After scratching on his first two jumps, Fenwick senior Matthew Augustyn knew a lot was riding on his third attempt in the triple jump preliminaries at Friday’s Class 2A Glenbard South Sectional.
“It was essentially the last jump of my track career (if it was an unsuccessful jump),” said Augustyn, who lives in Westmont. “I was mad, but I was fired up. I didn’t want to go out like this in one of my best events. I put it all into that last jump.”
Augustyn covered 43 feet, 5 inches on his third attempt to set a new career-best mark and eclipse the state-qualifying standard of 42-8. Augustyn’s jump ultimately stood up as his best of the competition and earned him a second-place finish at the sectional meet.
This weekend, Augustyn heads to the Class 2A state meet in Charleston, where he will compete in the triple jump for a second straight year. The top 12 jumpers in Friday’s prelims make it into Saturday’s finals, and Augustyn qualified with the 11th-longest triple jump of any 2A sectional participant.
Augustyn, who jumped 39-7.5 at the 2017 state meet, said he will be hoping to punctuate his career with a strong performance in Charleston.
“I’m always kind of a pessimist and I don’t expect much going in, but I think I can push the envelope a little farther and will try to go out on a high note,” Augustyn said.
Friars head coach Marcus McKinley said the school record also is in reach for Augustyn. That mark (45-7) was set by Bobby Watkins in 1997.
Fenwick’s 4×800-meter relay team will also head to the state meet after winning the Glenbard South Sectional title in 8 minutes, 33.24 seconds.
McKinley said he had been worried about the relay’s chances of qualifying because senior Thomas McHugh, who anchors the relay, had been sick in the days leading up to the sectional meet. But McHugh recovered, and the team got the job done.
The Friars’ relay team will look a little bit different at state than it did earlier in the season. Joe Wermes, the twin brother of relay team member Jared Wermes, joined the squad on the suggestion of sophomore Chris Brady. Brady said Joe Wermes should replace him in the lineup to give Fenwick its best chance to make state.
“It was (Brady’s) idea,” McKinley said. “We didn’t pressure him or suggest it. He came up to (the coaches) and said, ‘Joe needs to be running this.’”
Sikorski to represent Roadrunners at state
Junior Scott Sikorski will be Nazareth’s lone representative at state after he won the 800 at Glenbard South with a personal-best time of 2.00.66. Sikorski’s previous best time was 2.03.5.
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This will be Sikorski’s first trip to state. At the 2017 sectional meet, Sikorski led most of the way in the 800 before fading in the final 100 meters and finishing third.
Roadrunners head coach Mike Austin said Sikorski appeared to be motivated in the offseason by last year’s disappointment.
“He came into the season ready to go right away,” Austin said. “You could tell he had been doing work (on his own), even after the cross country season.”
Sikorski enters the Class 2A state meet with the 14th-fastest qualifying time.
“We’re hoping he can make it to the second day (at state),” Austin said. “There are runners ahead of him. But if he puts out the effort, he has a chance to qualify. He’s shown that he works hard and knows how to push himself.”