Dec. 3, 2010
Early Bird Open Schedule of Events
NORMAL, Ill. - After weeks of workouts and intense training, the Illinois State track and field program will get its first chance to compete in the 2010-11 indoor season Saturday, when the men's and women's teams officially open the indoor season at the Early Bird Open in Horton Field House.
The meet will begin at 10 a.m., with the men's pole vault and weight throw and the women's long jump competitions. Running events will then begin at 10:30 a.m., with the men's and women's 60-meter hurdles prelims followed directly after by the men's and women's 60-meter dash prelims. Teams from Ashford, Butler, Concordia (Ill.), Illinois Wesleyan, Loyola (Ill.), North Park, Northern Illinois, St. Ambrose, St. Louis, Valparaiso and Western Illinois and will be among those competing.
The women's team finished fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference at the 2010 State Farm MVC Indoor Championships held in Cedar Falls, Iowa., while the men's team took fifth. During last year's indoor season, the Redbirds picked up six all-conference accolades, with several of those performers returning to the track this season.
On the women's side, sophomore Sade Sealy returns as the reigning 400-meter dash champion at the 2010 MVC Indoor Championships. Sealy, along with Meaka Brents, Tia Harvey and Alia McAfee, earned all-conference honors in the 4X400 meter relay and will return for the 2010-11 seasons, while Tori Ziegler returns in the field events as an all-conference performer in the shot put.
"We feel we have a really strong women's team and there are a lot of names that we can highlight like Sealy, Brents, Amanda Albrecht, Brittany Smith and our middle distance runners, who aren't running this weekend, but they all make this a very special group," said head track and field coach Elvis Forde. "For the first weekend, we have a good feeling of what the upper classmen and returning athletes from last year can do, but we want to see what the new faces are going to bring to the team. We are looking to see what marks they are going to make for us this weekend. We want to give them a chance to get experience at home and gain some confidence in their first collegiate meet. This weekend is a matter of trying to have a good performance and building off of it to see what the New Year brings us. Our fall training went well, and we are excited about the chance to compete. We want to see the goals we are trying to reach get started on the right foot."
The men's side lost its lone all-conference performer in John Neisler, who placed third in the 800-meter run in a time of 1:54.57 at last year's indoor championship, to graduation. However, the men's team has distance runners Matt Mroczynski and Jon Roberts, who are coming off of strong cross country seasons. Mroczynski and Roberts earned All-Valley honors at the 2010 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Championships, after finishing the 8K race in sixth and seventh place, respectively. The men's squad also has several veterans returning to lead the Redbirds through the 2010-11 season.
"There is a whole new energy in the men's program and we are excited about that," said Forde. "It has taken us a while to get that energy from our men, but we feel it is there and can see it. One of the things that have really given us a lift is the struggles some of the men went through last season. That has given the men a sense that if they put their mind to it, anything is possible and the hard work will pay off. We are returning all of the veterans from last year and it is a very exciting time. I am looking forward to this weekend's meet. We want to see that excitement and energy continue because I think they are doing very well."
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