2026 2nd Annual Cougar Grand Prix Preview

The second annual Cougar Grand Prix presents some major talent in this elite middle school meet. We break down all the action here!

Sprints

Starting with the sprints, Jayla Hope of University Park Crete Moore is the obvious favorite for the hurdles as her seed time of 15.9 blows away the competition. After she helps her team in the hurdles, she will help lead the University Park Crete Moore 4x100m relay to the gold as they look to break that 52 second barrier. The 400m is tight but there is a duel that looks to be presenting itself between Darina Patlan of Barrington Prairie and Paris Sudberry of Drauden Point. We could see some girls break into the low 1:03’s if this race is a battle all the way through. On the boys side, Demetrious McKeethen of Drauden Point could break into the 15s if he keeps up going after leading this short race. Caleb Wilson of University Park Crete Moore has been going crazy in the 100m this year and could potentially drop into the 11.0X this meet, setting himself up for a great state finals race later on. Not to mention, his 200m is one of the best in the state with a 22.60, so we could see a low 22 performance in this race. Barrington Prairie leads the 4x200m relay, as they are the only team under 1:40 so far. However, this could be taken from them by Sugar Grove Kaneland Harter if they have a crazy race. Vinny Scardina of Aux Sable is looking to dominate the 400m with his 55.18 season best. Seeing a middle schooler in the 54s would be an outstanding accomplishment and it could be a possibility tonight.

Distance

On the distance side, Christopher Marinov of Mt. Prospect Lincoln is going to dominate this 7th grade mile. Running a sub 5 mile is a common goal for many runners, but doing it in 7th grade is beyond amazing. Being top 10 in the state, he is going to have to run it alone if he wants to PR. However, Noah Wahls of Barrington prairie is going to be the obvious 2nd place if he has a decent race. But, he has his eyes more set in the 800m, which he has the upper hand in compared to Marinov. That 800m will be more of a dual, while the 1600m is going to be the warmup. On the girls side, Chloe Crim of Shorewood Troy is a 7th grader competing up in the 8th grade division. She is going to dominate the 8-0m with her sub 2:20 personal best. However, the 1600m will be a battle between a group of ladies. The main fight being between Crim and Stella Ciccarelli of Mokena as they fight for a possible sub 5:10 performance if everything goes perfectly.

Field

The field events should have some quality marks as well. Starting with the girls, Ianna Sapp of Yorkville is seeded at a colossal 33’ 5” in the shot put. If she were to put that mark up here, she would be a top 5 ranked shot putter in Illinois this season. In the high jump, we’ll see the duo from Crete Monee, Jayla Hope and Jasmine Franklin, take a 1-2 finish. Hope is just a half an inch away from breaking into the 5 foot range, she could make it happen here. On the boys side, we have an elite long jumper from Crete Monee who is ready to take a big win. Ke’Mari Clanton has the top long jump mark in the state this season, with a huge 20’ 3.75”. If he is able to replicate that mark here, he should be in for a huge win. Clanton will also be competing for a title in the high jump, where he is the top seed as well. His mark of 5’ 7.5” leads the rest of the field by just an inch and a half, so it’ll be much closer in that event. Emmanuel Ford of Shorewood Troy could easily snipe the win there, as his PR of 5’ 6.5” is just behind Clanton’s.

Written by Brodie Peterson