April 4, 2009
Complete Results | Photo Gallery 
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's and women's track and field teams honored their former head coach, adding several NCAA Regional marks at the fifth annual Mike Poehlein Invitational. The Boilermakers bettered five regional marks and set five others, pushing their 2009 total to 15 after two meets.
Junior Ashlee Lengacher became the Boilermakers' first double-qualifier of the season, while classmate Christina Madison, senior Ben Pax, sophomore Josh Hembrough and freshman Leah Eber added their names to the regional list.
Lengacher added her second NCAA Regional qualifying mark of the season, topping the women's 1,500-meter run with a career-best time of 4:27.67. Lengacher posted a personal record in the 800-meter run last weekend, regionally qualifying with a time of 2:09.27, and Saturday's 1,500 time smashed her previous career best by nearly 10 seconds.
The Boilermakers posted a pair of regional qualifiers in the women's long jump as Eber won the event with a career-best jump of 6.20 meters (20-04.25) and Madison was second with a mark of 6.12 meters (20-01). Eber's mark moved her into the top-five all-time at Purdue, surpassing Lorna Russell's mark of 6.13 meters from 1982. Junior Nkeiru Ugwoaba bettered her season-best mark in the triple jump, extending it to 12.40 meters (40-08.25) as she won the meet title.
Freshman Terri Anderson posted a career-best and extended her NCAA Regional qualifying mark in the women's discus, marking 49.30 meters (161-03) to take second overall, and junior Kristin Phillips won the women's 800-meter run, crossing the finish line in 2:13.80. The women's 4x400-meter relay topped its season-best by more than two seconds as senior Lauren Scott, junior Rachel Stalzer, sophomore Lindsey McKnight and freshman Morgan Monroe teamed for a time of 3:51.10.
The Purdue women saw a Dave Rankin Track record fall in the pole vault as Notre Dame's Mary Saxer cleared 4.30 meters (14-01.25), displacing Boilermaker senior Mallory Peck's previous mark of 4.11 meters (13-05.75). Peck turned in the Boilermakers' top mark of the day, taking second place and improving her regional mark with a vault of 4.00 meters (13-01.50).
Junior Eric Sparks and Pax turned in matching heights of 5.20 meters (17-00.75) to finish first and second in the men's pole vault as Sparks improved his NCAA Regional qualifying mark while Pax cleared his first regional qualifier of the season. Their marks are tied for the top clearance in the Big Ten this season; surpassing the top jump of 5.15 meters (16-10.75) posted by Minnesota vaulters Joe Plencner and Brock Spandl on March 20.
Hembrough started his outdoor campaign with a regional qualifying mark in the men's 110-meter hurdles, winning the race with a time of 13.95. Hembrough also posted the Boilermakers' top 200-meter dash time of the year, finishing second overall with a time of 21.94. Junior Adetayo Adesanya posted the Big Ten's top mark in 2009 in the men's high jump, clearing an NCAA Regional qualifying mark and a career-best 2.15 meters (7-00.50). Sophomore Bill Hardcastle topped the men's discus in his outdoor debut, marking 49.65 meters (162-11).
The Purdue men won both the 4x100-meter relay as Hembrough, fellow sophomores David Burroughs and Shane Crawford and freshman Mike Willey combined for a time of 41.03 in the 4x100.
Purdue continues the outdoor season next weekend in Athens, Ga., competing at the Georgia Spec Towns Invitational.