CHICAGO MARIST TRACK AND FIELD

 On Thursday, May 23, 2013, Northside Head Coach Jon Gordon, Assistant Coach Dan Carlson, and Hall of Fame Jumps and Hurdles Coach Ed Wallace, traveled to Champaign, Illinois for dinner with 17 IHSA State Qualifiers, including: Sophomore Porter Abbey, Sophomore Adrian Black, Senior Patrick Brennan, Junior Lucien Fitzpatrick, Sophomore Tom Frejowski, Freshman Matthew Gomez, Sophomore Malcolm Grba, Junior Simon Kafka, Sophomore Max McCoy, Junior Nate Mendez, Sophomore Matt Osborne, Sophomore Ari Perlmutter, Freshman Danny Rosen, Junior Cesar Rufino, Senior Raymond Siddiqi, Freshman Xavier Sigelko, and Junior Jay Yu.

 Northside Head Coach Jon Gordon treated his coaching staff, and 17 Northside State Qualifiers to Dinner at Olive Garden, in Champaign, Illinois. On the eve of the IHSA State Championships, Northside was celebrating a season in which they won the Sophomore Chicago Public League Title, finished second in the Indoor City Championships for the third consecutive year, broke the Sophomore Highland Park Twilight 4x800m Relay Meet Record!, Won their first IHSA Sectional Title with the largest margin of Victory (180-82) in the history of Illinois, and qualified a record 17 athletes for the IHSA State Championships!! The 2013 Northside Track & Field Team also had 29 athletes break a school record, and that number would reach 36 by the end of the IHSA State Championships.

  After dinner, the Northside Track & Field Team departed for Charleston, Illinois in preparation for the IHSA State Championships at Eastern Illinois University. 

 The Mustangs stayed in an "Olympic Village" atmosphere with State Qualifiers from across the State, in Taylor Hall and Andrews Hall, which were located less than a block from the stadium. Taylor Hall and Andrews Hall were complete with a Big Screen Television, Air Hockey Tables, Pool tables, and a nice storage room to hold the Mustangs Pole Vault Poles. 

 On Friday, May 24, 2013, upon arrival to O'Brien Stadium, Porter Abbey, Adrian Black, Patrick Brennan, Lucien Fitzpatrick, Tom Frejowski, Matthew Gomez, Malcolm Grba, Simon Kafka, Max McCoy, Nate Mendez, Matt Osborne, Ari Perlmutter, Danny Rosen, Cesar Rufino, Raymond Siddiqi, Xavier Sigelko, and Jay Yu were given State Qualifier Pins from the IHSA, along with their race numbers. 

 As the athletes began warm-ups for the 4x800m Relay, the stadium was filled close to its capacity, and spectators, fans, and Teams, had to park over a half mile away from the Stadium because of the size of the sell-out crowd. Outside the Stadium, there was a large festival of Track & Field souvenir vendors.

 The 2013 IHSA State Championships were the most incredible two days in the history of Northside, and it started with the first event of the day, the Preliminary for the 4x800m Relay. 30 High Schools in Illinois qualified for the IHSA State Championships in the 4x800m Relay. After Friday, only 12 High Schools would still be in the State Championships for the Finals on Saturday.

 Prior to the 2013 IHSA State Prelims, no Chicago Public League Team had ever advanced from the Prelims to the Class 2A Finals in the 4x800m Relay. That includes the Class 2A Cross Country State Champions, Chicago Jones College Prep (competed in the Class 2A State Track meet from 2009-2012), and a Lake View Team (8:18.86) that won the City Title in the 4x800m Relay in 2010.  

 Northside qualified for State in the 4x800m Relay with an official time of 8:50.16. There fastest time of the season was an 8:33.05 at the Chicago Public League Varsity Championships. 26 of the 30 Teams in the IHSA State Meet Program were listed on Friday (page 58) with a faster time than Northside's season best time of 8:33.05. The field for the Prelims included the East St. Louis Flyers, a legendary Track & Field Program, and the State Champions, Cahokia. Prior to Friday, Northside had never beaten the East St. Louis Flyers. 

 Despite the odds, Northside came into Day 1 of the State Championships with the goal of breaking the School Record (8:18.57), and finishing in the Top 12 schools in Illinois at the State Prelims. The Top 12 Teams from the Prelims would advance to the State Finals on Saturday. 

 Patrick Brennan, Malcolm Grba, Danny Rosen, and Simon Kafka had their final speed workout on a 320m Track on Monday at Chase Park, in Chicago, Illinois, and came into the IHSA State Championships confident that they could break the school record. They were ready.

 Northside was in the first heat of the Preliminaries, and it was the fastest heat of the day.

 Northside Captain Patrick Brennan ran the first 400m in 57 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 64 seconds for a personal best 800m split of 2:01.57, and made a perfect exchange to Sophomore Malcolm Grba.

 The Meet announcer, Matt Piescinski, paused during the first exchange, and then yelled it's Chicago Northside!

