MINNEAPOLIS – Junior Isaiah Martin and sophomores Kaia Harris and Safin Wills all placed fourth for the Purdue track & field team on the second day of the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday at the University of Minnesota Track & Field Stadium in Minneapolis.
Martin in the decathlon, Harris in the discus and Wills in the long jump all earned points for the Boilermakers on day two of the three-day conference championship. Additionally, five advanced to the finals and seven personal-best marks were set by the Old Gold and Black on Saturday.
The day began with the last five events of the decathlon. In the final standings in the 10-event competition, Martin was fourth with a season-best 7,590 points. In seven Big Ten Championships, three outdoors and four indoors, Martin has placed in the top six in six of them. He has finished fourth in the outdoor decathlon all three times, in 2022, 2021 and 2019.
Martin entered the day in sixth place but moved up to fourth with the help of two PRs and two season-bests. The day began with a first-place finish in the 110 hurdles in a wind-legal collegiate-best time of 14.44 seconds. A PR by more than 2.00 meters in the discus followed, as Martin was second with a throw of 43.76m. In the pole vault, he tied his season best with a clearance of 4.30m, just 0.01m shy of his PR, to finish ninth. Back-to-back season-bests closed the decathlon for Martin. He was third in the javelin with a throw of 59.22m and also finished third in the 1,500m in 4:40.75.
Later in the afternoon, Harris was fourth in the discus. She earned her first career Big Ten podium finish with a throw of 54.56m on her first attempt. The mark is just shy of her career-best, set three weeks ago.
Wills was fourth in the long jump to earn his third Big Ten podium finish in as many events this season to go along with a pair of indoor medals. A jump of 7.60m-w came on Wills' third attempt to secure the top-four finish.
The first Boilermaker to reach the final on Saturday was sophomore Cierra Williams in the 400m. She was eighth in the prelims in 53.90 to pick up her first finals berth of the 2022 championships.
A day after they made the final in the 200m, senior Antonio Mitchell II, junior Camille Christopher and sophomore Kerris Roberts all made the 100m final. In Saturday's 100m, Mitchell II finished in 10.31 as he earned the sixth-fastest time in the men's prelim. For the women, Christopher ran the fourth-fastest prelim time and Roberts was seventh. Christopher finished in 11.41, a new PR and the fourth-fastest time in program history. Roberts' time was 11.58-w, a personal-best in all conditions.
Sophomore K'Ja Talley also made her second final on Saturday, this time in the 100m hurdles. She posted a time of 13.47-w, which is a personal-best in all conditions, to go along with a 400m hurdle appearance that she solidified on Friday.
Additionally, freshman Ellie Tate ran a personal-best 800m time of 2:11.20 to finish 15th.
The Big Ten Championships conclude on Sunday, May 15, with field events at noon ET / 11 a.m. CT and running events at 1:45 p.m. ET / 12:45 p.m. CT. The meet is set to end at 5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT.
Fans can follow along with live results at PTTiming.com, and the meet will be streamed live on B1G+ (Field | Track), with a subscription required. Additional championships information, including the complete schedule, is available at BigTen.org/OTFChamps. Updates from Minneapolis also can be found by following and connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Direct links to follow along are available on the schedule page at PurdueSports.com/TrackField.
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.
Martin in the decathlon, Harris in the discus and Wills in the long jump all earned points for the Boilermakers on day two of the three-day conference championship. Additionally, five advanced to the finals and seven personal-best marks were set by the Old Gold and Black on Saturday.
The day began with the last five events of the decathlon. In the final standings in the 10-event competition, Martin was fourth with a season-best 7,590 points. In seven Big Ten Championships, three outdoors and four indoors, Martin has placed in the top six in six of them. He has finished fourth in the outdoor decathlon all three times, in 2022, 2021 and 2019.
Martin entered the day in sixth place but moved up to fourth with the help of two PRs and two season-bests. The day began with a first-place finish in the 110 hurdles in a wind-legal collegiate-best time of 14.44 seconds. A PR by more than 2.00 meters in the discus followed, as Martin was second with a throw of 43.76m. In the pole vault, he tied his season best with a clearance of 4.30m, just 0.01m shy of his PR, to finish ninth. Back-to-back season-bests closed the decathlon for Martin. He was third in the javelin with a throw of 59.22m and also finished third in the 1,500m in 4:40.75.
Later in the afternoon, Harris was fourth in the discus. She earned her first career Big Ten podium finish with a throw of 54.56m on her first attempt. The mark is just shy of her career-best, set three weeks ago.
Wills was fourth in the long jump to earn his third Big Ten podium finish in as many events this season to go along with a pair of indoor medals. A jump of 7.60m-w came on Wills' third attempt to secure the top-four finish.
The first Boilermaker to reach the final on Saturday was sophomore Cierra Williams in the 400m. She was eighth in the prelims in 53.90 to pick up her first finals berth of the 2022 championships.
A day after they made the final in the 200m, senior Antonio Mitchell II, junior Camille Christopher and sophomore Kerris Roberts all made the 100m final. In Saturday's 100m, Mitchell II finished in 10.31 as he earned the sixth-fastest time in the men's prelim. For the women, Christopher ran the fourth-fastest prelim time and Roberts was seventh. Christopher finished in 11.41, a new PR and the fourth-fastest time in program history. Roberts' time was 11.58-w, a personal-best in all conditions.
Sophomore K'Ja Talley also made her second final on Saturday, this time in the 100m hurdles. She posted a time of 13.47-w, which is a personal-best in all conditions, to go along with a 400m hurdle appearance that she solidified on Friday.
Additionally, freshman Ellie Tate ran a personal-best 800m time of 2:11.20 to finish 15th.
The Big Ten Championships conclude on Sunday, May 15, with field events at noon ET / 11 a.m. CT and running events at 1:45 p.m. ET / 12:45 p.m. CT. The meet is set to end at 5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT.
Fans can follow along with live results at PTTiming.com, and the meet will be streamed live on B1G+ (Field | Track), with a subscription required. Additional championships information, including the complete schedule, is available at BigTen.org/OTFChamps. Updates from Minneapolis also can be found by following and connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Direct links to follow along are available on the schedule page at PurdueSports.com/TrackField.
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.