Huskers Begin Competition at Two Meets

The Nebraska track and field team split up and began action at two meets on Friday. The distance squad ran at the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa, while most of the rest of the team competed at the Gorilla Classic in Pittsburg, Kan.

Erika Freyhof paced the Huskers at the Iowa State Classic, running the second-fastest time in school history on any size of track in the women's 5,000 meters. Freyhof ran a PR time of 16:18.28 in the invitational 5,000 meters to finish seventh.

Judi Jones and Jordan De Spong both ran in the invitational 3,000 meters. Jones finished 10th in the women's race with a PR of 9:27.28, good for the seventh-fastest time in program history on any size of track. De Spong ran in the men's 3,000 meters and was seventh with a personal-best time of 8:13.47 to rank No. 10 all-time in school history.

James Joycey and Ieva Turke both claimed event titles at the Gorilla Classic. Joycey won the men's weight throw with a mark of 66-9 1/4 (20.35m), while Turke claimed the women's long jump with a leap of 19-10 3/4 (6.06m). Madi Scholl was the runner-up in the women's high jump with a PR height of 5-7 1/4 (1.71m).

Zionn Pearson and LaQwasia Stepney joined Turke in the long jump and both placed in the top-eight. Pearson was fifth with a leap of 19-0 (5.79m) and Stepney finished seventh with a jump of 18-8 (5.69m).

On the track in Kansas, Isaiah Hutchinson led the team with a fifth-place finish in the men's 200 meters with a time of 21.55.

Cody Mroczek and Michaela Peskova ran in their respective 600-yard dashes and each finished sixth. Mroczek had a time of 1:12.77 in the men's race, while Peskova clocked in at 1:25.85 in the women's race.

On Saturday, the Gorilla Classic will commence with track events at 10:30 a.m. and field events at Noon. Day two of the Iowa State Classic will start with competition on the track at Noon. The Iowa State Classic will have a live video feed available at FloTrack.org with the purchase of a subscription.