Track and Field set to compete at Music City Challenge

Friday, February 9

Nashville, TN

TBA

Southern Illinois University

Music City Challenge

Photo by: Harold David Rials

02/08/2018 | 2:22:00 | Track and Field

Music City Challenge - Final Schedule Music City Challenge - Start List Live Results 2018 Indoor Performance List (as of 2/6)

Over 750 student-athletes across 20-plus teams are entered to compete at the two-day event.

By: Will Becque, SIUSalukis.com

The Southern Illinois track and field team travels to Nashville, Tennessee for the Music City Challenge, hosted by Vanderbilt University.

The two-day meet gets underway Friday at 4 p.m. CT as the Salukis will compete in seven events on day one. Day two of competition will get underway Saturday at 10 a.m. with the women's 3000-meter run.

For many of the student-athletes converging in Nashville, the Music City Challenge serves as a final tune up for conference championship meets and one of the last meets in which they can record a qualifying mark for the 2018 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 9-10 in College Station, Texas.

750 student-athletes are set to compete during the two-day event. Live results for the meet are available here.

Notes
Looking at the field: Music City Challenge

The largest meet that the Salukis have competed in this season, the Music City Challenge features athletes from the likes of Ohio State, Michigan State, Cincinnati, SMU, Mississippi State, Wake Forest, Western Kentucky, UCF, Ball State, Indiana State, Memphis, Miami (Ohio), Minnesota, Alabama, North Carolina, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Austin Peay and Southern Mississippi.

Good Memories

Last year at the Music City Challenge, Jared Kern broke Curtis Jensen's MVC indoor shot put record with his toss of 67'-2" (20.47m), while Tyjuana Eason ran the 200m in 24.57 to break a nine-year old school record in the event.

Event Squad Rankings

For the second-straight week, the Southern Illinois track and field team is ranked among the best in the nation in several events, according to the latest event squad rankings released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) this week.

The Saluki men lead all Division I teams in the shot put and increased their lead to four feet over second-place Ohio State. SIU's men also rank fourth in the nation in the weight throw and 16th in the triple jump, while the Saluki women are ranked 14th in the weight throw and 15th in the shot put.

Leading the Missouri Valley Conference

The Saluki men have five ranked in the top-50 nationally in their respective events. The Missouri Valley Conference has 17 men currently ranked in the top-50, as SIU and Illinois State are tied with five each.

12 | Isaac Ingram | Weight Throw | 71'-7.50" // 21.83m
13 | Jared Kern | Shot Put | 62'-11.25" // 19.18m
27 | Adam Kessler | Shot Put | 61'-3.50" // 18.68m
30 | Warren Hazel | 400m dash | 47.07
40 | Ricky Hurley | Shot Put | 59'-5.75" // 18.13m

# of Men Ranked in the Top-50 Nationally (17 in MVC)
Southern Illinois - 5
Illinois State - 5
Bradley - 3
Indiana State - 2
Loyola - 1
Valparaiso - 1
UNI - 0
Drake - 0

The Saluki women have two ranked in the top-50 nationally in their respective events, led by MVC Women's Field Athlete of the Week Alexis Roberson. Roberson is ranked 23rd in the weight throw. SIU's two top-50 marks are tied with Indiana State for the most in the MVC.

23 | Alexis Roberson | Weight Throw | 66'-3" // 20.19m
49 | Kezia Martin | Triple Jump | 40'-9" // 12.42m

# of Women Ranked in the Top-50 Nationally (6 in MVC)
Southern Illinois - 2
Indiana State - 2
Illinois State - 1
Northern Iowa - 1

Personal-Bests

SIU recorded 19 personal-bests at the Don DeNoon Invitational last weekend, including a pair of Salukis who recorded PRs in multiple events. Matthew Bigelow and Theo Phipps both notched personal-bests in the 60m dash while Bigelow cleared a lifetime-best 13'-7.25" (4.15m) in the pole vault and Phipps ran a personal-best 8.37 in the 60m hurdles to finish fourth. On the women's side, three PRs came in the mile, as Megan Krolak, Claire Darnell and Olivia Murphy all recorded lifetime-bests in the event.

Only One

The Salukis are the only team in the MVC with three athletes ranked in the top-10 of the women's 60m dash. Tyjuana Eason ranks second with her time of 7.50, while Mystique Thompson is fourth at 7.52 and Bri'Anna Branch is seventh at 7.59.

Ranked in the region

The Saluki men and women are both ranked in the top-15 in the Midwest Region. Southern's men are ranked 12th in the region with 106.65 points while SIU's women are ranked 15th with 50.28 points. On the men's side, SIU is one of three Valley schools ranked in the top-15, as they are joined by Illinois State (No. 8) and Bradley (No. 15). SIU's women are one of two MVC schools ranked in the top-15 of the midwest region with Illinois State at No. 9.

Athletes of the Week

Southern Illinois throwers Jared Kern and Alexis Roberson were named Missouri Valley Conference Field Athletes of the Week following their performances at the Don DeNoon Invitational. It is the second MVC weekly award for Kern this season and the seventh of his career while it marks the second time that Roberson has earned the award this season.

Next Up

The Salukis will send athletes to the EIU Friday Night Special on Friday, Feb. 16 in Charleston, Ill.