DGN girls track at Ritter Invite

The Downers Grove North girls track and field team won the varsity 1,600-meter relay to complete a fifth-place finish at its annual Bruce Ritter Invitational Friday, April 17.

Seniors Rachel Schuetz and Zayna Jan, sophomore Emma Moravec and senior Hannah Henry captured the varsity 1,600 relay in 4:01.48 fully automatic time, which is the fifth fastest reported outdoor time in Illinois this season. The Trojans won the race by 1.44 seconds over Palatine.

By just .01 of a second, the 3,200 relay of Schuetz, Jan, junior Kaitlyn Bonfield and Moravec (9:20.88) was edged by Palatine (9:20.87) for the title. They are the two fastest reported outdoor times in the state.

Moravec anchored in a personal-record 2:14.0, but Palatine standout Kelly O'Brien barely edged Moravec at the finish after she put the Trojans in the lead ahead of third-place York (9:30.19). This was only the second time Schuetz competed in the event, and she responded by dropping four seconds for a 2:23.8 PR. Jan (2:20.4) also contributed a PR and Bonfield (2:22.5) came within .7 of hers.

The 800 relay of Schuetz, Henry, sophomore Faith LaMantia and senior Sophie Temple-Wood (1:45.83) finished second by .63 to Thornton (1:45.20). Temple-Wood, battling illness during the week, scratched from her other three events (100, 200, long jump).

Full story to come...

Ritter Invitational

Team results: 1. Palatine 107, 2. Prospect 82, 3. Lyons Township 70.5, 4. West Aurora 70, 5. DOWNERS GROVE NORTH 59.5, 6. Thornton 56, 7. Naperville Central 45, 8. York 53, 9. Wheeling 47, 10. Glenbard West 42, 11. Lane Tech 41, 12. Champaign Centennial 31, 13. Crete-Monee 21, 14. Joliet Central 6, 15T. Belvidere and Northridge Prep 0

Downers Grove North top-eight finishers
Fully automatic time

First place
Varsity 1,600 relay: Rachel Schuetz, Zayna Jan, Emma Moravec, Hannah Henry (4:01.48)

Second place
800 relay: Rachel Schuetz, Hannah Henry, Faith LaMantia, Sophie Temple-Wood (1:45.83)
3,200 relay: Rachel Schuetz, Zayna Jan, Kaitlyn Bonfield, Moravec (9:20.88)

Third place
Isabel Maletich: Triple jump (36-1 1/4)
Emma Moravec: 400 (59.01)
Jaila Green: High jump (5-3)-tie

Fourth place
Frosh-soph 1,600 relay: Isabel Maletich, Gina Kowalewicz, Zoe Covey, Faith LaMantia (4:16.70)

Sixth place
Samantha Wilson: Shot put (33-5)

Seventh place
Grace Maletich: 1,600 (5:23.25)
Peyton Winters: Discus (99-4)

Eighth place
Kaitlyn Bonfield: 1,600 (5:27.62)
Imani Jenkins: Discus (98-8)
Faith LaMantia: 100 (13.33)
Isabel Maletich: Long jump (16-1) 47.5

Photo: Sophomore Emma Moravec (left) and seniors Rachel Schuetz, Hannah Henry and Zayna Jan after winning the 1,600-meter relay