt Szczesny, sr. (pole vault), Shawn Bandel, sr. (sprints, relays), Alex Nelson, sr. (sprints, hurdles)

Newcomers: Pat Burns, jr. (distance), Jack Sanborn, jr. (throws)

Outlook: Lake Zurich is hoping a successful cross country season in the fall, which resulted in a third-place team finish at state, has set the stage for a big spring on the track. Brian Griffith, Kyle Griffith and Matt Pereira were each named to the all-state cross country team. "We are looking for them to have tremendous success on the track this year," Lake Zurich coach Randal Dunbar said. "We are looking forward to seeing what they all can do at Eastern Illinois (site of the state track meet) this year." The two Griffiths and Pereira were also at state last year, with Pereira having qualified for three years in a row. Meanwhile, Jake Stevens returns after going to state last year for pole vault. "He's already cleared 14-feet," Dunbar said. "He has a lot of potential and a lot of room to grow." The Bears also sent another pole vaulter to state last year, Matt Szczesny. Dunbar says that Szczesny has a lot of room to grow. Stevens and Shawn Bandel will lead Lake Zurich's sprints and will try to help get the 4X200 relay team back downstate. Junior Jack Sanborn, who recently committed to play football at Wisconsin as a linebacker, will be one of Lake Zurich's top athletes in the throws. "There are many guys stepping up for the team and we are excited about the potential we have," Dunbar said.

LIBERTYVILLE WILDCATSCoach: Stuart Mendelsohn (1st season)

Returning athletes: Stephen Richardson, sr. (distance), Joe Gasick, sr. (distance), Jacob Kamin, sr. (sprints), Jack Ruskell, sr. (discus), Ian Down, sr. (jumps), Brendan Gallagher, jr. (sprints), Alex Tam, jr. (distance)

Newcomers: Max Sauers, soph. (distance), Will Gordon, fr. (distance), Will Conley, soph. (sprints), Jorge Neira, soph.. (sprints), Justin Carlson, fr. (high jump), Noah Highsmith, soph. (pole vault), Ethan Burkhart, fr. (wheelchair events)

Outlook: New coach Stuart Mendelsohn looks to jumpstart a program that did not qualify a single athlete for state last season. Seven veterans return hungry and ready to raise the bar. "We want to improve on last year and qualify as many for state. The team's goal is overall development. We want to improve upon the day before and become a better student-athlete every day."

MUNDELEIN MUSTANGSCoach: Ethan Karolczak (2nd season)

Last season: 3-2, 9th place at NSC meet

Returning athletes: Bobby Nuzzo, jr. (sprints), Sal Roman, sr. (hurdles), Ben Krauss, sr. (distance), Dario Carrillo, soph. (distance), Mikey Parduhn, soph. (distance), Rob St. Clair, soph. (distance), Alan Salgado, soph. (sprints), Aidan Afonso, soph. (distance), Caleb Carlson, jr. (distance), Shane Kosmach, sr. (hurdles, jumps), Mitch Sharer, sr. (throws), Tristan Empalmado, sr. (jumps)

Newcomers: Danny Castendeda, fr. (throws), Dillon Blake, fr. (distance), Trevor Werner, fr. (distance), Isaiah Wellman, jr. (sprints)

Outlook: In the last two years, the track program at Mundelein has seen a spike in popularity. The numbers are good again this year, but a vast majority of the athletes on this year's team are young and inexperienced. "We have nearly 70 young men on our squad now," Mundelein coach Ethan Karolczak said. "However, more than 50 of those are either freshmen or sophomores so there will be growing pains, but the future is very bright." Karolczak says the distance runners might be the strength of the team this season, led by senior Ben Krauss. In the fall, the Mustangs won a Lake County and regional championship in cross country. Krauss, Alan Salgado, Mikey Parduhn and Dario Carrillo have run one of the best 4X800 relay times in the state. Meanwhile, sophomore Rob St. Clair qualified for the prestigious Illinois Prep Top Times meet in the 3200 meter run. In the sprints, Bobby Nuzzo is healthy and has looked strong during the indoor season. "Bobby has run some of the fastest times in the state during indoor, qualifying for the Illinois Prep Top Times meet in the 60 meter dash and the 200 meter dash," Karolczak said. "He looks to improve this spring as he hopes to make his first trip to the state meet." Sal Roman also qualified for IPTT in the 300 meter hurdles. And Mitch Sharer is back after earning all-conference honors last year and nearly qualifying for state in discus.

