Published: May 13, 2008 12:00 am            

Sectional preview: North goes for 25th sectional title

TERRE HAUTE — Mike Dason says he hates to be reminded of the numbers every season — although he might not be that happy if those reminders weren’t necessary either.

Terre Haute North has won more girls high school track and field sectionals than any other school in the state — 24 now, one more than Jeffersonville and three more than Lafayette Jeff and Valparaiso — and nothing suggests that this year’s is going to be different.

Dason’s Patriots, who are also the hosts for today’s meet that begins with field events at 5:30 p.m. and the 3,200-meter relay at 6, have won six sectionals in a row and 17 of the last 18, and they’ve rarely been more of a favorite in those seasons than they are this year.

“We’re not going to get all firsts,” Dason said Monday as he looked over the entries.

But rare will be the event tonight in which the Patriots don’t figure in the final outcome, and Terre Haute South — North’s closest rival and usually its closest competition in the team score — could be threatened for second place by teams like Northview or Sullivan. North Central has a chance to score 40 points itself, because sophomore Shelby Higginbottom of the Thunderbirds has a chance to win all four of her events — in which she is unbeaten for the year so far.

But Higginbottom won’t be the only athlete trying for a quadruple win, Dason noted. He’s hoping Amy Hamilton can pull off an even harder four-victory evening by sweeping the distance races.

Higginbottom is competing in the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes as well as long jump. The first two of those events also include trial heats, so she’ll be running five races and finding time in between to do her jumping.

Hamilton is expected to run in the meet’s first event, the 3,200-meter relay, and follow that up by competing in the 1,600-, the 800- and the 3,200-meter runs. That’s only four races, but they are longer ones — and the last two are scheduled with very little rest in between. Hamilton warmed up for the task by doing the same four events at last week’s North-South meet.

HIgginbottom doesn’t figure to be challenged much in the two short sprints, where she’s already recorded state-finals qualifying times this year. The 400 and long jump are different stories, however.

In the former event, the North Central sophomore is expected to finally be on the track at the same time as West Vigo senior Haleigh Sanders. Sanders has a lower reported time for the event than Higginbottom, although Higginbottom was the winner last month at North’s Patriot Challenge when the two ran in different heats.

In long jump, North’s Brittany Dorsett has a reported mark of 17 feet, 3 inches, four inches ahead of Higginbottom’s mark, but Higginbottom has a career-best performance of 17-7.

Hamilton’s four-victory quest might actually be easier, if running all that distance in one meet can be considered easy. North’s relay team is heavily favored, Hamilton has by far the best times in both the 1,600 and 3,200 — her best showing in the latter event this year would enable her to break her own sectional record — and her chances in the 800 got a lot better when South’s Kristy Twitchell, otherwise a favorite in that event, had to end her injury-plagued senior season early.

Northview’s Kylee Thacker, in the longest race, might be Hamilton’s stiffest competition. Hamilton’s times are better this spring, but Thacker will be considerably more rested.

Top four individuals and relay teams advance to next week’s regional at Evansville Central.\



Girls track and field sectional

At Terre Haute North

5:30 p.m. — Field events begin

6 p.m. — 3,200 relay

6:15 p.m. (approximately) — running trials for 100, 200 and 100 hurdles; running finals begin 20 minutes after completion of trials

        

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