Lemont High School Runner Qualifies for IHSA State Finals

For the second time in three years, senior Elissa Bitterman has qualified for IHSA Class 3A Girls Track and Field State Finals.

Bitterman finished in a four-way tie for the runner-up position in the high jump at the IHSA Class 3A Downers Grove North Sectional on Thursday, which earned her a trip to the state finals.

The state meet will be contested Friday, May 18, and Saturday, May 19, at O'Brien Stadium on the campus of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL.

Bitterman cleared the 5 feet, 3 inches at the sectional meet; that not only tied her for second place at the event, but also met the minimum qualifying standards for the state finals.

Benet Academy’s Darcy Cadman won the sectional title by clearing 5 feet, 5 inches, while Hinsdale South’s Bridget Bodee, Marist’s Kelly Corrollo and Bolingbrook’s Jhonae Staggers all matched Bitterman’s mark of 5 feet, 3 inches.

The top two performers from each sectional earn a state finals berth, as do any other competitors who equal or surpass the Class 3A qualifying mark in the preliminaries.

Bitterman will compete in the state finals preliminaries at approximately 12:15 p.m. Friday. If she advances to the championship round, that competition is scheduled to begin at approximately 2 p.m. Saturday.

This year will mark Bitterman's second appearance at the IHSA state finals. As a
sophomore, she finished seventh in the high jump at the 2010 IHSA Class
2A Girls’ Track and Field State Finals. Her finish was the best ever for a Lemont girls track and field performer in IHSA state finals competition.

Head coach Tim Plotke’s girls’ track and field squad is the school’s sixth athletic program to compete at the state level this year. 

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