1 Lincoln-Way East
2 Highland Park
3 OPRF
4 St. Charles North
5 Deerfield
6 Hinsdale Central
7 Hersey
8 Champaign Centennial
1 Hononegah
2 Barrington
3 New Trier
4 Naperville Central
5 St. Ignatius
6 Lyons Township
7 Fenwick
8 Dunlap
1 St. Charles East
2 Naperville North
3 Libertyville
4 Oswego East
5 Rosary
6 Stevenson
7 Buffalo Grove
8 Normal Co.
Give me HC and St. Charles in the first circle, but I’m not counting out OPRF which has had a good relay all year. Not sure how much faster if at all Deerfield can go, will be something to watch against 3 teams I expect to get faster.
While I expect NT to get faster, this relay does not have Novelline at present and it would be unusual for a switch to be made in between. You have to expect they will still be top, but it would take a huge effort from this group to win without Novelline. I like NC and Ignatius as well here, but Wood Prince is coming out of the last heat of the 500 which is obviously not ideal. This is Barrington’s chance to break a stretch of 200 relay futility. After being a regular for a decade, the Fillies have not gone top 6 in the sprint relay since 2009! They have half of their relay coming out of the 500, so it will be an uphill battle.
Obligatory: Oswego is the top seed in 2 free relays with their best sprinter Molly Leubner sitting out the season. This team would be the favorite for a trophy if she was in the mix. Rosary and Naperville North have the majority of their darkhorse trophy hopes tied to the relays, and it may shape up like 3 relays trying to fit into 2 spots after the previous heats.