Redbirds Set for MVC Outdoor Championships

THIS WEEK

The Illinois State track and field squad is geared up for the postseason, as the Redbirds travel to Terre Haute, Ind., for the Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championships on May 16-17 hosted by Indiana State University.

Competition at the Gibson Track and Field Complex begins with the decathlon at 8:30 a.m. CT on both Saturday and Sunday. Both days will be streamed on ESPN+.

PRE-CHAMPIONSHIP POLL

The MVC released its pre-championship coaches' poll Tuesday, and both Illinois State track and field teams earned top-three projections.

The Illinois State women were picked to finish third with 99 total votes, while the Redbird men tied with Indiana State for second with 85 total votes.

The Redbird men's last outdoor conference title came in 2019, while the women last won in 2023.

ATOP THE VALLEY

The Redbirds lead the Valley in several events. For the women, Mattison Plummer ranks first by over 15 seconds in the 3000m steeplechase (10:13.21).

On the men's side, Zach Paul holds the conference's fastest time in the 100m dash with a wind-aided time of 10.17. Illinois State's 4x400m relay team, featuring Paul, Enyinnaya Nwagwu Jr., Jake Welch and Evan Watson, leads the MVC by over a second.

Seth Nelson has the top pole vault mark this season at 5.30m, while Garrett Taylor leads the conference in the discus with a throw of 56.57m.

LAST TIME OUT

The Redbirds finished the regular season last Friday with six event winners, 21 top-five finishes and three moves in the program's top-10 list.  

• Reece Curtis won the 200m dash with a personal-best time of 21.02 to move into a tie for 10th in program history.

• Pauline Schedler posted an impressive showing in Indiana, finishing runner-up in the 800m with a time of 2:05.99 to move into third in program history.

• Adi Scott moved to seventh all-time in ISU history with a personal-best hammer throw of 55.97m.

• Aidan Wyzard took the 100m dash title with a time of 11.05.

• Kane Shields rounded out the Redbird winners on the track with a season-best mark of 3:50.00 in the 1500m.

• In the field, Garrett Taylor won the men's discus with a throw of 55.82m, while Sienna Robertson took the women's discus title with a personal-best mark of 46.73m.

• Kiera Fax earned gold in the javelin with a personal-best mark of 37.50m.

FRESH SCHOOL RECORDS

Four outdoor school records have been tied or broken so far this season.

• Zach Paul finished runner-up and shattered the school record in the 100m dash with a wind-aided time of 10.19.

• The men's 4x400m relay squad of Paul, Enyinnaya Nwagwu Jr., Jake Welch and Evan Watson broke the school record, which was set earlier this season, by over a second with a time of 3:05.27.

• Seth Nelson broke his own school record in the men's pole vault with a clearance of 5.30m.

• Becca Heitzig broke the women's 1500m school record by nearly two seconds with a time of 4:14.79 at the Pepsi Florida Relays on April 4 and then broke her own record with a time of 4:14.76 at the Bryan Clay Invitational on April 17.

USTFCCCA #EVENTSQUAD RANKINGS

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association released its seventh checkpoint of #EventSquad rankings for the 2026 outdoor season on May 12, and multiple Redbird event groups were featured among the nation's best.

• The men's shot put squad of Zach Cowper, Jo Atkins, Jacob Klink and Garrett Taylor leads the way at No. 10 nationally with a combined mark of 69.74m and a 17.44m average.

• Illinois State's men's high jump group of Kaden Stewart, Voldy Makabu, Jamarion Bardwell and Trey Thomas ranks No. 11 in the country, averaging 2.06m.

• The men's 100m dash quartet of Zach Paul, Reece Curtis, Enyinnaya Nwagwu Jr. and Jaiden Reed sits No. 35 nationally with a combined time of 41.70 seconds.
• In the men's long jump, Rex Hallam, Aidan Wyzard, Brody Rigdon and Victor Byaundaombe rank No. 43 in the NCAA with a combined distance of 28.65m.
• The women's steeplechase squad of Mattison Plummer, Becca Heitzig, Astrid Van Breedam and Maggie Reed earned a top-10 national ranking, checking in at No. 10 with a combined time of 42:17.61.
• The women's discus group featuring Sienna Robertson, Brianna Brodie, Adi Scott and Morgan Foes ranks No. 30 nationally with a combined mark of 176.55m.
• Illinois State's women's hammer throw squad of Scott, Foes, Brodie and Hannah Gibson is ranked No. 34 in the country with a combined distance of 204.46m.

• The women's 1500m group with Pauline Schedler, Heitzig, Plummer and Van Breedam, sits No. 39 nationally with a combined time of 17:25.48.

• The women's triple jump quartet of Abby Milott, Megan Clark, Ava Lawless and Laney Nelson also ranks No. 39 in the nation with a combined mark of 46.28m.

• The women's 800m squad of Heitzig,  Schedler, Colleen Zeibert and Brooke Zeibert ranks No. 40 nationally with a combined time of 8:33.07 and a 2:08.27 average.

For the latest updates on Illinois State Track & Field, stay tuned at GoRedbirds.com, follow the Redbirds on X (@RedbirdTFXC) and Instagram (isuredbirdtfxc) and like the team on Facebook (Illinois State Track & Field/Cross Country).

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