Fiona Post’s first postseason track meet was a memorable one, but not in the best way.

In the Hoffman Estates sectional last season, St. Charles East 4x200-relay team came in with the top-seeded time in the sectional. However, a drop of the baton from the then-freshman lost them the lead and a chance to make it to the state meet in that event, a moment that loomed in her head much before the next season.

“It was hard, I was so scared in that first meet doing the 4x200 again,” Post said. “I was thinking about that months before track season started, and watching them all go to state, it made me want to go even more.”

One year later, the only dropping that the Saints have been doing this season has been on their times.

The Saints’ relay team of Post, Siri Forsell, Luca Ketter and Mady Piekarz finished the Hoffman Estates Sectional with a school record and the fifth-best statewide time at sectionals with a 1:40.11, and will look to get onto the podium at the IHSA Class 3A Girls Track and Field State Meet at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.

Preliminary rounds will take place Friday for Class 2A and 3A, with the finals being held Saturday.

“They have been on a path of just waiting to prove everybody that last year was a fluke,” Saints coach Bradley Kaplan said. “They’ve been on a mission for the four by two all year, and they’ve been lights out all season.”

Kaplan said that a big part for the success throughout the season has been through the dedication from the four runners to honing their craft, which has led to a relay team either breaking a meet record or school record at every meet they’ve attended this season. The same sentiment was echoed by Ketter, who was on the giving end of the drop a season ago.

“It’s definitely been a journey, and we’ve been poking and drilling at those handoffs to make sure they’re the best they can be,” Ketter said. “After last year I would really get in my head about the hand offs, but recently I’ve been giving myself a lot of positive affirmations and focusing on what we can do, and our handoffs have been going so smooth.”

The 4x200 will be one of three sprint relays the Saints will be vying for an All-State position in. The same quartet will also be running in the 4x100, where their school-record 47.87 at sectionals has them seeded at 11th.

“We’re not seeded to make it to the second day, but we really want to try and shave off that small bit of time to make it,” Piekarz said. “We’re really hopeful about getting that done.”

The Saints will also compete in the 4x400, an event that they took ninth in a season ago for All-State honors. The team returned all four legs, with Nicole Mayer replacing Post in the order.

In their lone outdoor race with the four runners, the Saints ran a 3:54.62, beating their time from last season and seeding them in third at the state meet.

“Last year, I didn’t really think that we were going to get a medal, or just how the state meet worked with the top 9,” said Forsell, who runs the anchor leg of the 4x400. “But it really gave me a boost of how fun it all could be and how much more I could push myself. It’s been so much fun.”

It’s been a surprising climb for all three sprints teams to becoming All-State contenders. Just two years ago, the Saints sent Piekarz and Ketter to the state meet for the first time in the 4x200, where they placed 42nd out of 45 teams.

“That year, I didn’t really realize how big of a deal state was and I didn’t know the ropes,” Ketter said. “But seeing all the success there and how impactful the state meet was great. Obviously we didn’t get the best placement, but having that experience of facing the good competition really helped push me to try to want to be in that good lane and succeed.”

The relay teams won’t be the only focus for the relay members, as four of the five will also be competing in individual events. Mayer is seeded 11th in the 800 (2:15.69), both Piekarz (100, 12.00) and Post (triple jump, 11.36 meters) are seeded 12th in their respective events and Forsell is seeded 32nd in the long jump (5.41 meters).

“We wanted to try to get everyone an individual event while also getting the job done in the relays,” Kaplan said. “It’s been great, and the girls are team-minded even with the individual events. They’d rather make sure the relays are good than their own individual accomplishments, which is just a nice thing to see.”

Of the five runners, Piekarz, a Butler commit, will be the lone senior making her guaranteed last appearance at state. And while she said it’ll be bittersweet, she wants to make sure she goes out with a bang.

“I’m so sad, I am so close to the girls both on and off the track,” Piekarz said. “I’m gonna be so sad not to come back next year. But I worked really hard, especially to make it here for four events, so I’m just super excited about the opportunity.”