Track & Field Travels to Music City Challenge

MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State track & field team competes in its final road meet before the 2018 Mid-American Conference Indoor Championships this weekend, as it travels to Nashville, Tennessee, for the Music City Challenge held at the Vanderbilt Multipurpose Facility.

The two-day meet gets underway Friday at 5 p.m. ET (4 p.m. CT) and will see the Cardinals competing in three events on opening day. Ball State will compete in seven more events Saturday, starting at Noon ET (11 a.m. CT).

This will be another big meet for the Cardinals, with up to 27 teams and 750 student-athletes competing over the course of the two-day event.

Fans unable to attend the meet can follow the action with live results at the following link:
http://www.cfpitiming.com/2018_Indoor_Season/Vandy_MCC_2018/Vandy_MCC_2018.html

Following the Music City Challenge, the Cardinals close out the 2017-18 indoor regular season Friday, Feb. 16, with the annual Ball State Tune-up held in the Ball State Field Sports Building.

The 2018 MAC Indoor Track & Field Championships will follow, Feb. 23-24, at Bowling Green's Perry Field House.

BALL STATE NEWS & NOTES:
- Junior Jazmin Smith turned in the best individual performance of the season for the Cardinals at the Akron Invitational (Feb. 3), placing first among collegiate runners in the 60m hurdles with a career-fast time of 8.40 … The time currently tops the Mid-American Conference indoor performance list, is the second-fastest individual time in program history and ranks 55th nationally … It also marks the third meet Smith has bettered the MAC automatic qualifying mark in the 60m hurdles.

- Junior Regan Lewis continues to hold the No. 2 spot on the MAC performance list in the high jump after clearing 1.73m (5-8) to win the event at the Mastodon Opener (Dec. 2) … Lewis' effort currently ranks 76th nationally … At last weekend's Akron Invitational (Feb. 3), Lewis cleared the bar at 1.72m (5-7.75) to top the MAC automatic qualifying mark for the second time this season … She is one of only two MAC student-athletes to clear at least 1.72m (5-7.75) twice this season.

- 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 (Jan. 20) with a time of 7.61 … She has improved her time in each of the following two races, including winning the event at last weekend's Akron Invitational (Feb. 3) with a time of 7.55 … Stewart currently ranks third in the event on the MAC performance list.

- Sophomore Maritza Rodriguez turned in the best performance of her career at last weekend's Akron Invitational (Feb. 2), leading all collegiate runners to the line in the 5000m run with a career-fast clocking of 17:28.12 … The time is currently the seventh-fastest in the league this season.

- 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 10th in the league, while her 200m time of 25.02 is 17th in the league.

- Regan Lewis is not the only Ball State student-athlete making noise in the high jump this season, as freshman Hailley Peters enters the Music City Challenge ranked 11th in the MAC after clearing 1.65m (5-5) at the IWU Invitational (Jan. 20).

- Sophomore Kelsey Walters' throw of 14.13m (46-4.25) in the shot put at the Fred Wilt Open (Jan. 26) 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 (Jan. 26), with her fourth toss landing at 16.58m (54-4.75) … The effort currently ranks 14th 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 (Jan. 26), sophomore Brooke Talhelm enters the Music City Challenge ranked 12th on the MAC performance list in the event.

- Five meets into the 2017-18 indoor season, the Cardinals have claimed 17 event victories, 60 top five finishes and 80 career-best performances.

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Players Mentioned

Bryeana Byrdsong

Regan Lewis

Adrienne Mayfield

Hailley Peters

Maritza Rodriguez

Jazmin Smith

Peyton Stewart

Brooke Talhelm

Kelsey Walters