CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – On the first day of the Illini Invite, hosted by Illinois, sophomore Ashlee Stieler got the Redbird men's and women's track & field teams off to a hot start, winning the pentathlon with a personal-record 3,523 points.
At Friday's competition, which was devoted solely to the multi-events, Stieler stole the show, using personal-bests performances in four of the five pentathlon events to capture the seventh-highest point total in Illinois State track & field history.
Stieler started the day off on the right foot, finishing third in the 60-meter hurdles with a personal-record time of 8.90, a mark which ranks 10th on ISU's top-10 list. She carried her momentum into the high jump, clearing a personal-best 1.62m (5-03.75) to place second and catapult herself to first in the overall standings. Stieler then secured a win in the shot put with an indoor personal-record heave of 10.96m (35-11.50). Through four events, she found herself in second place, but utilized an indoor personal-best performance in the 800-meter (2:35.39) to ultimately come out on top and win the pentathlon.
Jordyn Bruce (3,324 points) and Olivia Rossman (3,125 points) also had solid pentathlon performances, placing third and fifth, respectively. Bruce ended the competition on a high note, winning the 800-meter run in 2:29.79. She also captured a pair of second-place performances in the 60-meter hurdles (8.89) and shot put (10.76m/35-03.75). Rossman, who competed in the first pentathlon of her career, had her highest finish in the 800-meter run, clocking in at 2:33.12 to place third.
On the men's side, the Redbirds are sitting pretty through day one in the heptathlon standings. After finishing second in the 60-meter (7.19), long jump (6.45m/21-02.00), and high jump (1.88m/6-02.00), Jordan Wilkerson leads the field with 2,735 points. James Brandenburg (2,710 points) sits in second after picking up wins in the 60-meter (7.16), long jump (21-10.75), and shot put (11.54m/37-10.50).
Competing in the first heptathlon of his collegiate career, Caleb Miedema is currently in third with 2,684 points. Miedema had a big performance in the high jump, clearing a personal-best 1.94m (6-04.25) to win the event. He also captured a personal-record in the 60-meter, crossing the finish line fourth in 7.45.
The Illini Invite will resume tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. with the women's pole vault competition.
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