Newburn powers Batavia to DuKane Conference indoor championship

Essie Newburn looked to the Batavia past at the DuKane Conference girls indoor track and field finals on Friday night.

"I look up to Tori (Ortiz)," Newburn said of the former multiple-event conference champion now performing at Oklahoma State. "I see her name plastered all over the wall (of the Batavia field house records)."

Newburn, a senior who once specialized in the pole vault, swept the three shortest individual sprints - the 55-, 200- and 400-meter dashes - to propel the Bulldogs to a one-sided 145-107.5 victory over second-place Wheaton Warrenville South for the first indoor league title in three years.

"The physical part is one thing; you either have it or you don't," Newburn said of her triumphs in respective times of 7.52, 26.51 and 61.31 seconds. "But you have to mentally train for the races."

Megan Schulhof, a senior pole vaulter, claimed the Bulldogs' only other title with a championship effort of 11 feet, 3 inches as Batavia used its depth and balance to double-score in multiple events.

WW South had its three returning sprint-relay all-state athletes carry the day.

Nora Fieweger, Celia Huelskoetter and Grace Macabobby were sixth in the 800 relay last spring. The trio not only dominated its specialty event, but the first two members of the Tigers' fourth-place 1,600 quartet from last spring also stormed to victory in 4:09.71.

"We definitely have an advantage in having an indoor season this year," said Fieweger, the metric-mile-relay anchor leg. "I am really happy where we are at."

The Tigers also claimed the 3,200 relay as Annie Macabobby, who later won the open 800 in 2:21.42, played an indispensable role.

Lake Park and Glenbard North, who finished behind St. Charles East in fourth and fifth, respectively, also had two-event individual victors.

Martina Latoria was denied by St. Charles East senior Katie Kempff in the 55 hurdles for a third title after the Lake Park senior claimed both the long and triple jumps.

Kempff had three top-three finishes for the Saints, in the three jumps.

"It does hurt a little bit," Latoria said of losing a third title, 8.92-9.09, to the MIT-bound Kempff. "I got a little too excited at the end."

In the two-longest races, Glenbard North junior Grace Schager pulled away from returning all-state Batavia miler Katrina Schlenker to begin her evening with a victory at 3,200 meters in 11:18.49.

Fifth in the state last year at the distance, Schager used a similar formula to thwart Schlenker at 1,600 meters in 5:03.84.

"They have referred to me being tall in the newspaper," said Schager, who had noticeably longer strides than the Liberty-bound Schlenker. "I have really thought about it. I try to (tactically) play off what other people do."