2022 Northwest Herald boys track and field preview capsules

Burlington Central's Zac Schmidt looks to the crowd after crossing the finish line as the anchor leg of the 4x400-meter relay team that took second place in their heat on June 18, 2021 at the Class 2A Boys Track and Field State Meet in Charleston.

Fox Valley Conference

Burlington Central

Coach: Mike Schmidt (27th season)

Last year’s finish: FVC champion

Top returning athletes: Zac Schmidt, sr. (sprints, distances); Yusuf Baig, sr., (distances); Nolan Milas, jr. (sprints, jumps); Leighton Dietz, jr. (sprints, distances); Grayson Burton, so. (PV); Alec Zaccaria, sr. (sprints, LJ)

Top new athletes: Ryan Kries, so. (distances); Gavin Sarvis, sr. (LJ, TJ);l Drew Scharnowski, jr. (HJ)

Worth noting: The Rockets ended Huntley’s string of five consecutive FVC titles last season and finished fifth in the Class 2A state meet with 39 points, only two points out of tying for third. … Shot put state champion Jake Borman now throws at Illinois State and will be missed in the field, but Schmidt will be one of the top FVC performers. He was second in the Class 2A 400 meters and ran legs on relays that finished second (4x400) and fourth (4x800). … Baig finished fifth in the Class 2A cross country state meet and is the best distance runner in the area. … Milas won the FVC 300 hurdles, and Dietz was part of the 4x400 and 4x800 teams that medaled at state. … Sarvis and Scharnowski were part of the Rockets’ 31-4 basketball team along with Schmidt and should help Burlington gain some field points. … The Rockets won the FVC Indoor Meet.

Cary-Grove

Coach: Layne Holter (27th season)

Last year’s finish: Sixth in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Ian Barnes, sr. (distances); Aaron Caspary, sr. (throws); Zach Petko, sr. (throws); Justin Freeman, sr. (sprints); Dominic Garrard, sr. (distances); Logan Hubka, sr. (sprints); Lukas Klipp, sr. (jumps); Jacob Motz, sr., (jumps, sprints); Liam Simons, sr. (sprints); Jacob Thompson, jr. (jumps, sprints); Tony Zamudio, jr. (distances)

Top new athletes: Grant Bond, fr. (sprints); Connor Mattran, so. (sprints); Philip Nowik, so. (jumps, sprints); Brach Skof, jr. (sprints); Ethan Waddell, fr. (distances)

Worth noting: Assistant coach Bob Psenka directs some of the best throwers in the area, led by Petko, who will throw at Notre Dame next year. Petko took fifth in the Class 3A discus at the state meet and Holter feels Caspary could be a state qualifier as well. … Klipp, Motz and Thompson could help the Trojans score points in the horizontal jumps. … Holter, whose favorite event is the 400, said Hubka has big goals in that race. … Barnes was a Class 2A all-stater in cross country and should be one of the area’s best distance runners.

Crystal Lake Central

Coach: Brian Seaver (22nd season)

Last year’s finish: Tied for third in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Danny Hamill, sr. (distances); Karson Hollander, jr. (distances); Will Foster, sr. (sprints, distances); James Duncan, jr. (sprints, distances); Gavin Wang, sr. (hurdles); Jonathan Tegel, jr. (hurdles); Daivion Lewis, sr. (sprints); Colin Oconer, so. (PV)

Top new athletes: Jason Penza, so. (sprints, jumps); Griffin Buehler, so. (sprints, jumps); George Dimopoulos, so. (sprints, jumps); Quinn O’Hare, sr. (sprints); Mason Alvarez, fr. (sprints, distances); Jackson Hopkins, fr. (distances)

Worth noting: Hamill and Hollander were leaders of a strong cross country team in the fall, and both were Northwest Herald All-Area second-team selections. … Tegel was FVC runner-up in the 110 high and 300 intermediate hurdles, Wang was third in the highs. Tegel qualified for state in both, Wang made it in the highs.

Crystal Lake South

Coach: Nick Willhoit (seventh season)

Last year’s finish: 10th in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Nate Van Witzenburg, jr. (jumps); Carter Alvarado, jr. (hurdles); David Welte-Hart, sr. (sprints); Alex Cabrera, sr. (sprints); Ryne Salas, jr. (throws); Kamil Koziol, jr. (sprints); Nico Velasco, so. (sprints); Anthony Pupillo, so. (sprints); Logan Vargas, jr. (sprints); Cam Kerber, jr. (throws)

Top new athletes: Colin Rennhak, sr. (distances); Josh Washington, jr. (sprints); Brady Skirpan, so (sprints); Michael Prokos, so. (sprints); Adam Strombom, fr. (distances); Lucian Tyndall, so. (distances); Jack Johnson, jr. (distances); Wyatt Orlick, jr. (distances); Logan Miller, fr. (sprints); Blake Marunde, so. (sprints); K.C. Brichta-Bachar, so. (throws)

Worth noting: The Gators will lean heavily on Van Witzenburg and Alvarado but will need more help from others on the track. … Willhoit enjoys this group a lot. “The guys have accepted the challenge and have been focused and hardworking,” he said. “I haven’t had this much fun coaching a team in a long time.”

