Rhythm Name Of The Game In Tune-Up Victory

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MUNCIE - The Ball State track & field team won the team scoring by a large margin Thursday night, but that was only one piece of what the Cardinals were trying to do. The home meet was about getting right for the most important meet of the season coming in a week.

"It was good to be out on a Thursday night in our own place," head coach Brian Etelman said. "We got done what we needed to get done, stay sharp and find rhythm and we're happy with where we're at right now."

Finding rhythm and sharpening aside, many Cards thrived competitively in the lone home indoor meet of 2021. Ivy McKee crossed the line first in both the 60m and 200m. Her 60 time was 7.71, six-tenths off her season best. McKee clocked 25.41 in the 200, winning a field of her and seven Butler Bulldogs. Ball State went 1-2-3 in the 60m hurdles, led by Kennedy Batts (8.84) who tied her season best. Anasja Troutman (9.04) and Karlie Zumbro (9.24) were second and third, respectively.

The Cardinals learned more about freshman Elka Machan, who ran the mile for the first time. She crossed in 4:58.96, which will be converted down a few seconds officially. The school record in the mile is 4:50, and Etelman and distance coach Sarah Pease acknowledged that breaking a 5-minute mile would be a great effort for Machan.

"We know Elka Machan is pretty good, but the mile was a pleasant surprise," Etelman said. "It establishes her, as a freshman, as somebody really impressive. It was good to see her reach in toolbag and do something different. We are really excited about it."

Overall, BSU went 1-2-3-4 in the mile, with Juliana Stogsdill, Emmalyne Tarsa and Brooke Neal following Machan. Alexis Thigpen (57.36) won the 400m and Kylee Mastin provided some highlights in the 800m and as the anchor of the 4x400. Mastin won the 800 race at 2:14.42, 1.12 seconds better than the runner-up from Butler. Mastin also provided an exclamation point on the meet in the relay, as the Cardinals made up ground on Butler late and ended up pulling away to win by more than 3 seconds.

"Competing on a Thursday gives us an extra day to prepare for the conference meet. We're trying to get ready for eight days from now," Etelman said.

The MAC Indoor Track & Field Championships are set for Feb. 26-27 at Central Michigan.

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Players Mentioned

Kennedy Batts

Elka Machan

Kylee Mastin

Ivy McKee

Brooke Neal

Juliana Stogsdill

Emmalyne Tarsa

Alexis Thigpen

Anasja Troutman

Karlie Zumbro