Boys track & field: Forreston-Polo wins 1A state title in 4x100

CHARLESTON – As Michael Taylor crossed the finish line, it seemed like everything stopped for a moment for the Forreston-Polo track athletes, coaches and fans in attendance at the IHSA Class 1A State Track & Field finals on Saturday at Eastern Illinois University’s O’Brien Field.

As his 4x100 relay teammates Noah Dewey and McKeon Crase walked back across the football field toward the finish line, they too looked a bit shell-shocked.

But after looking at the scoreboard, they realized that what they believed they just saw actually did happen: The Cardinals were the 4x100 state champions.

“We just don’t know what to think. We’re all just in disbelief, almost. We can’t believe we did it,” Dewey said. “It was an amazing day.”

“Going to sleep last night, I definitely expected a great finish. But I did not expect this, I can’t lie,” Crase said. “We just had to go out and take our spot. We deserved it, I really feel like we did.”

The subdued initial reaction gave way to one of jubilation. After Taylor stretched his arms wide in celebration as he crossed the finish line, Crase leaped into Delo Fernandez’s arms when the four runners finally met up on the track after the race.

The Forreston-Polo quartet ran the race in 42.91 seconds, breaking its own school record of 43.14.

Fernandez led off and maintained his split from Lane 8.

“It all starts with the warm-ups, getting yourself loosened up and ready to go for the race. It’s kind of a mental battle. And once you get out in those blocks and you hear them say ‘Get set,’ it all kicks in and you know you’re ready,” Fernandez said. “It’s just running as fast as you can, and the other guys doing it too. Anything can happen – I mean, we came out here and won … it’s just amazing.”

Crase got the baton and ran the backstretch, shutting everything else out except his single-minded focus on getting the baton to Dewey with the lead.

“It was pretty much just get the handoff and go down the track as fast as possible. It’s really a mental battle out there,” Crase said. “It’s me versus a whole bunch of other guys who all made finals; we’re all great relay teams, but you just have to focus on running your race.”

Dewey knew he was in the lead when he took over from Crase, and he used the runners he saw in his peripheral vision coming up on him to find another gear.

“I saw at least two runners on my inside, and that just made me keep going and keep pushing myself. That’s what made me push,” Dewey said. “We got into first when we were down there in the second-to-third handoff, and I had to give it my all. Obviously it worked, and I gave it to Mikey and I just knew we had it.”

Taylor did indeed have it, blazing down the homestretch and holding off everyone trying to make late moves to take away the Cardinals’ title.

“I knew there was no one in front of us. I saw Lena coming in, and that kind of gave me some more confidence,” Taylor said. “As soon as I got that baton, I locked it in and I just let my body go. I scratched out what my brain was telling me – you know when your brain tells you to stop, but you’ve just got to keep going because your body will tell you when you’ve reached your limit. You’ve just got to shut out that part of your mind.”

Taylor, who suffers from shin splints, spent 40 minutes in the training area getting ready for the 4x100 after finishing the high jump earlier than he expected. After clearing 1.85 meters in prelims to advance to finals, he missed all three attempts at that height on Saturday.

He said he used that disappointment as fuel for his 4x100 leg.

“I was really bummed about the high jump, but life, that’s just how it goes. There’s going to be battles, but there’s going to be victories too, so you’ve got to use it to your benefit and give it all you got,” Taylor said.

That same foursome returned two-and-a-half hours later to run the 4x200, and finished fifth in 1:30.00.

Fernandez said it wasn’t hard to refocus after the title in the 4x100, but a slight miscue during the 4x200 kept it from being even better.

“We celebrated a little bit, but then brought our focus back to the 4x2. I think we ran amazing; we had a little error in a handoff, but it happens,” he said. “Anything can happen in these races. I’m happy for my team, I’m proud of them.”

The Cardinals were back on the track for the final race of the day in the 4x400. The finished fourth in 3:26.85, with Crase and Dewey teaming up with Micah Nelson and Brock Soltow in that race.

Nelson and Soltow were just as excited as their teammates when they watched the 4x100 team take the title, and spent the rest of the day waiting until the final event trying to make sure they could help their team be successful in the 4x400.

“When we saw that 4x1 win state, we went crazy. We were so excited, it was awesome. It makes you not want to be the one who doesn’t run his best for the team,” Nelson said. “It was great to have that time to prepare. I got to take a couple naps during the day, felt great. It’s good to be out here. It’s my first time, and it’s an amazing feeling.”

Soltow said the Cardinals coaches had he and Nelson staying loose and doing warm-ups throughout the day to get ready.

“All day, we just relaxed in there, Micah and I, tried to stretch out, basically all day. Coach had us doing workouts to get ready,” Soltow said. “It felt pretty good at the start, but we had a bad handoff and we knew had to catch back up. We did pretty good getting back up there, and it felt good getting fourth place.

“It felt really good seeing our 4x1 get first. I didn’t think they were going to get it, and they shocked everybody. Then our 4x2 got fifth, so that was pretty awesome. It was a good day.”

Taylor said the way the Cardinals performed in all three relays, not just the state title, showed what Forreston-Polo track is all about.

“We definitely proved ourselves as a team, for sure. We came out here and we gave it our best. Like I said earlier, in life there’s always ups and downs, and it’s not always going to go your way. But we just had to keep our heads up and just give it our all,” Taylor said. “We won a state title, and it’s been a good day and a good experience. Not everyone gets to experience this, so it’s really good, and I’m really grateful.”

The memory of that state championship is going to linger in the Cardinals’ minds for an awfully long time.

“I’m very proud of my guys, proud of myself. We really put the work in, extra hours, extra days. The coaches pushed us harder and harder each day – and it paid off big-time,” Crase said. “It feels great.”

“Just the chance to come down here is once in a lifetime. To do what we did is even better,” Fernandez said. “I couldn’t be more proud of my teammates.”