CHICAGO MARIST TRACK AND FIELD

 The Northside College Prep Mens and Womens Track & Field Team will be having a TEAM Pasta Party after practice on Friday, February 22, 2008 from 6 pm - 7:30 pm in the Northside Cafeteria. Villa Palermo Catering will provide the Mustangs with Penne Pasta with Marinara Sauce, Spinach Ravioli, Grilled Chicken Penne Pasta, Fresh Bread, Garden Salad, and bottled water. All expenses are 100% paid by the Northside Track & Field Coaching staff. The Pasta Party will be a great morale and team building activity, and provide the Mustangs with proper nutrition for their upcoming meets.

  The Northside Varsity Men will be competing in the Niles West Inviational on Saturday, February 23, 2008. The Meet will have a major impact on the Mustangs entries for the Indoor City Championships and entires for Illinois Prep Top Times (Indoor State). The Niles West Invitational features three seperate divisions, Freshman, Sophomore, and Varsity. Team Trophies will be awarded for each division. Invitational Champion T-shirts will also be awarded.

 On Saturday, February 16, 2008, the Northside Varsity Women traveled to Bloom Trail High School in Chicago Heights, Illinois to take on host Bloom Trail High School, Rich East, Thornton, the Simeon Wolverines, Jefferson Jay Hawks, Oswego East Wolves, and CPS rivals, Stenmetz, and Whitney Young. Medals were awarded to the Top 3 places in all events, and a Team plaque was awarded to the Invitational Champion. The point scale used for Individual events and relays was 10-8-6-4-2-1.

 In the Long Jump, Whitney Young's Elisabeth Forte won it with a jump of 15'10. Rich East's Ijeoma Ibe placed second with a jump of 15'7.25. Simeon's Nakete Washington placed third with a jump of 15'2.25. Northside Junior Maria Torres placed fourth with a season best jump of 14'1.50". Thornton's Onnyse Clay placed fifth with a jump of 14'00.26. Bloom's Kalyssa McMillian placed sixth with a jump of 14'00.25. Northside Junior Maria Zdunek jumped a season best 12'1.

 In the Triple Jump, Whitney Young's Victoria Forte won it with a jump of 33'5.25. Bloom's Shamika Thomas placed second with a jump of 33'03.00. Northside Junior Maria Torres MEDALED by placing third overall with a jump of 32'10.25". Northside Junior Gayatri Satam scratched on all four jumps.

 In the High Jump, Thornton's Brianna McCullor won it with a jump of 4'11. Northside Senior Kelly Varney scored for the Mustangs by placing sixth overall with a season best jump of 4'3. Northside Junior Jennifer Kane jumped a season best 4'1.

 In the Shot Put, Rich East's Jasmine Murphy won it with a throw of 33'7. Northside Senior Courtney Konow scored for the Mustangs by placing fifth overall with a throw of 28'6. Whitney Young's Precious Walker completed the scoring by placing sixth overall with a throw of 26'02. Northside Senior Kaitlin Renkosiak threw 24'3.5.

 In the 4x800m Relay, Sophomore Yujuia Hu was unable to run due to a problem with her shoes, and an unknown need to leave the meet early. However, the Mustangs did not have any alternates for the 4x800m Relay with them at the meet. The only athletes available to run in Yujuia Hu's place were sprinters. Northside Head Coach Jon Gordon called upon Northside sprinter Lynette Ardies to run in Yujuia Hu's place. Lynette Ardies showed great dedication to the TEAM, and agreed to run in place of Yujuia Hu to help the Mustangs. Lynnette Ardies ran outstanding and came through big for the Mustangs. In the 4x800m Relay, Freshman Su Yang ran a 3:02.42 800m split on the first leg of the Relay and made a nice exchange to Freshman Karlyn Gehring. Gehring ran a 3:06.00 800m split on the second leg of the Relay, and made a nice exchange to Lynette Ardies. Junior Lynettee Ardies ran a personal best 3:19.00 800m split on the third leg of the Relay, and made a nice exchange to Sophomore Bessie Nolan. Bessie Nolan anchored the Mustangs with a 2:59.00 800m split, to fourth place overall, for a total time of 12:26.

