BLOOMINGTON, Ind., and PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – The Purdue track & field team competed at two meets on Friday, as the squad began the weekend at the Husker Big Ten Invitational in Prairie View, Texas, and the Boilermaker distance runners raced at the Big Ten Indiana Invitational No. 3 in Bloomington, Indiana.
Friday's performances were highlighted by a victory from senior Brody Smith and top-10 times in program history in the 5,000 by junior Curt Eckstein and sophomores Alec Fleming and Tyler Bowling. Additionally, three Boilermakers qualified for the finals in two events and eight personal-best marks were set.
At the one-day Big Ten Indiana Invite No. 3 at IU's Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex, Smith won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 8:54.02. The second-fastest time in the Big Ten this season, the time would be sixth-fastest in school history if Smith didn't already hold the No. 4 spot.
Eckstein finished the 5,000-meter event in 13:49.80 to place third overall. He already held the second-fastest time in school history, but bested his mark by nearly two seconds to improve his time at No. 2 in Purdue's record book.
Fleming finished in 14:09.73, which ranks No. 8 in team history, and Bowling earned a time of 14:12.32, which is 10th on the all-time list. Freshman Blake Selm was just behind Bowling in 14:13.24, which would have been No. 10 in program history prior to Fleming and Selm inserting their names on the list. All three registered personal-best times.
Meanwhile, 31 Boilermakers traveled to the Husker Big Ten Invite for the first of two days of competition. The meet at the Prairie View A&M Track Stadium featured representatives from each Big Ten program.
Freshman Kaia Harris had another strong performance in the discus. Two weeks after she notched the second-best throw in school history, she earned a mark that would rank No. 8 all-time. Harris' throw of 51.27 meters was fifth overall on Friday.
Two Boilermakers advanced to tomorrow's 100-meter finals. Senior Malcolm Dotson and freshman Marcellus Moore each finished in 10.76 seconds, the fourth-fastest prelim times. Dotson mark was the fastest in his heat.
Freshman K'Ja Talley also earned a finals berth in the 100-meter hurdles. She finished with the third-fastest prelim time, in 13.97 seconds.
Senior Rebecca Coan is in third place through four events in the heptathlon, with 3,111 points, thanks to two career-best marks. She was second in the shot put with a throw of 12.59m, as she eclipsed the 12-meter mark for the first time in her career. Coan also tied for third in the high jump with a personal-record clearance of 1.66 meters.
Through the first five events in the decathlon, sophomore Isaiah Martin is in fifth place with 3,924 points. His day was highlighted by a first-place showing in the long jump with a personal-best jump of 7.43 meters. Martin also was third in the 400-meter with a time of 49.76 seconds.
Freshman Johnny Vanos tallied a personal-best hammer throw mark of 57.64 meters. It came on his third throw, as he advanced to the finals and finished fifth overall.
A pair of freshman Boilermakers registered personal-record times in the 400 hurdles. Anna Maria Leszczynska placed fifth overall in 59.86 seconds, and Talley was sixth in 1:00.21.
Two more PRs were set in Bloomington, as freshman Andrew Brandt finished the 5,000 in 14:20.46 and freshman Payne Turney ran the 800 in 2:12.95.
The Husker Big Ten Invite concludes on Saturday, April 17, with the continuation of the decathlon at 11 a.m. ET / 10 a.m. CT. Field events begin an hour later and running events start at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT.
Fans can follow all the action with live results, the event schedule and meet program, with direct links also available on the track & field schedule page on PurdueSports.com/TrackField. Additional updates can be found by connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
For more on the Purdue track & field and cross country program, visit PurdueSports.com/TrackField and follow and connect with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Friday's performances were highlighted by a victory from senior Brody Smith and top-10 times in program history in the 5,000 by junior Curt Eckstein and sophomores Alec Fleming and Tyler Bowling. Additionally, three Boilermakers qualified for the finals in two events and eight personal-best marks were set.
At the one-day Big Ten Indiana Invite No. 3 at IU's Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex, Smith won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 8:54.02. The second-fastest time in the Big Ten this season, the time would be sixth-fastest in school history if Smith didn't already hold the No. 4 spot.
Eckstein finished the 5,000-meter event in 13:49.80 to place third overall. He already held the second-fastest time in school history, but bested his mark by nearly two seconds to improve his time at No. 2 in Purdue's record book.
Fleming finished in 14:09.73, which ranks No. 8 in team history, and Bowling earned a time of 14:12.32, which is 10th on the all-time list. Freshman Blake Selm was just behind Bowling in 14:13.24, which would have been No. 10 in program history prior to Fleming and Selm inserting their names on the list. All three registered personal-best times.
Meanwhile, 31 Boilermakers traveled to the Husker Big Ten Invite for the first of two days of competition. The meet at the Prairie View A&M Track Stadium featured representatives from each Big Ten program.
Freshman Kaia Harris had another strong performance in the discus. Two weeks after she notched the second-best throw in school history, she earned a mark that would rank No. 8 all-time. Harris' throw of 51.27 meters was fifth overall on Friday.
Two Boilermakers advanced to tomorrow's 100-meter finals. Senior Malcolm Dotson and freshman Marcellus Moore each finished in 10.76 seconds, the fourth-fastest prelim times. Dotson mark was the fastest in his heat.
Freshman K'Ja Talley also earned a finals berth in the 100-meter hurdles. She finished with the third-fastest prelim time, in 13.97 seconds.
Senior Rebecca Coan is in third place through four events in the heptathlon, with 3,111 points, thanks to two career-best marks. She was second in the shot put with a throw of 12.59m, as she eclipsed the 12-meter mark for the first time in her career. Coan also tied for third in the high jump with a personal-record clearance of 1.66 meters.
Through the first five events in the decathlon, sophomore Isaiah Martin is in fifth place with 3,924 points. His day was highlighted by a first-place showing in the long jump with a personal-best jump of 7.43 meters. Martin also was third in the 400-meter with a time of 49.76 seconds.
Freshman Johnny Vanos tallied a personal-best hammer throw mark of 57.64 meters. It came on his third throw, as he advanced to the finals and finished fifth overall.
A pair of freshman Boilermakers registered personal-record times in the 400 hurdles. Anna Maria Leszczynska placed fifth overall in 59.86 seconds, and Talley was sixth in 1:00.21.
Two more PRs were set in Bloomington, as freshman Andrew Brandt finished the 5,000 in 14:20.46 and freshman Payne Turney ran the 800 in 2:12.95.
The Husker Big Ten Invite concludes on Saturday, April 17, with the continuation of the decathlon at 11 a.m. ET / 10 a.m. CT. Field events begin an hour later and running events start at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT.
Fans can follow all the action with live results, the event schedule and meet program, with direct links also available on the track & field schedule page on PurdueSports.com/TrackField. Additional updates can be found by connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
For more on the Purdue track & field and cross country program, visit PurdueSports.com/TrackField and follow and connect with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.