Dundee-Crown

Coach: Matt D’Angelo (sixth season)

Last year’s finish: Tied for third in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Henry Kennedy, jr. (sprints); Alek Ledezma, sr. (sprints); Diego Farias, sr. (hurdles); Tyler Toms, sr. (distances); Christian Azar, sr. (distances); Anthony Fernandez, sr. (distances); Aiden Smith, sr. (HJ); Lukasz Plewa, sr. (PV, sprints); Kali Freeman, so. (sprints, jumps); Alex Petinaux, sr. (sprints)

Top new athletes: Ryan Schultz, sr. (sprints); Christian Roder, jr. (sprints)

Worth noting: The Chargers, as they have been in recent years, should be strong again in the sprint races and hurdles. Farias won the FVC 110 high hurdles and finished fourth in the 300 intermediate hurdles last season. … Kennedy was second in the 200 and fourth in the 200, Ledezma was fifth in both races. … “We had a great showing at the FVC Indoor Meet and are hoping to build off of that success for the rest of the year,” D’Angelo said.

Hampshire

Coach: Robert Homola (second season)

Last year’s finish: Seventh in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Aidan Gonzalez, sr. (distances); Devin Yeats, sr. (sprints); Maddux Chanthaboury, sr. (sprints, jumps); Mitch Dalby, sr. (distances); Owen Cuplin, jr. (distances); Ryan Poett, sr. (throws); Gage Homola, so. (throws); Michael Freeman, jr. (throws); Henry Nangle, sr. (PV, distances); Shamar Allwood, so. (sprints, jumps); Sebastian Abreu, sr. (hurdles, distances)

Top new athletes: Jack Rummell, sr. (sprints, jumps); Michael Carbins, sr. (sprints, jumps); Tyler Fikis, jr. (sprints); Jackson Mitchell, sr. (throws)

Worth noting: The Whip-Purs have a lot of key contributors returning from last season. … Gonzalez was fourth in the FVC Cross Country Meet and led the Whips to the team title. Cuplin, Nangle and Abreu were other key runners in cross country who should help the team. … Robert Homola hopes the Whips have what it takes to improve from last year’s finish.

Huntley

Coach: Chris Maxedon (fourth season)

Last year’s finish: Second in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Evan Gronewold, sr. (sprints); Nate Ary, sr. (sprints); Hayden Swim, sr. (throws); Jacob Zastrow, jr. (sprints); Talon Sargent, so. (sprints); Andrew Cantrell, sr. (PV); Charlie Kucz, sr. (distances); Marc Llauderes, sr. (sprints); Dylan Schmidt, jr. (LJ)

Top new athletes: Tommy Nitz, fr. (distances); Vinny Costa, fr. (sprints); McKale Hood, jr. (jumps); Breylan Bower, fr. (sprints)

Worth noting: Gronewold was the Northwest Herald Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year after his Class 3A state runner-up finish in the 400. He had three firsts and a second in the FVC Meet. … Ary, Zastrow, Sargent and Llauderes were state qualifiers in sprint relays, so the Red Raiders should score well in those races. … The Red Raiders have more than 100 athletes out on all levels, and most of those are multisport athletes, so Maxedon hopes their success in other sports can translate to success in track.

Jacobs

Coach: Jason Borhart (20th season)

Last year’s finish: Fifth in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Sean Dobson, sr. (sprints); Ben Ludlum, sr. (sprints); Matt Andreano, so. (distances); Adam Lakeman, jr. (distances); Elijah Marszalek, jr. (distances); Connor Mobeck, sr. (LJ, sprints); Zach Osmanski, jr. (distances); Mitchell Ruffin, sr. (distances); Will Seibert, jr. (throws)

Top new athletes: Tony Brown, jr. (sprints); Nick Donald, jr. (sprints); Devan McTague, so. (hurdles, TJ); Nick True, jr. (hurdles, jumps)

Worth noting: Ludlum and Dobson will make the Golden Eagles strong in the sprints and give them half of what they need in the 4x100 and 4x200 relays. … Borhart said Jacobs is developing several new athletes and thinks his team will look much different at the end of the season.

