University of Illinois
Mt. SAC Relays / Bryan Clay
Illini Track Heads to Golden State for Trio of Meets
April 19, 2018 | Women's Track & Field, Men's Track & Field
Illini set for three days at Mt. SAC, Bryan Clay and Beach Invites
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois track and field head out west for its penultimate regular season meets, splitting the weekend between the Mt. SAC Relays, Bryan Clay Invite and Beach Invite. The weekend begins Thursday evening at Mt. SAC and Bryan Clay, while the Beach Invite begins on Friday.
| Mt. SAC Relays // Bryan Clay Invite // Beach Invite | |
|---|---|
| When | Thursday, April 19 - Saturday, April 21 |
| Where | Torrance, Calif. (Mt. SAC) // Azusa, Calif. (Bryan Clay) // Long Beach, Calif. (Beach) |
| Mt. SAC Relays Information | Schedule | Meet Central | Live Results |
| Bryan Clay Information | Schedule | Live Results | FloTrack Stream ($) |
| Beach Invite Information | Schedule | Live Results | FloTrack Stream ($) |
| Men's Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Women's Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media |
@IlliniMTrack @IlliniWTrack |
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Meet Information
Watch Live on FloTrack
Both the Bryan Clay and Beach Invites will be available to stream on FloTrack with a paid subscription. Links to each individual stream can be found on the meet preview story on FIGHTINGILLINI.COM and through meet-day tweets from both Illini social media accounts.
Follow The Meets
Live results will be available for all three meets, and can be found by going to FIGHTINGILLINI.com. Additionally, fans and media can follow @IlliniMTrack and @IlliniWTrack on Twitter for updates throughout the meet. A full recap will be posted on FIGHTINGILLINI.com following the completion of the meet.
Illini to Watch
4x100m Relay // Jason Shannon, Cole Henderson, Joe Haight, Devin Quinn
A unit that has timed 40.00 seconds or better in all four races this season, the Illini sprint relay set its fastest time of the year at the Illinois Twilight last week. With Shannon leading off for the second straight week, Henderson and Haight carried the stick around to Quinn who finished off the home win with a time of 39.74. Competing at the prestigious Mt. SAC Relays this week and Drake Relays the next week, the Illini will look to refine their handoffs and lower their time as the competition level increases.
David Kendziera // 110m and 400m Hurdles
Undefeated on the season, the No. 3 hurdler currently in NCAA Division I will get to compete against high-level competition at Mt. SAC. Entered in the elite section of both events, Kendziera will compete against a few top-flight collegiate competitors, as well as a few professionals who are also entered. The Big Ten leader in both events carries season-best times of 13.46 and 49.92 into the weekend.
Nicole Choquette // 800m
After running 2:07.84 at the Illinois Twilight last week, a two-second time drop from her debut at Ole Miss, the Illini graduate student is entered into the elite section of the Mt. SAC 800m races. Competing in section one, the Big Ten indoor bronze medalist in the event will be joined by collegians Alethia Marrero (Arizona State) and Rachael Walters (Grand Valley) and professional Dalanne Zanotelli.
Devin Quinn // 100m and 200m
Breaking the Illinois Track Stadium facility record in the 100m for the second straight year in a row, the Punta Gorda, Florida junior owns top-10 times nationally in both the 100m (10.11) and 200m (20.45), leading the Big Ten in the former. Proving the time drop is no fluke, Quinn has ran 10.21 or better in the 100m three times already this season. Quinn will race at Mt. SAC in both of the elite sections of the sprint events.
Chisom Nwoko // 400m
Owning the fifth-fastest time in school history, Nwoko timed 53.11 at the Jim Click Shootout back on April 7, which improved upon her previous personal record from a week prior (53.59) at Ole Miss. Entered in the first of two elite sections, Nwoko will race against seven athletes from the Pac-12 including four from Oregon.
Up Next
The Fighting Illini will conclude the 2018 regular season next week at the annual Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. The Illini have won the Hy-Vee Cup in four of the past five seasons. Big Ten Championships will be held two weeks later in Bloomington, Indiana, May 11-13.
