TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State track and field hits the road for the final time before the postseason Friday and Saturday, with the Sycamores heading to Nashville, Tennessee, for the Music City Challenge.
Friday's first events start at 11 a.m., with Saturday's action beginning at 10:30 a.m.
Last Time Out
Indiana State athletes set a pair of records in hurdles events at the Drake Relays, as the Sycamores claimed a pair of event wins on Drake Stadium's famed Blue Oval.
Rachel Mehringer tied her own program and MVC all-conditions record of 13.03 in the 100m hurdles and also anchored the Sycamores' record-setting shuttle hurdle relay to a first-place finish. Mehringer teamed up with
Aubrey Runyon,
Ellie Irwin and
Sophie Hale to run a time of 55.59. The Sycamores also received program top-10 contributions from the men's shuttle hurdle and distance medley relay teams, while
Aliseonna Garnett added a program top-10 mark in the shot put for the Trees.
Indiana State athletes also set a pair of program top-10 marks over the course of the three-day Clark Wood Invitational, with the Sycamore jumpers leading the way for the Blue and White in the Bluegrass State.
Landon Dobbs led a sweep of the top three spots in the pole vault while clearing the 5-meter mark for the first time in his outdoor career, while
Kilan Macklin and
Jaden Smith earned podium finishes in the horizontal jumps in their hometown returns. The Blue and White also had strong showing from its distance crew, as
Alli Steffey recorded a program top-10 mark in the steeplechase and
Mason Nobles took home a first-place finish in the 10,000m.
Sycamore Sweep
Indiana State completed its second sweep of the MVC Women's Track and Field Athlete of the Week honors with
Rachel Mehringer and
Aliseonna Garnett recognized for their efforts at the Drake Relays, the league office announced Wednesday afternoon. Mehringer was named MVC Women's Track Athlete of the Week for the fourth consecutive week, while Garnett was named MVC Women's Field Athlete of the Week after the Sycamore duo posted career-best outings in one of the premier track and field meets.
Mehringer continued her conference dominance in the 100m hurdles, tying her own program and MVC all-conditions record of 13.03 in prelims before backing it up with a time of 13.10 in finals to claim her first individual Drake Relays crown. She also teamed up with
Aubrey Runyon,
Ellie Irwin and
Sophie Hale to deliver a Drake Relays title in the shuttle hurdle relay, with the Sycamore quartet breaking the program record in the event with their time of 55.59. The Drake Relays titles were the first for the Sycamores in any event since 2023, when the men's shuttle hurdle relay and women's 4x400m relay teams placed first. Mehringer joined Adarius Washington (2016), Greggmar Swift (2012) and Aubrey Herring (2001) as Sycamore hurdlers to win multiple events at a single Drake Relays, and became the second Indiana State women's athlete to win multiple events at a single Drake Relays alongside seven-time national champion Holli Hyche in 1993. Her 100m hurdles time ranks first in the MVC, second in the Great Lakes Region, 11th in NCAA East Region Qualifying and 16th nationally. Mehringer is currently the highest-ranked women's track athlete in any event in the MVC.
Garnett put together another big weekend in the throws events at the Drake Relays, setting an outdoor career best in the shot put and recording her third meet over the 50-meter mark in the discus this season. Her shot put mark of 15.77m (51-9) placed her sixth in program history in the event and earned her a top-five finish in the invite section at the Drake Relays. Garnett had three throws over 50 meters in the invite section of the discus, with her best of the weekend measuring at 53.23m (174-8) to place her sixth in the championship field. She remains the only athlete in the MVC to reach the 50-meter mark in the discus during the 2026 campaign, a feat she has accomplished on six throws this season. Garnett currently owns the top discus mark in the conference, while also ranking fourth in the Great Lakes Region, 21st in NCAA East Region Qualifying and 41st nationally in the event. She also ranks second in the MVC, ninth in the Great Lakes Region, 32nd in NCAA East Region Qualifying and 58th nationally in the shot put. Garnett is currently one of two women's field athletes in the MVC on pace to qualify for NCAA East or West First Rounds in multiple events.
Mehringer's weekly honor is her fourth straight of the 2026 outdoor season and her 13th MVC Athlete of the Week award (four outdoor 2026, one indoor 2025-26, two outdoor 2025, three indoor 2024-25, one outdoor 2024, two indoor 2023-24). Garnett's weekly honor is the fourth of her career and first of the 2026 outdoor season, after earning MVC Women's Field Athlete of the Week honors three times during the 2025-26 indoor season. Indiana State athletes have now earned seven MVC Athlete of the Week honors through the first five weekends of the 2026 outdoor season.
