DGN story at Top Times Indoor Classic

Downers Grove North junior Michaela Nicholson returned to compete in the Class 3A 3,200-meter relay at the Illinois Prep Top Times Classic Saturday with a different perspective on track.

Nicholson missed the latter half of the 2012 outdoor season with a stress fracture in her right foot.

“You would think it would be good to take a break, but really when you’re injured, you miss competing a lot,” Nicholson said. “It’s not worth it. I think it made me realize this time is limited and you need to use it. High school competition’s not forever.”

The Trojans had many strong performances from six entries in their return to the annual meet at Illinois Wesleyan University’s Shirk Center in Bloomington. Entries were invited to participate based upon top performances during the indoor season.

All eight Trojans who competed earned medals for top-eight finishes.

Junior Stephanie Urbancik achieved a lifetime-best 2:19.51 fully-automatic time in the 800-meter run for second place. Junior Meghan Bonfield was fourth in 2:20.69, also her personal best for an open 800.

The 3,200 relay of freshmen Kaitlyn Bonfield and Grace Maletich, sophomore Zayna Jan and Nicholson was fifth in the team’s season best of 9:34.99, the fastest time by any West Suburban Conference Silver Division team this indoor season.

The 1,600 relay of Urbancik, Meghan Bonfield, senior Rebecca Ridderhoff and junior Mary Rounce finished seventh in 4:06.97, just shy of their indoor-school record 4:06.29 that won the indoor Silver Meet March 15.

Maletich was ninth in the 1,600 in a personal-best 5:17.31. Ridderhoff was ninth in the 400 (1:01.15), just shy of her 1:01.14 season best in the event.

In her one race, Nicholson contributed a season-best split of 2:24.9. She earned the spot after a third-place 2:26.73 at the Silver Meet.

“I’m really glad I had the opportunity to do it with all of these fast people so it was cool,” Nicholson said. “I think all of us tried to get our best times.”

Instead of competing in the 3,200 relay as they did at the Silver Meet, Urbancik and Meghan Bonfield entered the 800 fresh and it paid off. Urbancik only was beaten by Glenbard West senior Emma Reifel, who won in an indoor school-record 2:14.85.

At the indoor Silver Meet, Reifel won the 800 in a meet-record and then school-record 2:15.73 with Urbancik second in 2:23.36. Urbancik closed the margin of victory from 7.63 seconds to 4.65 seconds Saturday.

“That was my goal (sub-2:20),” Urbancik said.

“I just tried to get out and stay with (Reifel) as long as possible. After two laps, she started pulling away a lot, but I think she definitely helped. It helped not having the (3,200 relay) before that because I was really tired last week and it felt a lot better this week.”

At the 2012 Class 3A state meet, Reifel was part of the second-place 3,200 relay that ran the second-fastest time in girls state meet history (9:00.72). Reifel later was 12th in the 800 (2:18.21) after an open lifetime best 2:13.63 in the prelims.

Urbancik earned her open lifetime best primarily by pushing herself. She spent most of the race clearly in second place, but she maintained her focus to hold off third-place Belvidere North’s Kim Seger (2:20.24).

“I just knew there was a ton of girls right there behind me so I just had to stay strong as long as I could,” Urbancik said.

Bonfield, who finished just .45 behind Seger, ran the 400 as her open event at the Silver Meet to help her prepare for the 1,600 relay.
 
“I think it was good, but I was wanting to get a little bit faster,” Bonfield said. “I wanted to get sub-2:20, but I ran 2:20. I was still happy with it.”

Kaitlyn Bonfield and Maletich also were part of the 3,200 relay at the Silver Meet, which won in 9:42.15. The open 800 was Nicholson’s lone event at the Silver Meet. Jan, usually a varsity competitor, instead was used on the frosh-soph level and had personal-best times for the open 800 (3rd, 2:29.64) and split with the 3,200 relay (2:26.1), which won handily but was disqualified for a lane violation.

“I didn’t think I was going to be running here because I ran JV at conference. But (head coach Tim McDonald) put me in the 4-by-800 so I got really excited,” Jan said. “I think we did really well because all of us PRed for the season in the relay.”

Maletich had a team-best 2:22.4 split, followed by Jan (2:23.3), Kaitlyn Bonfield (2:24.2) and Nicholson (2:24.9). The team ran so well that it beat the Trojans’ indoor Silver Meet winning time of 9:42.15 by more than seven seconds, although Downers North coasted to the Silver victory and had several more races to follow.

Yorkville won the race in 9:22.10, followed by Minooka (9:29.24), Lane (9:31.05) and St. Charles East (9:31.66). At the Top Times Meet last year, the 3,200 relay of Urbancik, Meghan Bonfield, Nicholson and currently injured senior Gabbie Hesslau was third in 9:25.10.

“It was good. It was really fast,” Maletich said. “It was good to run with such good girls. It made it easier to run faster. Your teammates have to get you out in a good start, but it’s kind of nice to have people in front of you so you can catch up.”

Nicholson has been playing catch up health wise since last spring. She was running the 1,600 at the Palatine Invite in mid-April when something felt wrong.

“I finished the race but afterward I thought I pulled something in my foot and then the next day it hurt so bad I couldn’t walk really well,” Nicholson said. “I didn’t run outdoor sectionals or state but I was an alternate still.”

Nicholson was healthy by cross country season and didn’t miss a meet. She only missed the indoor season opener when she re-irritated the foot.

Maletich, hampered by injury in the middle of her cross country season, also appears to be on a path to state.

In the 1,600, Maletich cut time once again after a fourth-place 5:20.64 behind three of the state’s premier distance runners – York senior Emma Fisher, Hinsdale Central senior Jill Hardies and Glenbard West junior Madeline Perez, who won Saturday in a meet-record 4:53.60. Maletich was .76 from eighth and .92 from seventh.

“It was really fast, and it was a really fun race. It was easier to push myself because everyone else was really fast,” Maletich said. “I’m really excited because I know I can improve.”
 
Rounce also is among those looking for big improvement in the spring, her first outdoor track season. This was just her third time with the 1,600 relay and second as the anchor. Rounce had her second-fastest split of 1:03.5.

“I guess I’m surprised that I’m here since I don’t really know what I’m doing and then I’m running the 4-by-400 at indoor state. That’s pretty exciting,” Rounce said. “I’m having fun with it and I’m just trying to do my best to help out the relay that I’m in.”

Urbancik (1:00.2) and Ridderhoff (1:00.6) both had sub-61-second splits, followed by Meghan Bonfield (1:02.6) and Rounce. The Trojans again easily beat the 4:08.15 indoor school record from 2011 that existed prior to the Silver Meet and were just .16 behind sixth-place West Aurora (4:06.81).

“We were hoping to drop time (again), but we’re happy,” Urbancik said.

St. Charles East dominated from the outset and won in 3:57.75. Glenbard West, second to the Trojans at the Silver Meet, was fourth in 4:03.94, .04 from its indoor school record with one lineup switch from conference but also a more rested lineup.

Ridderhoff, seeded in the first of three three-runner heats of the 400, was just .10 from eighth to a girl in her heat. Although Ridderhoff said she was disappointed with her 400, only Silver Meet champ Sarah Kreikemeier of Lyons Township (59.26) ran a faster open 400 among conference athletes this indoor season.

“I think we all just ran really well (as a team). The competition was really good. Most of us really stepped up, especially that 4-by-800,” Ridderhoff said.

“I just loved seeing everyone run, really positive attitudes. The 4-by-800 especially just went out and killed, and I think the 4-by-400 did exceptionally well, too. It was fun to watch and fun to run.”