COLUMBUS, Ohio – In its final regular-season meet of the outdoor season, the Purdue track & field team earned three top-10 times in program history and recorded seven top-three finishes at a pair of meets on Saturday.
Senior Joey Humes ran the second-fastest 1,500-meter time in school history as one of three Boilermakers to notch top-10 times in the event as the distance runners raced at the Big Ten Indiana Invitational No. 4 in Bloomington, Indiana. Sophomore Camille Christopher won the 100-meter dash to lead the way for Purdue at the Jesse Owens Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.
"Generally speaking, I'm really pleased that we were able to compete at this last meet, which is a tune-up for the Big Ten Championships in two weeks," Purdue coach Norbert Elliott said. "We were able to get everyone through, pretty much without any major injuries, which bodes well and allows us to train and do our final prep work. We had some really good performances this weekend as well, despite the fact that some of them were wind-aided. Some of the marks are really encouraging.
"I want to single out Joey Humes, Ian Hunter, Kyle Griffith and Brody Smith in Bloomington and Camille Christopher, Samson Colebrooke, Marcellus Moore, Jayla Ellis and Deborah Obadofin in Columbus. We had a split squad, and our distance runners did a nice job in Bloomington as well. Overall, the biggest thing I'm pleased with is that we were able to cap things off without any major injuries, so we're looking forward to the final prep work before the Big Ten Championships."
At IU's Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex, Humes, freshman Ian Hunter and junior Kyle Griffith earned top-10 times in school history in the 1,500 and all six runners earned personal-best times. In two days in Bloomington, all nine Purdue runners tallied career-record times.
Senior Joey Humes ran the No. 2-fastest time in the Purdue record books with a mark of 3:45.90. Hunter ran the sixth-fastest, in 3:47.08, and junior Kyle Griffith secured the No. 8 time in school history with a 3:47.64.
Along with Christopher's win, the Boilermakers added two second-place finishes and four third-place showings individually at Ohio State. Purdue recorded six personal-best marks and had nine that would be career-bests if they weren't wind-aided at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
Christopher's victory came in the 100-meter dash final with a wind-aided time of 11.38 seconds. That would be the third-fastest mark in school history if not for the wind. Christopher advanced to the finals after a wind-aided 11.43 in the prelims, the second-fastest qualifying time. Today's performance came after she placed second in the 200 last night.
Freshman Marcellus Moore also advanced to the 100 final and was second in the men's race. He finished in 10.29 after a 10.40 in the prelims, both wind-aided times.
The men's 4x400 relay team closed out the meet with a second-place finish, thanks to the second-fastest time in the Big Ten this season. Junior Amir Harris, seniors Malcolm Dotson and Samson Colebrooke and freshman Jahn Riley finished in 3:08.64. It was a season-best time by the Boilermakers in the event by nearly four seconds.
Purdue raced to second- and third-place showings in the women's 400. Senior Samara Miller ran a season-best 54.41 to earn the runner-up finish. She was just ahead of freshman Cierra Williams, who finished third in 55.26, a PR.
The Boilermakers were third and fourth in both the men's and women's long jump. In the men's competition, sophomore Ife Oketona jumped a personal-best 7.01 meters to place third, and freshman LJ Hill was fourth with a wind-aided mark of 6.78 meters. For the women, senior Rebecca Coan came in third with a wind-aided jump of 5.81 meters, and fellow senior Jaden Mattox also jumped 5.81m and was fourth.
Freshman Jayla Ellis advanced to the 100-meter hurdle finals, where she placed third with a wind-aided time of 13.90. That came after she qualified with a prelim time of 13.80, which would be a PR if it wasn't wind-aided.
Both 4x100 relay teams began the day on the track with runner-up finishes. The women ran a season-best time of 45.43, courtesy of freshmen Saran Kouyeth, K'Ja Talley and Naomi Campbell and Christopher, and the men finished in 39.83 thanks to Colebrooke, Dotson, sophomore Justin Becker and Moore.
Sophomores Alexis Zatta and Mackenzie Barrett both cleared 1.70 meters in the high jump, as Zatta finished fourth and Barrett was fifth, with a PR.
Additionally, personal-best marks also were set by Dotson in the 400 and freshmen Simi Akinrinsola in the shot put and Jahn Riley and Anna Maria Leszczynska in the 400. Sophomore Imman Iwu and Campbell in the 100, Ellis in the long jump and freshmen Vinajah Adderley and Deborah Obadofin in the triple jump, Nikia Smith in the 100 hurdles and Adam Wiatr in the 100 all had marks that would be PRs if they weren't wind-aided.
At IU, all six Boilermakers earned PRs. Along with Humes, Hunter and Griffith, sophomore John Pieper and freshmen Emma Tate and Luke Upton ran collegiate bests in the 1,500.
Yesterday, senior Brody Smith broke the school record in the 3,000 steeplechase and won the event with a time 8:43.77, the fastest in the Big Ten this season. All three Boilermakers that competed at IU posted personal-bests. At OSU, Purdue recorded a trio of runner-up finishes to go along with six additional top-five finishes. A complete recap from the opening day of both meets can be found at PurdueSports.com/TrackField.
Up next, Purdue begins postseason competition with the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships from May 14-16 in Champaign, Illinois. The Boilermakers originally were slated to compete at the Big Ten Indiana Invitational No. 5 next weekend, but that meet will no longer be held.