 Northside Sophomore Malcolm Grba then ran the first 400m of the second leg of the 4x800m Relay in 57 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 65 seconds for a personal best 800m split of 2:02.12, and made a perfect exchange to Freshman Danny Rosen.

 Halfway through the relay, opposing coaches were yelling split-times without great enthusiam, and were checking their numbers and scratching their heads in some disbelief. The splits were right. Northside was racing their way into the State Finals! Northside didn't feel out of place being with the front pack, their goal was to beat them!

 Northside Freshman Danny Rosen ran the first 400m of the third leg of the 4x800m Relay in 59 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 65 seconds for a personal best 800m split of 2:04.94, and made a perfect exchange to Junior Simon Kafka. 

 Northside Junior Simon Kafka anchored the Mustangs to the Finals by running the first 400m in 58 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 67 seconds for an outstanding 800m split of 2:05.71 to BREAK THE SCHOOL RECORD with an official time of 8:14.69. Northside dropped 36 seconds (8:50.16) from IHSA Sectionals! It was the biggest time drop in the State!! 

 Chicago Northside (8:14.69) upset the East St. Louis Flyers (8:15.66) to Qualify for the Finals! Northside finished in tenth place overall in the Prelims. The East St.Louis Flyers (8:15.66), and the St. Viator Lions (8:18.92) also qualified for the Finals with the 11th and 12th fastest times, respectively.

 Patrick Brennan, Malcolm Grba, Danny Rosen, and Simon Kafka will be awarded WATERMELONS for breaking the school record! Patrick Brennan, Malcolm Grba, Danny Rosen, and Simon Kafka will also be honored with plaques at the Northside Track & Field Banquet at the East Bank Club on Friday, May 31, 2013 for their outstanding performace and school record at the IHSA State Championships!!

 Northside parents, spectators, and fans scrambled after the 4x800m Relay Prelims to find hotel rooms in nearby Champaign, to stay over night for the IHSA State Finals.  

 The following Teams were eliminated at the Prelims: 13. Rockford (8:19.18), 14. Chatham Glenwood (8:19.58), 15. Mt. Vernon (8:20.89), 16. Aurora Central Catholic (8:21.33), 17. Bloomington (8:21.49), 18. Johnsburg (8:23.85), 19. Highland (8:24.11), 20. Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin (8:26.80), 21. New Lenox Lincoln-Way West (8:27.34), 22. Sycamore (8:28.10), 23. Geneseo (8:28.90), 24. Elmwood Park (8:41.42), 25. Champaign Central (8:44.05), 26. Peoria Notre Dame (8:46.97), 27. Chicago UIC (9:10.45), 28. Chicago Perspectives (9:56.05), 29. Rochester (DQ), and 30. Chicago Phillips (DNS).

 Thirty Teams qualified for State Championships in the 4x800m relay, and the field was reduced to 12 Teams, after the prelims on Friday.  

 The Finals featured: 1. Normal University, 2. Cahokia, 3. Dunlap, 4. Maple Park Kaneland, 5. Lansing Illiana Christian, 6. Metamora, 7. Stanford Olympia, 8. Lisle Benet Academy, 9. Richmond Burton, 10. Chicago Northside, 11. East St. Louis, and 12. St. Viator.

 The best was yet to come, as Northside would upset #6 ranked Metamora, and #9 ranked Richmond Burton in the Finals.

 On Saturday, May 25, 2013, the Northside Track & Field Team was honored prior to the start of competition at O'Brien Stadium in Charleston, Illinois in a parade of competitors. All of the 2013 State Qualifiers took a lap around O'Brien Stadium with "Olympic" theme mustic being played, before an IHSA Ceremony took place for the commencement of the State Finals.

 In the 4x800m Relay State Finals, Northside Senior Patrick Brennan ran the first 400m in 57 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 65 seconds for an 800m split of 2:02.47, and made a perfect exchange to Northside Sophomore Malcolm Grba. Malcolm Grba ran the first 400m in 57 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 65 seconds for an 800m split of 2:02.74, and made a perfect exchange to Northside Freshman Danny Rosen. Danny Rosen ran the first 400m in 58 seconds, and then ran the final 400m in 68 seconds for an 800m split of 2:06.31, and made a nice exchange to Northside Junior Simon Kafka. Simon Kafka anchored the Mustangs to tenth place in Illinois by running the first 400m in 58 seconds, and then running the final 400m in 66 seconds for a personal best 800m split of 2:04.87 for an official time of 8:16.99. Metamore finished in eleventh place with an official time of 8:19.30. Richmond Burton finished in twelfth place with an official time of 8:24.40.

 Northside finished in top ten (tenth place) in the 4x800m Relay at the IHSA State Championships for the first time in Northside history!!! Patrick Brennan, Malcolm Grba, Danny Rosen, and Simon Kafka will be honored at the Northside Track & Field Banquet on Friday, May 31, 2013 at the East Bank Club. It was one of the greatest experiences of the season.