Complete Results

Complete Results

LEXINGTON, Ky. - After a number of strong performances on the first day of the Rod McCravy Memorial Meet, including a new school record, the Illinois women's track and field team closed out the weekend with the second day of competition in Kentucky. The Illini added three more top-10 finishes to the four they earned Friday.

"This meet fit our needs for the week," said head coach Ron Garner. "This meet had some of the best teams in the country, and it was time to step up to a meet of this scale. Seeing this level of competition now helps us prepare for the Big Ten and NCAA Championships later this season."

Breeana Coleman earned Illinois' highest finish of the day in the 60m hurdles. After qualifying for the finals in eighth place, Coleman wound up finishing sixth. Her time of 8.38 is her fastest performance of the season and is currently the third-best mark in the Big Ten.

In the 800m, a trio of Illini had performances that eclipsed the team's previous best this season. Leading the way for the Orange and Blue was Nicole Choquette. She finished seventh with a time of 2:09.97, the top time in the Big Ten this season. Lindsey Rakosnik (2:10.64) and Chloe Schmidt (2:11.32) were 11th and 14th, respectively. Rakosnik's time was a lifetime best.

"I was pleased with Nicole's performance today," said distance coach Scott Jones. "She continues to establish that she is one of the best in the Big Ten. In the same race, Chloe ran better than she did last week so that is a move in the right direction. I was really pleased with Lindsey, as well. She is running the best she has in a long time and her confidence is growing."

The third member of the Illini to grab a top-10 finish was Alyssa Schneider. She finished third in the 3000m run with a time of 9:29.54, narrowly missing the 9:28.72 personal-best performance she had last year. Her time is also the top mark in the Big Ten.

"I am very pleased with where Alyssa is at right now," Jones stated. "She ran a smart race today. She put herself in the race and moved up throughout, but she just didn't have a strong finish and got passed by a few people late. The key is that she put herself in the race. As the season progresses and her fitness level advances, she will be able to close out these types of races."

Another group Jones thought performed well was the mile trio of Britten Petrey, Courtney Ackerman and Denise Branch. All three of them ran close to their personal bests in today's race.

"We were hoping for faster times across the board from the mile group," continued Jones. "I don't think today's results reflect our fitness level right now. I think it had more to do with being inexperienced in these types of races. I don't think we are far off from getting those times to where we want them to be."

The Illini will have a weekend away from competition to focus more on training. They will return to action at the Notre Dame Meyo Invite in South Bend, Indiana on Friday, Feb. 6 and Saturday, Feb. 7.