Track & Field Set for Akron Invitational

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MUNCIE, Ind. - - With 10 event wins in the last two weeks, the Ball State indoor track & field team looks for continued success this weekend when it competes in the Akron Invitational at the Stile Athletics Field House.

While the meet officially begins Thursday, the Cardinals will not be in action until Friday's final event, the women's 5000m run at approximately 8:45 p.m.

Ball State's student-athlete will then compete in 11 events Saturday, starting at 10 a.m. with the women's 3000m run.

The 23-team field features six teams from the Mid-American Conference, including Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan and Kent State.

Other programs the Cardinals will face include; Ashland, Cedarville, Cleveland State, Dayton, Indiana Tech, IUPUI, Malone, Michigan State, Mount St. Mary's, Penn, Saint Francis, South Florida, Tiffin, University of Windsor, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Xavier.

Fans unable to attend the meet can follow the action with live results at the following link: http://live.finishtiming.com/#/results/meet/201800010

BALL STATE NEWS & NOTES:
- Ball State's eight event wins at the Indiana Wesleyan University Invitational (Jan. 20) were the most for the Cardinals in a single meet since earning 10 wins in the 2011 IWU Invitational.

- Junior sprinter Peyton Stewart became the third Ball State student-athlete to earn an automatic qualifying mark into the MAC Indoor Championships when she won the 60m dash at the IWU Invitational with a time of 7.61 … She improved her time to 7.60 at last weekend's Fred Wilt Open (Jan. 26) and currently ranks fifth on the MAC performance list.

- Defending MAC indoor 60m hurdles champion Jazmin Smith was the first Ball State student-athlete to lock up her spot at the league championships with a winning time of 8.65 at the season-opening Mastodon Opener (Dec. 2) … She improved her time to 8.52 in a first-place effort at last weekend's Fred Wilt Open and currently ranks fourth on the league charts.

- Last season's MAC indoor high jump runner-up Regan Lewis was the second Ball State student-athlete to earn a MAC automatic qualifying mark after winning the event at the Mastodon Opener by clearing 1.73m (5-8) … The effort currently ranks second in the MAC and 64th nationally.

- Lewis is not the only Ball State student-athlete making noise in the high jump this season, as freshman Hailley Peters enters the week ranked eighth in the MAC after clearing 1.65m (5-5) at the IWU Invitational.

- Sophomore Bryeana Byrdsong had a strong showing at the Kentucky Invitational (Jan. 12), placing 10th in the 60m dash (7.67) and 14th in the 200m dash (25.02) …. Her time of 7.67 in the 60m was just .05 off the MAC Indoor Championship automatic qualifying mark and currently ranks seventh in the league, while her 200m time of 25.02 is 16th in the league.

- Sophomore Kelsey Walters' throw of 14.13m (46-4.25) in the shot put at the Fred Wilt Open was the third-best individual performance in program history … The program record is 14.77m (48-5.75) set by Gena Rusch in 1990 … Walters' effort currently ranks 10th on the MAC performance list.

- Senior Adrienne Mayfield turned in a career-best performance in the weight throw at the Fred Wilt Open, with her fourth toss landing at 16.58m (54-4.75) … The effort currently ranks 13th in the MAC and is .05m (2 inches) shy of breaking into the top five in program history.

- With a first-place time of 2:16.90 (converted to 2:15.34) in the 800m run at the Fred Wilt Open, sophomore Brooke Talhelm enters the week ranked fifth on the MAC performance list in the event.

- Four meets into the 2017-18 indoor season, the Cardinals have claimed 15 event victories, 52 top five finishes and 68 career-best performances.

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Players Mentioned

Bryeana Byrdsong

Regan Lewis

Adrienne Mayfield

Hailley Peters

Jazmin Smith

Peyton Stewart

Brooke Talhelm

Kelsey Walters