  In the 60 Yard Hurdles pre-lims, Northside Senior Kelly Varney WON her heat with a 10.78 to advance to the Finals! Northside Junior Jennifer Kane ran a time of 10.89. In the Finals, Senior Kelly Varney MEDALED by placing third overall with a season best time of 10.26!

  In the 55m Dash pre-lims, Junior Maria Torres ran a time of 7.64. Junior Adaora Achufusi ran a time of 8.18.

  In the 600 Yard Dash, Northside's one-two punch of Junior Anna Parks, and Freshman Karlyn Gehring MEDALED by placing 1st and 2nd overall. Northside Captain Anna Parks WON the race with a personal best time of 1:45.71. Freshman Karlyn Gehring placed 2nd overall with a personal best time of 1:46.64. Bloom's Kalyssa McMillian placed third with a time of 1:47.92. Whitney Young's Audriana Higginbotham placed forth with a time of 1:50.41. Stenmetz's Gonzalez placed fifth with a time of 1:57.28. Bloom's Elizabeth Nieken placed sixth with a time of 2:05.48 to complete the scoring. Whitney Young's Kristal Buzin placed seventh with a time of 2:06.08. Rich East's Denita Culbreath (2:11.49) edged Stenmetz Cervantes (2:11.67) at the line to place eighth and ninth respectively.

 In the 4x220 Yard Relay, Junior Adaora Achufusi ran a split of 30.55 on the first leg of the relay. Junior Maria Torres ran a split of 28.85 on the second leg of the relay. Junior Jennifer Kane ran a split of 31.25 on the third leg of the relay. Senior Kelly Varney anchored the relay with a 28.91 split for a total time of 2:00.06 to place sixth overall.

 In the Mile, Bloom Trail's Janina Roche won it with a time of 5:46.13. Senior Rachel Kittaka ran splits of 30, 33, 32, 33, 33, 35, 33, 33, 35, 34, 31 for a 6:02 Mile to place fourth overall. Junior Ani Zotti ran splits of 31, 31, 33, 32, 34, 35, 33, 33, 36, 34, 32 for a 6:04 Mile to place fifth overall.

 In the 440 Yard Dash, Junior Adaora Achufusi MEDALED by placing third overall with a time of 69.51. Junior Anna Parks was sixth overall with a time of 71.60.

 In the 880 Yard Dash, Whitney Young's Devyn Thompson won it with a time of 2:49.18. Sophomore Bessie Nolan MEDALED by placing 2nd overall with a time of 2:51.72. Freshman Su Yang placed eighth overall with a time of 3:05.81.

 In the 300 Yard Dash, Bloom Trail's Keara Allen-Wilson won it with a time of 39.87. Junior Anna Parks placed eighth overall with a time of 44.98. Junior Jennifer Kane placed ninth overall with a time of 48.81.

 In the 3200m run, Whitney Young's Lavinia Jurkiewicz won it with a time of 13:08.73. Senior Rachel Kittaka MEDALED by placing second overall with a time of 13:12 (6:36/6:36). Junior Ani Zotti MEDALED by placing third overall with a time of 13:20 (6:37/6:43).

 In the 4x400m Relay, Junior Adaora Achufusi ran a 400m split of 71.67 on the first leg of the relay. Sophomore Bessie Nolan ran a 400m split of 76.72 on the second leg of the relay. Senior Kaitlin Renkosiak ran a 400m split of 80.40 on the third leg of the relay. Junior Anna Parks anchored the Mustangs with a 72.52 400m split, for a total time of 5:00.22.

 Whitney Young won the meet with 110 points, followed by Bloom Trail High School with 96 points. The Northside Mustangs scored 79 points to finish in third place, and posted victories over Rich East (65 points), Oswego (37 points), Thornton (32 points), Simeon (24 Points), Stenmetz (16 points) and Jefferson Jay Hawks (0 Points).

