CHAMPAIGN, ILL. – The Fighting Illini will commence the outdoor portion of their schedule in Tempe, Arizona with the annual Baldy Castillo Invitational. The meet begins with two distance events, the 3,000m steeplechase and the 1,500m, run on Friday night and concludes Saturday afternoon with field events beginning at 11 a.m. central time and track events at 2 p.m. central time.

A LOOK AT THE FIELD  

Joining the Fighting Illini at Sun Angel Stadium will be ten other schools, including Big Ten rival Iowa and power five schools Utah, Oklahoma, and host Arizona State.

LAST YEAR AT BALDY CASTILLO

Last year in Tempe, Stephanie Richartz took second in the pole vault, a mark of 13'9.25", while Kandie Bloch-Jones finished in the top-five in both the high jump and triple jump. On the track, Nicole Choquette finished runner-up in the 800m, while three other Illini placed in the top eight, and Britten Petrey in the 2,000m steeplechase.

COMPETITIONS TO WATCH

100m Hurdles: After a chance to rest their legs, first-year Illini Kortni Smyers-Jones and freshman Jayla Stewart will return to action this weekend. During the indoor season, the duo combined with NCAA qualifier Pedrya Seymour to form a trio of Illini that regularly made the 60m hurdles event finals. A junior college transfer, Kortni Smyers-Jones won the 100m hurdles national title in back-to-back seasons at Laney Community College. Stewart found similar success at the high school level, winning the Hershey's National Champion and Illinois Prep Top Time Champion in the 100m hurdles as a senior in 2015.

Pole Vault: The Orange & Blue feature two pole vaulters, a senior who scored points at the Big Ten outdoor meet last May, and a rising sophomore, who set personal-records in each of her last four meets of the indoor season. Jennifer DeBellis provides the most experience of the duo after placing seventh at Big Ten Championships last year and sitting second on the school's all-time list behind five-time champion Stephanie Richrtz. Joining here is Sara McKeeman, posting a career best 13'13/4" (4.01m) mark at Big Ten Indoor Championships three weeks ago after setting personal-records at each of the prior three meets.

4x400m Relay: The Fighting Illini return three of the four athletes on last year's 4x400m relay team that scored points at Big Ten Outdoor Championships, including 2016 NCAA Qualifier Pedrya Seymour. Nicole Choquette and Miranda Marry also return from last year's quartet and will look to improve their finish this season. 

SEYMOUR REPRESENTS ILLINI AT WORLD INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Illini sophomore 60m hurdler Pedrya Seymour will compete for the Bahamian national team at this weekend's IAAF Indoor World Championships in Portland, Oregon. The 60m hurdle race is set for Friday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. central time.

NEXT UP

The Orange & Blue will stay closer to home with a trip to Nashville, Tennessee for the annual Black & Gold Invitational on March 25-26.

ILLINI NOTES

BLOCH-JONES & SEYMOUR COMPETE AT NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS

Pedrya Seymour started the weekend off with an 8.19 time in the 60m hurdles semifinals, but failed to qualify for the final with her 13th-place finish overall. On Saturday, Kandie Bloch-Jones finished tied for 12th in the high jump with a mark of 5'11.25" (1.76m).

PEDRYA SEYMOUR SELECTED FOR INDOOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Nassau, Bahamas native Pedrya Seymour was chosen to represent her country in the upcoming Indoor World Championships in Portland, Oregon on March 18 & 19. The Illini red-shirt sophomore has significantly improved her time in the 60m hurdles this season, posting a career-best time at Big Ten Championships (8.16) to finish third. She is set to race in the 60m hurdles on March 18.

BLOCH-JONES, SEYMOUR & CHOQUETTE WITH PODIUM FINISHES AT B1G CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2016 edition of Big Ten Indoor Championships concluded with a trio of Illini marking podium finishes in their event final. Kandie Bloch-Jones started things off in the morning in the high jump, followed by Nicole Choquette in the 800m, and concluded by Pedrya Seymour in the 60m hurdles.

ILLINI EARN FOUR EVENT TITLES AT ORANGE & BLUE OPEN 

The Fighting Illini Women's Track and Field team concluded their final preparations for the Big Ten Indoor Championships meet next weekend with today's Orange and Blue Open. Three Fighting Illini came away with event titles, with Pedrya Seymour taking home 60m hurdle honors, Kandie Bloch-Jones in the high jump, and Hanna Winter in the mile run.

