West Central Reporter

The Western Illinois track and field teams are traveling to Fargo, North Dakota, for the Summit League Outdoor Track and Field Championships scheduled from May 11 to 13, 2023. The Leathernecks will participate in 33 of the 42 events, an increase from last year's participation in 19 events.

Coach Trey Brokaw expressed optimism about the team's potential performance: "We are prepared and excited for the weekend ahead. It's no secret that this meet hasn't gone well for us in recent history. I believe we have the potential for one of our highest team finishes in the past decade though." He acknowledged the challenge posed by limited team size due to conference restrictions on travel squads, which allow only 34 individuals per gender. "With less opportunities to score points, it will be impossible to compete with the best programs in the conference who have a full team for the title," Brokaw said.

Despite these challenges, Western Illinois is ranked among the top-12 in 29 events. Coach Brokaw emphasized that converting these rankings into top-8 positions is crucial: "Like a good basketball or football team, we have a few stars who will be expected to lead the team like they've done all year... If individuals ranked 9-12 can find a way to place top-8 and score a few points, that will be huge for the team's success."

Brokaw reflected on past performances as well: "During the indoor championships, we had quite a few men able to do that and we finished fifth as a team. Our women couldn't consistently find their way into the top-8 and that hurt our team score a lot." However, he noted improvements this season: "Both programs are in a better position this outdoor season and it should be fun to watch how they do this weekend in Fargo."

Student-athletes competing include Lucas Burmeister, Temira Goods, Alexis Ellison (100 meters), Zion Caruthers (200 meters), Richard Brown (800 meters), Logan Lommel (1500 meters), Zachary Taylor (110 meter hurdles), Alessandro Belluz (long jump), Alesandro Belluz (high jump), Arnie Grunert (pole vault), Shardenai Davis (javelin throw) among others.