Seven Cardinals Rewarded For Success At MAC Track & Field Championships

CLEVELAND - - For their effort in guiding Ball State to the 2023 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship, seven Cardinals were honored by the league Wednesday (May 17).

Highlighting the list was junior Jenelle Rogers who was named the Women's Most Outstanding Field Performer after tallying 29 total points, including 26 in field events, over the three-day meet.

In addition, Matt Bigelow was named the Women's Assistant Coach of the Year after mentoring his jumps/multis/throws group to 62 of BSU's 108 points at the championships.

Rogers was also one of six Ball State student-athletes to earn First Team All-MAC honors, picking up the award as the MAC Champion in the heptathlon. Senior Charity Griffith collected First Team All-MAC honors for the fourth time in her career after winning the high jump.

Rounding out Ball State's First Team All-MAC honorees were sophomore Moriah Johnson, freshman Alana Springer, freshman Lindley Steele, and sophomore Jenna Oriani for their winning effort in the 4x100m Relay.

Several members of the Ball State outdoor track & field team look to continue their season at the NCAA East Preliminary Championship which will run May 24-27 in Jacksonville, Florida. Selections will be announced Thursday (May 18) at 1 p.m. ET on NCAA.com

MORE ON WOMEN'S MOST OUTSTANDING FIELD PERFORMER JENELLE ROGERS
The 2023 MAC Most Valuable Performer, Rogers helped guide the Ball State to its first MAC outdoor title since the 2001 season, and just the fifth outdoor team championship in program history, by scoring 29 total points over the three-day championship meet, with 26 of those points coming in field events.

Rogers started with a dominating performance in the heptathlon, earning the event win with a track and program record score of 5,632 points. Among the heptathlon competitors, Rogers won the shot put (13.74m / 45'-1"), 200m (24.38), and long jump (6.11m / 20'-0.5"), placed second in the 100m hurdles (14.16) and high jump (1.73m / 5'-8"), placed fourth in the 800m (career-fast 2:24.80) and took sixth in the javelin throw (28.93m / 94'-11").

She was not done there, however, starting with a silver medal and career-best distance of 6.21m (20'-4.5") in the long jump. Rogers also placed fourth in the shot point with a career-best toss of 14.46m (47' - 5.25") and sixth in the high jump at 1.69m (5'-6.5").

Rogers rounded out a solid MAC Outdoor Championship performance with a sixth-place effort in the 100m hurdles at 13.84.

MORE ON WOMEN'S ASSISTANT COACH OF THE YEAR MATT BIGELOW
The 2023 MAC Indoor Assistant Coach of the Year, Bigelow's jumps/multis/throws group continued to excel at the 2023 MAC Outdoor Championships, leading the Cardinals to its first MAC outdoor title since the 2001 season and just the fifth outdoor team championship in program history. The student-athletes he mentored accounted for 62 of the team's 108 points over the course of the three-day meet, earning 57.4% of Ball State's total points.

His student-athletes started with a dominating performance in the heptathlon, with junior Jenelle Rogers winning the event with a program and track record score of 5,667 points. It marks the third consecutive season, and seventh time in program history, a Ball State student-athlete has captured the heptathlon.

Rogers was not alone on the heptathlon podium, however, as senior Charity Griffith took second with a personal-best score of 5632, which would have also been a track and program record had it not been for Rogers' performance. Rounding out Ball State's solid finish in the heptathlon was a fifth-place effort by senior Lea-Marie Diedicke who also scored a personal best with 5,090 points.

Bigelow's student-athletes continued to shine outside the heptathlon, starting with a silver medal for Rogers who tallied a career-best distance of 6.21m (20'-4.5") in the long jump for eight more points. Rogers also placed fourth in the shot point with a career-best toss of 14.46m (47' - 5.25"), sixth in the high jump at 1.69m (5'-6.5"), and sixth in the 100m hurdles at 13.84 to give her 29 total points over the three-day competition.

The effort continued with Griffith picking up her second consecutive MAC outdoor title in the high jump, being the only athlete to clear 1.73m (5'-8") on her first attempt after passing the opening four heights. Griffith would add three more points with a sixth-place finish in the long jump at 5.92m (19'-5.25") and six more points with a third-place effort in the 100m hurdles at 13.74. In all, Griffith accounted for 27 total points.

Barlow also helped mentor freshman Mary Porter to a seventh-place effort in the high jump, rounding out his group with two more points.

Seven Cardinals Rewarded For Success At MAC Track & Field Championships

Players Mentioned

Moriah Johnson

Jenna Oriani

Mary Porter

Jenelle Rogers

Alana Springer

Lindley Steele

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