Panther track & field earns four titles at Fighting Illini Challenge

Saturday, April 8

Champaign, Ill.

11 a.m.

University of Northern Iowa

Fighting Illini Challenge

Panther track & field earns four titles at Fighting Illini Challenge

4/8/2023 9:25:00 PM | Track and Field

Final Results Photo Gallery

Trousil, Knoche, Hoins and Fare top the podium in UNI's second outdoor meet of the season.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — UNI track and field found its way to the top of the podium in 4 events on Saturday afternoon as the Panthers competed at the Fighting Illini Challenge at Illinois's Demirjian Park.

For a second straight week, redshirt senior sprinter Isaiah Trousil picked up a first place finish, taking top honors in the men's 200-meter dash with a winning time of 20.92 seconds. The reigning Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Male Track Athlete of the Week won the 100-meters at the Texas Relays last weekend.

UNI also placed 3 other Panthers inside the top-10 in the 200-meters, with Deonte Dean taking third with a career-best time (21.22), Tinashe Chigudu in fifth (21.61) and Zack Butcher in ninth with a career-best performance (21.85). Libby Wedewer would also finish in seventh place in the women's 200-meter dash (24.87).

A pair of Panthers earned the first win of their collegiate careers as sophomore Chase Knoche won the men's 800-meters with a career-best time of 1:50.92. Distance runner Emma Hoins also snagged her first career victory in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase, notching the second fastest time in program history with a 10:34.86.Hoins' teammate, Mia Rampton, followed behind in fourth place (11:18.60). Brady Griebel placed sixth in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase in a time of 9:55.09, while Kate Crawford took seventh in the women's 5,000-meters (17:29.57).

Thrower Katie Fare continued her dominance in the circle by clinching the women's shot put with a career-best toss of 16.58 meters. Makenna Wilson clinched second place for UNI (15.55 meters), while Sarah Byrd took home fifth (14.30 meters). Carson Lienau finished in eight place in the men's shot put (15.42m).

In the early 4x100-meter relay, the Panther women's team of Caroline Benfeldt Soerensen, Barett, Sanda and Olivia Hubler crossed the finish line in third place with a time of 46.81.

In the hurdles, Jack Sumners led the way for UNI, clocking a time of 14.20 seconds to finish in third place in the men's 110-meter hurdles. Drew Bartels finished in eighth for the Panthers (14.88).

Darci Wiseman placed fourth in the women's 400-meter hurdles with a mark of 1:03.68, with Anna Winterrowd recording a career-best (1:03.86) to finish in sixth. Bill Mukhtar led the Panther men's in the 400 hurdles with a time of 55.37 to take seventh place.

Onal Mitchell secured an outdoor career-best mark in the men's 400-meter dash, clocking in at 48.25 seconds. River Patterson would take seventh place (49.31). On the women's side, Erin Kerkhoff took seventh place in the women's 400-meters, clocking a 56.86.

Three Panthers cracked the top-10 in the women's 100-meter dash, led by a seventh place finish by Rylan Santi in a new career-best time of 11.83, marking the sixth fastest mark in school history in the event. Libby Wedewer (11.87) and Madelyn Sanda (11.92) finished in eighth and ninth places respectively. Chigudu led the UNI men's in the 100-meters with a time of 10.48 to take third place.

Competing in the javelin throw for just the second time in her young career, Katy Stephens set a new personal-best in the event with a toss of 39.81 meters to finish in third place. Allison Flanscha took home fourth in the women's discus (40.43 meters), while Sebastian Swistak took sixth place in the men's discus (47.73)

In the hammer throw, Wilson led the Panther women as only one of two competitors in the field to throw over 60 meters with a toss of 61.80 meters to take second place. Mari Shavers finished in fourth (56.97 meters), while Jacob Baier threw a career-best 56.63 meters to finish in fifth place in the men's hammer.

Drew Bartels posted a jump of 6.53 meters in the men's long jump to finish in eighth place, while a pair of Panthers cracked the top-eight in the pole vault in Brendan Safley and Alivia Silvestri. Safely took home fourth place with a vault of 4.45 meters, with Silvestri finishing in eighth (3.51 meters).

In the women's high jump, Stephens and Rylie Todd both tied for fifth place after clearing the 1.60 meter mark. Two Panthers tied their jump in the women's high jump, Stephens and Rylie Todd and both landed in fifth place for UNI jumping 1.60 meters (5-03).

Mitchell, Andrew Feguson, Micaiah Ellis and Butcher closed the meet out with a second place in the men's 4x400-meter relay with a time of 3:16.01, while the women's team of Emily Vos, Auriona Kimbrough, Kerkhoff and Wedewer took seventh in the women's 4x400-meter relay (3:16.01).

UP NEXT
The Panthers return to action next Friday, April 14 at the Jim Duncan Invite at Drake Stadium in Des Moines.

OTHER NOTABLE UNI PERFORMANCES

Women's Javelin Throw: