The IWU Titan First Chance meet was a massive day for the Illinois Track Club, especially for the distance squad, who seemed determined to claim every inch of the track. Danuta Carvalho set the tone early, snatching 1st place in the 800m with a smooth 2:24.33. It was nearly an ITFC sweep at the top, as Lenny Sterritt crossed right behind her for 2nd place in 2:24.61, followed by Piper Rieger in 2:37.10.
The men’s 800m was just as crowded with orange and blue. Simon Hildy led that charge in 4th place (2:00.69), with a long line of teammates following: Jeremy Perez (2:03.11), Kyle McCoskey (2:06.41), Dakota Amar (2:06.63), James Stanley (2:07.37), Max Boughner (2:08.41), Koen Brown (2:11.14), and Cole Payne (2:11.33).
The Mile was essentially an ITC time trial. James Stanley and Ethan Forsell fought their way into the top tier, taking 5th (4:27.23) and 6th (4:28.46). The rest of the pack kept the officials busy: Thomas Harmon (4:29.66), Jack Wilkinson (4:36.91), Everett Sinson (4:37.48), Albert Szewczyk (4:43.89), Alex Demas (4:50.27), Braden Cardamone (4:54.93), Nick Kwentus (4:57.74), Liam Grady (4:59.92), Jonah Dishi (5:00.52), Morgan Frederick (5:04.81), Marcus Finley (5:08.83), Ryland O’Hanlon (5:22.61), and JP Moore (5:40.14). Later on, Jack Wilkinson jumped back on the track to grab 2nd place in the 3000m (9:30.13), while Annika Luthe clocked a 13:00.53.
Over in the explosive events, Lyla Repscher had a busy afternoon, hitting 8.39 in the 60m and 28.42 in the 200m. Joshua Hunt showed off his range, running 7.26 in the 60m and 23.86 in the 200m. Other sprint standouts included Lance Moore (7.39/24.23), Jack Tolentino (8.00 in the 60m), and a deep women’s 200m crew featuring Makayla Murrell (27.17), Nishta Murugan (29.06), Lucca Bibbey (29.51), Laney Bullivant (29.99), and Christina Jordan (30.58). Christina Jordan also handled the 60mH in 10.36. In the 400m, Carly Coxworth secured a podium spot in 3rd (1:02.97), with Lucca Bibbey (1:05.53) and Laney Bullivant (1:05.80) right on her heels.
The field events featured a major highlight from Christina Jordan, who cleared 1.62m to take 1st place in the High Jump. Hailey Liu stayed airborne all day, taking 6th in the Long Jump (4.81m) and 3rd in the Triple Jump (10.65m). Lance Moore also put up a 5.02m mark in the Long Jump. At the Shot Put circle, Joshua Hunt threw for 12.44m (10th), followed by Hayden Lewis (8.40m) while on the womens side Patricia Richards (10.24m), Mia Howard (9.92m), and Ivy Del Real (7.32m).
To cap it all off, the relays were a masterclass in teamwork. The women’s 4x400m (Carly Coxworth, Nishta Murugan, Lucca Bibbey, and Lenny Sterritt) took 5th in 4:23.04. The men flexed their depth with three squads: Men’s C (Jonah Diehl, Ethan Forsell, Everett Sinson, Simon Hildy) took 4th in 3:43.54; Men’s A (Koen Brown, Dakota Amar, James Stanley, Braden Cardamone) took 5th in 3:45.37; and Men’s B (Max Boughner, Alex Demas, Jeremy Perez, Albert Szewczyk) finished in 3:50.78.