ROCHELLE — Jacie Wyatt began competing in the high jump just a few weeks ago, and her interest in high jumping was more out of curiosity than anything.

It didn’t take long for one of Rochelle Township High School’s top athletes to make her mark in the event, though, and Wyatt will have a chance to prove herself against the top high jumpers in the state when she and four of her teammates battle in the 2018 Illinois Top Times Indoor State Championships in Bloomington this weekend.
“They just kind of threw me in high jump,” Wyatt said. “One practice I wasn’t doing anything so I thought I’d go high jump and they said OK… I know I can jump high but I didn’t expect to qualify for indoor state, especially since I haven’t practiced that much. I’m working on it though so hopefully I can jump higher this weekend.”
Wyatt set a personal record at the Northern Illinois Big 12 Conference Indoor Meet in Sterling this past Saturday, clearing 5’-2” to place third overall. Wyatt will also participate in both the 800-meter relay and the 1600-meter relay at the state meet this weekend alongside teammates Macey Ryan, Cesca Vardman, Morgan Baker and Morgan Knight.
“It’s so exciting,” Wyatt said. “I love competing with my teammates and any chance I get to run with them, especially at the state level, is exciting for me. I feel like we’re not going to be as nervous since it won’t be a new experience for us. We’ll go in relaxed knowing that we can run fast and compete.”

Rochelle’s 800-meter relay group of Vardman, Ryan, Baker and Wyatt shined at the conference meet in Sterling. The girls ran the race in 1:49.55 to set a new RTHS indoor track and field record and finish second overall.
The Lady Hubs clocked in at 1:50.85 during last year’s indoor state meet, but the girls said they feel much stronger this time around.
“I’m excited and I want to do better than we did last year while still having fun with it,” Baker said. “We don’t want to put too much pressure on ourselves. I don’t think we’ll be as nervous and I think we’ll be more prepared… I think we’re faster than we were last year, at least in practices. We’ve been running faster splits for everything we’ve been doing.”
The Rochelle 1600-meter relay team of Vardman, Knight, Wyatt and Baker ran 4:17.13 to take second place in the conference meet at Sterling and qualify for indoor state.
Perhaps the strongest race for the Lady Hub seniors, who placed third in the IHSA Class 2A State Championships in the 1600-meter relay last year, the girls are aiming for another strong indoor performance.
“We want to do better than we did last year and hopefully we can push through that barrier,” Vardman said. “I have confidence in us. We know what to expect and we know the competition, so we know how they run and I think that will be a good thing for us. I think we’ve prepared as well as we could.”
“It’s really exciting,” Knight said. “Getting the opportunity to compete at such a high level right away in the season is really exciting and I just want to go out and compete… I feel like we’re stronger than we were last year and our workouts have been faster. I think we’re mentally tougher too.”
The 2018 Illinois Top Times Indoor State Championships will officially conclude the indoor track and field season for the Lady Hubs. Rochelle will compete in its first outdoor meet when the girls host the Ottawa Pirates at RTHS on Tuesday, April 3.