VARSITY POINTS SCORED

1. Rachel Kittaka          12

2. Anna Parks              11.50

3. Maria Torres            10.75

4. Karlyn Gehring         9

4. Bessie Nolan            9

5. Ani Zotti                   8

6. Kelly Varney            7.25

7. Adaoara Achufusi     6.75

8. Courtney Konow      2.00

9. Su Yang                   1.00

9. Lynette Ardies          1.00

10. Kaitlin Renkosiak   0.50

11. Jennifer Kane         0.25

SEASON VARSITY POINT LEADERS

1. Maria Torres                        24.75

2. Rachel Kittaka                     19.00

3. Kelly Varney                        16.25

4. Anna Parks                          13.50

5. Adaora Achufusi                  12.75

6. Ani Zotti                              12.00

6. Bessie Nolan                       12.00

7. Karlyn Gehring                     9.00

8. Jennifer Kane                       8.25

9. Courtney Konow                 5.00

10. Su Yang                            1.00

10. Lynette Ardies                   1.00

11. Kaitlin Renkosiak               0.50

All Athletes that score a Varsity point, and complete the season, earn a Varsity letter.  

 On February 13, 2008, the Northside College Prep Mens Track & Field Team traveled to Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook, Illinois to take on Maine West, Highland Park, and Glenbrook North in the Spartan Indoor Classic. Unofficially, the Mustangs finished in second place to host Glenbrook North. The meet was not scored.

   A year ago, Northside Junior Martin Melto, after a promising Track season as one of the Mustangs top jumpers and sprinters, broke his back and did not know if he would ever be able to compete again. In January 2008, Martin Melto did not pass medical tests, and wasn't able to start practices with his teammates on January 14, 2008. In February 2008, additional Medical tests were scheduled, and Martin Melto still did know if he would be able to compete at all this season. A couple of weeks ago, Martin Melto passed every medical test, and received great news from his doctors that he could begin training again. 

   However, on Tuesday afternoon, Martin Melto learned that he would not be allowed to compete in the Meet unless he passed EKG tests, and he would not have the results for 24 hours. With the Mustangs bus scheduled to leave at 3:00 pm for the meet, Martin Melto notified Northside Head Coach Tuesday night that he would not have his results in time, and would not be able to compete. On Wednesday, Martin Melto received good news at 3:15 pm and was officially cleared by doctors to compete. After receiving the good news, Martin Melto rushed back to Northside, not knowing if he had any chance of making it in time for the Mustangs departure to Glenbrook North. However, the Mustangs bus was outrageously 45 minutes late, and Martin Melto arrived to campus just in time to get on the bus. The only question that remained was could the Mustangs Bus make it to Glenbrook North in time for the Long Jump. Surprisingly, there was no traffic until the Mustangs reached Northbrook, Illinois. As the Mustangs entered the Indoor Track stadium at Glenbrook North "first call" for the Long Jump was announced. On Wednesday night, the comeback was complete, Martin Melto jumped a PERSONAL BEST of 17'7.25!!!

  In the Long Jump, in addition to Martin Melto's heroic jump, Northside Sophomore Jiasong Yang jumped 13'3. Northside Freshman Miles Austrevich also jumped a personal best 13'3 . Sophomore Kevin-Ryan Alavaraz jumped a personal best 12'5. Junior Brandon Teng Jumped a personal best 12'0.

   In the Shot Put, Northside Junior Ted Kalaw improved 3'0 and threw a personal best of 33'8!! Senior Brandon Quach threw a personal best 30'8.5. Senior Preston Buehrer threw a personal best 30'7. Junior Rafael Confino threw a personal best 30'3.5. Sophomore Andrew Czyszczon improved 5'0 and threw a personal best 28'11. Senior Vinh Nguyen improved 4'0 and threw a personal best 28'8. Freshman Luke Sobieraj threw 24'8. Junior Gus Hernandez threw 24'0.

  In the Triple Jump, Sophomore Jiasong Yang jumped 32'0.25! Senior Vinh Nguyen jumped 25'0. Freshman Roldan Alegre jumped 24'3.

  In the High Jump, Junior John Konow jumped a personal best 4'10. Junior Jerry Tran jumped a personal best 4'8.

