IU takes fifth in Big Ten

The IU men's indoor track and field team finished in fifth place at the Big Ten Championships in Champaign, Ill. Wisconsin (133.5) won the event by only two points over Minnesota (131.5). Purdue and Ohio State took third and fourth with scores of 123 and 98, respectively.\nWisconsin went 2-3-4-5 in the penultimate event of the meet, the 5000-meter, to put it in position for the win.\n"We seem to be a clutch team that likes to keep everybody thrilled," Wisconsin coach Ed Nuttycombe said in a press release. "We knew the (5000-meter) would be a big event for us ... They just don't know how to quit."\nIU's 67 points put the Hoosiers in fifth by 15.5 points over Michigan and gave them their best finish since 1999, when the team placed fourth.\nOn the first day of competition, sophomore Aarik Wilson won the long jump with a distance of 7.62-meters. Buckeye Drew Carter placed second with a jump of 7.55 meters.\nIU took third place in the distance medley relay, behind Minnesota and Wisconsin, in a time of 9:56.72. The Hoosiers advanced seven athletes to the finals. Coach Marshall Goss said he was pleased with the team's performance after the first day of competition.\n"We had some great performances (Saturday)," Goss said. "We qualified seven guys for the finals ... Our kids competed really hard. They were all excited about (Saturday)."\nOn Sunday, IU had several strong showings. \nIU freshman John Jefferson beat Michigan freshman Nick Willis in the mile final. Jefferson finished with a time of 4:05.43, while Willis was five tenths of a second behind. IU freshman Sean Jefferson finished in eighth place with a 4:11.98 time.\nIU senior Matt Harris finished fourth in the 60-meter hurdles (7.96) and Wilson won a second event, the triple jump. Wilson jumped, 16.05 meters, more than a quarter of a meter better than second place. Senior Hasaan Reddick finished third in the event for IU, with a 15.47-meter jump.\nIU will have one last chance to qualify for the NCAA tournament next weekend when it can send athletes to either South Bend, Ind., or Ames, Iowa. NCAA tournaments are the following weekend at at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Ark.