For some schools, the Butler Twilight on Saturday will come after their respective conference championships. However, the meet will serve as a tune-up for the Ball State men's track team as it nears the Mid-American Conference championships.
"(The athletes) understand that as we get near MAC we need to start hitting marks, while in some areas we just need to stay consistent," head coach Jermaine Jones said. "You set up for a big day by having several consistent days ahead of that."
With more than 25 schools competing in the nonscored meet, the competition could be a step up from what the team saw at Purdue University last week.
"We're not going to see a drop in competition, but we're focusing right now in getting our marks better to set ourselves up for the MAC," Jones said. "I'm not too concerned with the other competition as opposed to Ball State doing what we're supposed to do."
The Cardinals sent a split-squad last week to the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, and the Big Ten Preview Invite at Purdue.
Senior Paul Panning placed fourth in the pole vault at Drake, marking the fifth consecutive time he has notched an NCAA regional qualifying mark. He was named the MAC men's track athlete of the week for his performance.
Also at Drake, the 4x200 relay team had a season-best time of 1:27.57; the sprint medley relay team also put up a season-best time of 3:36.15.
The javelin thrived once again as they took first, second and fourth at Purdue. Senior Andrew Miller won the event, followed by juniors Tom Green and Ed Beven, respectively.
Several members of the team will not be traveling to Indiana University for the Billy Hayes Invitational, which takes place May 7 and marks the team's final regular season meet.
Those same athletes who do not travel to Bloomington will also not compete in the MAC Championships, making the Butler Twilight the final track and field meet of their career as the program will no longer exist after this season due to budget cuts.
"I don't want to put any more pressure on this meet than what there already is so as long as they leave feeling like they've done the best they can possibly do then I'm happy with that," Jones said. "
The team will compete Saturday at the Michael A. Carroll Track and Field Stadium, located on the campus of IUPUI, for the Butler Twilight.
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