This year we have a big group and a really young team. Our team has a great attitude and we have some great upperclassmen excited to take charge and help lead them.”

Colfay Pointer

We will have a big group this year, as there weren't many students who graduated last year. The group is experienced and ready to compete and get better.”

Dale Bergeson

ROCHELLE — The Rochelle Hub and Lady Hub track and field teams are less than one week away from beginning the indoor portion of the 2024 season. The Hubs are returning several varsity athletes under head coach Dale Bergeson, while the Lady Hubs have key seniors back in action and are looking to form a new identity under first-year head coach Colfay Pointer.

The Lady Hubs will be first to lace up their track shoes, with Rochelle scheduled to open the indoor season at the Sycamore Invitational on Tuesday, March 5. The Lady Hubs will then travel for the Byron Indoor Preview on March 9 before concluding the indoor season at the Sterling Warrior Invitational on March 16. Rochelle welcomes back a familiar face in Pointer, an RTHS alum who was a state-qualifying runner and collegiate athlete at the University of Dubuque.

“This year we have a big group and a really young team,” Pointer said. “Our team has a great attitude and we have some great upperclassmen excited to take charge and help lead them. Our team philosophy is 1 percent this year because we are striving to get 1 percent better every day. I expect the athletes to show up and put in the work and my goal is to see each athlete grow throughout the season. Our team is strong in numbers and we have students who are excited to learn and improve their performances. We have a lot of young athletes, so getting them more experience will be a huge growth point for our team as the season progresses.”

The Hubs begin the indoor season at the Byron Indoor Preview on Saturday, March 9. Rochelle will then head to the Gary Egler Invitational at Sycamore on March 13 before competing in the Sterling Warrior Invitational on March 16. Any male or female athletes who qualify for the Illinois Top Times Indoor State Championships will travel to Illinois Wesleyan to compete on March 22.

“We will have a big group this year, as there weren't many students who graduated last year,” Bergeson said. “The group is experienced and ready to compete and get better. The expectation this year is to get 1 percent better everyday. This year we will be better in every event in track and field. Looking at the numbers and who is back, this team will be a much-improved team over the really good team we had last year. We are strong in the high jump, pole vault, shot put, 1600 meters and 3200 meters. We need to see times drop in our 400 and 800 runners and I believe as we go through the season, these events will improve.”

Seniors Kylie Smith, Kennedy Adamski and Kyra Bivins are three upperclassmen to watch for as the Lady Hubs return to action. The Hubs are returning several upperclassmen including seniors Landon Mickley, Luis Hernandez, Bruno Fernandez and Nathan Sergeant. Juniors Jack Tilton, Virgil O’Dell, Jackson Smith and Colton Czekala, along with sophomores Declan McGee, Andrew Nuyen, Wyatt Worthington and freshman Devin Macek, are more names to watch.

The outdoor season begins on April 2, when the Hubs and Lady Hubs will face Morris and LaSalle-Peru in an Interstate 8 Conference triangular meet. The annual Hub Relays will be held on April 13 at RTHS, while the Rochelle Middle School Invitational is scheduled for April 25.