April 7, 2006
Track and Field
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SYCAMORES STRONG HEADING INTO FINAL DAY OF BIG BLUE CLASSIC

CHARLESTON, Ill. – Indiana State track and field completed day two of the Big Blue Classic Friday night on the campus of Eastern Illinois University. ISU’s men shined during the second day of competition placing first in all but three events. The women got off to a slow start and didn’t do as well as they would have hope after the first several events.

“This was a poor first day,” women’s head coach John Gartland said. “I was hoping to duplicate the results we had last week, but we just got off to a poor start. I hope we can come back tomorrow and be more competitive.”

Myra Bess was a highlight for the women on the track, placing first in the 400-meter hurdles with a near personal best time.

The men recorded first-place marks in five of eight events during the day and came in runner-up in two others.

Senior Jason Carruthers began the day with a first-place throw in the men’s hammer throw with a distance of 201’2”. The 4 x 800 relay team, made up of Brad Ada, Sean Bowman, Justin Pyle and Jake Hack finished in one of the best times in ISU history with a time of 7:38.93 and second place.

Kyle Walsh would pick up the next Sycamore win with a 9:23.12 time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. The first-place finish marked the third time in as many weeks that a different ISU runner has taken first in the event. Teammate Justin Kunz was close behind in third-place with a time of 9:38.67.

“This was a very good day and our guys had to control the races and did a good job in running some tough races,” men’s head coach John McNichols said. “Our distance guys did a nice job and this kind of depth is really exciting for our team.”

Paladin Jordan, Jeremy Kunz and Jordan Fife rounded out the top finishers for Indiana State with first-place finishes in the 400-meter hurdles, 10,000-meter run and 5,000-meter run. Jordan crossed the line in the hurdles with a season-best time of 53.66. Kunz also set a new season-best time for the Sycamores with his 32:45.91 first-place time in the 10k. Fife finished the day for ISU with a first-place finish in the 5k with a time of 14:55.41.

Terre Haute South grad Anthony Bertoli competed in the decathlon for the first time as a Sycamore and finished in second place after scoring 6,299 points.

Competition will conclude tomorrow with events beginning at 10:00 a.m. and stretching into the evening with the final event, the 4 x 400-meter relay, starting at 5:20 p.m.