By Sam Smyth
Gargoyle senior editor
Posted Saturday, April 22, 2006, The OG, sports

Uni set a meet record in the 3,200-meter relay at the Unity Boys Invitational Friday, only the second outdoor meet the Illinek boys have competed in after weather prohibited a number of others.

“It was a great day out and I think it helped a lot of the team run really well,” commented senior Robbie Robinson. “With some seniors gone for college visits, we got to see a lot of the younger runners perform, and they all stepped up to the challenge.”

The Illineks ran the 4x800 with a time of 8 minutes, 38.96 seconds (automatic state-qualifying time is 8:22), seven seconds ahead of second-place St. Joseph-Ogden.

The relay team consisted of seniors Cameron Cropek and Robinson, sophomore Austin Rundus, and freshman Malcolm Taylor. Senior Kangway Chuang, who usually runs in the 4x800, was absent, and the boys ran about 13 seconds slower than the team's indoor seasonal record.

In the 1,600 run, Rundus and Cropek placed third and fourth respectively, with times of 4:46 and 4:47 (state-qualifying time is 4:37). It was a personal record for Rundus, who ran an unheard of 63-second final lap split.

Scoring was rounded off by senior Zhe Gao in the 3,200, running a time of 11:12 to place fourth.

Overall, the team ran a good mid-season meet, although it was the first time outdoors for many runners this season. The boys finished eighth out of 13 teams. (Argenta didn't accumulate any points, so it wasn't listed in the final team rankings.)

The Illineks will compete at the St. Joseph-Ogden Spartan Classic Friday and are preparing for the coming Class A sectional on May 19, in which a number of runners have solid chances of advancing to state. In fact, the boys will make a return trip to Tolono for their 15-team sectional, which will be held at Unity.