The Varsity boys’ track team at West Chicago Community High School brought home three first-place awards at the Upstate Eight Conference championship on May 12 at East Aurora High School. 

The team finished seventh in conference. 

“The boys met a lot of their goals from pre-season and performed well at the conference meet, even though a handful of guys were stuck only running one event because of the band concert being that night,” said head co-coach Tyler Belding.

Senior Nikhil Myers, who has been a top-scoring pole-vaulter all season, took the conference win with a height of 12’6, his third first-place finish of the season.

“I was very excited with my conference win. I jumped 12’ 6” which was about a foot over everyone else. I was injured for most of the indoor track season so I was just very thankful for every meet I went to and was able to compete at,” said Myers. “I was also happy to get all-conference again after last year when our 4×200 team won. Overall, it was a great final season with the team.”

Myers bested his conference height with a personal record (PR) at the sectional competition held at St. Charles North High School on May 19, where he came in at 13’4.25.

The 4×200 relay team consisting of seniors Mason Wright and Hugo Rosales, junior Jaden Bates, and sophomore Mason Williams also placed first at the UEC conference meet with a time of 1:33.71. 

“My first reaction was [that of] surprise. Our senior, Mason Wright, really came through for us to secure the win,” said Mason Williams.

In fact, Wright concluded his winning season as the third fastest 100-meter racer in the school’s history, clinching the UEC championship with a time of 11.06. The victory comes as no surprise, as Wright dominated in the 100 all season, placing first in the team’s three April meets. He earned first-place finishes in the 200-meter at the meet against East Aurora, Yorkville, Oswego East and Bartlett on April 12, as well as the Wildcat Spring Invite held at the high school on April 28. 

“For me personally, this track season was one I will never forget. It was my final track season, and although it didn’t finish the way I wanted to, I still really enjoyed all of it. For the team, it went very well for all of us as we all progressed throughout the year closer to our goals, even if we didn’t fully reach them,” said Wright. 

Wright’s 4×200 relay team, which included Mason Williams, Rosales and Myers, also took first place at the Wildcat Spring Invite. 

“My proudest moment was running down 2 teams in the conference 4×200 to become the UEC conference champs for the race. I took a lot of pride in this because we were major underdogs and I was able to bring home the win as the anchor after being put in a great situation due to the running of Jaden Bates, Mason Williams, and Hugo Rosales,” said Wright.

“We are all family, we look out for each other, uplift each other, and I could not ask for a better team,” said Mason Williams.

Several Wildcats finished their high school track careers this season, including seniors James Bloss, Rydel Salazar, Larsen Gallian, Jared Diaz, James Losacco, Johnny Burton.

Bloss, Salazar and Rosales’ 4×400 relay team consistently shaved seconds off their time this season. At the East Aurora meet on April 12, Bloss and Salazar, with Gallian and junior Connor Zentner, finished with a time of 4:03.3h, placing second to Yorkville. Rosales stepped in along with Bloss, Salazar and Gallian at the April 28 invitational meet, placing third, but with a decreased time of 3:51.15. The four runners came in fourteenth place at Sectionals, but with a time of 3:47.53, their best of the season.

Bloss also rounded out the 4×800 relay team that included Zentner, as well as junior Noah Herbst and freshman Judah McLean. The team placed in the top 4 in every meet this season, taking the win at the East Aurora competition with a time of 9:39.5h. They placed second at the UEC conference championship.

Diaz, Herbst and McLean took the win alongside sophomore Diego Macias, brought up from the freshman/sophomore (f/s) team, in the 4×800 relay at the Wildcat Spring Invite. 

Herbst performed well at the East Aurora meet, too, coming in second place in the 800-meter with a time of 2:16.3h, a PR, beating teammate Diaz, who placed fourth with a time of 2:19.1h.

Gallian continued to improve in pole vaulting, setting a PR at 8’ 2.75 at Sectionals. His 4×200 relay team, which featured Salazar as well as juniors Josiah Weems and Fernan Reyes, earned a second-place finish at the East Aurora meet, falling by fractions of a second to Yorkville.

Reyes also placed second at the East Aurora competition in long jump with a distance of 18’2, and third in high jump with a height of 5’ 1.75, a personal record.

Losacco, who typically competes in the 1600 and 3200-meter races, placed fourth at the East Aurora meet with a time of 12:27.2h. He later set a PR at the April 28 Wildcat Spring Invite, slashing 18 seconds off his previous time.

The Wildcats made strides in the hurdles competitions, with Burton placing third (with a PR of 19.03) in the 110-meter hurdles at the height of his competitive season. 

“Our kids work hard. Many of them play sports year around, and with their commitment, they will definitely make big progress to meeting their goals before next year even starts,” said Belding.  

Looking ahead, the team has a number of strong f/s competitors who are looking to move up to Varsity in the coming season. Sophomore Matt Dewees was the UEC conference champion in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles, while freshmen Romeo Alfaro, Lucas Gallian and Logan Bryson, as well as sophomore Owen Williams, placed first in conference in the 4×800 relay with a time of 9:32.08. Owen Williams was the UEC champion in the f/s 1600-meter run with a strong finish at 5:10.83.

“Our freshmen and sophomore runners really performed well at the end of the year which means the future is bright,” said Belding.