May 14, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Purdue men's and women's track and field teams got things underway at the 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Championships on Friday, hosted by Indiana University at Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex. The Boilermaker men kicked off the championship with a 12-point first day, good for fourth place in the conference standings, while the women have yet to break into the scoring column with just two events competed.
Senior Eric Sparks and freshman Kyle Campbell got the Boilermaker men off to a solid start, racking up all 12 of Purdue's day-one points in the pole vault. Sparks captured the silver medal at his final Big Ten Championship meet, clearing 5.30 meters (17-04.50) and earning his fifth career conference medal, while Campbell marked an outdoor career best 5.00 meters (16-04.75) to take home fifth place.
In other action for the Boilermakers, freshman Breanne Fife tossed a pair of career-best marks in the women's hammer throw, finishing 14th overall with a top throw of 47.85 meters (157-00), while junior Bill Hardcastle finished just off his season best, taking 16th at 54.88 meters (180-01). Fellow junior Caden Shields was 16th as well in the men's 10,000-meter run, crossing the line in 30:13.36.
Minnesota leads both the men's and women's competitions after day one, scoring 34 points on the men's side and 33 on the women's. Action resumes tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. with the men's decathlon, while the first Boilermaker will start competing at 1:20 p.m. in the men's long jump. Continue following the Boilermakers at The Official Purdue Twitter account.