McHenry

Coach: Dennis Hutchinson (ninth season)

Last year’s finish: Eighth in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Aiden Wasilowski, jr. (jumps); Enrique Robles, sr. (distances); Doug Martin, so. (distances); Jake Kushman, jr. (sprints); Jimmy LaRose, jr. (sprints); Zeke Galvicius, so. (PV); Frank Cermak, jr. (sprints); Edgar Orduna, jr. (jumps); Luke Zunkel, sr. (throws)

Top new athletes: Hayden Stone, so. (jumps); Brian Wacaser, jr. (sprints); Logan Vincent, jr. (sprints); Eli Nothdorf, jr. (throws)

Worth noting: Hutchinson feels the Warriors are a well-rounded team this season and likes the job the seniors have done changing the team culture. … McHenry will be strongest in field events. Galvicius cleared 13-0 in pole vault as a freshman, an event in which the Warriors traditionally have been strong.

Prairie Ridge

Coach: Judd Shutt (18th season)

Last year’s finish: Ninth in FVC Meet

Top returning athletes: Will Gelon, so. (distances); Daniel Llanquiman, sr. (distances); Jack Demakis, so. (sprints); Eli Shoufer, so. (sprints); Ian Mahon, jr. (distances); Elliott Carlino, jr. (hurdles)

Top new athletes: Eddy Klimkowski, so. (distances); Gerrit Dam, so. (distances); Daniel Cardenas, so. (distances); Kevin Koch, jr. (distances); Ben Stech, so. (sprints, PV)

Worth noting: Gelon leads the Wolves after qualifying for the Class 3A 1,600 at the state meet as a freshman. He was FVC runner-up in that race last season to Burlington’s Yusuf Baig. … “Will leads a good core of distance runners that are building confidence daily,” Shutt said. “We have a strong group of underclassmen that are excited about learning to be competitive at the varsity level.”

Kishwaukee River Conference

Harvard

Coach: Adam Maslowski (first season)

Last year’s finish: Sixth in KRC Meet

Top returning athletes: Steven Austin, sr. (distances, TJ); Eduardo Flores, sr. (sprints); Jared Gonzalez, so. (sprints, distances); Eric Elizarraraz, jr. (distances); Caden Kotecki, so. (distances); Emmanuel Pineda, so. (distances)

Top new athletes: Ivan Rosas, sr. (sprints, TJ); Christian Mercado, fr. (hurdles, TJ LJ); DeAndre Keller, fr. (hurdles, HJ); Miguel Martinez, fr. (sprints); Job Miller, fr. (sprints, hurdles)

Worth noting: Maslowski feels this season is a building process for the Hornets. “We are building numbers and an environment that student-athletes want to be a part of,” he said. “We want to make a statement this year and show we are out to compete.” … Austin took fourth in the KRC 3,200 last season.

Johnsburg

Coach: Chris Setzler (22nd season)

Last year’s finish: Fifth in KRC Meet

Top returning athletes: James Kaunas, sr. (jumps); Austin Gibb, sr. (sprints); Blake Hiller, so. (sprints); Jackson Batt, jr. (distances); Scirys Burnell, sr. (sprints); Will Campbell, sr. (throws); Conor Benz, so. (sprints); Forrest Hull, sr. (sprints, throws)

Top new athletes: Brett Centnarowicz, fr. (throws); Nick LoPresti, jr. (sprints); Jacob Welch, jr. (throws); Preston Michel, so. (distances); Sam Sima, jr. (sprints, jumps)

Worth noting: Kaunas was the KRC triple jump champion and high jump runner-up and qualified for state in both events. … Setzler feels as if the group is dedicated and working hard and can improve its standing in the KRC Meet.

Marengo

Coach: Brad Wignes (seventh season)

Last year’s finish: KRC champion

Top returning athletes: Preston Bailey, sr. (distances); Greg Baker, jr. (sprints); Rune Boyd, so. (throws); Josh Holst, jr. (sprints); Gage Lopez, sr. (distances); Evan Maniates, so. (throws); Marcus Ray, so. (distances); Hunter Smith, jr. (throws)

Top new athletes: Nate Cieslak, sr. (distances); Randy Griffin, fr. (jumps, hurdles); Anthony Kirchhoff, sr. (jumps, hurdles); Drew Palanos, jr. (hurdles, sprints); Dylan Stolz, sr. (sprints); Riley Weiss, jr. (distances)

Worth noting: The Indians lost some key contributors to graduation, led by KRC champs Cole Davis (100), Jonah Pace (shot put) and Zach Secor (1,600). … Holst was 100 runner-up to Davis and took fifth in the 200. … Ray (400) and Lopez (800) return after medaling in the KRC Meet. … “We will rely on some returning underclassmen and some new additions to the team this year,” Wignes said.

