By Les Winkeler, The Southern
CHARLESTON – Centralia junior DeVantre Whitelow introduced himself to the Illinois track community in a big way Saturday, sweeping the Class 2A sprints.
This is Whitelow’s first full season of track.
Whitelow ran a 10.82 100 meters, nipping Kelvyn Park’s Brian Carter by .04. He got Carter by a more comfortable .18 in the 200 meters. Whitelow’s winning time was 21.77.
“I was confident about it,” Whitelow said of his 200 meter victory. “I just had to push as hard as I could.” And, although he won by just a fraction of a second, Whitelow said he felt he had the race in the bag coming out of the turn. ”I knew I had a finishing stride, like a fourth gear,” he said. “I kicked it in.” Whitelow’s victory thrilled a vocal fan base in the stands. ”That’s my family from Centralia and Chicago,” he said, flashing a big grin. “I probably couldn’t have done it without them. I im-pressed them. They didn’t know I had it in me.” Despite winning two state titles in his first appearance at Charleston, Whitelow was remarkably composed. ”I guess it hasn’t hit me yet,” he said. “I guess when I get home and see those signs …”
Whitelow’s freshman and sophomore seasons were cut short by hip injuries. ”This is his first full season,” said Centralia coach J.J. DeMattei. “I think he can get better.”
The day’s other Class 2A highlight was Carbondale’s performance in the 800-meter relay. The team of Jeremy Lomax, Karl Borgsmiller, Kendell Edwards and Seth Erickson finished second in 1:27.92.
Thornton Fractional North won the event in 1:27.59. ”We had pretty good handoffs,” Borgsmiller said. “That’s the fastest we’ve ever run. We did the best we could. I’m proud of the way we ran.” Borgsmiller said Lomax got the team off to a good start and Erickson put the finishing touches on the race. ”He got them on the curve,” he said. Erickson was Carbondale’s lone individual entry in the state finals. He placed sixth in the 200 meters at 22.44.
The only other 2A entries were Carbondale’s 400-meter relay team (seventh) and Centralia’s 800-meter relay team (sixth). Country Club Hills won the 2A team title. Cahokia finished tied for second.
Lake Park won the 3A championship.
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