BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Two top-10 times in program history and three finals qualifiers highlighted the opening day of the 2023 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships for the Purdue track & field team on Friday, May 12, in Bloomington, Indiana.
Fifth-year Justin Becker advanced to the final in the 200-meter with the sixth-fastest time in the record books, and he will be joined in the 200m finals by fellow fifth-year Camille Christopher and freshman Eric Young II. Sophomore Nathan Walker also ran a top-10 time, in the 1,500m.
Becker and Walker notched two of the Boilermakers' 11 personal-best marks on the opening day of the three-day conference championship meet. Friday featured a mix of partial sunshine and light showers in the afternoon before a pleasant evening descended upon Indiana's Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex as track events commenced.
Purdue's first running event of the weekend was the 200m prelims, where Becker finished fourth overall in 20.62. A PR by 0.01 seconds, it moved him up into a tie for No. 6 on the school's top-10 list. With the fastest time in the third heat, Becker automatically qualifies for Sunday's final. He will be joined in the final by Young II, who was ninth overall in 21.15. The personal-best time in all conditions gave him the last spot in the final by 0.05 seconds.
Several minutes later, Christopher earned a 200m final berth of her own. She placed ninth overall in the prelims in 23.59. The margin between ninth and 10th was just 0.04 seconds, with the 10th-place time courtesy of a runner in the fourth and final heat after Christopher raced in the opening heat.
Walker moved up in the record books in the 1,500m with a time of 3:46.82. As he improved his PR by 0.60 seconds, he rose from No. 10 all-time to eighth. Walker was 13th overall in the event, just shy of a top-12 finish and a spot in the final.
The day began with the decathlon and heptathlon, where junior Logan Sandlin and freshman Bryanna Craig opened competition with the first five and four events, respectively. After the first day, Craig is in sixth place in the heptathlon and Sandlin is in 10th in the decathlon.
Craig has 3,236 points, fueled by a personal-best shot put mark of 10.60 meters. She tied for third in the high jump with a clearance of 1.68m. Sandlin amassed 3,401 points thanks to three PRs. His first was a 6.45m in the long jump, along with a 1.75m-clearance in the high jump and a finish of 50.97 in the 400m.
In the pole vault, freshman Danny Affleck tied for ninth with a clearance of 4.84m. As he finished just short of a top-eight podium finish, Affleck earned Purdue's best outdoor pole vault mark since 2015 and became the first Boilermaker to clear a bar at the outdoor Big Ten Championships since 2013.
Freshman Connor Czajkowski tied his wind-legal PR in the 200m, as he was 10th in the prelims in 21.20. Additional collegiate-bests were achieved by sophomore Emma Squires (1,500m, 4:29.66) and freshmen Seth Allen (hammer throw, 51.99m) and Leo Maxwell (hammer throw, 55.71m). Senior Saran Kouyeth ran a wind-legal season-best 200m time of 23.91.
The weekend continues on Saturday, May 13, as the decathlon resumes at 11:30 a.m. ET and the heptathlon restarts at 12:15 p.m. Field events start at 2 p.m. and running events begin at 4 p.m. The Boilermakers' day will finish at approximately 6:55 p.m. The meet wraps up on Sunday, May 14, with field events at 11 a.m. and running events at 12:45 p.m. The championships will finish at approximately 4 p.m.
Fans unable to cheer on the Boilermakers in person can follow along with live results, and watch all of the action live on B1G+ (Saturday Track | Saturday Field | Sunday Track | Sunday Field), with a B1G+ subscription required. Additional championships information, including tickets and the complete schedule, is available at BigTen.org/OTFChamps. Updates from Bloomington, including schedule adjustments should weather be an impact, can be found by following and connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Direct links to follow along also 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.
Fifth-year Justin Becker advanced to the final in the 200-meter with the sixth-fastest time in the record books, and he will be joined in the 200m finals by fellow fifth-year Camille Christopher and freshman Eric Young II. Sophomore Nathan Walker also ran a top-10 time, in the 1,500m.
Becker and Walker notched two of the Boilermakers' 11 personal-best marks on the opening day of the three-day conference championship meet. Friday featured a mix of partial sunshine and light showers in the afternoon before a pleasant evening descended upon Indiana's Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex as track events commenced.
Purdue's first running event of the weekend was the 200m prelims, where Becker finished fourth overall in 20.62. A PR by 0.01 seconds, it moved him up into a tie for No. 6 on the school's top-10 list. With the fastest time in the third heat, Becker automatically qualifies for Sunday's final. He will be joined in the final by Young II, who was ninth overall in 21.15. The personal-best time in all conditions gave him the last spot in the final by 0.05 seconds.
On to the final with the 6th-fastest time in school history!!
— Purdue Track & Field / Cross Country (@PurdueTrackXC) May 12, 2023
Justin Becker automatically advances in the 200m in 20.62 to move up in the record books! He runs the 4th-fastest prelim time.#BoilerUp 🚂 x #B1GTF pic.twitter.com/xvg0LpF7lg
Several minutes later, Christopher earned a 200m final berth of her own. She placed ninth overall in the prelims in 23.59. The margin between ninth and 10th was just 0.04 seconds, with the 10th-place time courtesy of a runner in the fourth and final heat after Christopher raced in the opening heat.
Walker moved up in the record books in the 1,500m with a time of 3:46.82. As he improved his PR by 0.60 seconds, he rose from No. 10 all-time to eighth. Walker was 13th overall in the event, just shy of a top-12 finish and a spot in the final.
The day began with the decathlon and heptathlon, where junior Logan Sandlin and freshman Bryanna Craig opened competition with the first five and four events, respectively. After the first day, Craig is in sixth place in the heptathlon and Sandlin is in 10th in the decathlon.
Craig has 3,236 points, fueled by a personal-best shot put mark of 10.60 meters. She tied for third in the high jump with a clearance of 1.68m. Sandlin amassed 3,401 points thanks to three PRs. His first was a 6.45m in the long jump, along with a 1.75m-clearance in the high jump and a finish of 50.97 in the 400m.
In the pole vault, freshman Danny Affleck tied for ninth with a clearance of 4.84m. As he finished just short of a top-eight podium finish, Affleck earned Purdue's best outdoor pole vault mark since 2015 and became the first Boilermaker to clear a bar at the outdoor Big Ten Championships since 2013.
Freshman Connor Czajkowski tied his wind-legal PR in the 200m, as he was 10th in the prelims in 21.20. Additional collegiate-bests were achieved by sophomore Emma Squires (1,500m, 4:29.66) and freshmen Seth Allen (hammer throw, 51.99m) and Leo Maxwell (hammer throw, 55.71m). Senior Saran Kouyeth ran a wind-legal season-best 200m time of 23.91.
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The weekend continues on Saturday, May 13, as the decathlon resumes at 11:30 a.m. ET and the heptathlon restarts at 12:15 p.m. Field events start at 2 p.m. and running events begin at 4 p.m. The Boilermakers' day will finish at approximately 6:55 p.m. The meet wraps up on Sunday, May 14, with field events at 11 a.m. and running events at 12:45 p.m. The championships will finish at approximately 4 p.m.
Fans unable to cheer on the Boilermakers in person can follow along with live results, and watch all of the action live on B1G+ (Saturday Track | Saturday Field | Sunday Track | Sunday Field), with a B1G+ subscription required. Additional championships information, including tickets and the complete schedule, is available at BigTen.org/OTFChamps. Updates from Bloomington, including schedule adjustments should weather be an impact, can be found by following and connecting with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Direct links to follow along also 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.