Indiana men’s track and field recorded multiple NCAA top-ten times in the IU Relays over the weekend against top national competition. Teams present included the University of Mississippi, Purdue University and the University of Wisconsin.
The Hoosiers entered the meet as the No. 1 team in the Great Lakes Region and got off to a hot start Friday. Pole vaulting continued to be a strong event for the Hoosiers, in large part due to the tandem of All-Americans senior Ryan Lipe and junior Nathan Stone. Stone won the event this week by clearing a height of 5.30 meters, and he said the two maintain a friendly competition that brings out the best in one another.
“We always make bets with each other,” Stone said. “There’s a lot of competition between us, but we love it. We want to beat each other at our bests.”
Indiana’s distance medley relay team made its debut to win the event. Freshman Camden Marshall ran the 1200-meter leg of the race, graduate student Kenny Benton took the 400 meter, redshirt sophomore Parker Raymond ran the 800 meter and graduate student Ben Veatch anchored with the mile leg. Their combined time of 9:33.69 not only won the meet, but was the best NCAA distance medley relay time this season.
Senior JaiQuan Earls took first place in the long jump with a personal-best mark of 7.46 meters. The field success continued in the weight throw, where freshman Sean Mockler, making his Hoosier debut, won the event with a mark of 20.91 meters.
[Related: Indiana women’s track and field continues to place well in IU Relays]
Rounding out Friday’s track events was the 5000-meter run. Senior Skylar Stidam captured a personal best with a time of 14:16.62. Head coach Ron Helmer said preparation for a meet of this caliber was different than previous weeks.
“I think it’s a different focus,” Helmer said. “People knew that they had to get ready to compete against people that would make them look bad if they weren’t ready.”
Part of the team’s preparation included more rest than usual throughout the last week, and Helmer said it appeared to have paid off. On Saturday, the Hoosiers took first and second in the finals of the 60-meter dash, as junior Antonio Laidler won the gold with a time of 6.85 seconds and Benton followed behind, clocking 6.93 seconds.
Benton was active throughout the meet, taking first in the 400-meter dash with a personal best time of 47.12 and anchoring the meet-winning 4x400 team. Benton, a former National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics standout, said he could tell he has grown since arriving at Indiana University.
“I always knew I was good,” Benton said. “But coming here has developed me and made me feel the best that I’ve ever felt.”
Indiana continued to consistently place well in events as Raymond finished second overall in the 800-meter dash, clocking a time of 1:50.86. Concluding the day was the 3000-meter run where Veatch and senior Arjun Jha moved into this season’s NCAA top-ten times, finishing eighth and ninth respectively with sub-eight minute times. Junior Keelan Grant also ran a personal best with a time of 8:18.42.
Moving forward, Helmer said the season will begin to shift more toward an individual emphasis on qualification times and recovery. Since some athletes already hit NCAA qualifying times, such as redshirt senior Rikkoi Brathwaite who was scratched from Saturday’s 60-meter dash, Helmer said that it would be normal for some athletes to start to take time off and rest.
Indiana men’s track and field will be competing in the University of Notre Dame’s Meyo Invitational Feb. 4 and Feb. 5 in South Bend.
