Sherrill breaks school record at Penn Relays

The Penn Relays have been an annual competition since 1895.  
The IU track and field teams continued the tradition, as they traveled to Philadelphia on Thursday to participate in the oldest and largest competition in the United States
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On the first day of competition, Hoosier names began to light up the scoreboard.

Senior Faith Sherrill broke the IU shot put record, as she sprung to the top of the leaderboard with a throw of 17.64 meters. Junior Monique Riddick had a solid performance and finished fifth with a throw of 15.79 meters.

“I was very excited and pleased with my effort,” Sherrill said. “I knew the atmosphere would be different with a lot of people watching, but I handled my nerves and set a school record.”

Sophomore Emma Kimoto won the women’s collegiate high jump with the sixth best jump in IU history. Her feat of 1.75 meters matches her career best.

Sophomore Kelsie Ahbe and senior Vera Neuenswander are now at the top of the Big Ten after going 1-2 in the championship section of the women’s pole vault. Ahbe posted a career-best jump while moving into second place all-time at the Penn Relays.

Her clearance of 4.25 meters is now tied for second all-time at IU as well.

On Friday, the Hoosiers’ distance medley relay landed a solid performance, finishing fourth in the Championship of America race. Junior De’Sean Turner finished his leg of 1,200 meters in 2:56.53 while sophomore Chris Vaughn finished his 400-meter leg in 47.46. However, IU still crossed the finish line 1.31 seconds behind race winner Villanova. The Hoosiers’ time, though, is the eighth-fastest in the IU record books.

“We did not get the victory, but we fought hard,” Turner said. “I was happy with my performance, and I thought we finished well.”

For Andy Weatherford, Turner, Andrew Poore and Ben Hubers, the 4xMile Championship of America relay was the last opportunity to leave their mark on Philadelphia. They finished in 16:22.02 to take third place, good for fifth place all-time at IU.

Heading into the Big Ten Outdoor Championship meet May 13, Turner said he is confident with the Hoosiers’ performance thus far.

“We are definitely on the map even without (Andy) Bayer,” Turner said. “I know we are on teams’ radar heading into Big Tens.”

IU also advanced to the Championship of America in the 4x100 meter and 4x200 meter relays. The Hoosiers finished fifth and sixth, respectively, in the events.

“Everybody did great (this weekend),” Sherrill said. “Everyone was either close to or hit their (personal record). It was a great weekend for IU.”

The Hoosiers return to the Haugh Track and Field Complex to sponsor the final regular season meet this coming weekend. IU will sponsor the Billy Hayes Invitational before traveling to Iowa City, Iowa, for the Big Ten Championships.