Johnson Collects Sprint Medals At Prep Top Times

BLOOMINGTON --- Justin Johnson didn’t put his best foot forward the first time he qualified for the Illinois Prep Top Times Invitational track meet.

But the Evanston sophomore made up for that effort in a big way here Saturday night.

Johnson showed that he belongs with the state’s elite sprinters with a runner-up finish in the 200-meter dash and a third place in the 60-meter dash in the final test of the indoor season.

The Wildkits also counted a third place from Dallas Amos in the 400, a third from the 1600-meter relay team of Deshawn Priester, Milo Porter, Mynard Blake and Amos, and a fourth from sophomore high jumper Jaden Jean-Paul, and laid a solid foundation for the shift to the outdoor season that begins next week. The 2025 Top Times field included representatives from ETHS in seven different events in an invitation-only scenario where the state’s elite have to turn in performances worthy of participation in what is the unofficial indoor state finals.

Johnson’s achievements were especially noteworthy considering that he was placed in the second slowest heat --- out of four heats overall --- in the 200 and the 60 dash isn’t exactly his forte, with a running style that needs time to gather speed and momentum leading to big finishes.

Johnson didn’t even make the finals in the 200 last year as a freshman, when he was clocked at 23.43 seconds, And his best time of 22.91 this year leading up to Saturday only ranked him back in the pack among the top contenders.

Earning a medal of any type coming out of a slow heat doesn’t happen often against top runners, but Johnson made sure he’d add to his medal haul by storming to a winning time of 22.54 in his heat and then waiting out the last two heat races to see how his time would compare to the other challengers.

Danville sophomore D’Mario Jackson, the No. 1 seed, lived up to that billing by winning the “fast” heat in 22.41.

“The 60 isn’t exactly my best race, so I knew that if I could stay with the other people like that in the 60, I could definitely do it in the longer race,” Johnson said. “I ran a 22.5 on a banked track at Gately Stadium and I knew that I was way faster than what my heat said.

“Last year I didn’t perform like I wanted to here. I had to believe in myself and just come out with that kind of mentality, and I’m really happy with the way I ran. When there’s a big meet like this, my body just seems to want it more and I really push to do something.”

Johnson, who started at wide receiver for the varsity football team in the fall, actually put on 15 pounds while lifting weights after the grid season ended but hasn’t lost a tick when it comes to speed on the track.

And veteran Wildkit head coach Don Michelin says that the sophomores’ football experience is paying off in track, too.

“Northing Justin Johnson does surprises me,” Michelin noted. “He did so well in varsity football, the way he competed, and that set him up for track. He has great confidence in himself and he has great ability.

“Before the 60 finals he was talking to Jaden (Jean-Paul) and saying I’m going to get me a silver or a bronze in the race. I love that mindset! His mindset was to be one of the guys up front in that race and that’s just what he did. And as long as he runs the 200 like he does, at a championship level, he’s rewarding himself. Why? Because I won’t make him run the mile relay. He’s just as good as the other guys in the 400 (Amos and Priester) but he doesn’t want to run the 400 if he doesn’t have to.”

Johnson was clocked in 6.98 in the 60 dash, behind only Cody Muhlbauer of Normal Community (6.88) and Colton Ladage of Chatham Glenwood (6.92) and moved up one spot after posting the fourth fastest qualifying time (7.01) in the prelims.

Amos sizzled with a 50.3 in the open 400, in a race where only the champion broke 50 seconds (Bruce Duncan of Bolingbrook in 49.96), then came back with his patented fantastic finish anchoring the 1600 relay team to third. Amos’ split in that race was 50.86.

Priester, who would have earned a top five finish in the open 400 but was disqualified for running out of his lane, made up for that miscue with a leadoff leg of 51.93 even though he wasn’t 100 percent physically. He was spiked in the leg competing at the Phillips Relays and hadn’t even been able to practice until recently. His time led the Kits to an overall clocking of 3:28.61, a season best, in a race won by Bolingbrook in 3:25.83.

Jean-Paul’s first exposure to state-level competition left him fourth with a best leap of 1.94 meters, or 6 feet, 4.25 inches in the high jump.

Also representing the Wildkits Saturday were Nelson Heck in the high jump (1.78 meters), Ryan Rice (10.15) and Lucas Anderson (8.94) in the 60 hurdles, and Enijel Shelton (16.14 meters) in the shot put.

Michelin can’t wait to transition from indoors to outdoors, especially if his squad finds a way to stay healthier and avoid injuries. Besides Priester’s mishap, Rice has been competing with banged-up knees and jumper/runner Sebastien Carmichael has also missed time with hamstring issues.

“One of the things I’m happy about (with the end of the indoor campaign) is putting the injuries behind us,” explained the ETHS coach. “We can put a very good team together outdoors because on any given day we’ve seen a lot of good stuff from these guys. It just hasn’t happened yet all in the same meet. If we’re all on the same weekend, this is a very, very good team.”

Johnson agreed.

“We have a lot of people who are at this (State) level,” he said. “I think we can go far as a team at State.”