May 9, 2008
Results
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Illinois State track and field senior Anton Walczak sharpened his performance in the hammer throw, as he exceeded his personal-best and earned his third regional qualifying mark with a distance of 197feet, one inch for a third-place finish at the Billy Hayes Invitational, held on the Billy Hayes Track inside the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex in Bloomington, Ind., Friday.
Illinois State track and field head coach Elvis Forde was pleased with Walczak's performance and hopes that it will be the boost he needs to perform well next weekend at the conference championships (May 16-18 in Carbondale, Ill.).
"Anton had a good week of practice and is feeling very confident right now," said Forde."When you have that confidence level things happen for you, it doesn't matter what event you are in. We hope that this gives him an extra boost to be among the top competitors as we head into the conference championships next weekend."
In the 800-meter run freshman Michelle Brunk recorded a person-best time of 2:11.90 and took fifth in the event, while freshman Jenny Kraakevik (4:46.72) turned in a personal-best in the 1,500-meter run for a fourth-place finish.
In the sprints, junior Brianna Officer recorded a season-best in the 400-meter dash with a time of 56.38 to place seventh, while senior Melissa Clarke took 10th with a time of 57.60.
"Brianna ran one of the best races that I have seen her run in a long time," said Forde. "She ran with ease and I really hope that she is coming into her own. I think if she continues to improve she will be able to break that 56 (second) barrier. Melissa ran pretty well today too, she is a little bothered by her hamstring but hopefully she will come around next weekend."
On the men's side, in the men's 1,500-meter run sophomore Rob Barkulis (3:57.67), and freshman John Navarro (3:59.68) achieved personal-best times to place second and fifth, respectively.
In the 800 freshmen Nick Geyer clocked in with a time of 1:55.23 (19th place), while Matt Aiello notched a personal-best performance in the event with a time of 1:56.88 and freshman Yosef Tewolde finished in at 1:57.77.
"Those young men ran really well and all achieve personal records," said Forde. "I think that the weather was just about right for them to run well. It was good to see Rob get through some of his mental barriers and improve his personal-best."
In the 400-meter hurdles, junior Carl Azab (54.52) placed 12th and freshman Tyler Perna (55.82) recorded a personal-best finish to place 20th.
The Redbirds return to action next weekend as they take to the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Championships held in Carbondale, Ill., and hosted by Southern Illinois May 16-18.
