After a strong indoor season, the Illinois State track and field teams open their outdoor seasons this weekend at the Alabama Relays in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
With the Redbird women claiming second and the men finishing third at the MVC Indoor Championships last month, head coach
Jeff Pigg and the Redbirds have a strong sense of optimism heading into the outdoor portion of their schedule.
Were excited, Pigg said. We had a nice break and kids enjoyed their time off. We had a good indoor season and were proud of where we got to. Now we just need to continue to build on that success.
Junior All-American
Christian Goy finished fourth in the mens mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships, running a school-record 3:59.61 to earn his second All-America honor.
We had a lot of people do a great job of competing in the indoor season, Pigg said.
Stacia Beste is also coming off a career best after posting a time of 16:44.94 in the womens 5,000 meter run at the Iowa State Last Chance Qualifier.
The Redbirds will also get a boost from the return of 2000 Missouri Valley Champ in the 800 and 1,500 meters,
Egle Kregzdyte.
She has been hampered by foot problems for a while, but shes pain free and is expected to be back soon, Pigg said.
This is a great meet with teams like Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia Tech competing, Pigg said. We are going to leave some of the distance runners home and rest them for next weeks meet at Stanford.
The Alabama Relays will take place Friday through Sunday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
