2026 Dr. Conrad Worrill Invite Meet Preview

The Dr. Conrad Worril Invite is set to host some of the best talent in the state this weekend. Teams from all over the state are converging on Gately Park to throw down some of the best times we’ll see all season. We have saved you the time and broken down all the action that we’ll see this weekend, you can read all about it right here!

Sprints

Boys

The highlight of the weekend will be the sprinting events, with a great clash of teams that don’t often get to compete. Teams who dominate the metro east area, like Belleville West and East St. Louis, are coming up to tango with the Chicagoland area, which should lead to some blazing fast times. Belleville West’s short sprinting stud, Morquez Bulliner, will be opening his season this weekend in the 60 and the 200. The junior posted some ethereal times last season with a 10.62 and a 21.46 from the outdoor season. He is entered in the 60 and the 200, he should post great times in both. Joe Owusu of Plainfield East has the fastest all-time mark in the 60 out of the field, he will enter as the favorite. The returning all-stater ran 6.90 last year at the Illinois Indoor Championships and has a 100m PR of 10.60, he should be an exciting runner to watch here. The Evanston trio of Mynard Blake, Anthony Honore, and Justin Johnson will all be runners to watch here. Blake and Honore both ran their PRs during the early indoor season, with a 6.91 and 6.93 respectively. Both are the hottest athletes in the field and could surprise with a win. Johnson is coming off of an electric sophomore campaign, where he ended with two all-state medals in his hands, he will be competitive with the top group in the 60 for sure. The 1A powerhouse Morrison brings their top guys as well, with Levi Milder and Brady Anderson being big names to watch in the 60. Both athletes are capable of running under 7 seconds, they will add to this elite field. 

The 60mH might as well be the 3A state final, because the competition could not be any stronger. The top 3 returning 11mH from last season are all in the field this weekend, it should make for an exciting match up. Jalyn Cole of Belleville West is the narrow favorite in the field. The returning all-American sports a blistering PR of 13.76 in the 110mH and he is the fastest returning hurdler in the state. His 60mH PR maybe lacks a little fire, with an 8.18 personal best from last season, but he should be in a good position to win here. His crosstown rival, Daylin Donaldson of Belleville East, will be biting at his heels. Donaldson and Cole went back and forth a couple times last year, but ultimately Cole got the better of him at the end of the season. That being said, Donaldson still has some incredible PRs of 13.82 and 8.18 for the 110mH and 60mH, he should drop a serious mark in Chicago this weekend. Janardie Turner of Rockford Jefferson will be a name to watch as well. Turner was third behind both Cole and Donaldson at the state meet last year, with a PR mark of 13.94. However, Turner has both Cole and Donaldson dominated in the 60mH with a mark of 8.09 from last indoor. He beat Donaldson at the Top Times Championships last winter and he clearly has the power to run a super quick 60mH. The shorter distance will give Turner a good shot at the win here, but he’ll have to watch out for another 60m specialist, Ben Schoettle of Glenbard West. Schoettle was not in the all-state picture last year, but he has popped off during the early indoor season. His mark of 8.06 is the best 60mH mark in the field by a slight margin, he will be looking to prove himself on the big stage here. 

Relays

Some of the best relay programs in the state are slated to face off here, which should lead to some leaderboard-topping times. Belleville West’s prestigious relays have the top seeds in both the 4x2 and 4x4. They return their stud, Morquez Bulliner, which gives them some serious firepower for the anchor leg. Bulliner boasts PR’s of 21.46 and 48.75 in the 200 and 400 respectively, he’s clearly driving this team forward. East St. Louis has a number of freshmen who are ready to develop into strong relay legs this year, they should be competitive in both sprint relays. The addition of Myson Johnson-Cook gives them a superstar to build around, he should make a powerful contribution to these relay teams. His blazing PR of 10.30 in the 100 is certainly enough to cause havoc in a 4x200 leg, he could whip up something nasty for the flyers. Cahokia saw a number of powerful transfers from ESTL that have added some serious speed to their lineup. This newfound depth will help replace the seniors they lost from last season, they should still be in contention for both sprint relays. Evanston has had one of the best early indoor seasons that we have seen in a while, with Anthony Honore and Mynard Blake both dropping sub 7 60m times. They could unleash a fury in the 4x2 with the help of returning all-stater, Justin Johnson. Their 4x4 should be strong as well, with Deshawn Preister leading their returning 400 runners. 

