Hoosiers run at 3 different locations

The coming weekend will find the IU track team dividing its athletes between three different meets. Several will head east to compete at perhaps the NCAA's most-famous competition -- the Penn Relays -- held at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Another set will go west to the equally-esteemed Drake Relays -- held at Iowa's Drake University. All other healthy athletes, except those who competed last weekend at Mt. SAC, Calif., will compete at Purdue.\n"We're going to run two sprint relays at Penn," IU coach Randy Heisler said. "We're also sending a few distance guys, two jumpers Kiwan Lawson and Aarik Wilson, and our throwers."\nOne of IU's top events of the weekend will be its 4x400-meter relay. Freshman All-American David Neville will be joined by junior Rodney Hollis, senior Ryan Sarbinoff and sophomore Andre Grimes on a squad set to take on several of the nation's top teams. Lawson will replace Hollis in the 4x200-meter relay.\n"If our guys show up like they can, and run fast in the prelim," IU sprinting coach Ed Beathea said, "We'll have a good shot of getting into the hot heat for the final."\nAmong the distance athletes competing at Penn is senior Nathan Gooden, who will run the 10,000-meters. Gooden returns to the site of his personal best, a 30 minute 24 second mark he achieved while finishing 11th at the 2003 Penn Relays. \n"It's an athlete's dream to run at Franklin Field," Gooden said. "My season's focus is the Big Ten 10K. Penn should be a good prep for that."\nAlso competing at Penn are IU's steeplechasers, freshman Marcus Aguilar, senior Matt Sweetman and junior Charlie Koeppen. \nThe IU throwing corps will also be in action at Penn. Junior Ryan Ketchum will compete in both the shot put, where he currently ranks 14th nationally, and the discus, where he currently ranks 49th, nationally. Senior Mike Minton will also compete in both events, while senior Wil Fleming will compete in the hammer throw -- where he ranks 51st, nationally. \nIU vaulting coach Phil Henson also serves as an official at the Drake Relays -- which offered IU the opportunity to send its pole vaulters to Drake. In addition to the vaulters, IU junior Jake Wiseman will compete in the Drake Relays decathlon in preparation for the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. \nIn other track news, Sean Jefferson was named this week's Big Ten Athlete of the Week.\n-- Contact staff writer Rob DeWitte at rdewitte@indiana.edu.