After an impressive showing at last week’s Big Ten Cross Country Championships, IU track and field returned home Saturday to host the Hoosier Hills Invitational at Jack Gladstein Fieldhouse.
The event was non-scoring, meaning no team was declared the overall winner. IU also had several athletes that sat out of the competition for recovery purposes. Despite all this, the team found success.
The men’s team, ranked No. 2 in the Great Lakes Regional and No. 24 in the country, saw six different athletes secure first place finishes.
On the track, the Hoosiers were once again led by junior Rikkoi Brathwaite, who finished with a time of 6.63 seconds in the 60-meter. The time was a personal best for Brathwaite.
Three other runners secured first place finishes, including junior Christian Gaines with a time of 8.10 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles and junior Shaton Vaughn with a mark of 47.79 seconds in the 400-meter.
Senior Cooper Williams, the reigning Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week, snagged a personal best and a win in the mile, clocking a time of 4:03.86.
Two seniors led the men’s team in the field. Jyles Etienne secured another victory in the high jump, clearing a height of 2.08 meters. Nick Lane, competing in his first weight throw event of the season, took first with a distance of 20.32 meters.
On the women’s side, the Hoosiers, ranked No. 3 in the Great Lakes Regional, were down several runners that competed last week, including All-American Bailey Hertenstein. That didn’t stop the team from having success, as four IU women secured victories.
Senior Kelly Mindak led the way, setting a new personal record and securing a win in the 600-meter with a time of 1:32.84. Sophomore Alyssa Robinson also took first place, winning the 200-meter in 23.96 seconds.
The women have been successful in the field all season and that was the case again, with senior Princess Brinkley taking home her second victory of the season with a season-best throw of 20.98 meters.
Senior Anna Watson rounded out the winners circle for the women. She cruised to her third straight win in the pole vault by clearing a height of 4.01 meters.
The Hoosiers continue their season next week, with pole vaulters and jumpers traveling to Iowa City, Iowa for the Hawkeye B1G Invitational. The rest of the team will compete in the B1G SPIRE Invitational at SPIRE Academy in Geneva, Ohio.