Girls

In just the first week of the season, we are going to get one of the best 60m fields that we’ll see all season. Mariyah Robinson of Homewood Flossmoor is opening her season in the 60 and she’ll be facing off against Rayna Raglin of Alton. Robinson is the biggest name in girls sprints this year, as she’s coming off of a legendary track season where she nearly took home the triple sprint crown. To rattle off a few of her mindblowing PRs, she’s got an 11.41 in the 100, a 23.70 in the 200 and a 53.55 in the 400. She is the top returning athlete in every single event, and she is not about to lose her opening race. We could see an absolute scorcher this weekend, especially considering the competition that she’s facing. Rayna Raglin of Alton is not a pushover for Robinson, she will have to be on her best to take down Alton’s superstar. Raglin dominated the metro east area last year, with PRs of 11.58 and 24.09 in the 100 and 200 respectively. She almost has Robinson in the 60, with an earthshattering PR of 7.48 from the Top Times Championships. When you add in Rege Cooper Smith of North Chicago, Jordan Hamb of South Shore, and Maliyah Miller of St. Ignatius, you get the biggest 60 meter dash that we’ll see until the end of March. 

The 200 will not disappoint either, with stars from all over coming back from the 60 to compete for a strong mark. Rayna Raglin of Alton will square off against Maliyah Miller of St. Ignatius for the individual title. Raglin is a short sprint specialist, but that doesn’t mean she can’t step up and run a scorching 200. Her PR of 24.09 is nothing to laugh about, she could certainly drop something incredible here. Miller has the better PR of 24.06, and she actually beat Raglin in the 200 final at the state meet last year. It’ll be interesting to see how these two clash, both should run a great time regardless of who wins. Rege Cooper Smith of North Chicago is another name to watch here. She’s the returning 2A state champ in the 200 with a PR of 24.34, she could definitely be up with Raglin and Miller on a good day. 

Relays

The juggernaut squadron from Homewood Flossmoor is expected to mop the floor in the 4x200 this weekend. The depth that they have in their relay squad is unrivaled in the state of Illinois, It is going to take a super team to beat them. Aniya Mullins and London Willingham are the main contributors to this relay team. They both run under 25 seconds in the 200 and both are the big reason HF is so strong. The other reason, of course, is the presence of Mariyah Robinson on this 4x2. If Robinson runs the 4x2, we could very easily see a sub 1:38 4x2 this weekend. They have the capability to smash state records with this team, they should get the win here. Kenwood will have a solid 4x2 as well, with the addition of Chloe Gillard to their roster. They only lost one senior to graduation last year, and they return the rest of their 4x2 that ran 1:39 at the state meet. They could certainly throw down a solid time here if they are feeling solid. The 4x4 will likely be HF versus Kenwood versus East St. Louis. ESTL has never had a year where their 4x4 disappoints, it’s highly likely they’ll be competitive in this race. 

Long/Triple Jump

Boys

The horizontal jumps should be an exciting matchup on the boys side, with returning all-staters all over the place. Braden Missey of Belleville West is the big favorite in the long jump, it’ll be hard to deny him a win here. He has a monstrous PR of 23’ 8” and he has remarkable consistency above the 23 foot mark. If he is up to his usual antics, he should walk away with an easy win here. Tyreke Baker and Victreze Thomas of Cahokia will look to make double trouble in both the long jump and the triple jump. Baker spent most of last season working on his hurdles, but his PR of 46’ 9” is not to be forgotten. His PR of 22’ 2” in the long jump will also give him a solid shot at second place here, he should have some key performances this weekend. Thomas has the best triple PR in the field with a gargantuan 47’ 8” from last summer. He has a season best of 45’ 11”, which will put him in contention for a win in the triple jump. However, Shaun Alexander of Romeoville has been on a heater lately and is the favorite going into this weekend. Alexander has hit two mega marks this indoor season, with a 46’ 5” season best from Winter Speed madness and a 46’ 1” from the Misfits invite. He certainly has his work cut out for him with both Thomas and Baker looking to take him down, but he should be able to get away with a win here. 