Richmond-Burton

Coach: John Osmanski (first season)

Last year’s finish: Third in KRC Meet

Top returning athletes: Isaac Gunderson, sr. (jumps); Landon Jacoby, sr. (sprints); Jack Martens, so. (sprints); Sean Rockwell, so. (sprints); Tristan Rockwell, sr. (sprints, jumps); Ryan Saranzak, so. (jumps); Tanner Thompson, so. (jumps); Jack Verdoni, sr. (sprints)

Top new athletes: Oscar Bonilla, fr. (distances); Luke Bresnahan, so. (sprints); Jacob Gray, jr. (throws); Joe Miller, jr. (sprints)

Worth noting: Verdoni was KRC 400 champion, and Sean Rockwell took medals in the 100, 200 and 300 intermediate hurdles. The Rockets were only seven points behind Marengo for the KRC title. … Saranzak took KRC medals in the high jump and pole vault, and Tristan Rockwell medaled in the 100. … “We are continually looking to improve our standing at the conference, sectional and state levels,” said Osmanski, who has been in the program for six years.

Woodstock

Coach: Lisa Kunzie (second season)

Last year’s finish: Second in KRC Meet

Top returning athletes: Tim Maidment, sr. (LJ, sprints); Jack Novelle, sr. (HJ); Javier Garay-Vasquez, sr. (sprints); Alex Wickersheim, sr. (sprints, distances); Max Hodory, sr. (PV); Lucas Albertson, jr. (SP); Aiden Schneiderman, jr. (sprints); Ishan Patel, so. (distances)

Top new athletes: Jared Kniola, jr. (sprints, hurdles, TJ); Nolan Van Hoorn, so. (sprints); Charlie Baker, so. (distances); Zach Canaday, so. (sprints, TJ)

Worth noting: The Blue Streaks finished with 130 points in the KRC Meet, only five behind champion Marengo. … Maidment (200, LJ) and Novelle (HJ) were conference champions. Kunzie said those two have been strong in indoor meets this season. … The Streaks should do well in distance events, with several of the Class 2A state-qualifying cross country team members in those races, led by sophomore Ishan Patel. “We bring back a strong distance crew, many of whom are just sophomores,” Kunzie said. “I’m excited to see what they can do this year.”

Woodstock North

Coach: John Fredericks (13th season)

Last year’s finish: Fourth in KRC Meet

Top returning athletes: Jacob McConnell, sr. (throws); Jay Randecker, sr. (sprints); Mark Duenas, jr. (sprints); Chris Carreno, jr. (sprints); Tommy Schroeder, jr. (distances); Landon Creighton, so. (PV, hurdles)

Top new athletes: Devin Tumminello, sr. (jumps, sprints); Scott Bauer, jr. (throws); AJ Ringpis, so. (throws); Aiden Bole, fr. (sprints); Dominion Okwong, fr. (sprints, jumps)

Worth noting: McConnell won the KRC discus title and qualified for the Class 2A state meet. Creighton was a state qualifier in the pole vault. … Carreno and Duenas are two of the Thunder’s top sprinters and made up half of the KRC-winning 4x200 relay. Duenas also ran on North’s winning 4x400 relay team. … “We are a younger team with good upperclassman leadership,” Fredericks said.

East Suburban Catholic Conference

Marian Central

Coach: Anthony Enright (second season)

Last year’s finish: Seventh in ESCC Meet

Top returning athletes: Anthony Carney, sr. (distances); Peyton Thomas, jr. (sprints); Dominic Aragona, jr. (sprints, jumps); Jacob Bonnet, jr. (distances)

Top new athletes: Derek Leitzen, fr. (distances, hurdles); Ronan Costello, fr. (distances); Favio Arce, jr. (sprints); Henry Bonnet, fr. (distances); Nathan Sarfo, so. (sprints); Aidan Lipinsky, fr. (distances)

Worth noting: Peter Walsdorf, who took fifth in the Class 2A 3,200 and ninth in the 1,600 last season, graduated. He now runs at Kansas. … Anthony Carney had a strong cross country season as a state qualifier and aims to do the same in track. … Thomas and Aragona will lead the sprint group. … “The team has high expectations to improve on last year’s results and compete for conference or sectional titles,” Enright said.

Northeastern Athletic Conference

Alden-Hebron

Coach: Jacob Behrens (sixth season)

Last year’s finish: No conference meet

Top returning athletes: Benjamin Gaddini, sr. (distances); Shalin Shah, sr. (LJ, discus, sprints); AJ Medina, sr. (LJ, TJ, hurdles, sprints).

Top new athletes: Sam Hanfland, sr. (sprints); Riley Stanbery, fr. (sprints, distances); Logan Crowell, fr. (sprints, hurdles, distances).

Worth noting: Behrens looks forward to the Giants having a more normal season this year. … “With multiple athletes only a few places from making it to (Class 1A) state last year, they are looking to make an impact at the conference meet and at sectionals,” Behrens said.