On Friday, the DeKalb boys track team hosted the Holt Invite, the first running of the meet since its namesake, longtime Barbs track coach Tim Holt, died in November.

The Barbs honored Holt with a moment of silence before events began. Then they honored him with their strongest showing of the season, winning the meet with 162 points.

Cam Matthews, Braylon Harness, Javontae Stuckey and Braylen Anderson won the 4x100-meter relay in 41.55 seconds. Anderson, who ran sparingly during the outdoor season but remains one of the state’s top 100 and 200 runners, also won both sprints.

The DuPage Valley Conference boys meet is Thursday at Naperville Central, with the Class 3A Hoffman Estates Sectional on May 21.

Record-setting Saturday at Genoa

With pretty much every field in use at the high school, a pair of varsity records and a freshman/sophomore record fell across two sports.

Goalie Madelynn Swanson set the single-season school record with her 12th shutout for the Cogs in a 1-0 win against St. Edward.

“We work together, and we definitely started to click at the beginning of the season,” Swanson said back in late April about the defense’s success this year. “We were kind of iffy about each other at the start and working together, but we’re going good.”

Over to the east, a pair of track records were set, with Jessie Fredrickson involved in both of them. The 4x200 of Haley Oranger, Faith Johnson, Fredrickson and Presley Meyer set a school record in 1:46.68.

Fredrickson broke a 21-year-old F/S record in the 200, finishing in 26.18.

Jasmine Rodriguez goes on lockdown for DeKalb

At the Strikeout Cancer Invite on Saturday, the Barbs had already lost to North Boone and were tied with Kaneland 1-1.

But after Jasmine Rodriguez gave up the tying run, she retired nine straight. That was enough time for the Barbs to regain the lead 3-1. She ran into trouble in the seventh, giving up a run, but held on for a 3-2 win over the Knights, who, in the middle game of the invite, beat the Vikings.

Rodriguez had been battling arm issues and had been pitching in limited action over the last couple of weeks. The second game Saturday was her first extended action. She struck out two of the top three hitters in the Kaneland lineup in the seventh to secure the win.

“We never let our energy down,” Rodriguez said after the win. “If I walk someone, my defense always talks me through it and makes sure I know I’m trusted.”

Alex Casanas keeps up strong outdoor season

This spring, Alex Casanas has taken first in five track and field events for Hinckley-Big Rock. He’s set personal records in all four individual events he’s competed in. And he’s already a three-time conference champ.

The Royals lost Thursday’s Little Ten title to Indian Creek by six points. But the Royals were out in mostly full force Saturday at Genoa, winning the G-K invite with 108 points, with the Timberwolves – resting a lot of their top athletes – further down the standings. Casanas picked up a PR and a win in the 400 (50.5).

So far, Casanas has won the 100, 200, 400 and high jump, individually. He was also part of a winning 4x100 relay earlier in April. He won the LTC meet in the 100 (11.23, PR), 200 (23.19) and 400 (51.78).

Casanas was also a standout goalie for the Royals in the fall, earning a spot on the Daily Chronicle All-Area First Team.