Friday, May 14
Champaign, Ill.
All Day
Michigan State University
at
Big Ten Outdoor Championships
Spartan Women Tied for First After Day One Of B1G Track & Field Championships
5/15/2021 12:12:00 AM | Track and Field
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - After the first day of the Big Ten Track & Field Championships, the Michigan State women's team stands tied for first with Minnesota with 19 points at Demirjian Park in Champaign, Illinois. The Spartans had two athletes with two top three finishes to guide the squad.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic this is the first Big Ten Championship since 2019.Â
"I thought that the people that came in with an intention to compete and solve their problems and compete did really well. I thought that Wade Walder is trying to work through some stuff which can happen at this time of year in the multis. Everyone time he goes to compete, even if he isn't feeling his best, he does his best, so I was pleased with is intention. That was a great way to start things off for the men," Interim Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Lisa Breznau said. "And then Rebecca (Mammel) on the women's side surpassed her seed and had a couple PRs in one session was phenomenal."
Field Events
Rebecca Mammel continued her stellar 2021 campaign with a third-place finish in the women's hammer throw in the first event for the women's team. She topped her previous career-best of 62.20m three times during the course of the event. She easily qualified for the final on her second attempt with a heave of 63.20m. Mammel solidified her third-place finish on her fifth attempt with a throw of 63.63m. She was the runner-up in the weight throw at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in February.
Trevor Stephenson set a new personal best to take fourth in the pole vault. On his final attempt, he cleared 5.32m. Three times during the competition, he needed all three attempts to advance to the next height. In 2019 as a freshman, Stephenson finished eighth in the pole vault. The fourth-place finish was the best for a Spartan since MSU legend Tim Ehrhardt won the title in 2018.
"Coach (Ceith) Creekmur said 'Trevor's trying to give me a heart attack' When you have that kind of series, it is a good sign that Trevor is starting to mature because you have to stay calm in those moments, Â and he did a good job," Breznau said.
Track Events
Michigan State finished second and fourth in the women's 10,000m. India Johnson finished second with a personal-best time of 33:36.00. She finished ninth in the 10,000m in the 2019 championship. Gram crossed the line in 33:37.92 to capture fourth place, which was also a PR. The finishes for both Johnson and Gram were their best-ever in a Big Ten Championship.
"They were the true veterans in the field. They managed the stress really well. Both really competed really well, and there is more there and that is really exciting moving forward into the next couple few weeks of the season," Breznau added.Â
With a PR time of 3:43.39, John Petruno finished second in his heat to advance to Sunday's 1500m final. Petruno qualified fourth with Illinois' Jonathan Davis qualifying first with a time of 3:42.29. He topped his previous high of 3:43.94 at the Big Ten Indiana Invite #4.
"John Petruno did a nice job of taking care of business like a veteran. Sarah (Anderson) also did a very nice job reaching the final in the 1500m. Shakira (Dancy) competed really well in the 200m," Breznau said. "A lot of our athletes that maybe didn't make it through the prelims either had PRs or just competed really well."
Shakira Dancy was the first Spartan runner to reach the finals doing so in the women's 200m. With a personal-best time of 23.69, Dancy qualified on time fifth overall. Her previous best was 23.73 at the Indiana Big Ten Invite #4 on May 1.Â
Sarah Anderson reached the final of the women's 1500m by winning the second heat (4:26.07). Judith Rector did not advance to the final but did set a new PR with a time of 4:30.51. In her first 10,000m, Makenna Veen finished with a time of 4:32.75.
In the men's 10,000m, Joe Riordan was the top finisher, crossing the line in 30:05.59 to finish 17th.
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Joseph McCarthy set a new PR with a time of 21.47 in the prelims of the men's 200m to finish 21st to lead the Spartans. Jonathan Fife had a season-best time of 21.68, while Antonio Postell crossed the line in 21.69.
Decathlon
Halfway through the decathlon, Wade Walder stands ninth with 3,652 points. Out of the gate, Walder  earned 845 points in the 100m, finishing seventh. To end the first day of the decathlon, he gathered 810 points in the 400m (50.09), finishing seventh.
