Lucas a step closer to Olympic dream as Bloomington North sweeps conference track titles

BLOOMINGTON — The boys and girls squads from Bloomington North and South posted 1-2 finishes in the Conference Indiana track meet at North on a Friday night that didn't wrap up until 10:30 as the boys' pole vaulters worked overtime.

The top-ranked North boys had 156½ points, winning nine events, to top the Panthers (138), who won six titles. It left only the top spot in high jump for Southport to claim.

The No. 5 North girls were able to use six first-place finishes, four from Dede Eberle, to score 145 points. South won four events and finished with 116.

Here's a look at some of the efforts and tribulations that were on display in Bloomington's dominating efforts:

Another 'Wow' moment for Bloomington North's Hadley Lucas

North senior Hadley Lucas easily won both girls throws events to give her seven CI throws titles in all (only shot put her freshman year eluded her) and went above and beyond just another sweep with her winning distance in the shot put of 54-10¾, which came on her fifth throw.

It was the third time that night that the Wisconsin recruit reset the school record she'd broken just 10 days ago with a 52-0. All but one throw in her series was longer than 53 feet, but this one was special. The look on Lucas' face when she heard the initial measurement said it all.

"It was fantastic. During practice this week, we got some close throws," Lucas said. "But I knew I had to show up and do what I knew I could at the meet today. And it's such a mental sport and I knew I was 'on' today. I felt it during warm-ups. I felt it during the first few throws.

"When you feel like your technique is on, it's just an immediate relief of pressure."

It also called for North's throws coach, Sara Hamidovic, to pull out the steel measuring tape to confirm the distance, which provisionally qualified her for this year's Olympic trials. It also ties for No. 3 all-time by a high schooler in the U.S.

"It means a lot," Lucas said. "That's kind of as far as this sport goes, so since I was little I've dreamed of the Olympics. Everybody dreams of the Olympics but to actually be able to get to that mark, it's crazy.

"I would say I'm incredibly lucky and thankful for the coaches that I've had that have helped me get to where I am today."

The minimum to be considered for the trials is 54-1¾ while 58-8¾ is the automatic qualifier.

She has two more home meets before sectionals, and yeah, getting a distance that could get her invited to the trials in discus is on her mind. A 175-6 is the minimum, 191-11 is automatic. She just upped her school record to 170-0 at the Edgewood Invitational last week. Her best on Friday was 'just' 162-7.

"I think I've definitely got that in me," Lucas said. "Just work on some things in practice and then show up in the next few meets. I think I've got it."

Bloomington South's Kollbaum learning the ropes

South freshman Lexi Kollbaum has had a remarkable debut, stretching back to her performances during the cross country season when she spent much of the year as the Panthers' No. 1 runner.

She's laid down some of the best times any freshman ever has at South in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. At the CI Meet, she was second in the 1,600 (5:12.72) and third in the 800 (2:23.88) and ended the night just hanging on against hard-charging North senior Nola Somers Glenn, to win the 1,600 relay by .39 in 4:08.20.

"She's doing a really great job," South coach Jill Rensink said. "Every race she runs, we talk afterward, 'What did you do well? What do we need to work on?' So it is a big learning experience to be in races where she has people with her. So figuring out how to race with people in front of you, behind you and around you.

"You saw it in that four-by-four, she's got guts. She holds on as long as she can. She's not a 400 kid but she did a fantastic job tonight."

Another of South's young distance corps, Julianne Hoover, won the 3,200 in 11:44.35.

South's other top performer on the night was sophomore Ellie Barada, who had a season best 57.46 to win the 400 and combined with Eden Bailey (one of several Panthers hit with a bug going around) on a 1-2 finish in the 200 with another season PR of 26.39. Barada also led off the 1,600 relay that included hurdler Annalise Coyne and sprinter Helena Cutshall.

"That four-by-four, that was, 'Who has some legs and can run?'" Rensink said. "Annalise had her best time and I'm not sure Helena's ever run a 400 before in her life. She was terrified."

Big contributions help Bloomington North sweep

Part of Helmer's plan for the girls was to turn senior Dede Eberle loose in four individual events and pile up 40 points. She did just that, cruising through the prelims of the 100 dash and 100 hurdles, then turning around and going 15.00 to win the hurdles final and flipping right back to the starting blocks and just holding off Terre Haute South's Shalene Blakey by .01 in the 100 with a 12.89.

