Enyaeva Michelin posted the second fastest qualifying time in the 800-meter run Friday in Class 3A preliminary competition at the Illinois High School Association state finals at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.
Michelin was the lone Evanston Township High School competitor to qualify for the finals, winning her prelim heat in 2 minutes, 15.93 seconds and trails only Emily Stegmeier of Elk Grove Village, clocked in 2:13.79 in her prelim heat.
As planned, Michelin dropped out of the 1600-meter race prior to the meet to focus on the shorter race. She chopped two seconds off her sectional time and could threaten the school record of 2:12.2 set by Jahnell Horton in 2010 in Saturday’s finals.
Her teammates will have to watch the ETHS junior from the stands at EIU. Seniors Tauja Foreman (100 hurdles, 300 hurdles) and Hailey Taylor (long jump, 200) fell short in their respective events and both Wildkit relay entries, in the 400 and 800, failed to advance.
Foreman missed out in the 100 hurdles with a time of 15.67 seconds, and just missed the finals cut in the 300 hurdles with a 46.54 effort. Taylor’s best long jump of 17 feet, three-quarters of an inch left her back in the pack in that event, and in the open 200 she turned in the 11th fastest time in the field — 25.02 — but only 9 competitors advanced.
A dropped baton dropped the Wildkits back to last place in the 400 relay qualifying, and the foursome of Foreman, Taylor and freshmen Kaila Holland and Asia Eddy was clocked in 1:44.67 in the 800 relay.
Dennis Mahoney is sports information director for ETHS.