Cardinals set for final tune-up at WMU Jack Shaw Invitational

MUNCIE, Ind. –The Ball State track team wraps up its regular season portion of the 2022 schedule at the WMU Jack Shaw Invitational on Saturday. The event, hosted by Western Michigan, will be held on the same track as the Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championships (May 12-14).

The day begins in the field with the shot put at 10 a.m., while the track events start at 1 p.m. with the 3000 meter steeplechase and end with the 4×400 meter relay.

Representatives from Calvin College, Central Michigan, Grand Valley State, Kalamazoo College, Lake Superior State, Purdue Fort Wayne, Michigan State and Saint Leo University will join to the Cardinals and Broncos in competition.

Ball State is coming off a successful meeting at the Jesse Owens Invitational last weekend, which included several season-high marks in addition to a pair of performances that nearly broke school records.

Kayla Jones came within 0.14 of the Cardinals’ program record in the 800 meters with a time of 2:06.54. The mark represents the second-fastest outdoor time in the program’s record books.

The 4×400 meter relay team Alexis Thigpen, Karlie Zumbro, Payton Barlow and Jones took four seconds off their season-best mark and finished in the second-fastest time in program history with a time of 3:40.49.

Heading into the final meeting of the regular season, several Ball State athletes are in the top five in the MAC heading into the conference meeting.

Jones’ 800 time in last week’s meet sets the stage for the conference, while Charity Griffith holds first place in the MAC in the high jump (1.81m) and heptathlon (5,455 points). Additionally, the aforementioned 4×400 meter team of Thigpen, Zumbro, Barlow and Jones hold the fastest time at 3:40.49.

Zumbro is second in the 400-meter hurdles (1:00.11) and the heptathlon (5,205 points). Thigpen is third in the 400 meters at 54.95, while the 4×100 meters relay team of Kennedy bats, Jenna Oriani, Aaleiah Winford and michelle lehman are also third with a time of 46.12.

Batts is fourth in the 100-meter hurdles at 13.86, while Barlow (55.18) and Griffith (5.96m) are fifth in the 400-meter and long jump, respectively.

Just outside the top five are Oriani in the 200 meters (24.37), Batts in the 400 meters hurdles (1:01.90) and Jenelle Rogers in the heptathlon (4,720 points) – all of which are sixth among league competitions.