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Leatherneck Track and Field Heads to Iowa State Alumni Invite

WIU faces tough final meet before OVC Championships

MACOMB – After a successful weekend at the Drake Relays last week, the Western Illinois men's and women's outdoor track and field team gear up for the regular season on Friday, competing at the Iowa State Alumni Open.

Field events begin at 3 p.m. on Friday with track events scheduled to start at 5 p.m. The meet is the last one for the Leathernecks before the Ohio Valley Conference Meet, scheduled to take place May 9-11 at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.

WHAT | Iowa State Alumni Open

WHEN | Friday, May 3. Field Events 3 p.m, track events 5 p.m.

LIVE RESULTS | https://bit.ly/3JJy9QS

LAST WEEK | Jumpers and relays led the way for the Western Illinois men's and women's outdoor track and field teams as the group had a big week at the prestigious Drake Relays in Des Moines.

In the field, Aliyah Adams set the tone for her weekend on Friday, starting with a third-place finish in the women's championship triple jump. On her first attempt, Adams went 40 feet, 11.5 inches. It was her best effort in the competition and good enough to earn her third. 

Adams also added a second-place finish, this coming in the college/university long jump on Friday night. Adams had a best effort of 19-10.25. The leap was a new personal best and placed her fourth in program history.

On Saturday, it was the men's turn to leap into the program record books.

Toriano Tate set a new personal best, jumping 24 feet, 9.25 inches. That long jump is the sixth-best in program history and earned Tate a spot on the podium, finishing the event second overall. Tate was only one-half inch behind the event winner.

Alessandro Belluz also competed in the men's long jump, finishing 17th with a best effort of 22-6.5. Renee Raglin also had a strong Saturday in the long jump to boost Western Illinois' jumpers. Competing in the college/university championship division, Raglin had a best of 19-11.75. Raglin's performance earned her a spot on the podium with a third-place finish.

On the track on Saturday, relays had a big day for the Leathernecks.

The sprint medley relay team rewrote the program record book, setting a new program best with a 3:58.38. The new record is close to 1.5 seconds faster than the previous best, set in 2001. The group finished the event eighth. The men's sprint medley relay team also found its way into the program record book. The squad ran a time of 3:23.51, which placed them sixth in program history and fifth in the event. The women's distance medley relay team finished at 12:14.25, the time is the fourth-fastest in program history. The men's distance relay finished at 10:00.16. The time is now the fifth-fastest in program history and gave the team a seventh-place finish. In the women's 4x400, it was another record-book performance as the team covered the race in 3:47.38. The time gave the squad a second-place finish and put the group at eighth all-time in program history. 

WHAT'S NEXT | Western Illinois begins the postseason at the Ohio Valley Conference Meet at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston. After the conference meet, the Leathernecks have the week off before participating in the NCAA West Regional in Fayetteville, Arkansas May 22-25.

WHERE THEY STAND IN THE OVC | With a week to go before the conference meet, the Leathernecks have plenty of high marks in the league.
Maleigha Huston currently holds the top time in the women's 800 and second-fastest time in the 1500. In the 10,000 meters, a pair of Leathernecks hold down the second spot. For the men, it's Logan Beckmier while Madison Trevena is in second for the women. In the hurdles, Sophia Myers is ranked in the top five in both the 100 hurdles and 400 hurdles. Myers is currently third in the 100 hurdles and fifth in the 400 hurdles. The Leathernecks also have the top two spots in the 3000 steeplechase as Logan Lommel leads the men and Aylana Cezar paces the women.

In the field, WIU also has plenty of top OVC scorers.

In the men's pole vault, Arnie Grunert has the top height while Emma Ponx is second and Paulina Lucer is fourth. In the long jump, Toriano Tate is currently second in the league while Renee Raglin and Aliyah Adams are first and second. Adams also holds the top distance in the triple jump. Also seeded is Jasmine Stokes in the hammer throw. Stokes is currently third in the league.

In the relay, WIU women's 4x100 relay is currently fourth while the 4x400 squad is second.

WHERE THEY RANK NCAA WEST REGION | With 48 spots on the line for NCAA West Region qualification, Western Illinois has a handful of athletes looking to extend their season.

In the women's long jump, Raglin currently holds the 34th spot and in the women's triple jump, Adams is 39th. For the men, Grunert is 19th in the pole vault and Tate is 44th in the long jump.
 
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