TRIO OF HURDLERS CONTINUE GROWTH, SHOW CONSISTENCY

At both the Meyo Invite and Iowa State Classic, the Fighting Illini have had three of the eight 60m hurdle finalists donning the Orange and Blue singlet. Sophomore Pedrya Seymour, freshman Jayla Stewart, and junior transfer Kortni Smyers-Jones have created a trio that has created a model of consistency for the team in recent weeks.

CHOQUETTE SHINES AT MEYO INVITE

Nicole Choquette highlighted the weekend for the Illini with a personal-record time in the 800m, while finishing second in both the 600m and 800m. The 600m time was just shy of her Big Ten Championship time last February, moving her into fifth place in the NCAA.

B1G FACES - KANDIE BLOCH-JONES REACHES NEW HEIGHTS

During the offseason, Kandie Bloch-Jones was chosen as one of the Big Ten Network's Faces of Illinois, making a commercial spot that will air throughout the spring on the conference network. The junior has started off 2016 with reason to believe she can compete with the nation's elite. After winning the high jump back-to-back times to begin the season, Bloch-Jones cleared 6-0 (1.83m), besting a three-time national champion, at the Rod McCravy meet to finish second. Her mark currently sits in a tie for 12th nationally.

Bloch-Jones is coming off of a top-20 finish at NCAA Championships in 2015 and holds the third-best high jump mark in school history.  As a freshman, the Argenta, Illinois native won the high jump title at Big Ten Indoor Championships and earned Second Team All-America honors at the NCAA meet. Last season, Bloch-Jones placed fourth at Big Ten Indoor Championships and had her best jump of her career (1.84m) at the Rankin Invite. Bloch-Jones was named Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week on December 16, and shortly after was named the University of Illinois Scholar Athlete of the Week.

ORANGE AND BLUE SEE MORE OUT OF SEYMOUR

Early returns from Pedrya Seymour have already to shown significant growth from last season. The Nassau, Bahamas sophomore moved into 7TH-place all-time on the Illinois indoor 60m hurdles list, an 8.16 time at Big Ten Championships. Earlier in the season, Seymour won the 60m hurdles in each of the the team's home meets, setting then personal-record times at two of those meets.

ORANGE AND BLUE WIN ILLINI CLASSIC

For the second week in a row, the Orange and Blue rode veteran performances, combined with youthful progression, to a team victory. The Illini used four event titles, two in field events and two on the track, to pace the team to 142 points, besting second-place Western Michigan by 33 points. Pedrya Seymour was the top performer again for the Illini with another personal-record in the 60m hurdles, this time with a 6.38 time. Lindsey Rakosnik (600m), Jenn DeBellis (pole vault) and Janile Rogers (long jump) each earned event wins to round out the team's four on the day.

ILLINI SWEEP BORDER BATTLE 

After splitting the Border Battle last year on the campus of the University of Iowa, the Orange and Blue were able to sweep the competition this afternoon at the UI Armory. The Fighting Illini beat Missouri by a score of 75-65, while edging out the Hawkeyes 68-67. The Illini were led by five event titles: Kandie Bloch-Jones (HJ), Jenn DeBellis (PV), Briana Driver (LJ), Nicole Choquette (800m), and Pedrya Seymour (60m H).

ILLINI EARN SIX EVENT TITLES AT EARLY BIRD

The Illini earned six event crowns over the course of the season's opening evening as the team scored 108 points to place second. In the field, Bloch-Jones (high jump) and Rogers (long jump) won titles outright, while Jenn DeBellis and Sara McKeeman shared the pole vault crown. On the track, Jasmine Berry (400m), Smyers-Jones (60m Hurdles), and the 4x400m relay team of Berry, Choquette, Marry, and Schulz took home titles.

FRESHMAN FIVE BRING PROMISE

The 2015-16 freshmen class brings promise to Coach Garner's program, as they enter the program after racking up accolades in high school. Jayla Stewart leads the group as a five-time All-American in track and was the Hershey National Champion in the 100m hurdles. Joining her is Emone Davis, an All-American in the 4x100m and holds Danville High School records in four events. In field events, Mother McAuley standout Briana Driver who was the 2015 indoor and outdoor conference long jump champion. Sade Hargrove is the lone freshman from outside the state lines, but brings with her the 2014 Virginia state championship in the long jump, while also wining 4A South Conference championships in the 55m, 100, 200m, 300m, and long jump. Rounding out the class are standouts in distance events is Cary-Grove's Morgan Schulz. Schulz won the 2015 800m state title and holds school records in the 100m, 200m, 300m, 400m, and 800m.