Sickness plagued the Ball State University track and field team this weekend at the 21st-annual Meyo Invitational, held at the University of Notre Dame.
Head coach Randy Heisler said he couldn't believe how many of his athletes were either unable to participate or visibly hindered by poor health.
"We initially entered 25 or 26 people [in the meet], but we were going to only take 23," Heisler said. "A few of those didn't get on the bus and a few that did were sick.
"Never in my whole career have I had a situation like this."
The highlight for Ball State came in the long jump, in which the Cardinals placed three athletes in the top 20. Thekla Lorenz took ninth place with a distance of 5.87 meters, Amanda Barhnart 15th with 5.68 meters and Terri Abraham 19th with 5.61 meters.
"It's one of our stronger events," Abraham said of the long jump. "Going into the conference meet, having three people place high is a good thing."
Abraham also finished 13th in the triple jump with a distance of 11.61 meters.
"In the triple jump I had improvement, but there's still a lot of work to go," Abraham said.
However, Heisler said he wasn't concerned with Abraham's progress.
"Terri's just coming back from a devastating injury a year and a half ago," Heisler said. "A lot of people never thought she'd compete again. When we get to the conference meet, kids like that are going to show up."
Other top Cardinal performers in the field events included Lauren McNichols in the pole vault and Cara Collins in the weight throw. McNichols cleared 3.55 meters for 19th place, while Collins finished 12th with a toss of 16.52 meters.
The 5,000-meter run was the lone track event that featured a Ball State athlete in the top 20. Ali Bishel took 11th and Laura Bandy 18th with times of 17:28.81 and 17:44.89.
Heisler said Bishel was running at a national-leading pace to keep up with the University of Michigan's Alyson Kohlmeier, who won the event, but ran out of gas.
Between sickness and injuries, the Cardinals would benefit most from a week off, Heisler said.
"I'm seriously contemplating not competing this weekend," Heisler said, referring to the Feb. 15 Hoosier Hills meet in Bloomington. "It might be better to take a week off to recover."
In that case, Heisler said, the Cardinals would be fully rested when they host the Ball State University Quadrangular on Feb. 22.
Long JumpThree Cardinals placed in the top 20. Below are the results.
- Thekla Lorenz 9th place with 5.87 meters
- Amanda Barhnart 15th with 5.68 meters
- Terri Abraham 19th with 5.61 meters
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