Supreme Muhammad and Winnebago sprint out of state track and field meet with championships

Supreme Muhammad was just one of 18 Rockford-area sprinters to haul in a medal during the IHSA boys state track and field meet in Charleston.

Only the top nine finishers in each of Saturday's finals earned medals, and that was an impressive haul for local sprinters.

More boys track: Rockford-area sprinters lead the charge as 47 local boys head to state track and field meet

But Muhammad was the only one to get a state title (he actually got two, to go along with two seconds), and was the only one to snag four medals all together. His impressive speed also helped spark Winnebago to the Class 1A team title.

"I was nervous being seeded first. At these things, anything can happen," Muhammad said. "But I got it done, and it was a good feeling. I won't forget this day for a long time."

In the 100-meter dash alone, Rockford-area star sprinters bolted off with a first- and seventh-place medal in the Class 1A race when Muhammad owned the field with a 10.72, and Lena-Winslow's Alec Schlichting took seventh in 11.09. Boylan's Rasheed Johnson, who also placed ninth in the 200 despite pulling a hamstring, narrowly lost out at the line and took second in the 2A showdown in the 100 dash with a 10.67. Guilford's Messiah Tilson, who placed fourth in the 200 dash at 21.60, took sixth in the 3A finals of the 100 dash with a mark of 10.71.

The Rockford-area sprinters were everywhere, led by Muhammad.

Winnebago's all-around effort

The Winnebago senior later won his second 200-meter dash state title in a row with a time of 21.51, this one coming in runaway fashion. He also sparked the 4x200 relay crew to a runner-up finish in 1:28.20, and helped the 4x100 relay team to a second-place finish as well in 42.51.

Led by Muhammad and the sprint relays, Winnebago piled it on Saturday. But it was far from a one-man show.

"We had to overcome some adversity, even today," Erb said. "There was some relief when we finally knew we had it at the end, at least for me there was. A lot of pride, too, that's for sure."

Two other Winnebago athletes earned multiple medals as well, helping the entire team to 57 points, just enough to edge runner up Tuscola with 54. Le-Win took seventh with 22 points.

Brandon Wiggan, Mitchel Cunningham and Eden Trotter-Krahn joined Muhammad in the sprint relays, and Wiggan soared 44-5 1/4 to take fourth in the triple jump at the 1A level as well.

Nicolai Martino finished third in a hotly contested 3,200 run, clocking a 9:31.16, a PR for the junior. He then turned it around quickly, and nearly came all the way back in the 1A 1,600 run, finishing second in 4:18.13, another PR.

"It was pretty stressful, especially with how close it was in the standings and stuff," Martino said. "But I knew I had to do it. I just wanted to do it for the whole team."

Who else stepped up in Class 1A?

And while Winnebago had a rough final handoff and dropped from first to second late in the 4x100 relay, Le-Win made a late move to take third in that 400 relay (43.10).

Le-Win's Gage Dunker took second in the shot put with a put of 53-feet-3. Dwight freshman Graham Meister, however, had the best throw in 1A with a 55-9 3/4, relegating Dunker (the oldest Dunker, that is) to a silver medal. His younger brother Gannon Dunker, just a freshman, finished in 12th with a 49-3 3/4.

"Everything just clicked on that one throw, and I knew it was soon as it left," Gage Dunker said of his runner-up throw. "And just to be here, and do this with my little brother, it's pretty dang cool. And to get a top three, I'm pumped. Now I get that road sign."

Le-Win's Alec Schlichting soared to a seventh in the 100 dash in 11.09, and Schlichting led the Panthers' 4x100 relay team that got third, just behind Muhammad and Winnebago. Forreston's 4x200 relay crew of De'Angelo Fernandez, Micah Nelson, Brock Soltow and Noah Dewey took third in 1:30.66, again, just behind Winnebago.

Le-Win also had a hurdler in the mix, and Jake Schumacher placed seventh in the 110 high hurdles in 15.51, his best ever. He also took ninth in the 300 intermediate hurdles showdown at 1A, clocking a 43.17.

Rockford Christian's 4x800 relay team of Evan White, Weston Forward, Joel White and Andrew Kurien poured it on late and took second in 7:58.82, and Forward later placed ninth in the 3,200 run in 9:48.64. Their teammate Suubi Kyobe cleared 6-2 in the high jump to take seventh, and Oregon's Leo Cardenas placed seventh in the pole vault with a make at 13-5.

Dakota's Tristen Alexander got sixth in the long jump with a flight of 21-5, and Forreston's 4x400 relay crew of Nelson, Soltow, Dewey and Hayden Vinnedge placed eighth in 3:26.93 to close out the 1A meet.

More from Class 2A, 3A

Max Milbrath of Durand/Pecatonica, the defending 1A triple jump state champion, took eighth this year as his team was bumped up to 2A. His jump of 44-2 3/4 would have only gotten fifth in 1A this year, just behind Winnebago's Wiggan.

Also in 2A, Rochelle's best vaulter ever Andrew Nuyen tied for third in the pole vault with a make at 14-7 1/4.

Up in 3A, Guilford's Messiah Tilson medaled in both the 100 and 200 dashes, taking sixth in the 100 in 10.71 and placing fourth in the 200 with a PR of 21.60.

East's Mechai Docket-Lewis did not final in the 100 dash, but he joined Christopher Tolliver, Javius Catlin and Jayden Green to take seventh in the 4x200 sprint relay finals in 1:28.57.

Jefferson's Mynes Murray placed ninth in the long jump with a flight of 22-4 1/4, and Boylan's Johnson pulled up lame late in the meet during the 200 dash, and finished in ninth.

Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @JayTaft. Sign up for the Rockford High School Sports Newsletter here at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks to local youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star.

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Winnebago and Supreme Muhammad lead Rockford-area stars at state track