Results

Results | Coach Turk Interview | Mammoser Interview

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The No. 23 Fighting Illini men's track and field team concluded the indoor regular season by hosting the Orange and Blue Open at the University of Illinois Armory on Saturday. The Illini won six event titles en route to taking home the team crown.

"It's great when you get a chance to get the young guys out there," said head coach Mike Turk. "It's kind of their moment to shine and I thought they really did well. You could see that they were really making a good effort to step up and the performances showed."

On the track, Illinois won four of its six event titles. Garrett Lee took the 800m crown in 1:55.91, while Will Brewster came away with the victory in the 3,000m, posting a time of 8:23.71. Corey Hammon earned the win in the 60m hurdles, and the 4x400m relay team of Matt Burns, Malik Lee, Maurice Watkins and Tony Zea cruised to victory in the day's final event.

Watkins narrowly missed adding another victory to the Illini total in the 60m dash. He ran a season-best time of 7.01, one of three competitors to post that time. Watkins ended up finishing third after time was taken to the thousandth of a second. He also took second in the 200m.

In the 400m, Zea (50.65) and Lee (51.07) finished third and fourth, respectively. Brendan McDonnell finished runner-up to Brewster in the 3,000m with a personal-best time of 8:29.01. Parker Deloye also had a personal best in the 60m hurdles.

In the field events, Matsen Dziedzic and Jonathan Wells added the final two Illini victories. Dziedzic won the shot put with a mark of 15.81m (51' 10.50"), while Wells took the high jump with a clearance of 2.03m (6' 8").

In the weight throw, Dziedzic and Michael Hyc each recorded personal-best performances en route to top-three finishes. Dizedzic finished second with a mark of 17.50m (57' 5"), while Hyc was third with a throw of 17.18m (56' 4.50"). Hyc was also third in the shot put.

In the pole vault, Matthew Bane and Mitch Mammoser finished in second and third, respectively, with clearances of 5.03m (16' 6"). That mark is a new career-best vault for Mammoser.

The Illini also sent the distance medley relay squad of Bryce Basting, DJ Zahn, Joe McAsey and Liam Markham to Notre Dame's Alex Wilson Invite. The quartet teamed up to run 9:33.28, finishing sixth. That performance puts them into second on Illinois' all-time event list.

The Illini will head to the Big Ten Championships in Geneva, Ohio next week. The championships begin on Friday, Feb. 27 and run through Saturday, Feb. 28. Competition begins at 10 a.m. ET each day.

"We've been working on the process of preparing ourselves for a long time," Turk noted. "I think our guys are really excited and they've worked really hard. We're ready to go."

Illinois Events Winners

800m - Garrett Lee, 1:55.91

3,000m - Will Brewster, 8:23.71

60m Hurdles - Corey Hammon, 8.43

4x400m Relay - Matt Burns, Malik Lee, Maurice Watkins & Tony Zea, 3:24.10

High Jump - Jonathan Wells, 2.03m (6' 8")

Shot Put - Matsen Dziedzic, 15.81m (51' 10.5")