'Saturday, it's state championship time': Nelson, Hemmen highlight the area athletes aiming for titles at Saturday's state finals
May 20—Grace Nelson and Isabelle Hemmen can smell gold in their sight.
After a successful first day at the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Class 1A State Track and Field Meet on Thursday morning, the Altamont and Teutopolis stars are sitting pretty heading into Saturday's final day of events. Nelson finished first in the 100-meter- and 300-meter hurdles, while Hemmen finished first in the pole vault.
Nelson won the 100-meter hurdles in 14.18 seconds — setting a personal record.
"This race, I've been mad about the whole year because last year, I lost by .05 [seconds], so I've just been looking for revenge," Nelson said.
Her dominance continued in the 300-meter hurdles, too, where she won in 44.29 seconds. Nelson is the defending state champion in the event and is eager to make it two-in-a-row come Saturday.
"I'm hyped for Saturday, and I was hyped for today, honestly. But, now, tomorrow is a recovery day, and then Saturday, it's state championship time," Nelson said.
Nelson also qualified for Saturday in the 200-meter dash, where she finished third after a time of 26.45 seconds.
As for Hemmen, she and 13 others from around the state qualified for Saturday's final after finishing with a jump of 3.27 meters (10-feet-8.75-inches).
Overall, the top-nine individuals — including ties — move on to the final day of competition.
Other area individuals moving on are Brownstown St. Elmo's Addie McWhorter (high jump), St. Anthony's Allison Geen (pole vault), Newton's Alexis Hetzer (triple jump), and Hemmen's teammate Kaitlyn Vahling (100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, 400-meter dash). Vahling set personal records in all three events she competed in; she currently sits second in the 100-meter- and 400-meter dashes and sixth in the 200-meter dash.
"That was my best time, so I'm surprised," said Vahling following the 400-meter dash. "I'm looking forward to coming here again, doing my best, and trying to get in the top three."
Aside from individual success, one area relay team is also moving on. The Lady Eagles 4x400-meter relay team finished with a time of 4:12.59. The quartet consists of Sydney Kinder, Karasyn Martin, Rylea Borgic, and Laney Hemrich.
Hemrich also competed in the 4x100-meter relay and the 400-meter dash — she did not qualify for Saturday in either event. Her team finished 16th in the 4x100-meter relay, and she finished 11th in the 400-meter dash.
"I'm a little winded. The last 100, in the backstretch coming home, was windy, and I was not expecting that," said Hemrich after the 400-meter dash. "Everyone else came out super strong, and it felt really fast, but once you got to this last curve, it was super dead."
Meanwhile, for Borgic, she was especially busy, competing in the 800-meter run, 100-meter hurdles, and 300-meter hurdles, along with the 4x400-meter relay.
Heading into the event, though, Borgic knew what she had to focus on more than anything else.
"I knew all four of my events, and I had to decide which one I wanted to put the most effort in, and I was checking everyone else out and was like, 'OK, 300 hurdles and 4x400, that's where I need to go,' and that's what I'm planning to do," Borgic said.
Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.