  Although the Mustangs don't have any Pole Vault equipment of their own yet, Northside Senior Vinh Nguyen, travels with the Northside coaching staff three nights a week to Whitney Young after Track practice ends, to use their Pole Vault equipment from 6 pm - 8 pm, and to train with the best vaulters in the City and also work with DePaul Pole Vault Coach and Whitney Young Head Girls Track Coach Bob Geiger. On Wednesday night, Vinh Nguyen BROKE THE SCHOOL RECORD with a vault of 8'0! The Mustangs previous record was 7'6, and was held by Simon Vecchioni.

  In the 4x800m Relay, the Mustangs depth showed, as they took two of the top three places in the Varsity 4x800m Relay!!!

  In Northside Relay, "A", Junior Brandon Cooper ran a 2:23 800m split on the first leg of the Relay. Junior Simon Vecchioni ran a 2:22 800m split on the second leg of the Relay. Junior Jiasong Yang ran a 2:25 800m split on the third leg of the Relay. On the fourth leg of the Relay, Sophomore Cuitlahuac Pineda Youniss anchored the Mustangs to second place with a 2:19 800m split for a total time of 9:29.

 In Northside Relay, "B", Freshman Wesley Laytham ran a 2:22 800m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Luke Sobieraj ran a 2:28 800m split on the second leg of the Relay. Sophomore Cooper Eben ran a 2:25 800m split on the third leg of the Relay. On the fourth leg of the Relay, Freshman Charlie Mesimore anchored the Mustangs to third place with a 2:23 800m split for a total time of 9:38.

 In Northside Relay, "C", Freshman Luis Gaytan ran a 2:37 800m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Miles Austrevich ran a 2:30 800m split on the second leg of the Relay. Freshman Fahad Savari ran a 2:44 800m split on the third leg of the Relay. On the fourth leg of the Relay, Sophomore Forrest Cortes ran a 2:43 800m split for a total time of 10:34.

  In the 55m High Hurdles, Freshman Hersh Perlmutter ran a personal best time of 10.60. Senior Santino Merino ran a personal best time of 10.62. Junior Nathan Michaelson ran a personal best time of 11.22. Freshman Khoa Nguyen ran a personal best time of 11.28. Sophomore Andrew Czyszczon ran a personal best time of 11.31.

 In the 50m Dash, Northside Junior Jerry Tran ran a 6.58. Sophomore Neal Capapas ran a 6.60. Senior Erik Flores ran a 6.73. Junior Brian Chhun ran a 6.86. Freshman Roldan Alegre ran a 6.89. Senior Santino Merino ran a 6.94. Freshman Naim Uddin ran a 7.00. Freshman Noel Lopez ran a 7.21. Sophomore Sam Olver ran a 7.23. Sophomore Peter Wilk ran a 7.28. Freshman Muhammad Hossain ran a 7.84. Sophomore Neibu Tadele ran a 8.01.

  In the 800m Run, Junior Brandon Cooper won it with a time of 2:26. Freshman Rhiday Pandya ran a personal best time of 2:35. Senior Adam Swiatlowski ran a time of 2:39. Sophomore Andrew Czyszczon ran a time of 2:40. Freshman Jonathan Kriston ran a personal best time of 2:41. Senior Brad Eben ran a time of 2:42. Junior Coleman Gailloreto ran a time of 2:45. Freshman William Riley ran a personal best time of 2:55.

  In the 400m Dash, Sophomore Neal Capapas ran a time of 61.17. Freshman Luke Sobieraj ran a personal best time of 61.92. Sophomore Martin Melto ran a personal best time of 63.68. Junior Brandon Teng dropped four seconds off his PR, with a personal best time of 64.73! Junior John Konow ran a personal best time of 68.64. Junior Ted Kalaw ran a time of 69.87. Junior Rafael Confino ran a personal best time of 70.00. Senior Brandon Quach ran a personal best time of 76.75.

  In the 4x160m Relay "A", Junior Jerry Tran ran a 21.40 160m split on the first leg of the Relay. Brian Chhun ran a 20.12 160m split on the second leg of the Relay. Erik Flores ran a 21.82 160m split on the third leg of the Relay. John Konow ran a 22.10 160m split on the final leg of the Relay to finish in third place with a time of 1:25.44.

