On the weekend that Ball State University track and field head coach Randy Heisler calls "the biggest weekend of the year" in college track and field, the Cardinals are headed to Indianapolis for the Stan Lyons Invitational.
About 50 teams have been invited to the meet on the IUPUI campus, and although not all are likely to show, Heisler said, he thinks the competition will be plentiful.
"They have a new staff at Butler, and they've already done more promotion for their meets than ever before," Heisler said. "I'm thinking it's going to be a pretty good-sized meet."
However, for Heisler and his team, the Outdoor Mid-American Conference Championships loom three weeks away and demand their attention. In the indoor conference meet earlier this year, the Cardinals won six of 16 events but finished fourth. Heisler said the team is in an identical situation for the outdoor conference meet, and Ball State's recent injury problems won't help.
"We've got a lot of girls hurt, and we're not a deep team when it comes to talent," Heisler said. "We may win six or seven events but not score another point."
For this reason, Heisler said the team's goal since the start of the outdoor season has been for the athletes that finished in ninth or 10th place in the indoor conference meet to step up into fifth- or sixth-place spots.
Two athletes who are in position to do so are Megan Bevans and Erin Filak, sophomore distance runner Ali Bishel said.
"Megan Bevans and Erin Filak have been having phenomenal workouts," Bishel said. "They're ready to drop some fast times and score points for us in the 800 [-meter run]."
As for the athletes who are at the top of the conference in their events, Heisler said, he thinks several have the potential to advance to national competition.
Amanda Barnhart has already qualified for the NCAA Regionals in the long jump, while Ali Bishel has qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 10,000-meter run. Heisler said he now wants Bishel to concentrate on reaching the qualifying standard in the 5,000-meter run, a decision that Bishel said she supports.
"I'd say I really like the 5,000 [-meter run]," Bishel said. "Each time I run it, it's a little different experience planning when to make my move and working on pacing."
After Saturday's meet, the Cardinals will travel to Butler University on May 3 for the Butler Open and to Indiana University on May 9 for the Billy Hayes Invitational. Then it's on to the Outdoor MAC Championships, held at Bowling Green State University on May 15-17.
When Ball State competes in the Outdoor MAC Championships in three weeks, Heisler said, he is hoping the Cardinals can break into the top three spots. Bishel said she would like to see a similar finish.
"I'd be happy with a top-three finish," Bishel said. "Our numbers are a little short because of injuries, but if we can get people in their events, we can dominate some events. I think with the strong, talented individuals we have, we can make a big impact."
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