Both track teams dominate weekend's Hoosier Relay meet

The IU men's and women's track and field teams refused to curb their appetites for success at this weekend's Hoosier Relay, following a strong finish at the Jan. 27 and 28 Indiana Open.\nWhile the men's basketball team struggled against the University of Connecticut next door in Assembly Hall, the track and field squad took on some of the nation's premier talent in the team's fifth meet of the year. Representatives from the University of Kentucky, Middle Tennessee State University, Southeast Missouri State University and Illinois State University, among others, competed against the Hoosiers.\nAt Saturday's finals, junior sprinter David Neville snatched first-place in the 400-meter dash, nosing out Jackson State University's Michael Tinsley with a time of 46.69 seconds. Soon after, sophomore Doug Dayhoff placed fifth in the men's 600-meter dash with a time of 1:21.62. \nThough the sprinters finished strong, coach Randy Heisler placed particular praise on the jumpers. \n"The jumpers really had a great weekend," Heisler said. "Kiwon Lawson and Kyle Jenkins really came out and showed me something today." \nJenkins, a sophomore, earned second-place honors in the men's triple jump with a leap of 15.32 meters. While Lawson's jump of 7.5 meters in the men's long jump was eventually edged out by Lincoln University's Wilber Walker's distance of 7.53, the mark was good enough to earn NCAA provisional honors. \nJoining teammates Neville, Ryan Ketchum, and Stephanie Clausing on the swiftly growing list of Hoosiers having earned this distinction, Lawson now has a foot in the door toward qualifying for the Indoor NCAA Championships March 11. As opposed to an automatic mark in which an athlete is guaranteed qualification, a provisional mark means the competitor is placed in a pool of potential qualifiers. Depending on the results acquired the rest of the year, the athlete might not earn a bid.\nThe women's team also scored well in a number of events. Beginning with the 60-meter hurdles, the squad placed first and third with junior Courtney Johnson's 8.47 seconds and junior Lorian Price's time of 8.63 seconds. \nPrice, who finished second in the 60-meter hurdles at last year's Big Ten Championships, placed fourth in the women's long jump. IU also dominated the top of the leader board in the women's mile. Senior Lindsay Hattendorf and senior Kelly Siefker earned second and third place, respectively. In the women's long jump, Candace Perry annihilated the competition with a first place leap of 5.97 meters. \nNext weekend, IU travels to Fayetteville, Ark., for the Tyson Invitational to face Southeastern Conference competition for the first time this year. \nDespite the team's early-season success, Heisler said he is ready for a change of scenery after five consecutive meets in Bloomington. \n"We had a lot of good things happen today. We got what we needed," Heisler said. "Next week will really show us some things though, we need to experience -- traveling, sleeping in hotel rooms, etc. ... we'll learn a lot about what we're made of"