 In the 4x160m Relay "B", Sophomore Peter Wilk ran a 24.15 160m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Hersh Perlmutter ran a 23.96 160m split on the second leg of the Relay. Freshman Koa Nguyen ran a 23.97 on the third leg of the Relay. Freshman Noel Lopez ran a 22.22 160m split on the final leg of the relay, for a total time of 1:32.90.

 4x160m Relay "C" was scratched from the meet as a result of Junior David Marchfield, the third leg of the rely, not present at the meet.

 In the 55m Low Hurdles, Captain Santino Merino finished in fourth overall with an outstanding time of 9.86. Hersh Perlmutter ran a personal best time of 10.40. Junior Nathan Michaelson ran a personal best time of 11:00. Freshman Muhammad Hossain ran a personal best time of 11.69. Freshman Luis Gaytan ran a personal best time of 11.71.

 In 2006, Northside Mile School Record holder Joseph Terdik ran a 5:20 Mile in his first race of his Senior year, and he finished that season with a 4:37! This season, the Mustangs had several athletes under or around 5:20 in their first race of the season. 

 In the 1600m Run, Sophomore Cuitlahuac Pineda Youniss ran a Track PR of 5:04. Cuitlahuac Pineda Youniss had 160m splits of 28, 30, 32, 32, 32 (2:34 800m split), 31, 32, 32, 29, 26 (2:32 800m split), for a time of 5:04.

 In the 1600m Run, Sophomore Cooper Eben ran a Track PR of 5:16. Cooper Eben had 160m splits of 30, 31, 32, 31, 33 (2:37 800m split), 33, 33, 30, 32, 31 (2:39), for a time of 5:16.

 In the 1600m Run, Freshman Charlie Mesimore ran a time of 5:21. Charlie Mesimore had 160m splits of 28, 34, 34, 34, 34 (2:44 800m split), 34, 32, 31, 32, 28 (2:37 800m split), for a total time of 5:21.

 In the 1600m Run, Freshman Wesley Laytham ran a time of 5:26. Wesley Laytham had 160m splits of 28, 34, 34, 34, 35 (2:45 800m split), 34, 34, 34, 33, 26 (2:41 800m split), for a total time of 5:26.

 In the 1600m Run, Junior Simon Vecchioni ran a time of 5:29.  Simon Vecchioni had 160m splits of 29, 32, 32, 34, 33 (2:40 800m split), 35, 37, 34, 35, 28 (2:49 800m split), for a total time of 5:29.

 In the 1600m Run, Sophomore Jiasong Yang ran a time of 5:30. Jiasong Yang had 160m splits of 32, 30, 34, 34, 36 (2:46 800m split), 35, 33, 34, 33, 29 (2:44 800m split), for a total time of 5:30.

 In the 1600m Run, Senior Brad Eben ran a time of 5:49. Freshman Miles Austrevich ran a time of 5:53. Sophomore Forrest Cortes ran a time of 5:57. Senior Adam Swiatlowski ran a time of 5:57. Freshman Fahad Sarvari ran a time of 6:02. Freshman Luis Gaytan ran a time of 6:03.

 In the 200m Dash, Senior Erik Flores ran a time of 26.79. Senior Jerry Tran ran a time of 26.96. Sophomore Neal Capaps ran a time of 27.25. Junior Martin Melto ran a time of 28.00. Senior Santino Merino ran a time of 28.30. Sophomore Peter Wilk ran a time of 29.12 Junior Brandon Teng ran a time of 29.30. Freshman Hersh Perlmutter ran a time of 30.09. Sophomore Sam Olver ran a time of 30.90. Freshman Naim Uddin ran a time of 31.77. Freshman Muhammad Hossain ran a time of 33.61.

 Due to the length of the meet, the Throwers 4x160m Relay was canceled.

