HARD TO KEEP UP WITH GRIFFINS
Lincoln-Way East sprint relays have set two state records running national schedule
It’s not a stretch to say few girls track teams in Illinois have ever had a season like this.
Lincoln-Way East’s sprinters and short relays have run a national schedule, starting out with the New Balance Indoor Nationals in New York and continuing through the Texas, Kansas and Penn relays outdoors.
Their coach, Caroline Gerritsen, hasn’t hit the road with her marquee athletes because she’s been unable to travel while pregnant. But through live streaming video, Twitter and other wonders of the Internet age, Gerritsen has been able to follow along on what has been a remarkable journey.
“I’m watching the girls and getting updates from other coaches,” Gerritsen said. “I’m watching online and yelling at the screen.”
And the Griffins have given her plenty to shout about.
While many Illinois track athletes have had a hard time just getting on the track to compete amid some ugly weather, LincolnWay East already has set a pair of all-time state records in the sprint relays.
The team of Aaliyah Brown, Alexis Hyshaw, Asia Brown and Alexis Pierre-Antoine won the 800-meter relay at the Texas Relays on March 30 in 1 minute, 37.55 seconds. That broke the old mark of 1:37.97 set by Evanston in 2003.
Last weekend at the Penn Relays, the same quartet ran 46.10 in the 400 relay to beat the former state record of 46.23 established by East St. Louis in 2008.
In between, the Griffins set a Kansas Relays high school record in the 400 relay with Dana O’Grady subbing for Asia Brown.
Not a bad resume for a team that still has conference, sectional and state meets ahead of it.
“We weren’t expecting those times at all,” said Aaliyah Brown, the Griffins’ senior leader and a Texas A&M recruit, especially in March. The Texas Relays was the Griffins’ outdoor season debut, and they were running a team with one senior, one junior (Hyshaw) and two freshmen (Asia Brown and Pierre-Antoine).
But having a veteran such as Aaliyah Brown — a five-time IHSA state champ and winner of 11 state medals — around probably is a good thing for the younger runners. “We’ve talked about these things throughout her career,” said East assistant coach Angelo Brown, who is Aaliyah’s and Asia’s father. “Stepping up, being a leader. It’s not just saying, ‘Good job,’ or running fast. “She really helped those girls handle their emotions.” That’s no small feat at some of those big meets like the penn Relays, where Lincoln-way East lined up against teams from Jamaica, among other places. “That was so exciting,” Aaliyah Brown said. “It felt like we were in a mini-olympics.” That’s exactly the environment Gerritsen wants her sprinters to be in as they gear up for the state meet in Charleston in two weeks. “We went to these relays — we had to make sure these girls were running against good competition,” Gerritsen said. “East St. Louis and all the schools down south are definitely having better weather than us.” Soon, the Griffins will see their down staterivals. And Aaliyah Brown has a feeling the best may be yet to come. “I believe we have a 45 in us [in the 400 relay],” she said. That would give their coach still more reason to cheer.