Eberle went on to take long jump in 17-5 and complete the quadfecta with a 47.83 in the 300 hurdles.

"We asked Dede to run all individual events," North coach Justin Helmer said. "That's not easy but she got excited about that and did a great job with it.

"Grace Wellman had a great day, a big day. Running the 100, 200, four-by-one and coming back on the four-by-four. And I thought our girls in the four-by-eight (placing second), that was a point swing for us. They set a tone for us early on. And Nola (Somers Glenn, second) in the 400 and 800. That's a difficult double. Then came back and ran an amazing anchor leg."

Among the boys' medal hauls were four field event champs: Evan Cheng in the long jump (21-6), Max Wynalda in the shot put (56-1½), Adis Hamidovic in discus (154-6) and Ethan Isles, with a career best 13-6 in pole vault.

On the track, Jacob Mitchell (9:21.77) and Caelan D'Onofrio (9:22.60) had a strong finish over the last 300 meters to go 1-2 in a loaded 3,200 that included South's Ryan Rheam and other contenders. Earlier, D'Onofrio (4:29.12) and Aden Pierce went 1-2 in the 1,600 and Caleb Winders won the 800 (1:54.44). The Cougars also won the 3,200 relay (7:57.18).

"The way those guys ran (in the 3,200), that was huge," Helmer said. "I think we were down two points at that point without pole vault and four-by-four (finished). We gave ourselves a cushion early on with some really good races and built up a pretty good lead that we were able to hold off South with, without Jaidyn."

The margin of victory might have been greater but after Jaidyn Johnson (10.61) and Stephon Opoku (11.38) went 1-2 in the 100, the sprint crew had issues. Johnson tweaked his left hamstring and it caused him to pull up halfway through his anchor leg in the 400 relay. It and another injury to Joe Powell kept them both out of the 200 finals.

"After the 100, he was grabbing at it and said it was a little bit tight," Helmer said. "He warmed up and it felt it wasn't bad. But it's so hard to know. What do you do? He went into that four-by-one questioning it a little bit so when he accelerated and started to feel it, he shut it down. I don't know how bad it is. But I know there's frustration after last year."

Bloomington South's mid-distance boys crew shines

Just as the North boys' depth in the 800/1,600 has stood out this season, the same is happening for South's boys in the 400. Head coach Larry Williams has a bevy of options for his 1,600 relay, going with John Sobiech, Teagan Bullock, Julian Dusleag and Josh Tait for a win in 3:23.71.

Tait was the CI 400 champ in 49.84 with Sobiech third. Bullock is the Panthers' top man in the 800 again this year. Sobiech was in a boot this time last year and Dusleag is battling a painful foot issue.

"He said at the 300 mark, he was ready to step off the track," South coach Larry Williams said. "But he gutted it out for the team."

And that unselfishness is what he's seeing from them at the moment.

"I'm real proud of how they handle it because we feel we have six or seven mid-distance guys who could be on that relay and they all want it," Williams said. "But yet they've not been mean to each other. They're helping to push each other.

"James Ryan is a great example. We ran him in the open 800 tonight to see if that's a place for him to help out so we can spread some of those kids out. And that kid's right over there with the 400 guys at the four-by-four. He could be over here on the hillside sulking but he's a team kid. Having them do the workouts together is a blessing. It helps to bring more out of them."

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The Panthers also saw senior D'Andre Black win the 110 hurdles the easy way in 14.84 and the 300s the hard way, clipping the 10th hurdle and stumbling but still falling across the finish line in time to win in 40.54, with Noah Liell-Beyene third. In the 200, Gabe Taylor (23.41) and Khaliq Akou (23.50), battling a back issue, went 1-2.

Alex Shaevitz (20-7) was second in the long jump and Guy Drummond had a PR of 50-5 for third in shot put.

"I'm proud of them," Williams said. "The kids ran well in a high-caliber meet. I thought there was a lot of growth from our team."

Bloomington North's Winders trying to get wound up again

The outdoor season has been trying for North sophomore Caleb Winders, who naturally saw more great things coming after his breakout freshman season. But illness has really held him in check, so now, it's making sure he's doing the smart things to be ready for the postseason.

"I think for him, he's learned how to race a little bit smarter," Helmer said. "He still has that just put my head down and run as hard as I can (which he showed on the 1,600 relay), which makes him great. But I think he's understanding how to race a race, which will benefit him."

He looked good in his two relay races and 800 victory.