 In the 4x400m Relay, Northside Relay "A" ran a total time of 4:03.11. Junior Brandon Cooper ran a 58.68 400m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Wesley Laytham ran a 63.22 400m split on the second leg of the Relay. Junior Simon Vecchioni ran a 60.62 400m split on the third leg of the Relay. Sophomore Cuitlahuac Pineda Youniss anchored the Mustangs with a 60.59 400m split, for a total time of 4:03.11.

 In the 4x400m Relay, Northside Relay "B" ran a total time of 4:10.87. Junior Brian Chhun ran a 61.00 400m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Charlie Mesimore ran a 62.31 400m split on the second leg of the Relay. Sophomore Cooper Eben ran a personal best 62.77 400m split on the third leg of the Relay. Senior Erik Flores ran a 64.79 400m split on the final leg of the Relay, for a total time of 4:10.87.

 In the 4x400m Relay, Northside Relay "C" ran a total time of 4:34.12. Freshman Noel Lopez ran a 63.00 400m split on the first leg of the Relay. Freshman Roldan Alegre ran a 68.62 400m split on the second leg of the Relay. Sophomore Peter Wilk ran a 68.93 on the third leg of the Relay. Freshman Fahad Savari ran a 73.57 400m split on the final leg of the Relay, for a total time of 4:34.12.

 The Mustangs will travel to De La Salle High School on Monday for the President's Day Invitational, which features among others, 2007 IHSA State runner-up, East St.Louis High School.

 On Thursday, February 7, 2008, the Northside College Prep Varsity Women's Track Team traveled to Winnetka, Illinois to take on Central Suburban powerhouses Deerfield, Maine West, and New Trier High School in the Varsity Women's first meet of the 2008 Track & Field season. The Northside Mustangs had dramatic Team victories over Deerfield and Maine West! The Mustangs placed second overall with 57 points. Maine West placed third overall with 32 points. Deerfield placed fourth overall with 31 points. New Trier won the meet with 76 points. The point scale used was 6-4-3-2-1 for Individual events, and 6-4-2 for Relays.

  In the 4x800 meter relay, Northside Captain Rachel Kittaka ran a 2:47 on the first leg of the relay and made a nice exchange to Junior Ani Zotti. Ani Zotti ran a 2:52 800m split on the second leg of the relay, and made a nice exchange to Sophomore Bessie Nolan. The Mustangs were in fourth place behind Deerfield, New Trier, and Maine West when Nolan received the baton. Bessie Nolan moved the Mustangs from fourth place to third place by passing Maine West with a 2:44 800m split, and made a nice exchange to Northside Captain Anna Parks. Junior Anna Parks anchored the Mustangs from third place to second place by passing New Trier (11:13) with a 2:45 800m split!, for a total time of 11:08.

 In the Shot Put, Maine West's Michelle won it with a throw of 28'5.5. Northside Senior Courtney Konow placed third overall with a throw of 28 1/2! Northside Senior Kaitlin Renkosiak threw a personal best 24'8.5 Northside Junior Sandra Azubuike improved 2'0 with a personal best 22'10.25. Northisde Junior Anna Parks also improved 2'0 with a personal best throw of 20'5.5.

 In the Long Jump, New Trier's Callahan won it with a jump of 14'3.25. Northside Junior Maria Torres placed second overall with a jump of 14'0. Northside Junior Maria Zdunek jumped 12'1. Northside Junior Gayatri Satam jumped 10'11. Northside Junior Lynnette Ardies jumped a personal best 9'7.5.

 In the Triple Jump, Northside Junior Maria Torres WON it with a jump of 32'11! Northside Junior Gayatri Satam placed fifth overall with a jump of 26'8.75!

 In the High Jump, Northside Captain Kelly Varney placed second overall with a jump of 4'2. Northside Junior Jennifer Kane placed third over with a jump of 3'10.

  In the 400m Dash, New Trier's Callahan won it with a time of 69.71. Northside Junior Maria Zdunek ran a personal best time of 78.60. Northside Junior Gayatri Satam ran a personal best time of 79.26. Northside Junior Lynnette Ardies dropped 7 seconds off her PR with a personal best time of 79.49! Northside Senior Alex Custer ran a time of 91.21.

