Full Results | Photos
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illini women's track and field won the Illinois Twilight behind five event titles, scoring a total of 127 points. Seymour led the team with two event titles, winning the 100m hurdles (13.14) and 200m dash (24.32), while Sade Hargrove (100m), Chisom Nwoko (400m) and Kandie Bloch-Jones (high jump) also won events.
"With the conditions today being blustery, I thought everyone warmed-up well and took care of their business today," said Head Coach Ron Garner. "The team took good leadership today. I think over the last few weeks we've seen improvements in multiple facets moving us forward to Drake [Relays] next week."
Seymour led an Illini sweep of the 100m hurdles on Saturday evening, as the Illini redshirt junior won the competition with a time of 13.14. Following Seymour to the finish line was sophomore Jayla Stewart in second place with a time of 13.47, while Kortni Smyers-Jones took third with a time of 13.88.
"This has been the trend so far and I hope they can continue to build on it, Garner said. "It'll be good for them going forward to get this experience with a tailwind in case they have that at Big Ten Championships next month."
Seymour returned later on Saturday evening to add a second event title, this time winning the 200m with a time of 24.32. The Nassau, Bahamas native needed every last second of her time to hold off teammate Sade Hargrove in the race, as the sophomore sprinter crossed the finish line in 24.33 to take second place. Stewart made it a sweep of the top three spots when she finished third with a time of 24.69.
Although Hargrove was edged at the line in the 200m, she was the first to finish in the 100m dash. Hargrove was the only contestant to finish in less than 12 seconds, clocking in at 11.93. Much like the 100m hurdles and 200m dash, the Illini made a sweep of the event with Briana Driver finishing second (12.01) and Janile Rogers taking third (12.12).
Illinois' fourth sprints event title came in the 400m when Chisom Nwoko clocked 56.85 in section four of competition to win the event.
Sophomore long jumper Briana Driver likely moved into the top-48 of the NCAA West rankings today, as the sophomore leaped 19'10.25" (6.05m) on her second attempt to place runner-up. Two weeks ago, Driver marked a personal-best 19'10.75" (6.06m) at the Houston Invite, but was unable to count it towards the NCAA list due to an illegal wind. The 19'10.25" jump today would have ranked 35th in the west region entering the weekend.
"I was very pleased with Briana Driver in the long jump," Garner said. "To come back and manage the runway the way she did was encouraging."
Illinois' lone field event title of the day came in the high jump where Kandie Bloch-Jones was victorious with a height of 5'8.5" (1.74m). The event title is the third of the outdoor season for the Illini All-American.
Although the relay was disqualified due to the third handoff taking place outside the legal zone, Coach Garner expressed pleasure with how the beginning of the race came together.
"We made some changes in the 4x100m relay today," said Garner. "For two exchanges we ran exceptional. Sade got a little excited and left early, but that's being in that situation. We wanted to see if she could handle that. Unfortunately it didn't work out today, but [Sade] responded and came back with strong efforts in the 100m and 200m races."
Event Titles:
Pedrya Seymour: 100m hurdles, 13.14
Sade Hargrove: 100m dash, 11.93
Chisom Nwoko: 400m dash: 56.85
Kandie Bloch-Jones: High Jump, 5'8.5" (1.74m)
Pedrya Seymour: 200m, 24.32
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