Illini Notes
Last Time Out
The Illini won 16 events in their final home meet of the year, as the men won 10 titles and the women took top honors in six. Devin Quinn highlighted the list of winners, breaking his own Illinois Track & Field Stadium facility record with a time of 10.11 which ranks third in Illinois history. On the women's side, Sara McKeeman cleared 13'5.75" (4.11m) to set a new PR in the pole vault and Briana Driver marked six meters in the long jump (19'9" // 6.02m).
23 Illini Performances Rank Among West Top-50
The Fighting Illini currently have 23 performances, 20 individuals and three relays that would currently qualify for NCAA West Prelims in Sacramento, California. Led by hurdler David Kendziera's West-leading hurdle times, the Illini have seven performances that rank in the top-10 in the region: Kendziera (110H, 400H), Devin Quinn (100m, 200m), Chisom Nwoko (400m) and Jonathan Wells (110H, High Jump).
Illini Win Big Ten Track honor of the Week for Third Straight Week
For the third straight week the Big Ten conference has named an Illinois athlete Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week, as junior Devin Quinn was honored for the second time in three weeks by the conference office on Wednesday. Quinn earned the honor by breaking his own Illinois Track Stadium facility record 100m dash at the Illinois Twilight meet last Saturday.
Combined with David Kendziera's honor a week ago, the Illini become the first school to win the Big Ten weekly track award outright in three consecutive weeks since 2007 when the conference began honoring both a track athlete and a field athlete each week.
Lightning Quick
Illinois junior sprinter Devin Quinn continues to put his name in the national conversation, as well as among the Big Ten's best, in the 100m and 200m open events while also anchoring the Illini's 4x100m relay squad. Looking to advance to his first NCAA Finals in Eugene, Oregon this season, Quinn ranks fifth nationally in the 100m (10.20) and sixth in the 200m. Leading the Big Ten in the 100m and ranking second in the 200m, Quinn's times also rank among the best in Illinois history with the 100m time ranking third and 200m second.
Double Threat: Kendziera Once Again Atop Both Hurdle Events
Named a preseason All-American in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles after earning First Team All-America honors at NCAA Championships last season, the Orange and Blue redshirt senior has staked claim to both the third-fastest 110m hurdle time (13.46) and third-fastest 400m hurdle time (49.92) in NCAA Division I this season and is undefeated in his seven races to date. Both leading the Big Ten conference, Kendziera is looking to win his second intermediate hurdle conference title and his first in the high hurdles.
All Is Well(s): All-American Showing Versatility
A four-time All-American between the high jump and heptathlon, the Illini redshirt junior is again showing how versatile he is as he sits in the top-three in the Big Ten conference in three events after a 28-point output at the Jim Click Shootout on April 7. Primarily a jumper, Wells sits second in the conference with a leap of 24'11.75" (7.61m) and tied for third with a high jump of 7'0.5" (2.15m). The fourth-year junior's biggest breakthrough this spring though has come in the hurdles, returning to the event for the first time in two seasons. Entering the season with a personal best of 14.51, Wells has dropped the time each time out, currently ranking third in the conference with a time of 13.97. Nationally, Wells ranks in the top-30 in each of the three events.
Not Your Average Joe
A walk-on to Coach Turk's program in the Spring of 2016, Joe Haight has taken the opportunity and ran with it, literally. Now a junior, Haight scored at Big Ten Championships for the first time in his career during this year's indoor season with big personal best times in the 400m. The Lake Forest, Illinois native bridged the success to the outdoor track with his first sub-21 second 200m race at Southern Illinois on March 24, clocking 20.95, and has subsequently dropped his 400-meter PR down to 46.85 which ranks third in the Big Ten to date.
Chisom Nwoko Breaks Out
Setting the second fastest 400m indoor race in Illinois program history at Big Ten Indoor Championships, Nwoko etched her name into the outdoor all-time list in her season debut at Ole Miss with a time of 53.59. A week later, Nwoko dropped .48 seconds off that time in a loaded Jim Click 400m race, timing 53.11 to move into fifth place on Illinois' all-time
For complete coverage of Fighting Illini Track and Field, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniMTrack and @IlliniWTrack) and Instagram (@IlliniMTrack and @IlliniWTrack) and like Fighting Illini Men's Track and Field and Fighting Illini Women's Track on Facebook.
