2026 Pre-Season Track & Field Previews: Boys 4x400m

The Illinois high school track season has delivered some of the most dramatic moments in the long sprint relays, and the Top 10 ranked boys 4×400-meter relay teams across Classes 1A through 3A represent the elite depth in the state. Known as one of the toughest and most competitive events, the 4×400 m demands a unique combination of speed, endurance, and mental toughness from every leg. From aggressive leadoffs to fearless anchor performances under pressure, each team on this list has earned its ranking through consistent execution and success against top-level competition. Together, they showcase the grit, teamwork, and excitement that define boys relay racing across Illinois high school track and field.

3A

1. Homewood-Flossmoor

William Bundy (Jr.) - 49.70s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Kourtney Smith (Sr.) - 49.90s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Maurice Jimmerson III (Sr.) - 50.94

Jackson Wingba (So.) - 51.04 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jordan Luckett (Sr.) - 51.22

Joaquin Jordan (Sr.) - 52.31

Zion Morrison (Jr.) - 53.58

Jackson Alsberry (Sr.) - 53.77

2. Normal Community West

Damir Harris (Jr.) - 48.99 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Cade Gonzalez (Jr.) - 49.94 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Isaiah Willis (Jr.) - 49.98 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Mason Jones (Sr.) - 53.17

Alex Carter (Sr.) - 53.30s

Allan Watkins (Jr.) - 55.10s

Drake Golden (Fr.) - 55.96

Luis Zamora (Fr.) - 56.93

3. St. Charles East

Samuel Wollak (Jr.) - 49.05 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Peter VanLue (Sr.) - 49.73s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Leo Bolsoni (Sr.) - 51.17 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Michael Wilson (Sr.) - 52.70

Ejay Hodge (Fr.) - 54.88

Zach Zimmerman (Sr.) - 56.34

Ben Nawa (Sr.) - 56.54

Dominic Strada (So.) - 58.12

4. Belleville West

Morquez Bulliner (Jr.) - 48.75

Braden Missey (Sr.) - 50.86s (ALL-STATER)

Freddie Perry (Sr.) - 50.90 (ALL-STATER)

Tony Lloyd (So.) - 52.17

Alijah Burrell (So.) - 53.22

Philip Miller (Jr.) - 54.41

Terryl Graham (Jr.) - 56.31

Tyrelle Willis (Jr.) - 56.84

5. Springfield

Mekhi Newman (Sr.) - 48.45s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Deandre Brown (Sr.) - 48.95 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jacob Greco (Jr.) - 51.28s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Deanthony Brown (So.) - 53.06

Kameron Parson (Jr.) - 53.68

Declan Brown (Sr.) - 53.79

Kale Thurman (Sr.) - 54.43

Christopher Taylor (Jr.) - 54.77

6. Yorkville

Owen Horeni (Sr.) - 48.70s

Raymond Brigman (Sr.) - 50.40s

Aiden Kolkmeyer (So.) - 51.20s

Logan Reuter (So.) - 51.50s

Jayden Ruth (So.) - 51.95

James Cherney (Jr.) - 53.20s

Evan Fals (Jr.) - 54.30s

Robert Crum (So.) - 54.34

7. Rockton (Hononegah)

Chase Cutler (Jr.) - 47.37

Sam Hagg (Sr.) - 51.52 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Gavin Brady (Sr.) - 51.97

Coen Lee (Sr.) - 52.15 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Oliver Campbell (Jr.) - 52.80

Grayson Schomburg (Jr.) - 52.93

Calvin Clowes (Sr.) - 53.23 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Ryan Fritsch (Jr.) - 54.44

8. Winnetka (New Trier)

Miles Lyons (Sr.) - 47.46 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Dylan Nemerovski (Sr.) - 51.63

Erik Bertrandt (Sr.) - 51.74

William Hanahan (Sr.) - 52.57

Alan Serbest (Sr.) - 53.17

Will Miller (Jr.) - 53.61

Eric Dueno Alda (So.) - 54.26

Oliver Spencer (Sr.) - 54.43

9. Aurora (Metea Valley)

Henry Faber (Sr.) - 48.95 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jamari Hawkins (Sr.) - 50.76 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Ben Vallandingham (Sr.) - 52.57 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Kofi Kwakyi (Sr.) - 52.58

Ethan Reyes (Sr.) - 53.36

Dylan Bennett-Garza (Sr.) - 55.51

William Wang (Jr.) - 55.93

Nick Palmer (Jr.) - 57.04

10. Evanston

Deshawn Preister (Sr.) - 50.33 (STATE CHAMPION)

Anthony Honore (So.) - 50.37s (STATE CHAMPION)

