Boys track and field: Benet 1st, Marmion 3rd at Plano sectional

For much of Friday’s Class 2A Plano boys track and field sectional, the participating athletes not only had to battle tough competitors, but also adjust to strong, gusty winds.Streator junior Aneefy Ford said the wind didn’t really bother him as much as not advancing in the 200-meter run.However, Ford will be heading to next weekend’s state finals individually after claiming the title in the 100 (10.59 seconds), as well as part of the Bulldogs’ 4×100 relay team that placed second but set a school record in a time of 43.77.”It was a close call for sure,” Ford said of the 100. “I was terrible out of the box, so I had to just rely on getting to my top speed as quickly as I could. It also helps in situations like today when there are so many other fast kids in your heat, it just makes you push even harder.”Benet won the overall team sectional title with 97 points, with Pontiac (73) second and Marmion (62) third.Benet Academy’s Jack Chvatal has only been high jumping for two years, but the senior made the most of his last prep season by winning the high jump in a leap of 1.92 meters.”I definitely had to change a few things I normally do today because of the wind being in my face on my approach,” Chvatal said. “One thing was taking longer strides to help pick up my speed before my takeoff. This was a personal best for me, and to do it at sectionals is awesome. Hopefully at state it’s a little less windy, but if it is windy, I guess today should help me as well.”A few of the later heights I was able to go first because of the rankings and make it right away. Being in that position I think took a lot of pressure off me and helped me relax and start thinking about the next height.”The Joliet Catholic Academy sophomore duo of Adrian Washington and HJ Grigsby finished 1-2 in the long jump, with the former posting a best jump of 6.82 meters and the latter registering a 6.45.”I knew I had to change where I normally start after a couple of warmups,” Washington said about the wind factor. “I probably start closer to the pit than most guys, but today I had to move back. The wind was tough for sure, but I think it was more a mental thing to get over. I scratched on my first jump, but my second attempt ended in a very good PR of .4 meters.”I think that both HJ and I are pretty lucky, because we have each other to help push each of us. Hopefully we can both can go even jump farther at state.”Grigsby agreed the wind changed how he approached his runs.”There was a cross breeze, and you kind of had to wait and hopefully start your run when the wind died down a little,” Grigsby said. “I just tried to go a little bit stronger at the start of my runs, but also stay consistent in what I was doing. I didn’t get a PR I was hoping for, but I’m going to state, so that’s great.”In the 110 hurdles, La Salle-Peru junior Brett Aimone punched his ticket to state with a fourth-place finish, but a qualifying time of 15.17.”We knew it would be close, he’d have to make [qualifying] time, and this would be probably the fastest race he’d ever run in up to this point,” L-P coach Adam Spencer said. “He was ranked fifth coming into today, and those four guys ahead of him are tough. He’s been battling a groin and hamstring injury basically the whole season. He’s overcome a lot.”He had run a 15.4 last week at Ottawa despite hitting the last hurdle, so he knew if he could keep the run clean, he’d have a good shot. He did that, and hopefully now he cannot only take everything in experience-wise at state, but he can also have another good race down there. I’m super excited for him to get this opportunity.”