CHARLESTON — Lance Huftalin has looked forward to missing his senior commencement ceremony ever since he first stepped foot in Rochelle Township High School as a freshman.

It’s not something you hear everyday, but the All-State athlete has a reason for wanting to abstain from his high school graduation: bringing home a medal in the IHSA Boys Track & Field State Championships at Eastern Illinois University. That’s exactly what Huftalin and four of his Hub teammates did this past weekend, with Rochelle’s 1600-meter relay team (Huftalin, seniors Levi Johnson, Matthew Drendel and sophomore Austin Walsh) placing fifth and both Drendel (800-meter run) and senior Andrew Myers (high jump) earning medals in the open events.

“I still can’t believe my career is over, but I hope that next year the track team will do even better and hopefully return to state,” Huftalin said. “The state experience was the best one I have ever had. I loved all of it, from the food to the stores and the dorm experience… I’m proud we beat our seed times and I feel like we all left everything on the track.”

As if you couldn’t tell already, the state experience was a memorable one for Huftalin, who said his brother Frank was able to go to Charleston from the Navy to watch him run in the 1600-meter relay finals on Saturday. Walsh, the lone underclassman in the group, was also accompanied by a special guest, as his brother Oscar flew in from the Army in New York to see his younger brother run in the state meet.

“The experience was really fun and my favorite things were getting to spend time with the team and our coaches,” Walsh said. “My first time stepping on the track was a dream come true, I never thought I’d get to run at state as a sophomore. When we found out we made it to the finals we were so happy because all of us have been working so hard since the beginning of the season.”

The 1600-meter relay group raced in the first heat of the preliminary round on Friday, running a time of 3:25.11 to qualify for the finals on Saturday as the No. 8 team. The boys took their performance one step further in the final round, setting a personal record with a time of 3:24.21 and finishing fifth overall.

“It was an almost indescribable feeling,” Johnson said. “Before we ran we prayed, and we agreed to push ourselves beyond our limits, and we were able to push ourselves harder than before… Of the three times I’ve gone to the state meet this year was the most exciting. The group I went down with made the state meet all the more enjoyable.”

It was the first medal of the weekend for Huftalin, Johnson and Walsh, while it was the second for Drendel, who placed eighth in the final round of the 800-meter run with a personal-best time of 1:57.69. Drendel qualified with the third-fastest time on Friday, clocking in at 1:57.77.

“I thought the race was wonderful,” Drendel said. “It was so much fun running against the best of the best in the state… I think I performed to the best of my ability. The Lord gave me the strength to PR one final time in the state finals and I couldn’t be any more pleased with how I did… I really enjoyed being able to go down to state with a bunch of my close friends and coaches and being able to enjoy myself.”

While there was plenty of action to see on the track, there were also several state competitors looking to reach the finals in the field events. Those athletes included the Rochelle senior Myers, who cleared 6-3 in the high jump on Friday to advance to the final round after jumping 6-3 at the team’s sectional meet to make state.

“State was awesome,” Myers said. “A good group of guys went and we were all hyping each other up and having fun. Our coaches said it was one of the best state trips they’ve had… I enjoyed how we were all helping each other and cheering each other on.”

Eleven high jumpers returned on Saturday aiming to claim the state title, but only five were able to clear 6-5 including Myers, who passed the bar on his second attempt after sneaking over 6-4 on his third try. The Hub senior knocked the bar down on his first two jumps at 6-6, but with the nerves ramping up and the crowd noise growing louder, he summoned enough energy to get over the bar on his third attempt, achieving a personal goal he set after reaching the indoor state meet earlier this season.

“I was pretty nervous after missing my first two attempts, but my goal was to finish fourth or higher and after I made it I just felt unbelievable,” Myers said. “I finally got my run up down and I was smooth in all my transitions… I enjoyed how the other high jumpers helped each other out instead of just trying to win.”

The state meet concluded the 2016-17 boys track and field season, and it didn’t hit most of the senior Hubs until they returned to Rochelle later in the weekend. The boys wouldn’t trade their experiences for anything else, though, and all of the seniors brought their caps and gowns with them in celebration of their academic achievements once the athletics had subsided.

“I think it was completely worth it because now I’m a part of a small group of students who could say they missed their graduation because they were representing RTHS,” Drendel said.