The successful scrambling by Trinity senior Sierra Brown on Saturday could have been a track and field event in itself.
Brown opened with the Class 2A girls long jump at the Illinois Top Times Indoor Championship at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington. She then was split among triple jump, long jump and the 60-meter hurdles preliminaries and finals.
“I am exhausted. I should not have stayed up last night,” said Brown, laughing.
“I usually always do four events so I’m kind of used to it. But today, a lot of running around – six jumps for both (long and triple) and then prelims and finals for the hurdles. It was just a lot, but I’m good.” Â
Brown won triple jump and had three more top-five finishes to lead the Blazers’ five top-eight medal performances. The three-class invite limits entries based upon documented season-best performances this indoor season.
Brown won triple jump with 38 feet-4 inches – her only attempt before later ending with her other five. She also was third in long jump (18-2 1/4), fourth in high jump by tying her indoor school record of 5-4 and fifth in the 60 hurdles (9.54) after tying her indoor school record of 9.40 in the prelims.
Fenwick senior Grace Cronin was second in the 60 hurdles (8.93), breaking her indoor school record by .01.
Trinity’s 3,200 relay of sophomores Alyssa Jimenez and Hailey Hansen, senior Emily Doyle and freshman Alexis Crohn was seventh in 9:53.77, shattering the indoor school record of 10:16.02 that group ran March 12. Hansen was ninth in the 1,600 (5:19.90), 5.20 seconds from eighth.
In 3A boys, Fenwick junior Anthony Pasquesi was seventh in triple jump (season-best 42-2 1/2).
At the indoor Girls Catholic Athletic Conference Meet March 26, Brown won triple jump (meet-record 38-6) and Hansen won the 1,600 (indoor school-record 10:49.76). Brown’s 39-4 Feb. 15 set the triple jump indoor school record.
Cronin won the 60 hurdles (9.06) and ran 9.00 in prelims – both well under the previous 9.57 GCAC Meet record.
At last year’s 3A Top Times final, Cronin was third in 8.94. In Saturday’s final, Cronin was edged by Brooks sophomore Imani Carothers (8.85), the defending 2A Top Times champion who led from the opening hurdle.
“I felt like my start wasn’t the best. I stood up in the blocks but other than that, it was OK,” Cronin said. “I had to catch up because of the start and it’s such a short race.”
All four Blazers had personal-best splits in the 3,200 relay – Doyle (lifetime-best 2:24), Hansen (2:27) and Jimenez and Crohn (2:30 each). The relay only was invited after a faster team scratched and was seeded last among the 12 entries. They finished 3.23 seconds ahead of eighth.
“It’s awesome because we barely made it (here). We were able to run and surprise everybody and get seventh — and we broke 10:00. It’s a huge underdog component,” Doyle said. “It’s exhilarating. It’s like a 20-second (school record). It makes me really excited to see that we have a lot of potential.”