Classes 2A and 3A competed in the semifinals at the IHSA Girl’s Track & Field meet
Karyn Best, a senior at Wheaton Academy, Paige Olson, a sophomore at Rochester High School, and Emelia Ness, a sophomore at Monticello High School, compete in the IHSA Girl’s semifinal Track & Field 2A 100-meter high hurdles at O’Brien Stadium Friday morning. Ness qualified for the finals being held Saturday.
May 18, 2018
Girl’s Track & Field from Classes 2A and 3A competed at the Illinois High School Association semifinals at O’Brien Stadium on Friday to qualify for the finals on Saturday.
Katelyn Hart, a sophomore at Glenbard West High school, located in Glen Ellyn, competed in the first heat of the Class 3A 1600-meter run and will be advancing to finals with a time of 4:51.79.
“It felt really great. I was pretty relaxed throughout the race and I finished strong in the last 200,” Hart said.
Hart said she is super excited to be going to finals for her second year in a row.
“I think I have more experience and confidence now. It can be daunting when you first come here,” Hart said.
Emilia Ness, a sophomore at Monticello High School, said she feels really good about going to finals after coming in first place for the first heat of the Class 2A 300-meter low hurdles, with a time of 45.07.
“There are so many great athletes in the state so it felt great to come out on top and make it to finals,” Ness said.
Brittany Rainey, and Kiara Pauli, both juniors at Dunlap High School, embrace each other after running in the Class 2A 200-meter dash Friday morning at the IHSA Girl’s Track & Field Semifinals at O’Brien Stadium. Pauli received first place in the second heat and will go on to compete Saturday in the finals.
Joel Brown, is the father of Makenna Brown, a freshman at St. Charles East High School, who competed in the Class 3A 4 x 400 relay.
“It’s a great experience when your child is involved. It’s great to see the confidence in all these young ladies. It’s also great to see the difference between a great athlete and an elite player,” Joel Brown said.
Kiara Pauli, a junior from Dunlap High School, said she is excited to be advancing to finals for the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.06.
“It felt really good. I knew coming off the curb was a good start and I had to keep my stride,” Pauli said.
Allysa Fryer, a competitor from Bloom High School, located in Chicago Heights, said she had fun during the competition.
“For me it’s not all about making it to finals. You shouldn’t down yourself when you don’t make it. It’s supposed to be an experience,” Fryer said.
Classes 1A, 2A and 3A are competing in the finals Saturday, field events start at 10 a.m. and track events start at 11 a.m..
Olivia Swenson-Hultz can be reached at 581-2812 or omswensonhultz@eiu.edu
