The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) men’s track and field team knocked off four school records during the GVSU Big Meets in Allendale, Mich. this weekend.

UIS came into the season with the expectation of using the GVSU Big Meets as a crucial stepping stone for the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Championships.

“Early in the season, we were practicing things to be successful later [in the season],” head coach Scott Slade said. “It was this type of meet we were preparing for and we had an amazing weekend. They have worked hard and earned this. I’m proud of them.”

GVSU BIG MEET #1

On Friday, Blake Jones took down the 5,000-meter indoor school record with a time of 15 minutes, 2.23 seconds. The freshman from Lincoln broke the previous record by 19.13 seconds. Jones currently ranks fifth on the GLVC 5,000 Performance List.

Tyler Pasley also topped the previous record with a 5,000 time of 15:11.17, while besting the previous record by 10.19 seconds.

In the 5,000, Tyler Hiserote put together a time of 15:29.98, Trevor Dunkel raced to a time of 15:40.89 and Thomas Wuchte contributed a time of 15:54.84.

GVSU BIG MEET #2

Hiserote earned 15th (8:44.19) place in the college division of the 3,000 while securing an indoor school record by 10.08 seconds. The sophomore from Bartonville currently ranks sixth on the GLVC 3,000 Performance List. Jones also raced past the previous 3,000 school record with a time of 8:51.43.

Kenton Wilson captured ninth (4:22.00) in the college division of the 1 mile while setting an indoor school record. Pasley also turned in an indoor school record in the 800 with a time of 1:59.30.

UIS fielded a 4×400 relay of Blake Carlino, Brendan Kroeger, Jake Schwartz and Preston Henze, which took seventh (3:35.65).

Henze claimed 14th (4:23.17) in the college division of the 1 mile. He set a personal record (PR) and missed the previous school record by 0.41 seconds.

Carlino charged to a 400 time of 51.02 seconds. The sophomore from Riverton missed his school record by 0.31 seconds.

Trevor Dunkel put together a 3,000 time of 9:06.15. Thomas Wuchte raced to a 3,000 time of 9:09.67 while posting a 15.51-second PR.

Kroeger clocked a 1-mile time of 4:23.99 and Schwartz delivered a 1-mile time of 4:28.87.

In a massive race field, the Prairie Stars scored two points to tie for 27th in the team standings.

Grand Valley State University, ranked No. 4 in the latest United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division II poll, coasted to first with a team score of 125 points. NCAA Division I’s University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee came in second with 53 points. Tying for third with 49 points was NCAA Division I’s Miami University and NCAA Division I’s Oakland University. Cornerstone University, ranked No. 11 in the latest USTFCCCA National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) poll, finished fifth with 29 points. Academy of Art University, which is ranked No. 9 in the latest NCAA Division II rankings, and Saginaw Valley State University with 23 points apiece. NCAA Division I’s Loyola University earned eighth with 20 points. Davenport University and NCAA Division I’s Western Illinois University tied for ninth with 18 points each. Saint Francis University, ranked No. 20 in the latest NAIA rankings, captured 11th with 17 points, finishing ahead of Seton Hill University (16) and Colorado State University-Pueblo (13) for 12th and 13th, respectively. Northwood University and Hillsdale College tied for 14th with 11 points. The University of Wisconsin- Parkside, Lubbock Christian University, Queens University of Charlotte and Dallas Baptist University each tied for 16th with 10 points apiece. Marquette University claimed 20th with nine points, which rounds out the top 20 of the 28 teams to score in the team standings.