The Spartan men stand 11th with five points.
Saturday's action will begin with the decathlon 110m hurdles at 11:30 a.m. ET.
Â
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic this is the first Big Ten Championship since 2019.Â
"I thought that the people that came in with an intention to compete and solve their problems and compete did really well. I thought that Wade Walder is trying to work through some stuff which can happen at this time of year in the multis. Everyone time he goes to compete, even if he isn't feeling his best, he does his best, so I was pleased with is intention. That was a great way to start things off for the men," Interim Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Lisa Breznau said. "And then Rebecca (Mammel) on the women's side surpassed her seed and had a couple PRs in one session was phenomenal."
Field Events
Rebecca Mammel continued her stellar 2021 campaign with a third-place finish in the women's hammer throw in the first event for the women's team. She topped her previous career-best of 62.20m three times during the course of the event. She easily qualified for the final on her second attempt with a heave of 63.20m. Mammel solidified her third-place finish on her fifth attempt with a throw of 63.63m. She was the runner-up in the weight throw at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in February.
Trevor Stephenson set a new personal best to take fourth in the pole vault. On his final attempt, he cleared 5.32m. Three times during the competition, he needed all three attempts to advance to the next height. In 2019 as a freshman, Stephenson finished eighth in the pole vault. The fourth-place finish was the best for a Spartan since MSU legend Tim Ehrhardt won the title in 2018.
"Coach (Ceith) Creekmur said 'Trevor's trying to give me a heart attack' When you have that kind of series, it is a good sign that Trevor is starting to mature because you have to stay calm in those moments, Â and he did a good job," Breznau said.
Track Events
Michigan State finished second and fourth in the women's 10,000m. India Johnson finished second with a personal-best time of 33:36.00. She finished ninth in the 10,000m in the 2019 championship. Gram crossed the line in 33:37.92 to capture fourth place, which was also a PR. The finishes for both Johnson and Gram were their best-ever in a Big Ten Championship.
"They were the true veterans in the field. They managed the stress really well. Both really competed really well, and there is more there and that is really exciting moving forward into the next couple few weeks of the season," Breznau added.Â
With a PR time of 3:43.39, John Petruno finished second in his heat to advance to Sunday's 1500m final. Petruno qualified fourth with Illinois' Jonathan Davis qualifying first with a time of 3:42.29. He topped his previous high of 3:43.94 at the Big Ten Indiana Invite #4.
"John Petruno did a nice job of taking care of business like a veteran. Sarah (Anderson) also did a very nice job reaching the final in the 1500m. Shakira (Dancy) competed really well in the 200m," Breznau said. "A lot of our athletes that maybe didn't make it through the prelims either had PRs or just competed really well."
Shakira Dancy was the first Spartan runner to reach the finals doing so in the women's 200m. With a personal-best time of 23.69, Dancy qualified on time fifth overall. Her previous best was 23.73 at the Indiana Big Ten Invite #4 on May 1.Â
Sarah Anderson reached the final of the women's 1500m by winning the second heat (4:26.07). Judith Rector did not advance to the final but did set a new PR with a time of 4:30.51. In her first 10,000m, Makenna Veen finished with a time of 4:32.75.
In the men's 10,000m, Joe Riordan was the top finisher, crossing the line in 30:05.59 to finish 17th.
Â
Joseph McCarthy set a new PR with a time of 21.47 in the prelims of the men's 200m to finish 21st to lead the Spartans. Jonathan Fife had a season-best time of 21.68, while Antonio Postell crossed the line in 21.69.
Decathlon
Halfway through the decathlon, Wade Walder stands ninth with 3,652 points. Out of the gate, Walder  earned 845 points in the 100m, finishing seventh. To end the first day of the decathlon, he gathered 810 points in the 400m (50.09), finishing seventh.
The Spartan men stand 11th with five points.
Saturday's action will begin with the decathlon 110m hurdles at 11:30 a.m. ET.
Â
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
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Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Sprints/Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Distance
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Distance
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Distance
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Jumps
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Distance
/ Track and Field
Combined Events
/ Track and FieldProcess Oriented | Spartans All-Access
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