Squad Rolls Deep
Indiana State features a quartet of event groups which rank in the top 15 nationally in the most recent set of USTFCCCA EventSquad rankings, with the Sycamore men's 110m hurdles, women's hammer throw, women's heptathlon and women's shot put groups earning high national marks at the midway point of the season.
The 110m hurdles contingent of
Kieran Barnewall (14.02),
Parker Doyle (14.07),
Collin Forrest (14.07) and
David Carnell (14.14) is the highest-ranked group among the Sycamore roster and one of two top-10 event groups for the Blue and Whote, currently ranking ninth nationally.
Indiana State's women's hammer throw quartet of
Emma Yoder (61.35m/201-3),
Cora Williams (58.81/192-11),
Aliseonna Garnett (54.54m/178-11) and OIivia Marshall (52.60/172-6) also ranks in the top 10 nationally, checking in at 10th overall for a second straight week. The women's hammer and men's 110 hurdles groups have been ranked in the top 10 nationally in every EventSquad ranking this season.
The Sycamores' heptathlon quartet of
Ellie Irwin (4699),
Sophie Hale (4534),
Kathryn Ison (3846) and
Emma Martin (3608) checked in at 12th nationally after their event debut at the Gibson Invitational. The high ranking came despite Ison and Martin not scoring in the high jump, with the heptahlon group ranked in the top 15 for a second straight week.
The Blue and White also climbed into the top 15 in the women's shot put in this week's rankings, with season-best performances over the last two weekends from
Aliseonna Garnett (15.77m/51-9),
Olivia Marshall (14.44m/47-4.5),
Cora Williams (14.15m/46-5) and
Niesha Anderson (12.90m/42-3.75). Indiana State jumped to 15th in the ranking for the event, a seven-spot increase from the previous week.
Indiana State also has three additional event groups ranked in the top 25 nationally, with those being the men's pole vault (24th), women's discus (24th) and women's 100m hurdles (25th).
Chart Climbing
Indiana State athletes made major strides during their split-squad weekend, with eight additions to the program top-10 charts between the Drake Relays and Clark Wood Invitational. A pair of hurdles records were set in Des Moines, as
Rachel Mehringer tied the MVC all-conditions record of 13.03 in the 100m hurdles while teaming up with
Aubrey Runyon,
Ellie Irwin and
Sophie Hale to break the program shuttle hurdle relay record at 55.59. It was the fastest shuttle hurdle relay by any school at a Drake Relays since 2017.
Indiana State's men's shuttle hurdle team of
David Carnell,
Parker Doyle,
Kieran Barnewall and
Collin Forrest also ran a top-five time in program history at 56.96, the fastest for an Indiana State team since 2015. The Sycamores also recorded a top-10 program mark in the distance medley relay, as
Nick Burns,
Trent Jones,
Caden Emmert and
Ryan York teamed up for a time of 9:51.98 to rank sixth in program history.
Two more program top-10 updates were made on the track in Louisville, as
Janiya Bowman matched her wind-legal career best of 11.67 in the 100m, a time which ranks seventh among wind-legal marks in program history.
Alli Steffey also rose up the ranks for the Blue and White in the 3000m steeplechase, breaking the 11-minute mark for the first time in her career an rising to seventh in the program ranks with her time of 10:57.43.
Aliseonna Garnett continued her stellar campaign with an outdoor career-best effort at the Drake Relays. Garnett recorded a top throw of 15.77m (51-9), moving to sixth in program history in the event with the top throw by a Sycamore since 2014.
Landon Dobbs also broke into the program outdoor top-10 charts in the pole vault for the first time in his career after clearing a career-best 5.07m (16-7.5). Dobbs' clearance in Louisville marked the fifth consecutive season that Indiana State had a men's pole vaulter over the five-meter mark, after
Will Staggs accomplished the feat in all four seasons of his illustrious career.
Postseason Feeling
Indiana State has fared well in the postseason, with the Sycamores sending double-digit entries to the NCAA East First Round in each of the last four seasons with a pair of All-Americans in 2025. The Blue and White currently have seven athletes occupying regional qualifying spots, with
Aliseonna Garnett currently on pace to qualify in multiple events.
Indiana State's current athletes occupying qualifying spots are:
In addition, the Sycamores also have multiple athletes who are within reach of qualifying spots, which go to the top 48 athletes in each event and the top 24 relay teams. Those who are just outside qualifying positions entering the weekend include:
Up Next
Indiana State plays host to its final home meet of the regular season May 8, welcoming competition to Terre Haute for the Sycamore Open.
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field and Cross Country teams, make sure to check out
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