University of Illinois
MT. SAC Relays
Men’s Track Heads West for Trio of California Meets
April 12, 2017 | Men's Track & Field
Illini compete Thursday through Saturday
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini men's track and field team head out west where they will compete at three meets over the course of three days in California. The Orange and Blue will begin at Mt. SAC Relays (Torrance, CA) on Thursday, April 13 and continue competition there through Saturday, April 15. In addition, the Illini will also compete at the Beach Invite (Long Beach, CA) and the Bryan Clay Invite (Azusa, CA) on Friday, April 14.
| Mt. SAC Relays | |
|---|---|
| When | Thursday, April 13 - Saturday, April 15 |
| Where | Murdock Stadium // Torrance, CA |
| Meet Information | Meet Central | Tickets | Entries | Schedule |
| Live Links | Results | Stream |
| Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media | @IlliniMTrack  | #Illini | @Illinimtrack  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
| Bryan Clay Invite | |
|---|---|
| When | Thursday, April 13 - Friday, April 14 |
| Where | Cougar Athletic Stadium // Azusa, CA |
| Meet Information | Schedule | Information | Entries |
| Live Links | FloTrack Live Stream | Results |
| Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media | @IlliniMTrack | #Illini | @Illinimtrack | Facebook | YouTube |
| Beach Invite | |
|---|---|
| When | Friday, April 14 - Saturday, April 15 |
| Where | Jack Rose Track // Long Beach, CA |
| Meet Information | Schedule | Meet Information | Entries | Results |
| Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media | @IlliniMTrack | #Illini | @Illinimtrack | Facebook | YouTube |
Illini Notes
Last Time Out
The Fighting Illini recorded nine event titles at the Redbird Invite on the campus of Illinois State University, five on the track and four in field events. Aaron Wilks had the big performance of the weekend with a 220'4.25" (67.17m) heave of the javelin to win the event and set the third best throw in Illinois history. On the track, Josh Eiker set the Big Ten-leading 200m time with a 20.45 performance.
Illini to Watch
Hurdles // David Kendziera
One of the best hurdlers in the country, David Kendziera currently ranks among the top-10 in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles. Undefeated in the 110m hurdles, Kendziera won the Texas Relays earlier this season with a 13.60 time that is the third best in Division I this season. Likewise, the Illini junior holds the eighth fastest mark in the intermediate hurdles, a 50.35 time that was also set at Texas Relays two weeks ago. For his career, Kendziera is a four-time All-American, including a fourth-place finish at 2017 NCAA Indoor Championships, and competed at Olympic trials last summer.
Throws // Aaron Wilks, Matsen Dziedzic and Mike Hyc
Coach Turk has his throwers banging on all cylinders midway through the outdoor season, as the group has had consecutive weeks with a 10-foot improvement on a personal-record. Two weeks ago, Matsen Dziedzic marked 195'0" (59.44m) in the hammer throw at Eastern Illinois to set a new personal-best and win the event. Not to be out done, senior Aaron Wilks followed the next week at Illinois State with a 220'4.25" (67.17m) throw that ranks third in Illinois history, and also won the competition. This comes on the heels of an indoor season that saw Michael Hyc breakout in the shot put and weight throw, finishing sixth in both events at Big Ten Championships.
4x100m Relay // Mo Maat, Josh Eiker, Devin Quinn, Joe Haight and Cole Henderson
After opening at 39.68 at the UNLV Invite back in March, the sprint relay group has held their time at, or around, 40 seconds during the outdoor season. Last weekend, the Illini tallied their third event title of the season with a win at Illinois State, while Haight and Henderson both set open 100m personal-records. Competing in the warmer California air this week, the Illini have an opportunity to set a new season-best performance in the event.
Pole Vault // Jacob LaRocca
Nothing short of consistent, the Illini redshirt freshman pole vaulter has continued to give the Orange and Blue quality performances each week in the event. After setting a personal-record (17'0.25") and scoring at his first career Big Ten Championships meet indoors, LaRocca has carried the success outdoors with three event victories in as many competitions. His best mark of the outdoor season came at Eastern Illinois on April 1 where he won with a height of 16'6.75" (5.05m).
Up Next
The Illini will host their annual outdoor meet, the Illinois Twilight, on Saturday, April 22 at the Illinois Track Stadium. The meet is tentatively scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. and admission is free.
