Kankakee senior DaMariana Tooles has become very familiar with IHSA State Finals during her stellar four-year career.

With a strong performance in the Class 3A Bloom Sectional on Wednesday, Tooles will get to wrap that career with her fourth trip down to Eastern Illinois University for state starting May 21.

She ran the first leg of a pair of state-qualifying relays. In the 4x100, she helped lead teammates Essence Bell, Jemya Williams and Jasiah Hawkins to a time of 46.90 seconds and a second-place finish.

Tooles, Williams, Amiyah Anderson and Bell ran a season-best 1:39.37 in the 4x200, also the new third-best time in the state, to take second and earn their spot in Charleston.

“With the relays, we did what we were supposed to do,” Tooles said. “Going back to state in my senior year in the relays is something special, because I’ve been going to state with the Kankakee Kays for all four years. I feel like, with my team, we have one more chance to do something special before I go off to college.”

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Girls Track & Field: Class 3A Chicago Heights Sectional Kankakee runners execute the baton exchange in the 4x200 relay during the IHSA Class 3A Chicago Heights Girls Track and Field Sectional at Bloom High School on Wednesday, May 13, 2026. The Kays finished second with a time of 1:39.37 to qualify for state. (Tiffany Blanchette)

Tooles also participated in the 300 hurdles, and ran a season best of 47.68 seconds, but narrowly missed the cutoff for state by less than a second.\

The junior Bell also qualified as an individual in the 200 meters (24.68), finishing in second to earn an automatic bid while also besting the qualifying time.

Senior Trinity Noble will also wrap her career at state after placing fourth in the 100 meters (12.26) and qualifying with her time. The sophomore Williams nearly joined Noble at state in the 100 meters (12.36) but narrowly missed the 12.32 cutoff.

Joining her more experienced teammates at state is Kankakee freshman Pyper Krieger.

She placed fourth in the discus (36.84 meters), clearing the qualifying standard of 35.20 meters with ease to follow up what she felt was a disappointing performance in the shot put, where she placed 14th.

“I was kind of nervous because I didn’t do too well in shot today,” she said. “I went to [IESA] state last year, and I just love the people and hanging out with my teammates and stuff.”

Head coach Marques Lowe has led a program that, particularly in sprints and relays, has been one of the top in the state in recent years, maintaining a downstate presence since the two-time Class 2A champs in 2022 and 2023 have since been bumped up.

He said he was pleased with what he saw out of the team from top to bottom on Wednesday, whether it was the 4x100 relay pushing the favorite Homewood-Flossmoor within 0.25 seconds of first or some younger stepping in for 2025 graduate and 11-time state medalist Naomi Bey-Osborne.

“This is a new sectional for us, and it’s good to come out with the defending state champions [Homewood-Flossmoor] and some of the most talented girls in the state,” he said. “Trinity and DaMariana are seniors, so to see them go out on their own terms and go back to state... they’re keeping that tradition alive.

“Jemya Williams and Essence Bell stepping in and filling those holes where Naomi [Bey-Osborne] was last year is really huge for us. Getting the 4x100 in and 4x200 is always special.”

Bradley-Bourbonnais was hoping to send a couple of talented juniors on to state, but late-season injuries derailed things a bit for the Boilermakers.

Sprinter Nevaeh Brown was well under state qualifying time in both the 100 meters (12.01) and 200 meters (24.89) during the regular season, and Niyah Crockett was in good position to qualify in the 400 meters (57.91).

Neither were able to return in time for sectionals, but head coach Cody Keppner said he was happy with how those athletes who competed Wednesday ended their seasons.

“We had Nevaeh Brown break the school record in the 200, a 44-year-old record,” he said. “Our girls were competing great throughout the season, and it’s just unfortunate with the injuries.

“...We came out here and competed. We had a lot of PRs today. We had a lot of really close races for PRs today.”

Junior Kelsi Bade placed seventh in the discus (30.67) as the highest-finishing Boilermaker. Freshman Braje Ringo set two PRs and placed 12th in both the 100 hurdles (18.50) and 300 hurdles (51.51).