IU heads to Nebraska to compete in Big Ten Indoor Championships

The IU men’s and women’s track squads will be traveling to the University of Nebraska this weekend in their quest for victory in the Big Ten Indoor Championships.

At last year’s Big Ten Indoor Championship, the men’s squad earned a second-place finish, while the women’s squad finished fifth.

The men’s squad, headlined by its distance group, is seeking its first indoor title since 1992 and the 16th in school history. On the women’s side, the Lady Hoosiers will be pursuing their first indoor title since 2000 and the fourth in school history.

This is the most important meet the Hoosiers will have participated in so far this season, but that won’t be a burden for sophomore high jumper Darius King.

“A lot of people think we have a different mentality heading into Big Tens, but at the end of the day, it’s just about competing,” King said. “Do the best you can do on any given day. All you have to do is give it your best effort.”

King said he is excited to prove himself in Big Ten competition after finishing third during 2011’s championship.

“I’ve always been the smallest high jumper in every event, so going up against the bigger guys makes it really fun and makes me that much more enthusiastic,” King said. “It makes a difference.”

Fellow high jumper junior Emma Kimoto also said she is ready to touch down in Nebraska and contribute to a team victory for the Hoosiers.

Kimoto said the team has come a long way since last season and that she is excited to see the hard work pay off.

“I feel like this year, going in, everyone is really excited, just because I’ve seen our team progress so much,” Kimoto said. “And I feel like we’re really ready for everyone to peak and do something really big at Big Tens.”

Kimoto said IU deserves the Big Ten Championship.

“It would mean so much to our team,” Kimoto said. “It would be so well deserved. We’ve worked really hard. It would be fantastic.”

The athletes might have an advantage, as they chartered a plane to Lincoln instead of driving. They will share the flight with Purdue.

IU Coach Ron Helmer doesn’t believe there will be any banter between the teams, though.

“I can guarantee that it will be incredibly civil, relaxed and quiet,” Helmer said. “It won’t be a big deal.”

Helmer is backing off of his athletes to help clear their minds.

Helmer said he’s not preaching at this point, as he was earlier in the season.

“I’m trying not to,” Helmer said. “I’m spending a lot of time making sure I’m not preaching and I’m not talking about anything new.”

Helmer promotes a sense of routine and habit with his athletes, and that’s something he has been enforcing in the days leading up to the Big Ten Indoor Championships.

“It’s more about just staying in the routine,” Helmer said.