WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The women's track & field team swept the Big Ten weekly awards, the conference office announced Wednesday. Symone Black and Savannah Carson picked up the honors after each recorded a top-two mark in the country over the weekend.
Carson broke the school record, three times wind-legally in all, in the long jump at the Texas Relays. She had four jumps of at least 6.47 meters (21-2.75), all of which are better than the previous school record of 6.45m (21-2.00) set by Leah Kincaid in 2008. Her first jump officially broke the school record with a wind-legal (+0.7) distance of 6.48m (21-3.00). That was enough to win the competition. From there, she had a wind-aided (+2.8) jump of 6.52m (21-4.75), which is allowable for regional qualification, but not records. After a wind-legal (+0.5) jump of 6.47m (21-2.75) on her fourth attempt, Carson leapt a wind-legal (+1.1) distance of 6.54m (21-5.50). That mark is the best in the NCAA this season and leads by two inches over the next closest individual. Carson's jump is one foot, eight and three-quarters inches better than the next best Big Ten individual this season.
The award is the first during the outdoor season of Carson's career. She is the first Purdue woman to be named Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week during the outdoor season since Dani Bunch did so in 2014.
Black ran the second-fastest 400m hurdles time of her career. The junior finished second at the Texas Relays in the event with a time of 56.18 seconds, which is the No. 2 time in the country this year. She leads the next best Big Ten individual by 0.57 of a second. Black's time is within 0.15 of a second of her own school record, which she set at last year's Big Ten Championships.
Black's honor is the third of her outdoor career and the second of the season after as many meets. She also was named the conference track athlete of the week March 22nd after the UTSA Invitational for her efforts in the 400m hurdles.
The Purdue women have won three of the first six conference athlete of the week honors, including three of a possible four, since the team has competed two of the three outdoor weekends. Black and Carson are the first duo to sweep the outdoor weekly awards since Illinois did so after the season-opening meet in 2015. They are the first Purdue pair to do so since Aarin Jones and Nikki Nunn were honored the same week after the season opener in 2014.
The Boilermakers head to the LSU Battle on the Bayou on Saturday. The team will compete against LSU, USC and Penn State in the one-day meet.