Track and Field Wraps Up Musco Twilight

Josh Kirby and Matt Simmons set personal bests.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Western Illinois men and women's track and field teams posted multiple top-5 finishes at the Musco Twilight Saturday (April 22) in Iowa City, Iowa.

"We didn't come back as strongly as we needed to after the Lee Calhoun meet," said head coach Mike Stevenson. "Hopefully we will respond better next weekend. We did see some very good things, but it seemed like we were a little short on the depth."

Alyssa Johnson came away victorious in the women's 600-meter run, as she finished with a time of 1:31.83, just .83 seconds off from her personal best. In the women's hammer throw, Abbi Smith secured a second-place finish with a distance of 46.32 meters (152'00"). Khalyia Lawson also had a top-5 finish of her own in the women's triple jump, leaping a total of 11.66 meters (38'03.25" feet). Nicole Beebe finished third in the women's 3000-meter run with a time of 10:42.38. In the women's high jump, Michaela Busch had a ninth-place result with a height of 1.55 meters (5'01.5" feet).

Jasmine Swanagan had an eighth-place finish in the women's shot put with a distance of 12.72 meters (41'08.25" feet). Lastly, Kaliyah Cobb finished ninth in the women's 200-meter dash (25.81).

For the men, Malachi Adams posted a second-place finish in the men's 100-meter dash, running a 10.38. He also finished ninth in the men's 200-meter dash with a time of 21.41. Fresh off a victory at the Lee Calhoun Memorial Invitational was Josh Kirby, who also had a second-place finish in the men's 400-meter hurdles with a time of 54.13, a new personal best. He also had a ninth-place finish in the men's 110-meter hurdles (15.01).

Grant Kaiser rounded out the running events for the Leathernecks with a time of 9:09.43 in the men's 3000-meter run for a fourth-place mark.

For the field events, Brad Walls finished fifth with a distance of 56.32 meters (184'9") in the men's hammer throw, which was less than a foot from his personal best. Lastly, Matt Simmons had a pair of top-10 efforts in the men's triple jump (fifth/14.08 meters/46'2.50") and the long jump (eighth/7.09 meters/23'3.25"). His distance in the long jump is a new personal best.

Western Illinois now preps for The Drake Relays which will take place April 26-29 in Des Moines, Iowa.