Girls track and field: Prospect drives away with MSL championship

Prospect girls track and field coach Peter Wintermute downplayed his role midway through Friday night's Mid-Suburban League meet at Palatine.

"I just drive the bus," he said.

His Knights?

They're driven - to succeed.

Undefeated Prospect captured its fourth league championship in seven years behind seven event titles in chilly, damp, windy conditions at the 18-event competition.

Knights junior Giselle Salom Hamwi won the pole vault (personal-best 10-8.75) and ran on the victorious 800-meter relay (1:47.33, with Charlotte Deines, Emma Letzig and Anna Niebrugge).

"We're really close, as a team, and that drives us," said Salom Hamwi, whose sterling effort in the pole vault nearly drove her father, Ghassan, to happy tears.

"I told him, 'Save that for later,'" a grinning Giselle said.

As for Wintermute, the bus driver?

"He's pretty good behind the wheel," Salom Hamwi said. "His choice of music on our trips could be better. But he's a great coach, and that's what is important."

Wintermute also received championship performances from his 3,200 relay (9:40.02; Veronica Znajda, Katlin Skelton, Hailey Erickson and Lily Ginsberg); Audrey Ginsberg (800, 2:18.23), Daria Tersina (100, 12.24; and triple jump, 37-5.25) and Madison Payne (shot put, 38-7.75).

Illinois-bound Audrey Ginsberg went 3-for-3 in the 800 at MSL meets in her dandy career; the league championship meet was not held in her sophomore year because of COVID-19.

Hoffman Estates senior Ashley Oliver, another Illinois recruit, won twice Friday night, clocking a 57.07 in the 400 and a 25.28 in the 200 dash.

Barrington, behind a pair of golds from senior Breanne Dunn (100 hurdles, 15.78; and 300 hurdles, 46.02), finished runner-up with 102 points, followed by Hersey (77), Fremd (68.5), Rolling Meadows (55) and Schaumburg (53.5).

Barrington freshman Scout Storm crossed first in the 1,600 (4:56.14) in a field that included Hersey senior Anna Harden, who had topped the field in the 3,200 with a time of 11:13.88.

Palatine earned a pair of relay championships around at its home oval. Mia Foy, Alyna Lazicki, Kaci Wimer and Jocie Waddington combined for a 49.8 in the 400, and the quartet of Wimer, Brooke Donnelly, Aisha Kazeem and Waddington capped the meet with a 4:09.22 in the 1600.

The other MSL champs: Rolling Meadows junior Hanna Oloro (high jump, 5-1); Fremd senior Kiera White (long jump, 18-10); and Fremd junior Ava Fumarolo (discus, 114-9).