With the 2017 season less than two weeks away, the Fighting Illini are primed to move back into the upper echelon of the Big Ten after winning the Big Ten outdoor title in 2015. Head Coach Mike Turk returns 26 of the 35 letterwinners from last season, including six who have earned All-America honors in their career, while also adding 12 newcomers that combined for 17 IHSA state championships between cross country and track and field in 2016. The Orange and Blue make their season debut at the Border Battle in Iowa City, Iowa on Saturday, January 7. Today, we preview the jumps, throws and multi events.
Past Previews: Sprints/Hurdles/Relays | Distance/Pole Vault
Jumps
Two-time All-American Jonathan Wells returns in the high jump after earning First Team All-America honors for the first time in his career last March at NCAA Indoor Championships. After redshirting during the outdoor season, Wells enters 2017 with three seasons of outdoor eligibility, as well as two indoor seasons. Wells will once again have a chance to take down Gail Olson's 37-year old school record high jump of 7'3" (2.21m) indoors and 7'3.5" (2.22m) outdoors. Wells nearly missed breaking the record as a freshman with a 7'2.5" mark at the Orange and Blue Open, while again falling just shy of the mark with a 7'2.25" (2.19m) performance at the Husker Invite.
Along with Wells, the Illini return junior Parker Deloye in the event, while adding in freshman Noah Adams. Adams won the IHSA state high jump title as a senior in 2016 and medaled in the event the previous two seasons. The Macon, Illinois product enters with a personal-best 6'10" (2.08m) mark, which will give him a chance to enter the Illinois top-10 list in his first season.
In the horizontal jumps, junior Cole Henderson and sophomore Ben Barnes will hold down the long jump. Although Henderson did not compete in the event last season, he marked 22'10.75" (6.98m) during the 2015 indoor season. Barnes returns for his second season at Illinois after a personal-best mark of 21'11.75" (6.70m) at the Gibson Invite last April.
Throws
In contrast to the pole vault group, the throws return all upperclassmen in senior Aaron Wilks and juniors Matsen Dziedzic and Michael Hyc.
Wilks will take full reign of the javelin after competing along side Ben Dodds during his first three seasons. Wilks advanced to NCAA Prelims for the first time in his career last May, while also setting a personal-best throw of 210'1" (64.04m) at the Illinois Twilight to move into fourth-place on Illinois all-time list.
In the shot put, weight and hammer throws, Dziedzic and Hyc will look to continue their growth after setting personal-best marks last season moved them into multiple top-10 list. Indoors, Dziedzic threw his best weight throw mark at the Orange and Blue Open, launching the 35-pound weight 61'9.5" (18.83m) to take over third-place on the school's all-time list. For Hyc, the Chicago native set new top marks in the shot put (55'8.25") and weight throw (63'0.5").
During the outdoor season, Dziedzic and Hyc both entered the program's top-10 list in the hammer throw at the Illini Open with heaves of 184"3" (56.15m) and 181'7" (55.34m), respectively. Both marks put Dziedzic (8th) and Hyc (9th) into the all-time list.
Multi-Events
One of the more intriguing aspects of the 2017 team will come in Jonathan Wells' first full season competing in the multi events. Already a versatile athlete for the Orange and Blue, Wells used last year's outdoor season to begin training for the multi events. Wells gave a glimpse of what he is capable of last January when he competed in the heptathlon at the Rod McCravy meet, finishing in the top-two in five events, setting the second-best heptathlon score (5,442) in school history. After using last spring and the offseason to focus on his weaker events, Wells is poised to add another dynamic to Illinois' team.