WARREN BLUE DEVILSCoach: Bill Dawson (23rd season)

Returning athletes: Dante Johnson, sr. (sprints), Brandon Ellis, jr. (jumps, hurdles), Melvin Pettis, sr. (jumps, sprints), Stacey Jones, sr. (sprints), Andrew Miller, sr. (distance), Nathan Oommen, sr. (distance), Julian Ruiz, sr. (distance), Nabil Asmar, sr. (pole vault), Raees Ahmad, sr. (distance), Jason Carrington, sr. (distance)

Newcomers: Nehemiah Clemmons, jr. (hurdles), Jeremiah Grover, sr. (jumps), Cody Canegan, sr. (sprints), Jaylan Rice, jr. (sprints), Eric Salgado, jr. (distance), Cameron Sturtevant, soph. (pole vault)

Outlook: Numbers are up at Warren. Way up. "We have a lot of new kids out for the team, up more than 40 from last year," Warren coach Bill Dawson said. "How the new athletes develop will help to determine how competitive we are. We are really pleased with our young athletes. I'm not sure they are ready as freshmen and sophomores to contribute on the varsity level, but there are several who may, which would help immensely." For some leadership and veteran stability, Dawson will lean on Dante Johnson, Brandon Ellis, Melvin Pettis and Stacey Jones, all of whom qualified for state last year.

CENTRAL SUBURBAN LEAGUEVERNON HILLS COUGARSCoach: Mark Whitney (5th season)

Last season: 4-2 NSC Prairie Division, sectional champions, 11th place at Class 2A state final

Returning athletes: Stephen Auw, soph. (distance), Sohan Barot, jr. (jumps), Martin Bolotin, sr. (pole vault), James D'Argo, jr. (jumps, sprints), Justin Garlow, sr. (shot put), Tyler Gonzalez, soph. (sprints), Trey Hommer, sr. (sprints), Kacper Jaskowski, sr., (pole vault), Tom Krashevsky, sr. (sprints), Nikolay Kravtsev, sr. (sprints), Max Lyle, jr. (sprints), Nick Mohrdieck, sr. (sprints), John Moore, jr. (sprints), Daniel Nam, sr. (sprints), Avinash Nathan, jr. (sprints), Patrick Sear, soph. (pole vault), McNemon Vincent, sr. (shot put), Aidan Williamson, jr (pole vault), Shane Williamson, sr. (distance), Calvin Wu, soph. (jumps)

Newcomers: Kyle Hull, sr. (sprints), Andrew Smith, sr. (sprints)

Outlook: The bar has been set high for Vernon Hills, which returns many of its best athletes from a team that won its second straight sectional championship last year. Nine state qualifiers are back from that team, including Kacper Jaskowski, who placed seventh in the pole vault. Aidan Williamson also qualified for state last year in the pole vault. In the throws, Mac Vincent has already surpassed the state qualifying distance in the shot put and will threaten to do the same in the discus. Head coach Mark Whitney believes jumpers Calvin Wu and Sohan Barot have a great chance to qualify for state as well. Four mid-distance runners qualified for state last year: Tim Krashevsky, Nikolay Kravtsev, Nick Mohrdieck and Shane Williamson. And sprinters Trey Hommer, John Moore, Avinash Nathan and James D'Argo all have state finals experience.

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC CONFERENCECARMEL CORSAIRSCoach: Jacob Solarz and Brian Stith (1st season)

Last season: 3rd place in ESCC, 4th place in sectional

Returning athletes: Jacob Unze, jr. (sprints), Zach Friese, jr. (throws), David Daniels, sr. (jumps), Alex Slack, jr. (distance) Ben Packer, soph. (sprints), Michael Salman, jr. (distance), Teddy Willemsen, jr. (distance), Brandon Gaytan, jr. (distance), Sam Wahlers, soph. (pole vault)

Newcomers: Jailon Welch, fr. (sprints), Tim Milner, fr. (high jump)

Outlook: Brand new co-coaches Jacob Solarz and Brian Stith inherit a Carmel team that put together a solid season last year. The Corsairs finished in third in the East Suburban Catholic Conference and fourth in the 2A sectional. Nine veterans return from that team. "We are very optimistic about our ability to compete at a high level across the board," Brian Stith said. "We feel that we have a great balance. With only a few seniors on the team, we will rely on their leadership and the leadership of some strong juniors to help our team realize success. Several of our athletes have invested a significant amount of time and effort into developing their talent during the offseason and now is the time to reap the benefits of their hard work."