HOMEWOOD – Minooka carried its momentum from the Southwest Prairie Conference Track and Field meet right into Wednesday night’s Class 3A Homewood-Flossmoor Track and Field Sectional meet, as the Indians qualified athletes in seven individual events and all four relays, along with winning the team title with 147 points.
Homewood-Flossmoor was a distant second (86), and Lincoln-Way East took third (71).
Minooka will be in everyone’s conversation for a state trophy at next Saturday’s 3A State Finals in Charleston.
“I’m so proud of how our kids competed and performed today,” Minooka coach Nick Lundin said. “You have to have a complete team to win a sectional, and we have that. This is more than this year, because last year was taken away, it’s been two seasons for this. Check box No. 2, and we are not done yet.”
Dylan Meyer began the Indians’ onslaught with a win in the shot put (52′-2 3/4″). The senior didn’t know if he would be able to throw this past fall.
“This is amazing. I’m so happy and excited,” Meyer said. “This past fall I had shoulder surgery and wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to throw. It feels so good to do this for our team, and I have a feeling it’s going to be a great day for us.”
Minooka’s 4X800 relay of Adam Shaw, Zach Balzer, Emerson Fayman and Vincent Van Eck won in a state leading time of 7:49.74. Andrew Undresser won the pole vault (13′-7 3/4″). Van Eck came back to win the 800 (1:56.61) and also was part of the winning 4X400 relay (3:27.29), along with Fayman, Adrien Manning and Malik Armstrong. Tyler Colwell won the 200 in a second-best state time of 21.61 and was second in the 100.
Also qualifying were Darren Anderson in the high jump, the 4X100 relay (with the second best time in the state at 41.79) and the 4X20. Shaw also qualified in the 800, and Zach Balzer made it in the 1,600.
Joliet West freshman Marcellus Mines won the 1,600 meters (4:18.76), which also broke the school record he set Saturday at the SPC meet.
“First, I’d like to give all glory to God, he gets me up in the morning,” Mines said. Next week I just want to run another personal best, and I know I’ll be chasing people and try to win a medal.”
Also qualifying for the Tigers were the 4X800 relay of Luke Pollack, Oscar Becerra, Jake Pollack and Patrick Olson. It was the first time in West history that a 4X800 relay qualified for state. Tyler Rothbart qualified in the discus.
Lincoln-Way Central received wins from Caden Simone in the 3,200 (9:35.24) and Jake Mackowiak in the long jump (22′-11″). Also qualifying was Joseph Vollmer in the triple jump.
“It feels really good to be going to state for the first time,” said Simone, a junior. “It was a tough race with the heat and wind, but the worst part was how dry it was.”
Lincoln-Way East received a win from Uchechukwu Ezeigwe in the triple jump (42′-1 1/4″). They also qualified Pete Weygandt in the high jump, Ami Grunert in the pole vault and Nolan Rogers in the 3,200 and the 4X400 relay.
Lincoln-Way West’s Jake Ryan qualified in the pole vault.