Woodstock storms back to win Kishwaukee River Conference championship

MARENGO – Woodstock senior Amina Idris walked across Rod Poppe Field and found a nice spot to lay low after anchoring the 4x400 relay and helping the Blue Streaks win their fourth Kishwaukee River Conference Girls Track and Field championship in five years.

Idris had a busy day.

“I feel so bad, but I’m glad we won,” said a winded Idris, who earlier won titles in the 200 meters (26 seconds), 100 hurdles (15.83) and 300 hurdles (46.16). “I was willing to do whatever it took.”

Woodstock sat in third place after 16 of 18 events and trailed upset-minded Richmond-Burton by 15 points for the top spot in the eight-team meet. But a hectic finish that included a 1-2 finish by Idris and teammate Sophia Mendoza in the 200 put the Streaks only a point behind leader R-B going into the final event.

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Marengos’ Nikole Czepczynski competes in the discus during KRC Conference Track Meet action at Marengo High School in Marengo on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (Patrick Kunzer for Shaw Local/Patrick Kunzer/for the Daily Herald)

So Woodstock coach Jon Brown called an audible, inserting Idris into the meet’s final event, the 4x400 relay, as the anchor, despite her already busy day.

Junior Mia Foss, freshman Emma Bierman, senior Keira Bogott and Idris took care of business, taking runner-up behind Sandwich in the meet’s final race and, more importantly, ahead of fourth-place R-B.

With a chance to win the title, Brown called on his supreme senior, Idris.

“I’m extremely proud of these girls. I think I aged a little bit,” Brown said with a laugh. “Things didn’t go their way in the field, especially for Mendoza. She’s won every long jump she’s been in all year, had a little hiccup and crushed it in the 100, 200 and 400. And Amina, holy cow, she’s a dog.

“They’re great kids. This is why I do it.”

Woodstock won with 122 points, R-B (119) was runner-up and Johnsburg (114) took third. Sandwich (81) took fourth, Woodstock North (40) was fifth, Marengo (32) was sixth, Plano (28) was seventh and Harvard (22) was eighth.

Bogott said she was confident in her teammates to get the job done.

“We knew we could come in here and do it,” Bogott said. “At the beginning of the meet we weren’t performing like how we predicted, but I had full faith. Especially with the late decision (to sub in Idris), I think if we still had Sophie (Sarabia) in there, we would have won. I have full trust in my teammates.”

Mendoza, a senior, won the 100 earlier in the day after she failed to win the long jump, something she hasn’t done all season in a meet.

“I think that just fueled my anger. The one event I was supposed to win, I didn’t,” Mendoza said. “It just wasn’t my day in the long jump, but I’m glad that the 100 happened. I went in there with an angry mindset.”

Richmond-Burton took first in four events, led by junior Sophia Komar’s sweep in the long jump (4.94 meters) and triple jumps (9.94). Junior Emerson Wold finished first in the 800 (2:28.07) and senior Alexia Spatz was first in the 1,600 (5:28.63), which gave the Rockets a 15-point lead going into the final two events.

“I was really nervous about (the 1,600) because I knew there was going to be more competition than I’m used to,” Spatz said. “I also ran the two-mile earlier. I tried to run smart in that, so I’d have enough energy for (the 1,600). That last 400 I was running scared. I knew they were right behind me.”

Komar said she only started jumping last season. Her teammate Elissa Furlan took second in the long jump.

“It’s good having someone on your team that can push you,” Komar said. “Last year at Rocket Relays, they needed someone else to jump, and I jumped pretty good, so they decided that I should just stick to it and try it. I liked it right away. Being new at something and being pretty good at it is exciting.”

Johnsburg junior Hope Klosowicz was first in the 400, beating Sandwich’s Sunny Weber (59.64) with a time of 59.59 after placing second to Mendoza in the 100.

“I knew I needed to stay by her (Weber), because I knew her time was really close to mine,” Klosowicz said. “She was ahead of me for most of the race. I knew I had to pick it up. I always have a lot left for the home stretch.”

The Skyhawks also got a win from junior Carly Duck in the pole vault (2.90 meters).

“It feels amazing, I love it. This was so much fun,” Duck said. “I was using a new pole, so it was a little scary. I was going to use mine, but the Harvard coach lent me one of his because he thought it would be better, and it worked. It was taller, so it gave me less of a bend. I was able to kind of fling up more. Just had to run a little faster.”

Sandwich’s Weber, a junior, won the 3,200 in 10:15.80, with the next closest finisher coming in at 12:03.36. Weber won the Class 2A 3,200 state title last year.

Also for Sandwich, Joanna Rivera, Erin Lissman, Emily Urbanski and Kayla Kressin took first in the 4x800 (10:27.42), and Clara Schiradelly, Addyson Cline, Teagan Lederman and Delanie Card won the 4x100 (52.09).

In the 4x400, River, Kressin, Card and Weber took first in 4:13.44, just ahead of Woodstock (4:14.13).

“I’m not used to running the 400,” said Weber, who will run the 3,200, 1,600 and 4x400 relay at sectionals. “It was definitely fun to try. It definitely hurt at the end, but I think knowing the girl (Johnsburg’s Klosowicz) was right there pushed me. My legs have been pretty heavy the last few days.”

Woodstock North senior Brenna McConnell swept the titles in the shot put (10.76 meters) and discus (32.80), a year after teammate Ashley Janeczko did the same.

The Thunder also got a win from junior Lauren Bieszczad in the high jump (1.47), who repeated as conference champion.

“I’m extremely happy,” McConnell said of her winning throws. “I had a rough spot in discus (earlier this season), but I’m finally overcoming that. I tend to get in my head a lot, and that’s really hard when you’re throwing. When you’re spinning in two seconds but thinking about other things, it throws you off. It is good to be climbing out of that.”

Plano’s Corrine Kostelaz, Luniah Gilford, Jayda Burau and Kaylee Klatt won the 4x200 (1:47.74).

“I had a bad day today in the (100) hurdles, I placed third, I didn’t make all-conference,” Klatt said. “I came up the curve (during the 4x200) and knew I had to get back my all-conference award. I’m glad it worked out. I had a lot of confidence in my teammates.”