Following the second meet of the season, and the first away from the UI Armory, head track and field coach Mike Turk picked out his top performers from this past weekend's Mark Colligan Memorial meet. The seven honors are headlined by an outstanding sprint performance by Devin Quinn and a strong showing from Illinois' pole vault group.
Performance of the Meet: Devin Quinn
For the second meet of the season, the Illini junior sprinter looked in mid-season form, as Quinn clocked two of the top times in Big Ten so far this season. In the 60m dash, Quinn won the final with the third-fastest time in program history with a 6.69 finish that ranks second in the conference. The Punta Gorda, Florida product returned later in the afternoon and set a conference-leading time of 21.18 in the 200m to place runner-up. Nationally, the Illini sprinter ranks in the top-25 in both events.
Female Track Athlete of the Week: Rebecca Craddock
Two collegiate meets for the Illini true freshman, and two awards to recognize her performances. The Illini distance runner followed up a 800-meter victory two weeks ago at home with a runner-up finish in the 3,000-meter race against runners from Nebraska, Kansas and Houston. The 9:45.10 posted by Craddock beats her best 3K converted time from high school when she clocked 10:31.56 (9:48 converted) outdoors.
Male Track Athlete of the Week: Tony Zea
Tony Zea wins his first weekly honor of the 2018 season after running in both the 800m and 4x400m relay races for the Orange and Blue at Nebraska. In the 800m, Zea timed 1:53.27 to take third place. The senior middle distance runner returned at the end of the meet to run the second leg of Illinois' relay that timed 3:16.21.
Female Field Athlete of the Week: Sara McKeeman
Competing against a pair of Kansas vaulters that entered the meet ranked 11th and 12th in the nation, McKeeman took a strong third place this past Saturday. The redshirt junior surpassed 13 feet for the first time this season, clearing 13'0.75" (3.98m) on her first attempt. This is McKeeman's second Field Athlete of the Week honor of the season after earning the accolade last week after winning the Illinois Open competition.
Male Field Athlete of the Week: Cooper Jazo
With Illinois pole vaulters sweeping the Field Athlete of the Week honors, Jazo, like McKeeman, placed third among stiff competition at Nebraska. Jazo cleared 16'2" (4.93m) for the first time in his career, doing so on his first attempt to finish as the top Illini in the field.
Female Rookie Athlete of the Week: Maya Seay
Illinois female rookie honors go to Illini sprinter and hurdler Maya Seay after making significant improvements in her 60m hurdles time. Qualifying for her first collegiate hurdles final, Seay clocked 8.84 in prelims to advance and followed it up with a 8.81 performance in the final to place fifth.
Male Rookie Athlete of the Week: Curtis Gordon
Making it three vaulters honored for their efforts in Nebraska, Curtis Gordon earns the first weekly honor of his career after improving off of his first collegiate meet at the Illinois Open. Following a 15'5.75" (4.72m) debut in the vault at home on January 13, Gordon added two-and-a-half more inches in Lincoln as the freshman cleared 15'8.25" (4.78m). The performance was second to Jazo on the team, placing sixth overall.
