SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Four school records fell on Saturday at the Loftus Sports Center at the University of Notre Dame. Devynne Charlton broke a pair of records in a span of nine minutes, while Chukwuebuka Enekwechi and the women's 4x400m relay team also set new program standards.
"Overall, this was, in my opinion, the best indoor performance we have had as a team," head coach Lonnie Greene said. "There are still so many pieces that we are trying to get on the track. This is shaping up to be what I think we are capable of doing. We will just have to let time show us that. We still have five weeks until Big Tens, so there is a lot of time to work and prepare. Our goal is to be very, very relevant at the Big Ten Championships and we will keep preparing for that."
Charlton ran five races on Saturday and seemed to get stronger as the day went on. She opened with the 60-meter hurdles prelims and posted a time of 8.43 seconds to win her heat. That time was the second fastest of all three prelims and just 0.10 of a second off her own personal record. She then returned had a short break before running in the 60m dash prelims. There, she won the first heat with a time of 7.51 seconds, just 0.04 of a second off her PR, for the third-fastest time in prelims. She advanced to finals in both.
After a couple hours, Charlton was back on the track for finals. First, she ran the 60m hurdles, where she ran away with the title in 8.23 seconds to win by 0.21 of a second. Not only that, the time was a PR by 0.10 seconds and broke Leah Kincaid's school record of 8.25 seconds from Jan. 26, 2008.
Just nine minutes later, Charlton was back at the starting line for the 60m dash finals. She got a good start blazed to the line in 7.39 seconds, a PR by 0.08 of a second. Much more significant, Charlton tore down a 32-year old school record in the event, which was held by Sybil Perry in 1983 with a time of 7.41 seconds.
Charlton didn't have too long to relax, as she was back on the track within the hour. Her next event was the 200m dash, an event in which she held the school record for nearly a year, before teammate Carmiesha Cox broke it last week. Charlton didn't quite retake the record, but she ran a 0.27 of a second PR and the school's second-fastest mark in history with a time of 24.18 seconds. She won her heat and finished third overall.
"Devynne is showing me that she has a whole lot more in her tank," Greene said. "Usually, you would see a good break in the action before you go back to the starting line. Devynne literally broke the hurdles school record and had time to walk back to the starting line and then broke the 60 record. I think she has more room to grow. She has 7.20 in her. She had an outstanding day and now we just have to keep her healthy and navigate through the waters."
Enekwechi's school record came in the weight throw, his first event of the day. The junior had his best series of the day, highlighted by his fourth attempt. After setting a PR and new school record on his second attempt with a mark of 23.68m (77-8.25). Then, two throws later, he unleashed Purdue's first ever throw over 24 meters, as he recorded a mark of 24.04m (78-10.50). That mark is currently the second-best in the country, behind NCAA Division I record holder Michael Lihrman of Wisconsin.
The final school record fell in the last women's event of the day, the 4x400m relay. The team led off with Taylor Dunlap and she gave the Boilermakers a solid lead. The sophomore handed the stick to 400m specialist Aarin Jones who also had a strong leg and extended Purdue's lead, and put the team on pace for something special. From there, Carmiesha Cox turned in a split close to 53 seconds, despite not often running farther than 200m. Freshman Symone Black brought it home, crossing the finish line with a team time of 3:38.71 to break the previous school record of 3:40.10 by Kendra Jones, Meisha Wilson-Duval, Kierstin Doyle and Khadijah Conda from March 7, 1998.
The Boilermakers had several other performances that ranked among the best in school history. Brionna Thomas took fifth in the 200m dash overall, but her time of 24.39 seconds was the second-fastest in school history, at least for one heat before Charlton bumped her down a spot. Thomas, the freshman, still had a huge PR and holds the No. 3 spot in the 200m in Purdue history.
In the pole vault, Jacqueline Williams also had a career-best day. The senior transfer cleared 4.00m (13-1.50) on her first attempt, after needing all three attempts to clear 3.85m (12-7.50). She was one of just four individuals to clear 13-1.50, but based on bars missed, she took fourth overall. Her clearance, though, ranks as the fourth-best in Purdue school history and is the first to crack the top five since 2010.
Savannah Carson ran a pair of 7.50-seconds times in the 60m dash. Her prelims time was second, while she took third in the finals. That time ranks tied for third in school history with teammate Twyla Winfrey. Winfrey finished fourth in the final with a time of 7.57 seconds. Carson also cracked the top 10 in Purdue history in the 200m dash where she finished 10th. She posted a time of 24.79 seconds, which ranks eighth in school history. Her mark in the long jump ranks seventh in school history. She won the competition with a best jump of 6.04m (19-9.75). She was the only competitor in the event to leap at least six meters.
While Jones was Purdue's top finisher in the 400m dash, and second overall, Black was the one that cracked the top six in school history, since Jones' time was not a PR. Black finished fourth overall with a time of 55.37 seconds, which ranks sixth in Purdue history.
The Boilermakers had numerous other PRs and notable performances. Liz Iversen had a pair of personal bests in the throws. She took third in the weight throw with a mark of 17.52m (57-5.75) and fourth in the shot put with a distance of 14.54m (47-8.50). She was Purdue's top finisher in both events. Luke Lewis PRed in the shot put with his fifth-place finish. He threw 17.42m (57-2.00). Vanessa McLeod and Kiara McIntosh went 1-2 in the 800m run. McLeod ran her best time in the event since 2013 with a winning time of 2:10.50. McIntosh was just behind her with a time of 2:10.70.
Akeem Hunt had a solid open to his 2014 season, especially considering he hadn't run a competitive race since 2012. The two-sport star was third in the 60m prelim with a time of 6.97 seconds and advanced to the finals. There, Hunt ran a time of 6.90 seconds to take third.
Obokhare Ikpefan and Chris Arvia had a good day in the men's 400m. Ikpefan ran a 47.84 to take second, while Arvia had a huge PR with a time of 47.90 seconds to take third. The men's 4x400m relay team wrapped up the meet with a strong effort, posting a second place finish and a time of 3:10.46.
"It was a good weekend," added Greene. "The kids competed well. We're right where I thought we'd be coming out of week three. Any time you see records fall and see kids run the way they have, considering we haven't backed off our workload, it makes me really excited. I thought we capped the day well with the relay at the end. We had a great relay last year, but they never ran this fast indoors. So I'm really excited for the rest of this indoor season."
Based on meet scoring, the Purdue women won with a total of 124 points, while the men were fourth with 70.
The Boilermakers have a big meet next weekend, as they travel to Arkansas for the Razorback Invitational.