The Hoosiers are fresh off capturing the 2017 Men’s Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championship and have now shifted their focus to the outdoor season that awaits. The team will travel to Tempe, Arizona, this weekend to compete in the Big Ten vs. Pac-12 Invitational.
Arizona State University will be host to the two-day meet that will include multiple top teams from both conferences. Joining ASU on the Pac-12 side will be Arizona, Cal and UCLA. IU will represent the Big Ten along with Michigan, Nebraska and Penn State.
IU Coach Ron Helmer said the talent on opposing teams at this meet is one of the many reasons he brought his team out west.
“We’re not going to Arizona State just because it’s a nice trip,” Helmer said. “We’re going because the weather is nice, the track is fast, the competition will be tough, and we’ll have plenty of chances to put some really good marks on the board.”
Helmer said the team is fit and ready to roll after taking an extra week off after the NCAA Championships.
“There were teams that lined up last week, and we didn’t,” Helmer said. “This is going to be a month since our athletes whose season ended at the Big Ten meet will have a chance to compete.”
The Hoosiers will take 23 athletes this weekend, but a few key names will not travel. Seniors Jason Crist, Matt Schwartzer and Jeremy Coughler, as well as sophomore Bryce Millar and Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year Kyle Mau will stay in Bloomington.
Despite missing several distance runners, Helmer said he is still confident in the group competing this weekend and is hoping this trip will kick some other athletes into gear.
“Almost everybody that is traveling is ready to compete,” Helmer said, “Our team is getting through a couple of injuries. We have some guys who are good enough but have been dinged up.”
Junior Kyle DuVall is a name Helmer mentioned as someone who could play a role in contributing this outdoor season after missing a good portion of indoors. Helmer said DuVall is ready to go after running a 4:01 mile last year.
Helmer said he feels optimistic about the outdoor season especially after ending indoors on a high note by winning the conference title.
“We don’t want to give up that end-of-season sharpness we had,” Helmer said. “Other teams are going to come after us now.”
Although events change between the two seasons, Helmer said he still likes his team’s chances if they can continue to improve. Winning at the conference meet showed Helmer that his team should have just as good of a shot to win at outdoors, too, he said.
Transitioning to an outdoor track means some races will be dropped and others will be added. Events such as the 10,000-meter run and the steeple chase will be in play, while the 600-meter and distance medley relay will not be.
Helmer pointed out that his squad is much better in the DMR than it is in the 4x100-meter, which will be added this season. He also said the team benefited from some of the new events like the discus throw but they will have to work on others, specifically the javelin.
“It’s going to be different competing outdoors, but we want to be able to put ourselves in position to be around on the last day challenging for a win,” Helmer said.