"I was planning on going out hard in that and taking the lead early," Winders said. "But after the four-by-eight, I didn't feel great so I just wanted to stay with whoever was leading then go with 300 left. After that, I threw up. So I gave it everything."

Winders is a relentless runner but putting himself where he wants to be a month from now is the goal.

"It's a bit frustrating but I have to trust in the process and believe I can do it," Winders said. "And if I stick with (assistant coach) Charlie Warthan's program, I will be better by state time."

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CONFERENCE INDIANA BOYS RESULTS

Team scores: 1. Bloomington North 156½; 2. Bloomington South 138; 3, Columbus North 92; 4. Southport 56½; 5. Terre Haute South 46; 6. Terre Haute North 4

Individual results (top 2 and area finishers)

100: 1. Jaidyn Johnson, BN, 10.61; 2. Stephon Opoku, BN, 11.38; T3. Khaliq Akou, BS, 11.51; 5. Gabe Taylor, BS, 11.56. 200: 1. Taylor, BS, 23.41; 2. Akou, BS, 23.50. 400: 1. Josh Tait, BS, 49.84; 2. Stephen Markle, THS, 50.81; 3. John Sobiech, BS, 51.16; 4. James Bosco, BN, 51.96; 5. Reed Pierce, BN, 52.17. 800: 1. Caleb Winders, BN, 1:54.44; 2. Jace Works, CN, 1:56.52; 4. Dominic D'Onofrio, BN, 1:59.61; 5. Teagan Bullock, BS, 2:02.60; 8. Ryan James, BS, 2:09.49. 1,600: 1. Caelan D'Onofrio, BN, 4:29.12; 2. Logan Vanzant, CN, 4:29.76; 3. Aden Pierce, BN, 4:30.79; 5. Hunter Tabor, BS, 4:36.13; 6. Suoming Zhang, BS, 4:41.53. 3,200: 1. Jacob Mitchell, BN, 9:21.77; 2. C.D'Onofrio, BN, 9:22.60; 3. Ryan Rheam, BS, 9:23.47; 6. Joe Zinkan, BS, 9:45.17. 110 hurdles: 1. D'Andre Black, BS, 14.84; 2. Liam Milne, CN, 15.47; 4. Alan Hays, BN, 15.84; 7. Ben Boland, BN, 16.05. 300 hurdles: 1. Black, BS, 40.54; 2. Ricky Sanders, Sp, 42.21; 3. Noah Liell-Beyene, BS, 42.59; 4. Alan Hays, BN, 43.21; 8. Mohamed Gassama, BN, 44.74.

High jump: 1. Braylon Koenig, Sp, 6-0; T2. Presley Airhiabonkpa, Sp, 6-0; Brayson Johnson, BN, 6-0; 4. Andrew Elsesser, BS, 6-0; 6. Alex Shaevitz, BS, 5-10; 7. Amare Draughn, BN, 5-10. Long jump: 1. Evan Cheng, BN, 21-6; 2. Shaevitz, BS, 20-7½; 3. Elijah Bennett, BN, 20-2¾; 4. Carter Cutshall, BS, 19-6½. Shot put: 1. Max Wynalda, BN, 56-1½; 2. Drew Schiefer, CN, 52-9; 3. Guy Drummond, BS, 50-5; 4. Ethan Barnes, BS, 49-1; 7. Traeh Young, BN, 47-7¾. Discus: 1. Adis Hamidovic, BN, 154-6; 2. Schiefer, CN, 151-3; 3. Ivan Lynch, BS, 140-1; 4. Mattheus Wynalda, BN, 138-2; 8. Eli Whitney, BS, 122-11. Pole vault: 1. Ethan Isles, BN, 13-6; 2. Ricky Sanders, Sp, 13-0; T5. Will Steiner, BN, 11-6; 7. Arthur Banks, BS, 10-6; 8. Adrian Ross, BS, 10-0.

400 relay: 1. Bloomington South (Taylor, Townsend, Barnes, Akou), 44.00; 2. Columbus North, 44.43; 6. Bloomington North (Cheng, Opoku, Hayes, Johnson), 57.63. 1,600 relay: 1. Bloomington South (Sobiech, Bullock, Dusleag, Tait), 3:23.71; 2. Bloomington North (Bosco, Patel, R.Pierce, Winders), 3:26.02. 3,200 relay: 1. Bloomington North (D.D'Onofrio, R.Pierce, Mitchell, Winders), 7:57.18; 2. Columbus North, 8:00.72; 3. Bloomington South (Rheam, J.Zinkan, Rice, Bullock), 8:11.74.

CONFERENCE INDIANA GIRLS

Team scores: 1. Bloomington North 145; 2. Bloomington South 116; 3. Columbus North 102; 4. Terre Haute South 58; 5. Terre Haute North 48; 6. Southport 24.

Individual results (top 2 and area finishers)

100: 1. Dede Eberle, BN, 12.89; 2. Shalane Blakey, THS, 12.90; 3. Violet Hall, BS, 13.33; 4. Grace Wellman, BN, 13.52; 6. Helena Cutshall, BS, 13.63. 200: 1. Ellie Barada, BS, 26.39; 2. Eden Bailey, BS, 26.85; 3. Wellman, BN, 27.30; 7. Daisy Rogers, BN, 27.94. 400: 1. E.Barada, BS, 57.46; 2. Nola Somers Glenn, BN, 59.25; 4. Emma Rice, BN, 1:02.98. 800: 1. Carys Glyn-Jones, CN, 2:16.21; 2. Somers Glenn, BN, 2:17.67; 3. Lexi Kollbaum, BS, 2:23.88; 6. Katie Kent, BN, 2:30.38; 7. Grace Stringer, BS, 2:34.27. 1,600: 1. Glyn-Jones, CN, 5:08.23; 2. Kollbaum, BS, 5:12.72; 4. Evie Peterson, BN, 5:37.09; 5. Tamara Kun, BS, 5:39.82; 6. Tori Bilohlavek, BN, 5:43.27. 3,200: 1. Julienne Hoover, BS, 11:44.35; 2. Macy Eaton, CN, 11:46.86; 3. Kate Barada, BS, 11:57.88; 4. Hayden McGuire, BN, 12:00.79; 5. Ruth Bartlett, BN, 12:38.97. 100 hurdles: 1. Eberle, BN, 15.00; 2. Adriene Shaevitz, BS, 16.23; 6. Annalise Coyne, BS, 17.38; 8. Onika Rutledge, BN, 17.73. 300 hurdles: 1. Eberle, BN, 47.83; 2. Natalie Rohm, CN, 50.00; 3. Coyne, BS, 50.51; 8. Lucy Tait, BS, 53.87.

High jump: 1. Emma Martin, THN, 5-2; 2. TeAsia Bibbs, Sp, 5-0; 4. Kenli Sullivan, BN, 5-0; 5. Hall, BS, 4-10; 7. Teagan West, BS, 4-8; 8. Morgan Barrow, BN, 4-6. Long jump: 1. Eberle, BN, 17-5; 2. Blakey, THS, 16-4½; 4. Rogers, BN, 16-2¼; 6. Alaina Bunnell, BS, 15-2¾. Shot put: 1. Hadley Lucas, BN, 54-10¾ (Meet record; old record, 49-6, Lucas, 2022)(school record; old record, Lucas, 52-0, 2024); 2. IndiAnn Nichols, THS, 35-9; 6. Molli Lucas, BS, 34-1; 7. Ashley Greer, BN, 33-9½; 8. Anna Barnes, BS, 31-11½. Discus: 1. Lucas, BN, 162-5; 2. Greer, BN, 119-0; 3. Barnes, BS, 118-0; 8. Lillian Waldrep, BS, 89-2. Pole vault: 1. Cali Wuestefeld, THN, 9-6; 2. Miley Wuesterfeld, THN, 9-0; 3. Lauren Barbu, BN, 8-6; 7. Aryana Wallace, BN, 8-0.

400 relay: 1. Terre Haute South 50.59; 2. Bloomington South (M.Freeman, Bunnell, Bailey, Hall), 50.98; 3. Bloomington North (Rogers, Wellman, Roberts, Williams), 51.23 1,600 relay: 1. Bloomington South (E.Barada, Coyne, Cutshall, Kollbaum), 4:08.20; 2. Bloomington North (Wellman, Himebaugh, Rice, Somer Glenn, 4:08.59. 3,200 relay: 1. Columbus North 9:53.79; 2. Bloomington North (Patrick, Childers, Thies, McGuire), 10:15.73; 3. Bloomington South (K.Barada, Stringer, Hoover, Graham), 10:20.71.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Lucas makes history in North's Conference Indiana track sweep