  In the 4x145.45 Meters Relay, the Mustangs had one of the most dramatic finishes ever seen in the four lap Relay. The Mustangs went from fourth to second in the final meters of the race. Northside Adaora Achufusi, Maria Torres, Jennifer Kane, and Kelly Varney combined for a 1:26.99 to place second over Maine West (1:27.00) and Deerfield (1:27.10) at the finish!!!

  In the 50 Yard Low Hurdles, New Trier's Riquiello won it with a time of 8.57. Northside Junior Jennifer Kane place second overall with a time of 8.70. Northside Senior Kelly Varney placed third overall with a time of 8.77. Northside Senior Alex Custer ran a personal best time of 9.30. Northside Junior Maria Zdunek ran a personal best time of 9.66. Northside Junior Lynnette Ardies ran a personal best time of 10.08.

 In the 50 Yard Dash, Maine West's Gallicelo won it with a time of 6.60. Northside Junior Maria Torres placed third overall with a personal best time of 6.75. Northside Junior Adaora Achufusi placed fifth overall with a personal best time of 6.79. Northside Junior Lynnette Ardies ran a personal best time of 7.48. Northside Senior Kaitlin Renkosiak ran a personal best time of 7.60. Northside Senior Alyssa Sockol ran a personal best time of 7.78. The Northside sprinters were very impressive. After the Mustangs 5 entries in the 50 Yard Dash completed their respective heats, the Mustangs watched New Trier, Deerfield, and Maine West send up to the starting line an additional 60 athletes in an attempt to see if they could overtake the leaders and score additional points. But the strength of the Mustangs sprinters outstanding times prevailed, and the Mustangs hanged on to a very impressive Third and Fifth place finish in the 50 Yard Dash!

 In the 800m Run, Maine West's Meir won it with a time of 2:39.03. Northside Sophomore Bessie Nolan placed fifth overall with a time of 2:50.96. Northside Junior Anna Parks finished in sixth with a time of 2:50.98.

 In the 200 Meter Dash, New Trier's one-two punch of Callahan (29.12) and Boglkaw (29.93) placed 1st and second overall. Northside Junior Adaora Achufusi placed third overall with an outstanding time of 29.96. Northside Junior Jeniifer Kane ran an oustanding time of 32.15. Northside Senior Kaitlin Renkosiak ran an outstanding time of 35.49. Northside Senior Alex Custer ran a personal best time of 36.68.

 Prior to the Mile, Northside Senior Rachel Kittaka and Northside Junior Ani Zotti were told by Northside Head Coach Jon Gordon that they would both need to place in the top five to insure Team victories over Maine West and Deerfield. Rachel Kittaka and Junior Ani Zotti responded by keeping themselves in the top 5 for the first three laps, and then taking the lead on lap four. Northside Senior Rachel Kittaka (6:05.26) had an impressive kick to the finish to hold off a challenge from Deerfield's Jarvis (6:05.64) to WIN the Mile. Northside Junior Ani Zotti ran an outstanding time of 6:07 to place third overall in her first mile race of the season!

 The 4x400m Relay has been one of the Mustangs spotlight events ever since their dramatic finish against Morgan Park in the City Championships last year. The Northside Mustangs, fans, spectators, and parents lined themselves around the Track to show their support for the 4x400m Relay. Once again, it would come down to the final lap against impressive Relay squads from New Trier (4:46.91), Maine West, and Deerfield. Northside Junior Adaora Achufusi ran an outstanding 400m split of 71.00 on the first leg of the 4x400m Relay, and made a nice exchange to Sophomore Bessie Nolan. Bessie Nolan ran an outstanding 400m split of 74.00 on the second leg of the 4x400m Relay, and made a nice exchange to Senior Kelly Varney. Kelly Varney ran an outstanding 400m split of 74.00 on the third leg of the 4x400m Relay, and made a nice exchange to Junior Anna Parks. Captain Anna Parks quickly passed Deerfield, and it initially looked as if Maine West had too big of a lead for any possibility of them being caught, but Parks determination and heart prevailed, as she had an unbelievable finish and anchored the Mustangs to a second place finish over Maine West (4:48.66) with a 68.17 400m split, for a total time of 4:48.17!!!

