Full Results
CHAMPAIGN, ILL. – The Fighting Illini Men's Track and Field team wrapped up indoor regular season competition with the annual Orange & Blue meet at the UI Armory. Cam Viney showed he is in top form with a 60m hurdle personal-record time of 7.78. Joining him with event titles were Mo Maat (60m), Michael Hyc (Weight Throw), Konrad Eiring (800m), Blaze Galardy (pole vault) and unattached Illini Jesse Reiser (3,000m).
"We use this meet for a lot of our younger guys to get a competition in, while some guys here are just brushing up before Big Tens," said Head Coach Mike Turk. "What really stuck out to me is that we had some really high-end performances today, so for a low-key meet the week before Big Tens, that's a really good sign. When you see guys like Cam Viney running a personal-best, that's a big move forward for us."
In his final tune up for Big Ten Championships next weekend, Cam Viney timed 7.91 to finish tops overall in the preliminary round. In the final, Viney vastly improved his time to set a new personal-best mark of 7.78. The Illini senior moves into sole possession of third place on the school's all-time list.
In the 60m dash prelims, Mo Maat cruised to the top overall time with a 6.87 mark. Once again in the final, Maat easily bested the competition with a 6.84 time that edges closer to his season-best mark of 6.76 set back at the Border Battle.
For the third time this season, sophomores Michael Hyc and Matsen Dziedzic went 1-2 in the weight throw. Hyc won the event with a throw of 63-01/4 (19.21m), topping his previous personal-record of 59-91/2 set at the Rod McCravy meet earlier this season. Dziedzic followed Hyc in second with a personal-record mark of 61-91/2 (18.83m). Later in the day, the duo finished 3-4 in the shot put competition with marks of 54'6" (16.61m) and 54-41/2 (16.57m), respectively.
"Michael has just had a tremendous indoor season; he's progressed so much since last year," said Turk. "What he did in the weight throw today with a big personal-record, he's starting to get himself into contention to score at the Big Ten meet. That's the kind of growth we're here for, and want to see out of people."
The second event title in field events came from pole vaulter Blaze Galardy, posting his best mark of the season. The senior cleared 15'61/2" (4.74m) to win the event over Jeff Padesky of Western Illinois by nearly four inches. Â
Distance events got underway with the mile run, where three Illini placed in the top-five. Jared Christiansen was the top collegiate finisher with a time of 4:17.33, while David Schmieg and Luke Schroer followed in third and fifth, respectively. For Schmeig, his 4:18.61 time set a new personal-best.
Later in the afternoon, Konrad Eiring brought home the title in the 800m run, posting a 1:53.47 time. His time was just ahead of runner-up Garrett Lee who finished in 1:55.86 for the Orange and Blue. Alex Gold placed fourth with a time of 1:57.31.
"He really struggled last week, and that was a great bounce back [performance]," explained Turk.
The distance events concluded with the 3,000m run. Jesse Reiser, running unattached, won the event with a time of 8:12.32. Dylan Lafond and Ian Barnett were in the lead after 2,000m, but pulled out of the race to preserve themselves for Big Ten Championships. Zack Smith of the Illini placed second among collegiate runners with a time of 8:28.31. Sean Pengelly finished sixth overall with a time of 8:36.53.
"Jesse's really special," said Coach Turk. "We certainly could have run him this season, but he's got so much in his future. I think he will run for us outdoors, but he's just a really special person. He's an outstanding athlete of course, but he's got a lot of talent and it's just fun to watch him to do the things he's doing."
Freshman Ben Barnes competed twice on the day, first in the long jump. In the long jump, Barnes placed second in the long jump with a mark of 20-93/4 (6.34m). Later in the meet, Barnes returned for the triple jump competition, placing third with a leap of 42'9" (13.03m).
Up Next:
With the indoor regular season behind them, the Fighting Illini will now set their sights on the postseason, beginning with Big Ten Championships next weekend in Geneva, Ohio.
Event Winners:
Michael Hyc: Weight Throw, 63-01/4 (19.21m)
Cam Viney: 60m Hurdles, 7.78
Mo Maat: 60m Dash, 6.84
Konrad Eiring: 800m, 1:53.47
Jesse Reiser: 3,000m, 8:12.32
Blaze Galardy: Pole Vault, 15-61/2Â (4.74m)