Girls

Both the long and the triple jump are shaping up to be some of the best events at this meet. Jordan Hamb of South Shore International headlines the triple jump with a huge gap on the rest of the field. Hamb’s PR of 41’ 5” puts her in the conversation with some of the best jumpers in the nation, but she will need to have a mark similar to that in order to get the win here. She usually lands around 38 feet throughout the season, with all of her 40 foot marks coming from summer track. Her season best of 38’ 10” does give her a slight edge compared to the rest of this field, but she will need to watch out for Courtney Burt of Whitney Young. Burt has a season best of 38’ 1” and has been right behind Hamb in multiple meets this winter. Her PR isn’t quite as big as Hamb’s, but a 39’ 6” is certainly not a pushover. It should be a close matchup between these two. You also can’t forget about Taya Rice of Chicago Agriculture. Rice is the returning 2A state champ in the triple jump, where she defeated Jordan Hamb with a huge mark of 39’ 5”. Rice will be competing in both the long and the triple, expect her to cause a scene in both events. London Jarrett of Homewood Flossmoor is the narrow favorite in the long jump, with the biggest PR in the field of 19’ 1”. Jarrett is an exceptional heptathlete, with elite proficiency in the high jump and the hurdles as well. She is a frequent contributor to the HF relay squad, and her speed largely fuels her incredible long jump. Her season best of 17’ 9” is an extremely solid mark and she should be able to come away with the win here. Taya Rice and Courtney Burt will be coming back from the triple to compete for the win here, so there should be a strong showing from the top three. 

Distance

Boys

While the distance events aren’t quite as loaded as the sprints and jumps, you should still see a few quality performances across the board. Chicago Payton brings their dynamic duo of Tramonti Williams and Declan Slavin, they will clean up shop here. Williams is one of the top 800 runners in the state with a huge PR of 1:53.77 from last spring. He split a devious 1:51.6 at Nike Nationals where Payton took second, and he will be in his own world here at the Dr. Conrad Invite. Slavin was another key member to the Payton 4x8 last year, but he will be running the mile instead. His mile PR of 4:13 comes from Magis Miles last summer, he should be able to get a good win here too. He’ll have company from Amilo Rajandram of Whitney Young, who is coming off of an electric cross country season. He ran a gigantic PR of 14:28 to take 22nd at the 3A state meet during cross country, and he is clearly on the verge of a breakout season. If he gets a win here, it would be a huge testament to his hard work and a big warning to the rest of the state that he’s seriously fast. 

Girls

The girls side of things will see a much more competitive field in the two distance races that are scheduled for Saturday. Ali Shutler of St. Ignatius is the big favorite in the mile after she put on a show this cross country season. Shutler took fourth at the 3A state meet during cross country with a blistering time of 16:22. She will be largely unchallenged here, as her PR of 4:50 is multiple seconds ahead of the rest of the field. This will be her season opener, so we could see a really fast time from her. Wheaton St. Francis will provide the competition for Shutler, with both Margaret Andrezejewski and Erin Hinsdale in the field for the mile. Andrezejewski is the only other girl who has broken the 5 minute barrier in this field, she will be looking to lead her teammate under 5 as well. Both of them will be doubling back for the 800, where they will both be looking to put up a staggering mark. Both girls were all-state in the 800 last spring, with a PR of 2:13 for both of them. They will be going up against the reigning state champion, Emily Stecky of Depaul College Prep. Stecky has a disgusting PR of 2:09 in the 800, and it will take a gargantuan effort from the WSF girls to take her down. 

Throws

We will see a great heat-to-head matchup between Jaloni Wiley from Homewood Flossmoor and Joi Story of Edwardsville. Wiley has the better PR, with an intergalactic 46 feet from last winter. She has a season best of 41’ 9”, which is already a great mark to have within the first two weeks of the season. Story shocked everyone when she threw 42 feet last winter to win the 3A Top Times Championships. Story is traditionally a discus thrower, so this new dual threat capability could be interesting to watch as the season progresses. Another traditional discus thrower who could show out here is Isabella Thurston of Normal U. Thurston is the reigning 2A state champ in the discus, but her shot put PR of 40’ 2” absolutely puts her in range of Story. She has a season best of 38 feet, which is a great mark for where we are at in the season. These three should produce some great marks this weekend, it will be a very close event.