Peters & Hedrick Earn Wins For T&F on Final Day at UIndy

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.- - The Ball State indoor track & field team picked up right where it left off Friday night, earning two more event wins and six top 10 finishes Saturday afternoon on the final day of the Tom Hathaway Distance Classic at UIndy's Athletic Recreational Center (ARC).

Overall, the Cardinals finished the two-day meet with five event wins, one Mid-American Conference Indoor Championship automatic qualifier and the fourth-best individual effort in program history in the weight throw.

"It was a great weekend overall," head coach Brian Etelman said. "It was the perfect opportunity to keep our student-athletes in a nice competitive groove and put others in a position to have a breakthrough performance."

Saturday's highlights started with sophomore Hailley Peters taking top honors in the high jump, successfully clearing the bar at a season-best height of 1.63m.

Ball State's second event win of the day came in the 800m, with freshman Meghan Hedrick crossing the finish line in a career-best time of 2:24.71.

The Cardinals also took second in the 200m dash (sophomore Ivy McKee in 25.92) and the shot put (junior Kelsey Walters at 13.57m).

Friday's action was highlighted by several big performances, starting with junior Bryeana Byrdsong winning the 60m with a MAC auto time of 7.58.

"The season debut of Bryeana Byrdsong couldn't have gone any better with her big 60m PR," Etelman said. "Over the coming weeks, we are going to see how positive an indicator that is for her 200m debut."

Freshman Karleigh Conner also made waves by winning the mile in a career-fast time of 5:01.32. After her time is converted to account for the ARC's 200m flat track, Conner ranks ninth in the league at 4:58.37.

"Karleigh Conner is such a gritty competitor," Etelman said. "She's turning into a key piece for us and one of the MAC's young stars in the middle distance events."

Rounding out Ball State's biggest performances on the weekend was sophomore Princess Carter who chipped in the fourth-best individual effort in program history with a weight throw of 17.46m.

"Princess Carter continues to develop and grow into her own with a big throw in the weight," Etelman said. "Being No. 4 all-time at Ball State puts her in position to be a scoring threat at the MAC meet. We look to rely on her to keep our throws group moving forward."

The Cardinals will look to carry over another strong team performance into next weekend's Meyo Invitational hosted by Notre Dame. The two-day event kicks off Friday (Feb. 1) at the Loftus Sports Center.

"Notre Dame will be a key point in the season for us," Etelman concluded. "We are going to see a lot of MAC teams and we will be putting out a full team ready to compete at a high level all weekend. We are in a perfect competitive position heading into February.

For the most up-to-date news on Ball State track & field, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateTFXC.

Ball State's Saturday Results at the Tom Hathaway Distance Classic
Shot Put / MAC Qualifying Standard: 14.93m / 48-11.75 / Program Record: 14.77m / 48-5/75 by Gena Rusch in 1990
2nd - Kelsey Walters – 13.57m
13th - Stella East – 10.80m

High Jump / MAC Qualifying Standard: 1.69m / 5-6.5 / Program Record: 1.81 / 5-11.25 by Regan Lewis 2017
1st - Hailley Peters – 1.63m

200m Dash / MAC Qualifying Standard: 24.48 / Program Record: 23.25 by LaTasha Jenkins in 1999
2nd - Ivy McKee – 25.92

800m Dash / MAC Qualifying Standard: 2:11.14 / Program Record: 2:07.30 by Latasha Lothery in 2002
1st - Meghan Hedrick – 2:24.71*

3000m Run  / MAC Qualifying Standard: 9:41.68  / Program Record: 9:31.43 by Jill Scully in 2006
4th - Cayla Eckenroth – 10:27.82*
9th - Lauren Whitehouse – 10:58.23

Ball State's Friday Results at the Tom Hathaway Distance Classic
Pentathlon / Program Record: 3,797 points by Thekla Lorenz in 2008
2nd - Karlie Zumbro – 3,219
   60m Hurdles – 1st / 9.30 / 848 pts
   Long Jump – 1st / 5.07m / 578 pts
   800m – 1st / 2:28.83 / 708 pts
   Shot Put – 2nd / 8.65m* / 441 pts
   High Jump – 4th / 1.52m* / 644 pts

60m Hurdles / MAC Qualifying Standard: 8.64 / Program Record: 8.19 by Amber Williams in 2007
1st - Anasja Troutman – 9.00

60m Dash / MAC Qualifying Standard: 7.60 / Program Record 7.33 (c) by LaTasha Jenkins in 1998
1st - Bryeana Byrdsong – 7.58* - MAC Auto Mark
3rd - Michelle Lehmann – 7.74
4th - Ivy McKee – 7.83*

Long Jump / MAC Qualifying Standard: 5.82m / 19-1.25 / Program Record: 6.43m / 21-1.5 by Patricia Soman in 2003
2nd - Michelle Lehmann – 5.62m*

Weight Throw / MAC Qualifying Standard: 18.25m / 59-10.5 / Program Record: 18.55m / 60-10 by Marie Lumpkin 2015
4th - Princess Carter – 17.46m* - 4th-best individual effort in program history
6th - Kelsey Walters – 16.08m
9th - Jada Caldwell – 14.94m*
FOUL - Megan Graves

400m Dash / MAC Qualifying Standard: 55.51 / Program Record: 55.11 by Linise Gordon in 2000
25th - Anasja Troutman – 1:07.29

Mile Run / MAC Qualifying Standard: 4:51.38 / Program Record: 4:50.10 MaryKate Mellen in 2013
1st - Karleigh Conner – 5:01.32*
4th - Emmalyne Tarsa – 5:16.86*
7th - Peyton Kneadler – 5:20.56
8th - Jamie Wells – 5:20.80*
12th - Maddie Aul – 5:33.84
16th - Emma Cunningham – 5:40.69*
39th - Aubrey Norris – 6:07.66*

* - denotes career-best performance

Peters & Hedrick Earn Wins For T&F on Final Day at UIndy

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Players Mentioned

Maddie Aul

Bryeana Byrdsong

Jada Caldwell

Princess Carter

Karleigh Conner

Emma Cunningham

Stella East

Cayla Eckenroth

Megan Graves

Meghan Hedrick

Peyton Kneadler

Michelle Lehmann

Regan Lewis

Ivy McKee

Aubrey Norris

Hailley Peters

Emmalyne Tarsa

Anasja Troutman

Kelsey Walters

Jamie Wells

Lauren Whitehouse

Karlie Zumbro