Illinois Showing Strength in Throws
In back-to-back weeks the Illini have received big performances out of their throws group, with 10-foot personal best performance at the Big Blue Classic and Redbird Invite. Matsen Dziedzic started things last weekend in the hammer throw with a 195'0" (59.44m) throw on his final attempt to win the event. Aaron Wilks followed the performance a week later in the javelin with a 220'4.5" (67.17m) heave to win at Illinois State, while Dziedzic backed up his PR in the hammer throw with a 194'11.75" (59.43m) mark to win the event for the second straight week.
David Kendziera, Josh Eiker Lead Big Ten
Fighting Illini redshirt junior David Kendziera holds the fastest conference times in both the 110m hurdles (13.60) and 400m hurdles (50.35), while Josh Eiker owns the fastest 200m dash time (20.45) in the conference. In addition to the conference leaders, Devin Quinn (200m) and Jon Davis (1500m) hold the second best times in their events and the 4x100m relay team sits in third place. In total, the Illini have 14 performances in the top-10 of the Big Ten.
Three Illini Nationally Ranked in Top-25
After spending the first three weeks of the outdoor season holding the fastest 110m hurdles time in the country, David Kendziera currently ranks third in the country. Kendziera also ranks in the top-10 of the 400m hurdles, staking claim to the ninth fastest time in the nation with a 50.35 performance at the Texas Relays. The 4x100m relay ranks 22nd with a time of 39.68.
Kendziera Wins at Texas Relays, Dziedzic Impresses at EIU
David Kendziera clocked the second-fastest 110m hurdles time in NCAA Division thus far, a 13.60 showing in the final, to win the event at the 90th running of the Texas Relays. Kendziera edged USC's Marquis Morris at the line by 0.01 seconds to win the event, while also taking fourth in the 400m hurdles. Back in the state of Illinois, Matsen Dziedzic set a 10-foot personal-record heave in the hammer throw to win the event. The throw of 195'0" (59.44m) moves him into fourth place on Illinois' all-time list.
Kendziera Named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week
Fighting Illini hurdler David Kendziera was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week by the Big Ten office following the opening week of the outdoor season. The redshirt junior won both the 110m hurdles and the 400m hurdles at the UNLV Invite on March 18 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kendziera's time of 13.73 in the 110m hurdles leads NCAA Division I through the first week of the season.
Sprints and Hurdles Dominate at UNLV Invite
The Fighting Illini men's track and field team began outdoor competition with nine event titles at the UNLV Invite on March 18, including a sweep of the sprints and hurdles events. David Kendziera and Devin Quinn both contributed two event titles to lead the Illini and the 4x100m relay team clocked a sub-40 time in their season debut. The Illini placed first in the eight-team competition, scoring 174 points.
Kendziera, Wells Earn First Team All-America Honors at NCAA Championships
David Kendziera placed fourth in the 60m hurdles and Jonathan Wells broke his own Illinois school record in the heptathlon, as both Illini earned First Team All-America honors at 2017 NCAA Indoor Championships. It's Kendziera's fourth All-America honor, while Wells' takes home his third All-America accolade. The Illini placed 30th overall in the 62-team field.
USTFCCCA Tabs Illini 14th Best Program in the Country
The United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) ranked the Illinois men's cross country and track and field program best in the Big Ten and No. 14 overall through the end of the indoor season. The Illini placed 23rd at the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Championships and tied for 30th at last weekend's NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Jonathan Wells Wins High jump Big Ten Title
Illinois junior Jonathan Wells cleared five bars, including his final height of 7'1.5" (2.17m), to win the Big Ten indoor high jump title on Saturday afternoon at the Spire Institute. Wells defeated Indiana contestants Treyton Harris and Paul Galas after Wells cleared the final height on two attempts as opposed to Harris and Galas on three tries. Overall, the Illini recorded 51.5 points across 13 scoring performances and placed ninth in the team competition. 60m hurdler David Kendziera set the second fastest time in school history, 7.69, to place runner-up in the event.
Jonathan Wells Breaks Heptathlon School Record
After redshirting last spring to focus on the multievents, Jonathan Wells broke the Illinois heptathlon school record in his first competition of the season, and then did so again at NCAA Championships. The Illini junior, a redshirt sophomore for the 2017 outdoor season, scored 5,685 points to pass Steve Monte's 5,577 points scored four years ago in 2013. Already a two-time All-American in the high jump, Wells brings versatility to Coach Turk's squad.
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