Downers Grove North is the host for the boys track & field sectional. Area schools, Naperville Central, Naperville North, Waubonsie Valley, Neuqua Valley, and Benet Academy, represent, while Metea travels to the Lake Park sectional the following day. Everyone competing is hoping to earn a state spot at Eastern Illinois next weekend. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Starting in the sand pit for field events, it’s Neuqua Valley’s Daniel Robinson, the DVC champion. The Wildcat jumps a personal best at 24′ 9.75″, finishing in first place, where the senior will head back to state. The incredible jump is the top distance in Illinois this year and sets a new Neuqua Valley record. Robinson is also heading to state in the 100-meter dash after finishing third, along with Colin Ford and Christopher Williams from Waubonsie Valley.
The area puts on a show for field events
The Wildcats continue to dominate in the field with senior Rogan Nelson in the pole vault. Nelson clears the bar at 14′ 8.75″, finishing the sectional in first place to secure his spot at state. Waubonsie Valley senior Matthew Crane also qualifies at 13 feet, nine inches. Patrick Durkin from Downers Grove South, Carter Wahmen from Oswego, and Holden Montgomery from Oswego East also qualify.
Going to the high jump, senior Ishmaiah Elliott of Waubonsie Valley jumps and clears a personal best of 6’4, finishing in 2nd place to qualify for state. Daniel Jaquez of Lemont finishes in first place with the same height, but he clears the bar in fewer attempts. Fellow Warrior Cole Woolard just misses the cut with a height of 6’2.
Moving on to the throws, Jalen Vanoy of Neuqua Valley throws his discus 163′ 4″, placing third in the sectional and moving on to state. Teammate Nikolas Nolan is also moving on with a throw of 157′ 0″.
Ben Blank sweeps the throws for Naperville Central
Naperville Central’s Ben Blank won the DVC outdoor in the discus and shotput and shines once again in the sectional. This throw puts the Redhawk in first place at 168′ 4″.
With the sun setting in the shot put pit, Ben Blank finishes the day in first place in both throwing events. A heave of 56′ 10.75″ gives him the top spot ahead of Connor Griffin from Oswego East.
Neuqua’s Will Michalcyzk is in the circle for shot put, and his throw gives the Wildcat a third-place spot in the sectional and a ticket to state.
Naperville North’s Connor Schultze also holds his own in the top four, throwing a distance of 51′ 11.25″. The Huskie also finishes fourth in the discus and will head to state in both events.
Plenty of state qualifiers in the relays
Let’s go racing on the track in the 4X800 relay. Philip Cupial of Downers Grove North leads the pack in this event. The Trojans run strong as Cupial, William Surratt, Tyler Lynch-Goff, and Kiran Krishan finished the event with a school best at 7:52.33, just ahead of Hinsdale Central at the line. Derek Williamson, Vaughn Scherer, Toby Silder, and Lukas Probst help Naperville Central qualify for state in fifth place.
The relays continue with the 4X100 relay, the Naperville area is well represented in this relay with North’s Jayke Collins, Mason Hill, Jude Knechtel, and Andrew Hebron finishing the event in first with a time of 41.88. Waubonsie Valley is also heading to state in second place thanks to Christopher Williams, Jackson Klaft, Gavin Ali Hanlon, and Colin Ford.
In the 4X200 relay, West Aurora is the sectional champion, followed by Naperville Central, led by Connor Marvin, James Vent, Vince Barcelona, and Eron Kennedy. Waubonsie Valley’s group of Christopher Williams, Jackson Klaft, Colin Ford, and Gavin Ali Hanlon finishes in third and will head to state as well, along with Oswego East and Downers Grove South.
Going to the 3200, Trojan Isaak Stein leads the pack midway through the race. Neuqua Valley’s Jesse Guduaskas is behind the Trojan, while Robert Johnson of Benet Academy is not far behind. Hinsdale Central’s Michael Gamboa pulls ahead and finishes in first place, while Stephen Cox from Downers North comes in 2nd. Wildcat Jesse Gudauskas and Redwing Robert Johnson finish in the top seven and are heading to state. Reyaansh Bhagat from Neuqua and Naperville Central runners Manny Najera and Jack Anderson finish in the top 12 but just miss the cut.
