By Mark Gregory
Sports Editor
@Hear_The_Beard
mark@buglenewspapers.com
CHARLESTON – Most seniors wait their whole high school career for graduation day.
And, while that may have been the case for Plainfield East’s Lotua Onua, when the time came, she had better things to do – like being the Bengals’ first-ever state track and field medalist when she took second in the Class 3A triple jump in O’Brien Stadium on the campus of Eastern Illinois University.
Onua advanced in the triple jump with a leap of 37-feet, 06-inches, but hit a career-best jump of 39-01.75 to earn the medal.
“I missed (graduation) with high hopes to place,” she said. “Last year I missed all state by a quarter of an inch, but this year I made sure I was going to place and place high. I am really happy. I was worth missing graduation.
“This is a story I can always tell later on. This is a great memory and I am glad I was able to do this.”
Onua said she knew when she landed that the jump was an epic one.
“When I landed , you can kind of estimate what you did, so I was happy – but then I saw 39-feet and that was crazy,” she said. “I PRed by more than a foot and I am blessed.”
While East has never had a state medalist, Onua also joins Plainfield North’s Jaclyn Aremka (high jump, 2011) as the only two District 202 athletes to ever place as high as second in state. Plainfield has never had a girls state champion.
Only one other triple jumper had ever placed in District lore and that was North’s Anna Laudizio who was ninth in 2013.
Onua is happy she can bring back the medal to East.
“I appreciate East so much,” she said. “I appreciate coach (Armond) Frazier, my freshman basketball coach – he is the one that told me to do long jump and triple jump. I appreciate coach Waz (Tony Waznonis ) my basketball coach, he has supported me in everything even outside of basketball. My track coaches (Dan) Billish and (Jason) Volmer. They are big teddy bears and that are probably crying more than I am. I just appreciate all the support the school has given me and the other girls that came here.
“We had a sendoff and almost the whole school was there and I knew I had to come back with a place. I think they will all be happy with second.”
Two other East seniors competed at state as Alexis Stevens cleared 5-3, while Katie Wiatrak made it over 5-1 in the high jump. Qualifying was at 5-4.
Plainfield North sophomore Juliana Stogsdill was 17th in the 3200 run in a time of 11:16.49.
In the 100-meter dash, Plainfield South senior senior Brianna Eaton finished the race in 12.72 seconds, while freshman Jebrieyah McClellan finished in 12.36.
McClellan also paced the Cougars’ 1600 relay team that included senior Brianna Eaton, senior Chisom Ogbozor and junior Aiyanna Hilton. The quartet completed the race in 1:44.96.
South’s 1600 relay team of freshman Trinity Allen, junior Aiyanna Hilton, senior Vivica Phillips and junior Daijah Brown finished in 4:07.67.
Brown posted a time of 58.78 in the 400 dash, while Plainfield North freshman Aja Bradshaw ran the 200 dash in 26.22.