 The Mustangs celebrated the meet with a Team Huddle, and are looking forward to taking on, among others, CPS Title favorite, Whitney Young, at the Bloom Invitational on Saturday, February 16, 2008 in Chicago Heights, Illinois. Medals and Team Trophies will be awarded at the Bloom Invitational. 

 A special thanks to New Trier Head Girls Coach Spagnoli for inviting the Mustangs to the meet, and providing the Mustangs with the opportunity to compete against the best teams from Central Suburban Conference, and for hosting an excellent meet.

VARSITY POINTS SCORED

1. Maria Torres                14

2. Kelly Varney                9

3. Jennifer Kane               8

4. Rachel Kittaka             7

5. Adaora Achufusi         6

6. Ani Zotti                     4

7. Bessie Nolan               3

8. Courtney Konow         3

9. Anna Parks                 2

10. Gayatri Satam            1 

 On Thursday, February 7, 2008, the Northside College Prep Junior Varsity Women's Track Team traveled to Winnetka, Illinois to take on Central Suburban powerhouses Deerfield, Maine West, and New Trier High School in the Junior Varsity Women's first meet of the 2008 Track & Field season. The Northside Mustangs edged Deerfield 31-26, but came up short against Maine West 34-31. New Trier won the the Junior Varsity division with 104 points. The point scale used was 6-4-3-2-1 for Individual events, and 6-4-2 for Relays.  

 In the 4x800m Relay, Northside Freshman Su Yang, Sophomore Yujuia Hu, Sophomore Merita Bush, and Junior Jennifer Friedmann combined for a outstanding time of 12:31.91 to place second overall.

 In the Triple Jump, Junior Alice Thatcher placed fourth overall with a personal best jump of 25'2.

 In the High Jump, Freshman Robyn Doherty placed third overall with a personal best jump of 3'10

 In the 400m Dash, Northside Freshman Ashley Kossakowski ran a time of 83.79.

 In the 4x145.45m Relay, Northside Junior Stephanie Sotomayor, Freshman Robyn Doherty, Freshman Lindsey Shallberg, and Freshman Nina Coomes combined for a time of 1:42.95 to place third overall.

 In the 50 Yard Low Hurdles, Sophomore Karen Li placed second overall with a time of 9.00. Junior Alice Thatcher placed fifth overall with a time of 9.87. Freshman Robyn Doherty ran an outstanding time of 10.02. Freshman Lyndsey Shallberg hurdled an outstanding time of 11.07.

 In the 50 Yard Dash, Freshman Nina Coomes placed fourth overall with a time of 7.46. Freshman Ashley Kossakowski ran a time of 7.87. Junior Stephanie Sotomayor ran a time of 7.95. Freshman Caeleigh Renkosiak ran a time of 8.01. Freshman Nguyen Than ran a time of 8.05. Junior Andrea Busier ran a time of 8.53.

 In the 800m run, Northside Sophomore Yujuia Hu placed fourth overall with a personal best time of 3:24. Northside Sophomore Merita Bushi placed fifth overall with a personal best time of 3:29.

 In the 200m Dash, Freshman Ashley Kossakowski ran a time of 35.68. Freshman Caeliegh Renkosiak ran a personal best time of 36.49. Junior Alice Thatcher ran a personal best time of 38.54. Junior Andrea Buiser ran a personal best time of 39.00.

 In the Mile, Northside Freshman Su Yang placed second overall with a personal best time of 6:30.33. Su Yang dropped 23 seconds in one week! Northside Junior Jennifer Friedmann placed fourth overall with an outstanding time of 7:00.00.

 In the 4x400m Relay, Northside Sophomore Karen Li ran a 75.60 400m split on the first leg of the relay, and made a nice exchange to Sophomore Yujuia Hu. Yujuia Hu ran a 78.40 400m split on the second leg of the relay, and made a nice exchange to Freshman Ashley Kossakowski. Kossakowski ran a 86.40 on the third leg of the relay, and made a nice exchange to Freshman Robyn Doherty. Doherty anchored the Mustangs to second place with a 86.00 400m split, for a total time of 5:35.40!