2025 Daily Journal Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year: Bradley-Bourbonnais’ Malachi Lee

Although Malachi Lee already had qualified for state in the long jump his freshman season, he put on quite the encore performance in his second year of high school track and field.

The Bradley-Bourbonnais sophomore punched his ticket back to Charleston in 2025 with a first-place finish in the Class 3A Minooka Sectional. That was Lee’s 10th first place finish out of the first 11 meets of the season, with only a second-place finish at the SouthWest Suburban Conference Boys Championships keeping him from sweeping every meet before state.

He placed fifth in Class 3A at state after placing 22nd as a freshman, capping off a sophomore season to remember for the 2025 Daily Journal Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year.

“It was a good experience,” Lee said. “I was working hard in the offseason, and all the hard work paid off.”

Lee’s personal record of 7.30 meters set at the Homewood-Flossmoor Dick Beebe Invitational on May 2 was a new school record for the Boilermakers and was briefly the top distance in the state. By season’s end, that mark was third-best in Class 3A and ranked sixth in Illinois among all classes, with the five jumpers ahead of him all being seniors.

That mark of 7.30 meters also blew his season best from his freshman season (6.62 meters) out of the water. He surpassed that mark in every outdoor meet his sophomore season. Even his top mark from this past indoor season (6.81 meters) was equalled or bested in every meet of this outdoor season except the Boilermaker Invite, the first meet of the season April 3.

After finding as much success as he did his freshman season and earning a trip to state, Lee said heading back this year was easier thanks to that previous experience on the big stage.

“It was a better experience,” he said. “I was more comfortable with it because I had already been there before. I felt like I could perform better, and I knew that I had a chance to win so I was really going for the gold.”

When it comes to earning that gold medal, and getting longer jumps by even the smallest of margins, every little bit of technique matters.

Bradley-Bourbonnais boys track head coach Matt McLain saw first hand how much attention to detail Lee had in his approach. The fact that Lee also was a varsity football athlete, and as a two-sport varsity athlete had access to the Boilermakers’ weightlifting program, helped as well.

“He was in there every single day, lifting and training,” McLain said. “He’s really meticulous about the different phases of the long jump. ... He would spend a lot of time with his aerial work, with his approach and making sure every aspect of the jump was perfect.”

That dedication to the little things allowed Lee to be as consistent meet-to-meet as possible.

“Sometimes your jumpers will fire off one big jump at a meet or two and then not have much in three or four different meets,” McLain said. “He consistently raised the bar every week and jumped well all the time.”

Lee said a big factor in keeping him consistent throughout the season was sticking to a routine each week, one that he felt put him in a position to perform at his best.

“What helped me be consistent is being consistent with my warmups,” Lee said. “I have a playlist that I listen to and I warm up the same before every single meet. That helped me be consistent, and it really gets me in a mode each and every week.”

But despite all those first-place finishes, a sectional title, a school record, an All-SWSC spot and a state medal, Lee – a starting wide receiver for a football team with hefty goals this fall as well – still is looking to accomplish even more as he continues with his high school career.

“Some things I’m looking forward to next year is PR-ing, being the best jumper in the state, and I want to be top 20 in the country,” he said. “I want to win indoor and outdoor state, and I’m probably going to New Balance Nationals, and I want to win there, too.”

Lee’s 2025 season certainly put him within striking distance of those lofty goals.