Lewis Scott (So.) - 52.07

Justin Johnson (Jr.) - 52.18

Mynard Blake (Jr.) - 52.90s

Milo Porter (Sr.) - 53.33

Eric McLoyd (Sr.) - 53.90

Kendyle Jones (Sr.) - 54.47

2A

1. Cahokia

Corrion Raiford (Sr.) - 49.07 (ALL-STATER)

Nigel Gooden (Jr.) - 50.81s (ALL-STATER)

Hartles Holman (Jr.) - 50.81 (ALL-STATER)

Jayden McCallum (Jr.) - 50.90s (STATE CHAMPION)

Reginald Griffin (Sr.) - 51.00s (ALL-STATER)

Tyreke Baker (Sr.) - 51.70

Mark Samuels (Jr.) - 51.77

Earnest Winters (Fr.) - 52.98

2. Morton

Abe Martin (So.) - 48.99s (ALL-STATER)

Keenan Smith (Jr.) - 50.09 (ALL-STATER)

Keyston Beyer (Jr.) - 50.74s (ALL-STATER)

Jude Rogers (Jr.) - 51.74 (ALL-STATER)

Grady Bryant (Sr.) - 53.60

Luke Geyer (Fr.) - 54.43

Isaiah Hartter (So.) - 55.63

Brooks Springer (Fr.) - 56.42

3. Sterling

Quincy Maas (Jr.) - 49.78s (ALL-STATER)

Maurice Delacruz (Sr.) - 49.99s (ALL-STATER)

Aiden Lacy (Jr.) - 51.20 (ALL-STATER)

Brady Hartz (Sr.) - 52.37

Derek Prieto (Jr.) - 52.66 (ALL-STATER)

Alexander Zaragoza (Jr.) - 54.51

Ryan Gebhardt (Sr.) - 55.83

Navain Moore (Fr.) - 55.91

4. Mt. Zion

Ricky Jones (Sr.) - 50.26 (ALL-STATER)

Keller Stocks (Sr.) - 50.49 (ALL-STATER)

Wyatt Trump (Sr.) - 51.19s (ALL-STATER)

Drew St. Pierre (Fr.) - 51.97

Corin Etchison (Jr.) - 53.01

Leyton Ryder (So.) - 54.10s

Andrew Owens (Jr.) - 55.57

Sam Toth (So.) - 55.60s

5. Geneseo

Cedric Kehoe (Sr.) - 49.08s (ALL-STATER)

Gavin Hintgen (Jr.) - 51.80s

Micah Johnson (Jr.) - 52.00s (ALL-STATER)

Micah Nicke (So.) - 52.56 (ALL-STATER)

Isaac Nixon (Sr.) - 53.16s (ALL-STATER)

Jack Mickley (Jr.) - 54.10s

Jack Kreiss (Jr.) - 55.30s

Kael McCord (So.) - 55.83

6. Carbondale

Mogolodi Kebinang (Sr.) - 49.95s (ALL-STATER)

Dewayne King (Sr.) - 50.21 (ALL-STATER)

Jontavious Oliver (So.) - 51.90s (ALL-STATER)

Dylan Clough (So.) - 53.86

Rudy Altman (Sr.) - 54.43

Savion Thomas-Mims (Sr.) - 55.09

Synsear Scott-Ross (So.) - 56.87

Freddy Perez (So.) - 59.82

7. Bartonville (Limestone)

Logan Smallwood (Sr.) - 49.26

Tyler Hammond (Jr.) - 51.40s

Kaleb Powell (Sr.) - 52.50s

DJ Brooks (So.) - 53.16

Joey Shields (Sr.) - 54.65

Blake Schade (Sr.) - 54.88

Tyrrell Baker (So.) - 55.36

Nathan Silomba (Sr.) - 55.77

8. Bloomington (Central Catholic)

Isaiah Whitaker (Sr.) - 49.96s (ALL-STATER)

Ben Meyer (Jr.) - 51.55 (ALL-STATER)

Eoin Kohn (Sr.) - 52.39s (ALL-STATER)

Mason Clark (Jr.) - 53.20s

Jonathan Blankenship (Jr.) - 54.35

Aidan Craig (So.) - 57.20

Jude Bordewick (So.) - 58.53

Oliver Quinlan (So.) - 58.80

9. Mascoutah

Robert Williams (Sr.) - 50.00 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Camren Reed (Sr.) - 51.13 (STATE QUALIFIER)

James Perkins (Sr.) - 52.45

Hunter Collins (Jr.) - 54.67

Austin Edwards (Jr.) - 55.78

Joshua Langham (So.) - 55.94

James McWilliams (Sr.) - 56.54

Kamari Cruz (So.) - 57.14

10. East St. Louis

Durand Sain Jr. (So.) - 50.39 (STATE CHAMPION)

