High school girls track and field: Sectional title sets up Kaneland for state success

GENOA – After placing fifth at the wind-swept Northern Illinois Big 12 conference meet May 5, Kaneland’s girls track team bounced back in a big way.

The Knights won their fifth consecutive sectional title at Genoa-Kingston High School on May 12. In doing so, the Knights qualified three relay teams and five individuals for the Class 2A state meet.

“I do not think most of our girls were aware of our sectional winning streak,” Kaneland coach Doug Ecker said. “We never go into the sectional trying to win the team title. Our focus is on trying to qualify as many girls as possible for the state meet.

“I was very happy with all our efforts. Almost everyone had a personal best performance, and several finished just out of the scoring by placing seventh.”

Places 1 through 6 scored in the team competition, and Kaneland’s 97 points topped Rockford Boylan (88) and Sterling (87) in the field of 16 schools. The top-two finishers in each event, plus those who met the state-qualifying standards, advanced to the state meet.

The Knights started the sectional by winning the first two events on the track with meet record performances. The first was the 4x800 meter relay, where sophomore Grace Purcell, seniors Becca Richtman and Sarah Daley, and freshman Rachel Richtman passed the baton to victory in 9:38.83 – the second-fastest 2A time in the state this season.

Immediately after that came the 4x100 relay, where freshmen Emma Stoker and Avery Smith, and seniors Nicole Sreenan and Carly Elliott raced to the win in a season-best 49.19 seconds, good for the seventh-fastest time in the state this season.

The 4x200 quartet was part of the closest race of the meet. The Knights’ foursome of Stoker, sophomore Lindsey Turner, Sreenan and Elliott teamed up to run a season-best 1:44.88 and finish just two-hundredths of a second behind Rochelle’s winning time of 1:44.86.

The 400 meters came next and in what was perhaps the biggest upset of the day Kaneland freshman Lesley Viveros beat a field of upperclassmen to win the sectional title in 1:00.84.

Rachel Richtman placed third in the 1,600 run in 5:11.00 to earn a place on the starting line at the state meet. Sreenan punched her ticket for a third state meet appearance by placing third in the 100 dash in 12.58.

In the last individual track event of the meet, Sreenan matched her third-place finish in the 100 dash with a bronze medal, state-qualifying performance of 25.71 in the 200 dash.

While many Knights were busy racking up state meet berths on the track, their teammates were doing the same in the field events, where Kaneland won two sectional titles with meet-record performances.

Junior Cierra Kuipers won the pole vault title with a personal record and school record height of 12 feet, the third-best 2A clearance in the state.

After placing third in the long jump in 16 feet, 3.5 inches, senior Maddie Keifer came back to win the triple jump with a lifetime best leap of 34-9.5 to punch her ticket to state.

“I am especially proud of Maddie Keifer’s win in the triple jump after placing third in the long jump, which she had not done since her sophomore year,” Ecker said. “Lesley Viveros ran a three-second [personal record] to win the 400 in the surprise performance of the night. Cierra Kuipers set a new school record in the pole vault, and Carley Elliott continued to run very strong legs of the sprint relays for us.”

Ecker equally praised the sectional efforts of Sreenan, Sarah Daley, Becca Richtman, Rachel Richtman and all four relays as the Knights head to the state meet.

“The key is always the qualifying [heats],” Ecker said. “We want to qualify as many individuals and relays as we can for the [state] finals on [May 20].”

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IF YOU GO

What: Class 2A state track meet

When: 8 a.m. May 19; 10 a.m. May 20

Where: Eastern Illinois University, Charleston

More info: www.ihsa.org/SportsActivities/GirlsTrackField.aspx