Men’s track stumbles, finishes ninth at Big Ten Championships
Andrew Zollner attempts a pole vault on Friday, May 18, 2008, at the first day of the Big 10 championships in Champaign. Zollner got first in the event as part of the Mens decathlon competition on Saturday by clearing 4.95 meters. Wes Anderson
May 19, 2008
As the baton exchange between Gary Miller and Lesiba Masheto was botched, Illinois lost out on likely winning the 4×400 relay that would have put a positive end to a less-than-positive day.
But the baton’s mishandling might have been more than indicative of the team’s performance at the Big Ten Championships.
“I made a mistake on the exchange that cost us,” Masheto said. “But, I think that if everyone (could have done) their part, the distance guys, the field event guys, everyone; we (could have done) much better.”
Illinois fielded a team that was hardly at 100 percent, including a recovering Masheto, and had more athletes, like sprinter Dominique Worsley, sufferer injuries throughout the meet.
The Illini ended the weekend with a ninth-place finish that was hardly acceptable for the team or head coach Wayne Angel.
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“The bottom line is, the kids have to step up to the line and want it more than everyone else,” he said. “I just wish we could have performed better, but it is what it is. You gotta take your lumps. Three, four years ago we were third (place), one point out of second, I guess it’s our turn now.”
The team’s injuries led to some new lineups, including the 4×400 team that was just put together, prompting the first time that Miller and Masheto had to work the exchange with each other.
“I don’t think that Gary had ever handed off to Masheto before,” Angel said. “(Miller) is like 6-feet-5, Masheto is like 5-feet-10, so it was kind of a crazy situation.”
The finish was obviously not how the team wanted to perform; but given the talent in the Big Ten, Angel said that he was not surprised by how well the other schools fared and that he had tempered expectations going into the meet.
The athletes on the team were just as displeased with the team’s overall performance as their head coach was.
“People needed to step up; this is the Big Ten Meet,” hurdler Cody Wisslead said. “It’s the biggest event of the season so far. I think we are much better than we performed out here today, and if we want to be a top-five team, we need to work a lot more for it.”
