Full Results
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Head Coach Ron Garner's squad wrapped up competition at the prestigious Rod McCravy meet this evening. After four top-ten finishes in day one of the meet, Nicole Choquette added another on day two in the 800m. However, the team felt they are better than they performed today, but Coach Garner believes the team will continue to grow and learn from today's experiences.
"There was a lot of disappointment today from all of us," said Head Coach Ron Garner. "We believe we're a lot better than that, but it wasn't because they didn't give good effort. That was one of the reasons we came to this meet, to see where we're at in a high-level competition. We're definitely capable of performing better than we did. As a program our strength is in our youth, and our weakness is in our youth. As coaches, we have to look at it and come to a conclusion through conversation with the athletes, and then come up with a plan to move forward."
Nicole Choquette was the Illini's standout performance of day two of the Rod McCravy meet as she competed against stiff competition in the 800m run this afternoon. Choquette responded to the increased competition with a personal-record time of 2:08.21 to place third in the race.
"The highlight of the day was Nicole Choqeutte," said Coach Garner. "Every time she goes out to compete, we always get her best. It doesn't matter the quality of the field. She ran against two of the best 800m runners in NCAA Division I Track and Field this weekend. She understood the race strategy she had with Coach Jones. She was in good position with the other competitors, and many of them have run very fast previously. It was a great opener in the 800m for her this season, and she ran very confidently and attacked the race plan." Â
Day two of the meet began with a trio of Fighting Illini competing in the 60m hurdles. Pedrya Seymour recorded the top time of the three donning orange, crossing the finish line in 8.56, but finished two places shy of qualifying for the nine-hurdler final. One-tenth of second behind Seymour was Kortni Smyers-Jones with a time of 8.66, while Jayla Stewart rounded out the three Illini with a time of 8.77.
The track performances continued with the 60m dash, where Kymbriona Taylor, Sade Hargrove and Briana Driver competed for sprints coach Randy Gillon. Taylor led the group with a 7.75 performance, while Hargrove (7.89) and Driver (8.00) came in second and third on the team.
Hanna Winter rounded out the competition for the day with her performance in the one-mile run. The sophomore completed the race in 5:04.15, placing 13th out of the 22 competitors, and improving her mile time from last year.
"We've got two weeks before we go again," said Garner. "We'll go back to work on Monday, which was built in that way so we could come back and get a good ten-day training cycle."
After spending the first three weeks of 2016 competing, Coach Garner's squad will have a week off to recover before competing at the Notre Dame Meyo Invite February 5-6 in South Bend, Indiana.
Top Ten Finishes (Friday):
2. Kandie Bloch-Jones: High Jump (1.83m)
6. Jennifer DeBellis: Pole Vault (3.97m)
7. Sara McKeeman: Pole Vault (3.82m)
7. Janile Rogers: Long Jump (5.63m)
Top Ten Finishes (Saturday):
3. Nicole Choquette: 800m (2:08.21)
