By Adam Hensley
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This weekend, the Iowa men’s track team will move closer to the Big Ten Indoor Championships. With only three weeks left until the conference meet, the Hawkeyes have competed in five meets.

Hurdles — A-plus: Arguably the best hurdler in the conference, junior Aaron Mallett has been on top of his game since the start of the season. He boasts an unblemished record in the 60-meter hurdles, nothing less than first-place finishes this season.

Meanwhile, freshman Chris Douglas provides the Hawkeyes with a one-two punch in the hurdles. While facing his toughest competition this season at the Razorback Invitational, Douglas finished in 8.07 seconds in the preliminary round (he ran 8.09 in the final round). This earned him sixth place, but that time was the ninth-fastest in school history. There’s no reason to give anything less than an “A” to a group that has broken into the top 10 and not lost a race all season.

Sprints — B: In this group, Iowa’s strength lies in the 200 and 400. Sophomore O’Shea Wilson posted the sixth-fastest time in school history in the 60 meters (6.76), but that was in Iowa’s first meet of the season. Junior Vinnie Saucer Jr. finished fourth in 60 meters at the Big Four Duals. Aside from those two, freshmen Christian Brissett, DeJuan Frye, and Mar’yea Harris have all been major contributors.

Brissett has won the 200 meters twice. Adding to that, he has taken second in the 60 two times. Frye has shown his ability on both the 200 and 400, getting top-three finishes in each. Out of the three first-year Hawkeyes, Harris has taken command in the 400. At the Razorback Invitational, he ran the third-best time in program history. He also won the 400 at the Iowa Duals.

Middle Distance — A: This group has quietly become one of Iowa’s main scoring threats. Carter Lilly, Will Teubel, Mitch Wolff, and Pavlo Hutsalyuk are at the head of the pack, each having won one of these events so far. Lilly and Teubel have been on top as of late. At the Razorback Invitational, Lilly placed fourth in the 800 meters among some of the nation’s best runners. Teubel took home the crown in the 600 meters this past weekend, at the Meyo Invitational, and his group can take home a title at almost every meet.

Long Distance — B-minus:  The distance runners have not had as many opportunities to perform compared with other events. In the meets they have competed in, Michael Melchert showed that his ability to lead the way. He has run the fourth-best mile and 3,000-meter times at Iowa. The Hawkeyes have a good number of young, unproven runners. Don’t sleep on this group, though.

Relays — A: At the Meyo, the relay group of Wolff, Brendan Thompson, Frye, and Harris ran the best time this season (3:10.04). The relay has been dropping time each meet, with Lilly, Ryan Dorman, and Mallett contributing in various meets. However, the group that ran at Meyo has a chance to solidify itself as one of the fastest relays in the conference. If the time-shaving trend continues, Iowa will be on top come conference championship time.

Field Events — C-plus: Aside from Avery Meyers in the throws, the Hawks have yet to prove that they have a reliable force in the field. Meyers had his best performance as a Hawk at the Razorback Invitational. The junior threw 59-0.25 for a college best, eighth best in program history. His recent success bodes well. Reno Tuufuli competed in his first meet of the year at the Meyo, placing fourth in the shot put.

Elsewhere, Andy Jatis started off the season strong in the pole vault. He won two events earlier in the season and even cleared a height good enough to put him in the top 10 at Iowa. Come Big Ten Championship time, it will be interesting to see who steps up aside from Meyers.

Follow @A_Hens83 for Iowa track news, updates, and analysis.