A big splash at Arnold Invitational
From the Lake Ellyn discus splashdown to the meet-capping 1,600-meter relay decided by .02 seconds, Glenbard West's 30th annual Jim Arnold Boys Track Invite was all it was cracked up to be.
"It's unbelievable," said Garret Payne of Glenbard South, a Class 2A school whose 52 points gained fourth place on Saturday behind Class 3A state title hopeful Lake Park (68 points) and traditional big dogs Lockport (65) and Evanston (57).
Payne was addressing the team talent in Glen Ellyn, but the races applied too - including a 100-meter dash final in which Payne placed second to teammate Wesley Sanders despite both Raiders clocking 11 seconds flat.
"It was the closest race I've ever been in, probably," said Payne, who also joined Sanders, Lamar Johnson and Austin Williams on a fourth-place 400-meter relay.
There was Payne again in the open 400, defeating 2009 two-time all-stater Tremaine Gordon of Evanston head to head (with Wheaton North's Anthony Rocco placing third out of a slower heat). Finally, after taking the baton in the 1,600 relay Payne nearly erased a 7-meter deficit to Gordon only to fall .02 seconds short.
It was a meet where, as Lake Park coach Jay Ivory said, "every little point counts."
That included not only his Lancers' anticipated 1-2 finishes in shot put (Jeremy Kline and Greg Block) and discus (Jermaine Kline and Jeremy Kline) and Kevin Spejcher's second-place high jump, but also the likes of fourth-place pole vaulter Nathan Schingoethe and fifth-place triple jumper Joey Pacione.
All eyes were on Jermaine Kline, who has thrown a discus 195 feet. The junior, fit at 300 pounds, drew cheers as he skipped one into Lake Ellyn. He won at 188 feet, 51/2 inches.
"It's cool, watching it splash," said Kline, whose twin brother, Jeremy, went 61-9 to win shot over Block's 56-81/2.
Wheaton North's Ivan Tamba took second in the 200 dash behind Niles West's Santiago Ochoa, another timing tie at 21.50 seconds. Falcon Jake Waterman controlled the 3,200, winning at 9 minutes, 26.12 seconds. Not as fast as he'd like, but only his first outdoor 3,200 of the spring - and maybe his last, too, as the Waterman twins jockey for position heading toward sectionals.
"Me and my brother (James) kind of alternate meets what events we do, and he started out doing the 2-mile earlier so it was my turn today," Jake said.
Along with Tyler Jermann's typically solid 1,600 - second to state No. 1 Garrett Sweatt of Edwardsville - Naperville North enjoyed a couple high relay finishes and middle distance scoring turns by Chase Power and Bob Guthrie.
Hinsdale Central - paced by distance runners Arash Darbandi and Billy Fayette - and Glenbard West continued their rejuvenation.
The host Hilltoppers got a second in long jump by C.J. Watson, who followed with a fifth-place high jump. Sophomore Mike Lederhouse trailed only Jake Waterman and Darbandi in the 3,200. Another bright spot, Glenbard West junior Josh Nibbe reached the finals of both the 100 and 200 dashes.
"We're working a lot harder, and we worked hard in the off-season," Nibbe said of rekindling the Hilltoppers flame. "Now it's just kind of paying off more than it has in the past."