CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Manning Plater of Fighting Illini Track & Field will travel to Fayetteville, Ark. this weekend to participate in the 2021 NCAA Indoor Track Championships in the weight throw. Action will span from Thursday, March 11 until Saturday, March 13 and the weight throw is set to take place at 6:30 p.m. CT on Thursday.
Follow the Action
Fans can follow live results throughout the NCAA Championships at https://dt8v5llb2dwhs.cloudfront.net/Indoor/2021/index.htm as well as by following @IlliniTrackXC on Twitter. Live championships coverage will be streamed on ESPN3. A re-air of the championships will take place starting at 8 p.m CT on Sunday, March 14 on ESPNU. A recap will be posted on fightingillini.com following the conclusion of Thursday's weight throw event.
Know The Field Â
16 athletes were invited to compete in the men's weight throw. Plater will be joined by Kaleb Siekmeier of Minnesota as representatives of the Big Ten. Plater placed first in the event at the Big Ten Championships and Siekmeier followed behind in second.
Plater enters the weekend in seventh place nationally in the event (22.40 m). The current NCAA leader is Thomas Mardal of Florida (24.16 m).
All-American Qualifications
The top eight performers at the Championships will be awarded USTFCCCA First Team All-American Honors, with the ninth through 16th place finishers earning Second Team Honors.
ILLINI TO WATCH
Manning Plater
Weight Throw: Thursday 6:30 p.m.Â
2021 Indoor Season: B1G Champion - Weight Throw...First Team All Big Ten...Named B1G Field Athlete of the Week (1/17-1/23)... Won the conference title in the weight throw with a 72'9" toss...In his first action as an Illini, won the weight throw at the Badger Icebreaker with a toss of 73'6", four inches short of the school record... Won the weight throw at the Husker Quad with a throw of 72'8"...Won the weight throw at the Hawkeye B1G Invitational with a throw of 70'10.5"...Currently sits in second place in Illinois history in the weight throw...Currently sits in first place in the Big Ten in the weight throw
2020 Outdoor Season: Canceled due to COVID-19
Plater is chasing the Illinois school record in the weight throw, currently sitting in second place with his throw of 73'6". Davis Fraker holds the best mark in the record book with a 73'10" in 2015.
Next Up
Following the NCAA Championships the entire Fighting Illini track and field team will begin their outdoor season. Schedule details for the outdoor season will be forthcoming and available on social media as well as fightingillini.com.
For complete coverage of Fighting Track & Field, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniTrackXC) and Instagram (illinitrackxc) and like Fighting Illini Track and Field & Cross Country on Facebook.
ILLINI NOTES
PLATER WINS BIG TEN TITLE
Manning Plater won the men's weight throw on Thursday with a throw of 72-9. This event win is the first for Illinois in the weight throw since the event was added to the Big Ten Championships in 1998. Plater will qualify for the 2021 NCAA Indoor Championships.
HOWELL WINS BIG TEN
Olivia Howell won the women's mile with a time of 4:43.36 for the Illini at the Indoor Big Ten Championships. She is the first female Illini Big Ten individual champion since 2015.
HOWELL'S DOMINANT MILE
Olivia Howell won the mile run at the Hawkeye B1G Invitational with a time of 4:40.85, entering her into first place in the conference in the event. This mark also places her into third place in school history in the event.
PLATER'S WIN STREAK CONTINUES
Manning Plater has now competed for the Illini in three meets, and won the weight throw in each of them (Badger Icebreaker Meet, Husker Quad, Hawkeye B1G Invitational). He currently sits in first place in the Big Ten, sixth in the nation, and second in the Illinois history books in the event.
CRADDOCK AND HOWELL DOMINATE FOLLOWING XC CHAMPIONSHIPS
One week after running in the Big Ten XC Championships, Rebecca Craddock and Olivia Howell each won their respective event at the Husker Quad. Craddock took first in the mile with a time of 4:43.86 while Howell won the 800 m with a time of 2:09.84
THORNTON ENTERS RECORD BOOKS
Sophomore Aman Thornton won the 600 m at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational with a personal best time of 1:18.06. This places him into ninth place in Illinois history in the event, passing Malcolm Taylor's time from 2013. He also ranks first in the Big Ten in this event.
MANNING PLATER NAMED B1G FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK (1/18)
Plater was named the Field Athlete of the Week the B1G Conference announced on Wednesday, Jan. 20. He was recognized for his performance in the Badger Icebreaker, moving him into second place in school history in the weight throw. This is Plater's first career Athlete of the Week Award, and the Illini's first of the Field variation since Davis Fraker in 2011. Jon Davis was the last to win a weekly B1G honor as a track athlete twice in 2019.
ILLINI ECSTATIC TO BE BACK IN ACTION
Head Coach Mike Turk said he felt as if his team "won the Olympics" after competing in the Badger Icebreaker Meet, the team's first competition in nearly eleven months following the postponements due to COVID-19. He also called the team's performance "inspiring", as they won eight events as well as added names to the Illinois all-time record book throughout the day.
HOWELL SETS SCHOOL RECORD IN WOMEN'S 1000M
In the Badger Icebreaker at Wisconsin on January 16, sophomore Olivia Howell ran a 2:46.52 in the Women's 1000 m, breaking the Illinois school record in the event. The previous best was 2:49.93, held by Laura Simmering set in 1989. Senior Mikeala Lucki also moved into fifth place all time in this event with a time of 2:51.17 in the same race.
PLATER IMPRESSES IN DEBUT
Michigan Graduate-Transfer Manning Plater had an impressive showing in his first action as an Illini, winning the weight throw at the Badger Icebreaker. His throw of 73'6" is a personal best and ranks second all time for the Illini, four inches behind Davis Fracker's 73'10" in 2015. Plater's throw would have won him the Indoor B1G Championship last year by nearly a foot. Brian Keyes also moved into 10th place in school history with his throw of 59'7 1/4". This throw ranks first in the Big Ten.
