Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
Pacesetter Invitational (Outdoor)
Outdoor Track & Field Successful At Pacesetter Invitational
May 03, 2009 | Track & Field
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - - Led by fifth-year seniors Christina Whitt (Fort Wayne, Ind./Concordia Lutheran H.S.) and Amber Williams (Fort Wayne, Ind./Concordia Lutheran H.S.), the Ball State outdoor track and field team compiled 17 top-five finishes at the Pacesetter Invitational Saturday.
Williams, who earned a regional qualifying mark earlier in the season in the 100m hurdles, notched the same accomplishment in the 100m dash (11.73) Saturday, placing second. Freshman Janae Taylor (Richmond, Ind./Richmond H.S.) placed closely behind in third (11.92).
Williams also won the 100m hurdles (13.84) and was a part of the 4x100 relay squad that finished second (46.33) along with Whitt, junior Katie Johnson (Evansville, Ind./Harrison H.S.), and Taylor. Johnson also clocked a second-place time of 13.97 in the 100m hurdles.
Whitt had several other strong performances, finishing third in the 200m (25.52), fourth in the 400m (58.87) and helping the 4x400 relay team to a fourth-place finish (3:54.71). Also competing in the 4x400 were Johnson, junior Jenna Schmitmeyer (Celina, Ohio/Celina H.S.), and sophomore Thekla Lorenz (Hamburg, Germany).
In the 800m run, the Cardinals were led by junior Brittany Ade (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger H.S.) who registered a fourth-place performance (2:16.44), followed by freshman Christine Talhelm (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central H.S.) and sophomore Brandi Robinson (Chicago, Ill./Morgan Park H.S.), who finished 11th (2:20.26) and 14th (2:23.92), respectively.
Junior Ali Bishel (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton H.S.) recorded a second-place finish in the 5,000m run (17:34.8). Schmitmeyer also notched a second-placing in the 400m hurdles (1:02.71).
The Cardinals placed three student-athletes in the top ten in the hammer throw with junior Tyra Schantz (Bloomfield, Ind./White River Valley H.S.) finishing third (151-4), sophomore Jordan Puckett (Washington, Ind./Washington H.S.) placing eighth (136-3) and sophomore Lauren Cleaver (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead H.S.) coming in 10th (128-6).
In the long jump, BSU was led by Lorenz (second/18-9) and sophomore Lindsay Bangert (Milwaukee, Wis./Homestead H.S.) who tallied a fourth-place leap (17-8). Lorenz also delivered a fourth-place finish in the javelin throw (114-7) and a seventh-place finish in the 100m hurdles (15.12).
Sophomores Jerrica Edmonds (Milwaukee, Wis./Franklin H.S.) and Megan Cherry (Hobart, Ind./Hobart H.S.) recorded fifth (34-7 3/4) and sixth-place (34-6 3/4) finishes in the triple jump.
Freshman Ebony James (Mishawaka, Ind./Riley H.S.) rounded out the Cardinals' top five finishes, placing fifth in the high jump (5-1). In other events, senior Lauren McNichols (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central H.S.) finished sixth in the pole vault (11-9 3/4) while junior Sarah Kehe (Westville, Ind./Chesterton H.S.) placed ninth in the 1,500m run (4:50.71).
MEET PREVIEW
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State outdoor track and field team, who was originally scheduled to compete in the Jesse Owens Track Classic this weekend, will instead travel to Terre Haute, Ind. to participate in the Pacesetter Invitational Saturday.
The one-day meet will put the Cardinals to test against 10 other schools, including in-state rivals DePauw, IPFW, and host Indiana State. Also participating are Bradley, Centre College, Grand Valley State, Illinois State, Monmouth College, SIU-Edwardsville and Washington University.
BSU continues to improve, setting 12 season-bests last weekend. The Cardinals rank in the top five in the Mid-American Conference in nine different categories, including five combined marks from the Stan Lyons Invitational and the GINA Relays.
At the Stan Lyons Invitational last weekend, junior Thekla Lorenz (Hamburg, Germany) leaped to a MAC-best long jump of 19-8 while freshman Janae Taylor (Richmond, Ind./Richmond H.S.) jumped into the top three in both the 100m (12.00/third) and the 200m (24.52/second).
Senior Jessica Genovese (Dyer, Ind./Lake Central H.S.) and sophomore Jerrica Edmonds (Milwaukee, Wis./Franklin H.S.) recorded team-bests in the high jump (5-5) and the triple jump (36-3 1/2), respectively.
Junior Katie Johnson (Evansville, Ind./Harrison H.S.) tallied a 100m hurdles time of 13.93 to rank fourth in the league while fifth-year senior Amber Williams (Fort Wayne, Ind./Concordia Lutheran H.S.) remains in second (13.84). Johnson also holds the fifth-best MAC time in the 400m hurdles (1:01.79).
Fifth-year senior Christina Whitt (Fort Wayne, Ind./Concordia Lutheran H.S.) notched a season-best in the 400 (58.53) which is also the second-best time for BSU.
Sophomore Jordan Puckett (Washington, Ind./Washington H.S.) is BSU's second-best performer in the hammer throw, tossing an outdoor-best 142-8.
Freshman Christine Talhelm (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central H.S.) ran for a season-best time in the 800 (2:19.76) while sophomore Ra'Jae Marable (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer H.S.) sprinted to her fastest time in 2009 in the 100m (12.96).
Last weekend at the Gina Relays, junior Ali Bishel (Chesterton, Ind./Chesterton H.S.) registered the second-best time in the conference in the 10,000m run (35:51.83) while junior Brittany Ade (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger H.S.) delivered a team-best in the 800 (2:15.8). Bishel also ranks fifth in the 5,000m run (17:18.15).
The other top-five MAC times come from the 4x100 relay squad (first/46.18) and the 4x400 relay team (fifth/3:52.36).
The Pacesetter Invitational will get underway at Indiana State's Marks Field at 9 a.m. with the hammer throw. The final event, the 4x400m relay, is slated for 5:40 p.m.
Players Mentioned