The next event is the 800-meter run. Lukas Probst of Naperville Central is in the first pack, while Naperville North’s Shreyas Meyer is in the second pack. Taking the lead is Neuqua Valley’s Grayson Meek, while the others fall in behind. The end of the race sees Grayson finishing in first place with a personal best of 1:53.31, while Probst finishes in 2nd with a time of 1:54.34. Nathan Gehrmann from West Aurora and Bo Breed from Oswego also qualify in third and fourth.
Eight runners qualify in the 400 meters
Every single runner competing in the final heat of the 400-meter dash qualified for state. That includes Michael Monohan from Oswego East, Jordan Rich from Waubonsie Valley, Braden Tingler from Hinsdale Central, Kyle Clark from Naperville Central, Edmond Akomah from Bolingbrook, Edward Mason from Neuqua Valley in third, runner-up Dontrell Young from Oswego, and champion Nathan Murray from Lemont, who wins with a time of 47.29.
The hurdles are out for the 300-meter hurdles. Naperville North’s Mason Hill and Naperville Central’s Drake Wang are running in this event. Hill crosses the line in second, just behind Oswego’s Jezhian Sprinkle, who finishes in first place. Sprinkle also won the 110 hurdles earlier in the night. Will Niziolek from Benet Academy just missed the cut in the 110 hurdles with a fifth-place finish.
Lining up at the start is the 1600-meter run. Naperville Central’s Derek Williamson and Jackson Truty of Naperville North are running this event with Anthony Garcia and Mason Van Denend of Oswego East leading the early pack. The lead has changed halfway with Downers North Philip Cupial and William Surratt. Williamson and Truty are keeping pace in the pack. The final stretch sees the two Trojans, Cupial and Surratt, finishing the event in the top 2, qualifying for state. Johnny Krueger from Hinsdale Central is heading to state in third. Redhawk Derek Williamson finishes in 4th with a personal best of 4:22.65, but just a second outside of the cut time for state.
In the 200 meters, Waubonsie Valley has another state qualifier as DVC champion Jackson Klaft finishes in fourth place to punch his ticket. Dontrelle Young from Oswego wins the 200, with Dominic Tresslar from Hinsdale Central, Nathan Murray from Lemont, and Tayshaun Elliot from Downers South also qualifying.
Hinsdale Central secures the boys track and field sectional title
The final event of the night is the 4X400 relay. Naperville Central, Naperville North, Neuqua Valley, and Waubonsie Valley are hoping to end the meet strong. Downers North has the early lead, but it’s Naperville Central’s pack of Chad Earl, Kyle Clark, Vince Barcelona, and Lukas Probst who outpace the competition in a close event with Hinsdale Central in 2nd and Naperville North in third. It’s an extremely fast race as Bolingbrook, Neuqua Valley, Downers North, and Waubonsie all qualify for state in the relay.
Andrew Hebron, Jude Knechtel, Charlie Minott, and Jayke Collins are the Huskie runners who are heading to Eastern. Noah Strange, Grayson Meek, William Kalish, and Edward Mason qualified for Neuqua in the 4X400, while Bryan Mann, Mika Lam, Aasim Mohammed, and Jordan Rich snagged the final state spot for Waubonsie.
Naperville Central finishes third as a team, one point behind Downers North, with Neuqua a point behind in fourth, while Hinsdale Central wins the sectional title.
Metea Valley state qualifiers
Competing at the Lake Park sectional on Friday, May 22, Metea Valley earned seven state qualifiers across the meet.
David Igbalajobi qualified in both the 110-meter and 300-meter hurdles, finishing second in the 110 and first in the 300 meters.
Senior Zoelen Terry qualified in the long jump, finishing tied for second with a leap of 22′ 3″.
George Murphy qualified in the high jump with a height of 6’4.
Dylan Bennett-Garza qualified in the 800 meters with a time of 1:57.04.
Henry Faber won the 400 meters, completing a sweep after winning the DVC indoor and outdoor 400-meter championships.
The 4X400 relay team of Jamari Hawkins, Kofi Kwakyi, Aniketh Sanampudi, and Henry Faber qualified with a second-place finish.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.