Demetri Jefferson (Jr.) - 52.60s

Jahmori Ware (So.) - 54.71

Jaidon Pelly (Jr.) - 55.67

Darrion Bradley (So.) - 55.94

Jaylen Atkins (Jr.) - 56.30s

Roy Taylor (Jr.) - 56.34

Darviontez Clark (Fr.) - 56.67

1A

1. Auburn

Jacob Barth (Sr.) - 48.57s (STATE CHAMPION)

Hunter Piper (Sr.) - 51.61 (STATE CHAMPION)

James Baisden (Sr.) - 51.82 (STATE CHAMPION)

Wyatt Thurman (Sr.) - 56.80

Lucca Dinardo (So.) - 58.01

Tyler McClelland (So.) - 59.02

Ryan Staggemeyer (Fr.) - 59.37

Sam Talavera (So.) - 59.59

2. Forreston

Brody Schwartz (Jr.) - 49.58 (ALL-STATER)

Hayden Vinnedge (Jr.) - 51.20 (ALL-STATER)

Eli Ferris (Jr.) - 52.87 (ALL-STATER)

Mercer Mumford (Sr.) - 53.35

Liam Setterstrom (So.) - 55.38

Jordan Reed (Jr.) - 56.79

Erik Martinez-Santos (So.) - 58.33

Ryder Faivre (Fr.) - 1:00.08

3. Pleasant Plains

Kadyn Harmony (Jr.) - 50.11s (ALL-STATER)

Nathan Frey (So.) - 51.94 (ALL-STATER)

Landon Jacobson (So.) - 53.19

Jared Long (So.) - 53.43

Elijah Teefey (Sr.) - 53.80s

Joel Gove (Sr.) - 55.44

Braylon Heredith (So.) - 56.20s

Ty Copeland (Jr.) - 56.64

4. Glasford (Illini Bluffs)

TY Basham (Sr.) - 49.85s (ALL-STATER)

William Emhoff (Jr.) - 52.49 (ALL-STATER)

Carson Rademaker (So.) - 53.65

Levi Thomas (Sr.) - 54.00s (ALL-STATER)

Brandon Gillies (So.) - 58.84

Jacob Russell (Jr.) - 59.10

Hendrix Seaman (So.) - 1:01.56

Liam Major (Fr.) - 1:02.13

5. Colfax (Ridgeview)

Zane Hoffman (Jr.) - 49.87 (ALL-STATER)

Tanner Maupin (Jr.) - 50.87 (ALL-STATER)

Noah Hastings (Sr.) - 54.60

Carter Hartness (So.) - 54.92

Austin Hardman (So.) - 54.93

Eric Payne (Sr.) - 57.35

Kohl Thomas (So.) - 57.63

Gavin West (Fr.) - 58.72

6. Princeville

Jacob Bosch (Jr.) - 50.77 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Oliver Melick (Jr.) - 52.36s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jackson Kraft (Jr.) - 52.82

Collin Bowers (Jr.) - 54.89

Brock Butler (Sr.) - 55.71 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Eli Christianson (Sr.) - 56.05s

Luke Graham (Sr.) - 59.34

Nick Wilson (Jr.) - 1:00.93

7. Rockford Christian

Evan White (Sr.) - 50.88s (ALL-STATER)

Noah Myers (Fr.) - 52.22

Joel White (Sr.) - 53.80s (ALL-STATER)

Blake Lindberg (Jr.) - 54.10s

Julian Honeyville (Sr.) - 55.89

Adam Mattingly (Jr.) - 55.99

Cameron Anderson (Sr.) - 57.75

Brendan McGonigal (Sr.) - 58.14

8. Morrison

Brady Anderson (Sr.) - 49.94s

Levi Milder (Sr.) - 52.40s

Rylan Alvarado (Jr.) - 53.19s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Josh McDearmon (Jr.) - 55.52 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jaxon Yaklich (Jr.) - 56.92

Lane Decker (So.) - 57.50

Mason Grismore (Fr.) - 1:00.37

Chace Edwards (So.) - 1:01.37

9. Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond

Easton Frederick (Sr.) - 52.00 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Cruz Hale (Sr.) - 52.07s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Daylon Doggett (Sr.) - 53.40s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Cooper Shoemaker (Jr.) - 54.69

Cash Hale (Sr.) - 54.70 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Payton Warrior (Sr.) - 55.64

Bentley Hutson (Fr.) - 55.81

Jase Kingery (Fr.) - 57.61

10. Pittsfield

Bodie Marable (Sr.) - 50.44

Dominic Cooper (Sr.) - 54.20 (STATE QUALIFIER)

Riggston Bonds (Sr.) - 54.85

Taylor Graham (Sr.) - 55.00s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jonas Anderson (Sr.) - 55.00s (STATE QUALIFIER)

Jake Oitker (Sr.) - 55.84

Ivan Valentin (So.) - 56.33

Landyn Seal (So.) - 59.27