West Chicago’s boys’ track and field team ran their fourth meet of the year, the Panther Invitational, on March 1 at Glenbard North High School, ultimately tying for fourth place with a score of 10 points.
The Panther Invitational, which the host school won, included runners from eight schools. The meet saw solid performances from several competitors. In particular, sophomore Nicholas Roskilly placed first in the high jump, achieving a personal best. Roskilly is now the #50 ranked high jumper in Illinois.
During the 55-meter dash, run by juniors Robert Lee and Louis Zeitler, Lee ran a 6.91, which gave him fifth place, and Zeitler ran the event in 6.99, placing seventh.
Although he earned seventh place in the 55-meeter hurdles, senior Matt Dewees is having a stellar season and set a new personal record of 9.05 in that event. His relay team in the 4×400, which also consists of Romeo Alfaro, Cooper Pensinger, and Diego Macias, placed fourth, trailing Glenbard North, Addison Trail, and Loyola Academy. With a time of 4:01.98, however, the four boys performed at the peak.
Macias, a long-time track participant, was also part of the third-place team in the 4×800 relay. He was joined by juniors Judah McLean and Lucas Gallian, as well as Alfaro.
Another relay team, Zeitler, Lee, and seniors Chase Pechman and Diego Contreras, came in fifth in the 4×160 relay.
The indoor track season is significantly shorter than that of the traditional spring season; with the Glenbard North meet concluded, the Wildcats have just six more meets until playoffs start.
“It’s going well. The team is off to a strong start indoors, and I can’t wait to see how they do outdoors,” Macias said
The track team saw the introduction of new runners this year, even seniors like Jason Wang, who, while new to the sport, is enjoying the experience.
“I genuinely look forward to tracking every single day, and the people are so amazing,” Wang said.
The article was updated to correct an error: Mathew Dewees was erroneously identified as a junior in the original.
