After four home meets to start the season, the Iowa track and field team will hit the road this weekend.

The squad will split between competing in the Frank Sevigne Invitational on Friday and Saturday, hosted by Nebraska, and the Meyo Invitational also on Friday and Saturday, hosted by Notre Dame.

On the men’s side, the Hawkeyes enter the meet ranked 33rd in the nation. Iowa was also rated as the third best men’s team in the Midwest.

Iowa Director of Track & Field Joey Woody said competing on the road for the first time this season will provide a new challenge for his team.

“Traveling just by itself adds a bit of a curve ball to what we have been doing,” Woody said. “We have been fortunate to be at home so far this season, so now it’s just about making sure that when the student-athletes get on the bus or get on the plane, it’s about getting where we need to be, staying focused, and getting the job done.”

Now into the heart of the indoor season, Woody also noted the importance of keeping athletes fresh and ready to go.

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“One of the biggest things for this time of the season is just staying healthy,” he said. “We have been training hard, and even just these last couple of weeks, we have been competing well and training hard at the same time.  This is the time of year where we start to pull back a little bit and start to get even more prepared for the meets.”

Iowa senior Mar’Yea Harris echoed Woody about remaining healthy this time of year and said his experience should be useful.

“There’s going to be a lot of traveling at this point in the season, but we’re prepared for that,” Harris said. “That can take a toll on the body, but hopefully, it will just be a lot of bus rides and plane rides full of sleeping. The good news is that it’s my fourth year, so I should have about everything figured out by now.”

Competing on the road will provide new hurdles for Iowa, but junior Collin Hofacker wants the focus of the team to remain clear.

“We have the goal of winning the Big Ten title, and we know we can do it,” he said. “It’s just a matter of can we put our times down and do what we are supposed to do. That’s what we’ll have our minds on this weekend.”

The Sevigne Invitational will start Friday at noon with the multi-events, followed by the field events at 4:30 p.m. and the running events at 6 p.m. The meet will continue at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday.

The Meyo Invitational will begin at 4 p.m. Friday, continuing at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.