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Donny Gramer set the table. Carson Campbell and Nicholas Kocher kept the competitors at bay. Then Caden Emmert buried them.
In other words, the perfect recipe for a state title.
Gramer, Campbell, Kocher and Emmert won the 3,200-meter relay at the IHSA Class 2A state meet. Continually improving as the season went on, the group was named the Daily Chronicle 2021 Boys Track and Field Athletes of the Year.
| Athlete, year, school | Event | Time/Distance/Place at state |
|---|---|---|
| Tyler Carter, sr., Sycamore | 110 hurdles/300 hurdles | 14.78, fifth/39.25, fifth |
| Jeffery Oestreicher, Noah Schmidt, Alec Garcia, Bailey Weigman, Sycamore | 400 relay | 42.99, fifth |
| Cam Russell, sr., Indian Creek | High jump/triple jump | 1.96 meters, fourth/13.4 meters, third |
| Toriano Tate, jr., DeKalb | Long jump | 6.84 meters, fifth |
| Porter Conroy, sr., Kaneland | High jump | 1.95 meters, fifth |
| Aiden Gatz, sr., Kaneland | Pole vault | 4.47 meters, third |
| Ted Allen, sr., Kaneland | Pole vault | 4.47 meters, sixth |
The four said they formed a tight bond.
“We all ran cross country in the fall, so we were pretty close from that,” Emmert said. “Coming into track, we were already like a big family, had that type of connection.”
Gramer has been both the anchor and leadoff runner for the relay and took the leadoff role at state, pacing the team to its win in 8:07.67.
Kocher said Gramer had set the temp not only during his leg but throughout the day. During a long heat delay, he kept the team’s spirits and positivity up as the group prepared to get on the track.
“He was definitely pumped, so I knew he would do great in the first leg,” Kocher said. “But Carson is a really great runner too, and he kept the distance between guys. It was really impressive, and when I received the baton I did my job. I was nervous because I got passed in the first 200, but I just kept my pace. I was able to pass that other guy because he burned out really quick.”
Kocher said that nervousness was short-lived given the pace of the runner who caught up to him.
“I was like, either this guy is the best third-leg runner in Illinois, or he’s going to burn out a little faster,” Kocher said. “It was the latter. I was still a bit nervous, but I just focused on what coach taught me, to use my endurance from cross country and combine that with speed and just wear out all the third-leg runners.”
That led to Emmert closing out the victory on the final leg. He said he started thinking the team had a chance to be state champions during Campbell’s leg.
“It really clicked when Carson was running,” Emmert said. “He had such a big lead on all the other runners, we could do it. That’s just when it clicked.”
Sycamore coach Pete Piccony said the boys either set personal records on their legs of the run or came close to doing so en route to being crowned champions.
“Carson did a great job of keeping the next team away from us,” Piccony said. “The biggest problem is if they got out too far, they couldn’t see anybody. He gave it to Nick, who not only maintained that lead but also increased it. And then Caden buried the next team behind him. It was kind of fun to watch. The middle guys didn’t blow them away but got them far enough away that when Caden got the stick, he just buried them.”
The track season was a strange one, PIccony said. There was no indoor season preceding it. Meets throughout the year were small. It started much later than normal. And all that was on the heels of having the 2020 season wiped out because of the coronavirus.
That made state even more special this year, he said.
“Once we got there, it felt very normal again,” Piccony said. “We had some guys who had never been there before and some guys who hadn’t been there since their freshman year. Maybe getting the normalcy back was a big key part there.”
Gramer said he noticed the team was nervous as they were warming up.
“We looked at each and were like, this is it. I think we’re going to be able to race pretty well,” Gramer said. “We get in the bullpen, everyone is pretty nervous. I was not nervous, though, and I was ready to go. First leg was my leg, and no one was going to beat me.”
Like PIccony, Gramer said Campbell and Kocher did impressive work to ensure the team won the title.
“Right after I handed off, we were in much better position than our coach thought we’d be in,” Gramer said. “After I saw Carson coming around, he was still in first, and there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that we couldn’t win. I had all the faith in the world in my guys. Saw Kocher got caught by a few teams, but he held that paced and was able to take the lead and make up more ground in the last 100 as he was handing it off to Caden, then Caden was looking smooth as can be out there.”