Jan. 14, 2011
Indiana State Dual Meet Preview with Elvis Forde
NORMAL, Ill. -
After a month-long break for the holidays, the Illinois State track and field teams will return to action Saturday against Indiana State in the annual dual meet at the Rose-Hulman Sports and Recreation Center in Terre Haute, Ind. The meet will begin at 11:30 a.m., with the men's weight throw followed by the running events starting at noon with the 60-meter dash.
"There is excitement about going to compete against Indiana State because we have lost to them in duals over the past few years, but we feel this is the year we will come out on top," said head track and field coach Elvis Forde. "The student-athletes are ready, and they want to start the year off with a win."
The Redbirds officially opened their 2011 indoor season on December 4, 2010, with the Early Bird Open in Horton Field House. ISU dominated the event by winning half of the day's 28 events. Building off of her stellar freshman season, sophomore Brittany Smith continued to lead the women's field events, as she achieved a pair of wins in the women's shot put (51-01.50) and the women's weight throw (61-07.75). Both the men's and women's 4X400-meter relay teams earned victories in the season opener.
The Sycamores opened their 2011 season December 11, 2010, at the Eastern Illinois Early Bird Open where Indiana State won the overall titles in the men's and women's divisions. Indiana State's Felisha Johnson was a double winner for the Sycamore women as she set a school record for the weight throw with a toss of 73-2.5 and also won the shot put with a throw of 49-7.25, which is the third best in school history.
Illinois State hopes to build off of the early season success as Saturday's meet marks the beginning of five competitions that will prepare the Redbirds for the 2011 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Championships held Feb. 26-27 in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
"There is a lot of excitement and confidence in our men's team this year and that is one thing that I haven't seen here in a while," said Forde. "I think at the end of last year's outdoor track season, the potential to perform was there after our finish at the MVC Championships. The women have a different level of confidence than the men after finishing third in the Valley last year. We return most of our point scorers from last season on the women's team."
There will be some key matchups to watch throughout the day on the track and in the field. Smith and Johnson will face off in the women's shot put and weight throws after opening the season with strong showings. In the sprint events, Meaka Brents and Sade Sealy will have to out run Sycamore Jaquelle Spencer.
On the men's side, sprinters Ben Sparkman and Kayode Adegoke will have to compete with Sycamore standouts Michael Roberts and Greggmar Swift. Jon Roberts and Yosef Tewolde, who had strong performances at the Early Bird Open, will lead the men's team in the distance events.
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