Hawkeyes Off to Strong Start at B1G Championships

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — University of Iowa track and field sophomore Max Murphy finished second in the men’s 10,000 meters on day one of the Big Ten Championships.

Murphy made a move early in the race, going from 14th to 11th to seventh before breaking away in the top four and quickly moving into third. The Bettendorf, Iowa, native kept pace and crossed the finish in 29:18.05, earning eight points for the men.

“Really proud of Max Murphy,” Iowa distance and Associate Head Coach Randy Hasenbank said. “He has been on the verge of getting to the podium a couple of times. He is really talented and think a lot of people got to see that tonight. He is so dedicated to his sport and has put in a tremendous amount of work to get to this point. He deserves it, most of all, he earned it.”

Four field athletes also put points on the board, including senior Amanda Howe in the women’s hammer throw, freshman Mike Stein in the men’s javelin, freshman Lizzie Korczak in the women’s javelin, and freshman Sean Smith in the men’s hammer throw. In the hammer throw, Howe finished third (six points) with a 62.69-meter (205’ 5”) toss, and Smith threw 62.69 meters (205’ 8”) to mark his personal best, finish eighth (one point) overall, and rank sixth all-time at Iowa. On the javelin side, Stein finished fourth (five points) with a 70.23-meter (230’ 5”) throw, and Korczak posted the third-best mark in program history, finishing fifth (four points) with a 49.40-meter (162’ 1”) throw.

“I’m super proud of Sean Smith throwing a huge PR to make his first Big Ten final and score a very important point for his team,” Iowa Director of Track and Field Joey Woody said. “The men’s and women’s javelin went very well today with Lizzie (Korczak) finishing fifth and Mike (Stein) finishing fourth in their first Big Ten Championships. Amanda Howe had another great performance in the finals after some adversity during the preliminary throws. She put together a great throw to move her into the top three and medal.”

Junior heptathlete, Tionna Tobias kicked off day one in dominate fashion, leading the field with 3,507 points through four events. The Sicklerville, New Jersey, native posted three personal bests on Friday, including tying the second fastest 100-hurdle time in program history (13.20).

“We had a great first day starting with Tionna (Tobias)’s terrific day one in the heptathlon,” Woody said. “She is proving to be one of the most versatile athletes in the Big Ten, and I’m excited to see her build on her performances tomorrow.”

Seven Hawkeyes qualified for finals on Sunday, with junior Austin Kresley running the conference-fastest 200 meters of the day in 20.49, and the other six qualifying in the 400-meter hurdles. On the men’s side, Austin West saw the fastest time of the day, defending champion Julien Gillum won his heat with the third-fastest time of the day and Phillip Jefferson qualified with the eighth-best time, and on the women’s side, Mariel Bruxvoort, Paige Magee and Nylah Perry all ran in the same heat and ended up with the second, third and sixth fastest times, respectively, on the afternoon to qualify.

“I thought the men and women 400 hurdlers sent a statement today with three finalists on both sides,” Woody said. “They are in great position to score a lot of points in that event for their teams. Austin Kresley looked terrific tonight in the 200 meters and is in a great position heading into the 100-meter prelims tomorrow and building towards the finals on Sunday.”

“We have a lot of opportunities tomorrow to punch more tickets to the finals on Sunday,” Woody added. “We also have some important field events tomorrow that will help us keep this momentum going.”

The Hawkeyes begin day two of the Big Ten Championships on Saturday at 11 a.m. with the women’s heptathlon long jump.

HAWKEYE RESULTS:

Men’s 200 Meter Prelims
1. Austin Kresley – 20.49, finals qualifier
15. Connor Belken – 21.56

Women’s 200 Meter Prelims
11. LaSarah Hargrove – 23.70
12. Alexandria Edison – 23.74, PR
14. Lia Love – 23.82
21. Brynley McDermott – 24.45
25. Julia Pattison – 24.74

Men’s 400 Hurdles Prelims
1. Austin West – 50.45, finals qualifier
3. Julien Gillum – 50.95, finals qualifier
8. Phillip Jefferson – 51.92, finals qualifier
16. Nathan Farrell – 53.19

Women’s 400 Hurdles Prelims
2. Mariel Bruxvoort – 57.08, finals qualifier
3. Paige Magee – 57.17, finals qualifier
6. Nylah Perry – 59.37, finals qualifier
11. Ellie Rickertsen – 1:00.84, PR

Women’s 1,500 Meters
28. Amber Aesoph – 4:34.92
31. Emma Gordon – 4:39.20

Men’s 10,000 Meters
2. Max Murphy – 29:18.05
14. Will Ryan – 31:08.43
16. Konnor Sommer – 31:19.25

Women’s 10,000 Meters
15. Madeline Block – 36:45.30

Women’s Hammer Throw (6 points)
3. Amanda Howe – 62.69 meters (205’ 5”)
10. Alivia Bauer – 56.62 meters (185’ 9”), PR

Men’s Hammer (1 point)
8. Sean Smith – 62.69 meters (205’ 8”), PR, 6th all-time at Iowa

Men’s Javelin (5 points)
4. Mike Stein – 70.23 meters (230’ 5”)
14. Ryan Williams – 49.21 meters (161’ 5”)

Women’s Javelin (4 points)
5. Lizzie Korczak – 49.40 meters (162’ 1”), PR, 3rd all-time at Iowa

Women’s Heptathlon (thru four events)
1. Tionna Tobias – 3,507
1. 100 hurdles – 13.20, PR, ties 2nd all-time at Iowa
2. High jump – 1.71 meters (5’ 7.25”), PR
9. Shot put – 10.49 meters (34’ 5”)
1. 200 meters – 23.97, PR