Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
Eastern Illinois Big Blue Classic
Springer Leads Cardinals Through Final Day of Big Blue Classic
March 28, 2026 | Track & Field
In field events to begin the day, heptathlete Kenli Nettles recorded a second-place finish in the high jump, clearing the bar at 1.65m.Â
Beginning the day of events on the track, Springer and Marshall helped the Cardinals' 4x100-meter relay team earn first place while racing over the 400-meter track in a time of 46.13. Laya'Lapri Ratney ran the Cardinals' first leg, followed by Marshall, Paige Kirtz and Springer as the anchor.
Ratney finished second in the 100-meter hurdles shortly after, followed by PR's from both Springer and Marshall while securing medalist honors in the 400 and 100 meters, respectively. Springer, who won the 200 meters event on Friday, rounded the track in 55.96 seconds and Marshall was clocked at 12.08 in the 100 meters.
Ball State ended the meet with a second-place finish in the 4x400 meter relay.
We had a really strong week of competition at Eastern Illinois, and I'm proud of how our group showed up and competed," said fifth-year Ball State track coach Adrian Wheatley. "There was a lot of momentum built across the board, with several winning performances that reflect the work our athletes are putting in every day. What stood out most was our ability to stay grounded and focused. We've talked about not letting outside noise define who we are, and I thought our group handled that the right way. They stayed locked into the process and competed with purpose."
The Cardinals also had a strong distance effort on Friday in St. Louis. "We also saw some great progress from our distance group at WashU. There were a number of personal bests and season-best performances, which is a testament to their consistency and commitment to getting better."
"Now it's about continuing to build," he continued. "If we stay focused on one another and keep stacking quality work, good things are going to continue to happen for our program."
The Cardinals compete in Terre Haute next weekend, taking part in Indiana State's Pacesetter Sports Invitational on Friday and Saturday, April 3-4. Ball State hosts its annual We Fly Challenge the following week, at the Briner Sports Complex, April 10 and 11.
Eastern Illinois Big Blue Classic
Saturday Events
Javelin
4th, Maci Easton, Sr. -- 32.72
Discus - Results Unavailable
Malena Higgins
Sydney Miller
Ayla Rice
Long Jump
6th, Kendra Keesling, Jr. -- 5.36
7th, Lindley Steele, Sr. -- 5.35
11th, Taylor Hickman, Sr. -- 5.02
16th, Phaelin Jones, Fr. -- 4.78
High Jump
2nd, Kenli Nettles, Sr. -- 1.65
4th, Lexi Hale, So. -- 1.60
4x100m Relay
1st, Ball State "A" - Laya'Lapri Ratney, Kylee Marshall, Paige Kirtz, Alana Springer - 46.13
3rd, Ball State "B" - Jiah Davenport, Amina Hadziahmetovic, Trinity Bibbs, Lauren Graham -- 48.70
100m Hurdles
2nd, Laya'Lapri Ratney, So. -- 13.96
5th, Lauren Graham, Sr. -- 14.92
6th, Lily Eagleston, Fr. -- 15.05
7th, Lia Patterson, Fr. -- 15.14
8th, Kendra Keesling, Jr. -- 15.63
400m Dash
1st, Alana Springer, Sr. -- 55.96 PR
100m Dash
1st, Kylee Marshall, So. -- 12.08 PR
8th, Trinity Bibbs, Fr. -- 12.47
9th, Jiah Davenport, So. -- 12.63
800m Dash
7th, Mikayla Mimnaugh, Jr. -- 2:38.51
4x400m Relay
2nd, Allison Valladay, Amina Hadziahmetovic, Lindley Steele, Lily Eagleston -- 3:59.11
Friday Events
Hammer Throw
7th, Sydney Miller, Jr. -- 44.24m
8th, Malena Higgins, Sr. -- 43.98m
9th, Ayla Rice, Fr. -- 41.91m
Shot Put
3rd, Sydney Miller, Jr. -- 13.28m
6th, Malena Higgins, Sr. -- 12.62m
10th, Ayla Rice, Fr. -- 11.00m
Triple Jump
7th, Taylor Hickman, Sr. -- 10.70
400m Hurdles
1st, Lia Patterson, Fr. -- 1:02.33
2nd, Lily Eagleston, Fr. -- 1:06.61
3rd, Amina Hadziahmetovic, Fr. -- 1:06.79
6th, Lindley Steele, Sr. -- 1:09.93
7th, Phaelin Jones, Fr. -- 1:11.92
8th, Lauren Graham, Sr. -- 1:12.55
200m Dash
1st, Alana Springer, Sr. -- 24.07
2nd, Laya'Lapri Ratney, So. -- 24.62 PR
4th, Paige Kirtz, Jr. -- 25.27
8th, Jiah Davenport, So. -- 25.80
10th, Taylor Hickman, Sr. -- 26.20
11th, Allison Valladay, Jr. -- 26.44
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Washington University Distance Carnival
5,000m Run
11th, Carly Spletzer, Sr. -- 16:45.08 PR
21st, Kaitlyn Kauppila, Fr. -- 17:06.53
28th, Emily Decker, Fr. -- 17:13.36 PR
157th, Kendyl Thrasher, Jr. -- 18:57.90
1,500m Run
17th, Sarah Mahnensmith, Sr. -- 4:36.17
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Players Mentioned