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.
Senior Joey Humes ran the second-fastest 1,500-meter time in school history as one of three Boilermakers to notch top-10 times in the event as the distance runners raced at the Big Ten Indiana Invitational No. 4 in Bloomington, Indiana. Sophomore Camille Christopher won the 100-meter dash to lead the way for Purdue at the Jesse Owens Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.
"Generally speaking, I'm really pleased that we were able to compete at this last meet, which is a tune-up for the Big Ten Championships in two weeks," Purdue coach Norbert Elliott said. "We were able to get everyone through, pretty much without any major injuries, which bodes well and allows us to train and do our final prep work. We had some really good performances this weekend as well, despite the fact that some of them were wind-aided. Some of the marks are really encouraging.
"I want to single out Joey Humes, Ian Hunter, Kyle Griffith and Brody Smith in Bloomington and Camille Christopher, Samson Colebrooke, Marcellus Moore, Jayla Ellis and Deborah Obadofin in Columbus. We had a split squad, and our distance runners did a nice job in Bloomington as well. Overall, the biggest thing I'm pleased with is that we were able to cap things off without any major injuries, so we're looking forward to the final prep work before the Big Ten Championships."
At IU's Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex, Humes, freshman Ian Hunter and junior Kyle Griffith earned top-10 times in school history in the 1,500 and all six runners earned personal-best times. In two days in Bloomington, all nine Purdue runners tallied career-record times.
Senior Joey Humes ran the No. 2-fastest time in the Purdue record books with a mark of 3:45.90. Hunter ran the sixth-fastest, in 3:47.08, and junior Kyle Griffith secured the No. 8 time in school history with a 3:47.64.
Along with Christopher's win, the Boilermakers added two second-place finishes and four third-place showings individually at Ohio State. Purdue recorded six personal-best marks and had nine that would be career-bests if they weren't wind-aided at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
Christopher's victory came in the 100-meter dash final with a wind-aided time of 11.38 seconds. That would be the third-fastest mark in school history if not for the wind. Christopher advanced to the finals after a wind-aided 11.43 in the prelims, the second-fastest qualifying time. Today's performance came after she placed second in the 200 last night.
Freshman Marcellus Moore also advanced to the 100 final and was second in the men's race. He finished in 10.29 after a 10.40 in the prelims, both wind-aided times.
The men's 4x400 relay team closed out the meet with a second-place finish, thanks to the second-fastest time in the Big Ten this season. Junior Amir Harris, seniors Malcolm Dotson and Samson Colebrooke and freshman Jahn Riley finished in 3:08.64. It was a season-best time by the Boilermakers in the event by nearly four seconds.
Purdue raced to second- and third-place showings in the women's 400. Senior Samara Miller ran a season-best 54.41 to earn the runner-up finish. She was just ahead of freshman Cierra Williams, who finished third in 55.26, a PR.
The Boilermakers were third and fourth in both the men's and women's long jump. In the men's competition, sophomore Ife Oketona jumped a personal-best 7.01 meters to place third, and freshman LJ Hill was fourth with a wind-aided mark of 6.78 meters. For the women, senior Rebecca Coan came in third with a wind-aided jump of 5.81 meters, and fellow senior Jaden Mattox also jumped 5.81m and was fourth.
Freshman Jayla Ellis advanced to the 100-meter hurdle finals, where she placed third with a wind-aided time of 13.90. That came after she qualified with a prelim time of 13.80, which would be a PR if it wasn't wind-aided.
Both 4x100 relay teams began the day on the track with runner-up finishes. The women ran a season-best time of 45.43, courtesy of freshmen Saran Kouyeth, K'Ja Talley and Naomi Campbell and Christopher, and the men finished in 39.83 thanks to Colebrooke, Dotson, sophomore Justin Becker and Moore.
Sophomores Alexis Zatta and Mackenzie Barrett both cleared 1.70 meters in the high jump, as Zatta finished fourth and Barrett was fifth, with a PR.
Additionally, personal-best marks also were set by Dotson in the 400 and freshmen Simi Akinrinsola in the shot put and Jahn Riley and Anna Maria Leszczynska in the 400. Sophomore Imman Iwu and Campbell in the 100, Ellis in the long jump and freshmen Vinajah Adderley and Deborah Obadofin in the triple jump, Nikia Smith in the 100 hurdles and Adam Wiatr in the 100 all had marks that would be PRs if they weren't wind-aided.
At IU, all six Boilermakers earned PRs. Along with Humes, Hunter and Griffith, sophomore John Pieper and freshmen Emma Tate and Luke Upton ran collegiate bests in the 1,500.
Yesterday, senior Brody Smith broke the school record in the 3,000 steeplechase and won the event with a time 8:43.77, the fastest in the Big Ten this season. All three Boilermakers that competed at IU posted personal-bests. At OSU, Purdue recorded a trio of runner-up finishes to go along with six additional top-five finishes. A complete recap from the opening day of both meets can be found at PurdueSports.com/TrackField.
Up next, Purdue begins postseason competition with the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships from May 14-16 in Champaign, Illinois. The Boilermakers originally were slated to compete at the Big Ten Indiana Invitational No. 5 next weekend, but that meet will no longer be held.
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.