Mustangs’ Barry qualifies for finals in three events at Class 1A state track championships

May 16, 2024 | By Muddy River Sports

May 16, 2024 - Charleston, Illinois - Unity's Saylor Barry lands in the sandpit during an attempt in the Class 1A Long Jump on Thursday at the IHSA Girls' State Track & Field Meet. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Mendon Unity sophomore Saylor Barry lands in the sandpit on one of her attempts in the long jump during Thursday's preliminaries in the Class 1A girls state track and field championships at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Ill. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

CHARLESTON, Ill. — The Mendon Unity girls track and field program hasn’t had an individual or relay state champion in more than 40 years.

Saylor Barry has given herself three chances to make history.

The Unity sophomore qualified for the finals in three individual events during Thursday’s preliminaries in the Class 1A state championships at O’Brien Stadium on the Eastern Illinois University campus.

Barry qualified first in the long jump with a leap of 17 feet, 11 inches — 2 inches farther than Greenview’s Madison Kacevicius. No one else jumped farther than 17 feet, 3.5 inches.

Barry posted the third fastest time in the 100-meter dash, finishing in 12.32 seconds. Belleville Althoff’s Alaina Foster finished with the top qualifying time in 12.19. In the 200 dash, Barry was fifth in 25.73. West Carroll’s Emma Randecker had the fastest qualifying time in 24.97.

Also advancing to Saturday’s finals was Camp Point Central in the 4×100 and 4×200 relays. The 4×200 team of Emily Baker, Adi Foss, Faith Alford and Ellie Foote finished fifth in 1:48.45. The 4×100 team of Macie Lierly, Alford, Foote and Foss finished sixth in 50.66 seconds.

West Hancock’s Grace Grothaus qualified in the triple jump, finishing eighth in the prelims with a leap of 34 feet, 11 inches.

The finals in all events will take place Saturday beginning at 10 a.m.

Several other area athletes had solid showings in the preliminaries.

Foss was 16th in the 100 dash in 12.80 and 23rd in the 200 dash in 27.12. In the 100 hurdles, West Hancock’s Renee Blunier finished 16th in 16.84 seconds, Pleasant Hill’s Kaitlyn Borrowman was 17th in 17.02 and Pittsfield’s London Thometz was 25th in 17.56. In the 300 hurdles, Central’s Agnes Genenbacher was 19th in 50.74

Liberty’s Arianna Neisen finished 24th in the 1,600 run in 5:38.96. The Pittsfield 4×800 relay team took 13th in 10:21.98, while the Illini West 4×100 relay team was 27th in 52.72.

In the field events, West Hancock’s Olivia Vrandenburg was 25th in the discus with a toss of 94 feet, 10 inches, while Illini West’s Grace Goettsche tied for 17th in the high jump. Grothaus was 31st in the long jump with a leap of 15-0.5, and Alford was 26th in the triple jump, leaping 32-9.