Burlington Central geared up for tough sectional

Burlington Central boys track coach Mike Schmidt may not be a clairvoyant, but he certainly knows a thing or two about forecasting potential success in a meet.

Schmidt said the goal for his Rockets' team at Friday's Class 2A Sterling sectional isn't necessarily to win the sectional team title, but rather get as many athletes to next week's state meet in Charleston as possible.

"We have a lot of good shots," he said. "We're coming off a third-place trophy last year and now we're trying to set things up. There are some years where you have a shot at getting in the Top 5 and there are others where maybe you try and win the sectional. This is one of those years I think we can get in the Top 5 in state."

Central is led by Stanford signee Lucas Ege in both hurdles races. "Lucas is one of the best in the state. We expect him to do really well," said Schmidt.

Triple jumper Dionte Smith is seeded second at Sterling, while sophomore pole-vaulter Jared Trupp has gone 14-feet already (13-6 is state qualifying).

Central's 1,600 relay (Drew Kries, Kyle Neubauer, Nick Harvey and Ege) is ranked No. 2 in the state, while the 3,200 relay (Josh Peets, Neubauer, Harvey and Clay Musial) is ranked in the Top 7. Schmidt said the sprint relays could factor in, but two runners are coming off injuries. The 400 relay team consists of Ege, Trevor Davison, Jason Berango and Brad Sorensen.

Schmidt said Kaneland is the favorite to win the team title at Sterling. "Kaneland has won the last five or six sectionals and I think we've been second or third every time they've won it," he said. "They are kind of our nemesis, but it's a friendly rivalry. We certainly respect them."

Also in Class 2A, Hampshire will head up to Richmond Friday for the Richmond-Burton sectional. The Whip-Purs are led by the likes of sophomore Douglas Stuehler (long jump), senior Andy Pederson (300 hurdles), senior Manny Hartsfield (triple jump) and sophomore Jake Oury (3,200, 1,600).

Stuehler hit a school-record-tying 21-1 in the long jump at conference. "He's peaking at the right time," said Hampshire coach Joe Watzlawick.

Oury owns the school record in the 1,600 and is only a few seconds from the state-qualifying standard of 4:30. Will Matushek is right behind him. "Jake has a great kick and Will has been pushing him all year," said Watzlawick.

In Class 1A, Westminster Christian, Elgin Academy and St. Edward will compete in the Seneca sectional Friday.

Westminster is paced by Zach Anderson in the throws, Tom Danner in the 1,600 and Jason Yaccino in the 800.

Danner is coming off surgery earlier in the season and recently broke the school record in the 1,600. He also is the new record-holder in the 3,200. Anderson also broke both school records in the shot and disc.

St. Edward's 400 and 800 relays are both close to state-qualifying standards. Those teams consist of Dwayne Allen, Enrique Mancera, Albert Lopez and AlecUscila. Elgin Academy junior Armin Ward is excelling in the discus, while senior Jackson Jaworski is thriving in the 1,600 in only his second year running distance.

Harvest Christian Academy will head to Byron sectional action Friday. Sophomore Michael Sisko has been lowering his 3,200 time throughout the season for the Lions and coach Steve Bland sees him in possible contention for a state berth. Senior Jake Adams in the 800 is coming back form injury. Adams and Dorian Frederick were part of Harvest's state-qualifying 3,200 relay last year and will look for a repeat with freshman Andrew Dobrescu and junior Caleb Vislisel.