4-Peat, So Sweet!

Coaches Corner

Raider(s) Of The Meet
The Raider(s) Of The Meet award will be given to those athletes that through their performances, caught the attention of the Coaches.  This week, the Coaches have selected our entire Team as our Raiders Of The Meet.  Congratulations!

IHSA Sectional
2010. 2011, 2012, & 2013 - Glenbard South Girls AA Sectional Champions!  We're starting to make a habit out of this.  Earlier in the year, we weren't sure if we could duplicate last years performances.  Somewhere along the line, we became believers, and you became believers.  As the weeks progressed, we became tougher and tougher.  The scoring on Friday night was very balanced with the Field Events giving us a 53 point headstart! Throw in 96 points in the running events and we get a dominant Team Victory.  What this all means is we have another chance next week in Charleston.  If we take another step forward together it could mean "BIG" things for our Raider Girls Track program.  Are you ready?  ARE YOU READY?
 

The Webb Wire-
It's hard for me to put into words all that took place Friday night. With the exception of the 400 (which saw both Becca and Anniken run season PRs), we scored in every track race. In the distance events, we double scored in each race. That doesn't happen very often. On paper, we had a slight cushion to out-score Walther Lutheran. To exceed that by 20 and win by over 40? - That's ridiculous. It's a testament to you girls and your focus, dedication, effort - all kinds of superlatives that add up to a very special group of girls. The 4x800 started things off once again on the track with a solid effort. In my opinion, Fenwick and Montini and are going to be all-state relays next week. We will need to be a little better if we want to join them on the podium - and we can. Diane Lipa, for the second week in a row, did all the work in the 3200 and is looking primed to have a great race on Saturday - because she'll actually have people to race! Her 1600 race, against 2 returning all-staters from Fenwick, was a thing of beauty. A 5:18 in the state pre-lims (where she'll be fresh) should get her to the finals where, again, anything is possible. Would it have been nice to get a few more state qualifiers? Absolutely. But can I ask for anything else out of these girls? Absolutely not. I would have loved to see Chloe hang on and out-kick that girl for 2nd. How awesome would it have been for Elizabeth to qualify in a race where she was sitting 7th after one lap? And icing on the cake would have seen Monica return to state in the 1600 with a chance to lower her time once again. But those things didn't happen, and I believe that things happen for a reason. For the 4 girls running the 4x800 - they have one race to focus on and put all their energy towards. For the alternates (Chloe, Jayme, Caroline) - they had great final races that should propel them to great things their junior year. For Diane, this could be a preview of things to come for the next 3 years. How will this chapter end?
 

Tacchi Talk- Tough.  That's what you are and what you proved.  Who would have thought we would have had a meet like this?  Running our best times of the year,we qualified in all three relays and both hurdles.  Congrats to our Sectional Champions in the 800 Relay (Blohm Bivins, Markovic, Curry, & Gniatczyk), the 1600 Relay (Gniatczyk, Blohm Bivins, Curry, & Hill) and Katelyn Hill in the 100 Hurdles.  Just missing punching her ticket to state was Bailey Reese in both hurdles.  There's no one tougher Bailey!  Becca Everhart finished her season with a season's best in both the 400 and 200! Throw in individual scoring from Taylor Ray and Ivana Markovic in the 100 and 200 and the sprinters were nothing short of brilliant!  Next up is State and the prelims on Friday.  Here's my prediction: The best times of the year!  Hopefully, it will be enough to make "The Dance" on Saturday.  Thanks to all the sprinters for a great and fun season!
 

The Crissey Chronicles - Congratulations, Lady Raiders on winning a fourth sectional title in a row.  That is an incredible accomplishment.  Moreover, this winning tradition would not have come to fruition if it weren’t for an awesome group of seniors.  Two things that I have learned long ago were reinforced because of the two seniors I’m blessed to work with each day:  1. Ridiculously hard work pays off; 2. NEVER take anything for granted.  I will elaborate more on those two statements next week after the state track meet.  What a night for the Raiders’ throwers.  Samantha Howard qualified for the state meet in discus on her first throw of competition.  She went on to have the most dominate throwing performance I’ve ever seen from a female throwing at Glenbard South.  Sam had three throws over 130-feet, and none of her six attempts were under 120-feet.  In shot put, Samantha continued her winning ways by taking first place.  Although, she did not throw an automatic qualifying mark, it was strong enough to get her to the big dance.  Tierra Wilson faced some adversity during both throwing competitions.  She fouled on her first throw of discus, but gathered herself and threw 118-10 on her second attempt to automatically qualify her for the state meet in discus.  She went on to have one other throw in the 120-foot range.  During the shot put competition, Tierra’s back was against the wall.  The thrower from Montini had a mark of 33-1.75 going into Tierra’s final throw where you could see it in Tierra’s eyes that she would do everything in her power to not let Montini beat her.  Tierra stepped into the ring, exhaled a huge breath, and put all the energy she had into her throw.  When the shot landed I knew it was a good mark, but was it could enough to beat Montini?  My question was answered when I heard the judge say,“33-2”.  With that mark, Tierra moved past the Montini thrower to take second in the shot put completion, which also was good enough to qualify her for the state meet.

Points To Ponder   -  "I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be."  - Ken Venturi