Iowa men’s track and field repeats as Big Ten Indoor Champions, women finish sixth
The Hawkeye men captured their second consecutive indoor conference title in Geneva, Ohio, this weekend.
Iowa’s Jenoah McKiver celebrates after placing first in the men’s 600-meter premiere run with a time of 1:16.08 at the 2022 Larry Wieczorek Invitational track and field meet at the University of Iowa Recreation building on Friday, Jan. 21, 2022.. McKiver’s time set a meet, facility, and school record. The Larry Wieczorek Invitational hosted Baylor, Gonzaga, Mount Mercy, the University of Northern Iowa, Purdue, Wartburg and the University of Wisconsin.
February 27, 2022
The Iowa men’s track and field program captured its second consecutive Big Ten Indoor Championship title this weekend in Geneva. Ohio.
The Iowa men outlasted runner-up Ohio State, 117-102.
“We have an expectation to be Big Ten Champs every time we step on the track and start our season,” Iowa director of track and field Joey Woody said in a release. “I’m really proud of the guys because they had to be resilient this weekend. They had to fight through a lot of adversity and this was a total team effort.”
Iowa boasted two individual conference champions. Freshman Jenoah McKiver claimed the 600-meter gold medal with a time of 1 minute and 15.67 seconds. His victory marks his first career Big Ten Championship in any event.
The men’s 4×400 relay, consisting of McKiver, freshmen Everett Steward and Armando Bryson and junior Julien Gillum, also took home a conference championship.
McKiver and the men’s 4×400 relay were the Hawkeyes’ sole gold medalists, but Iowa received point contributions in a host of different events.
The Hawkeye men earned 35 total points in the 600-meter race, as all five athletes who entered ran in the finals. Gillum took third place, while sophomore Spencer Gudgel was fourth, Bryson was fifth, and freshman Phillip Jefferson was seventh.
Sophomore Austin West earned a silver medal in the heptathlon with 5,783 points — an improvement upon last year’s third place finish.
Sophomores Grant Conway and Gratt Reed finished second and third in the 60-meter hurdles. Conway notched a personal best time, finishing in 7.72 seconds.
Four-time All-American Wayne Lawrence placed third in the 400-meter, earning his ninth career Big Ten medal. Sophomore Kalen Walker earned bronze in the men’s 60-meter, with a time of 6.70 seconds.
The men also found success in the throws portion of the meet, as senior Nik Curtiss grabbed his first Big Ten medal in shot put. Curtiss placed third with a throw of 19.44 meters.
On the women’s side of the meet, Iowa placed sixth.
Sophomore LaSarah Hargrove found herself on the podium twice, as she finished second in the 200-meter and third in the 60-meter.
The women’s 4×400 team, consisting of junior Mariel Bruxvoort, seniors Payton Wensel and Mallory King, and freshman Tesa Roberts, placed second with a time of 3:35.73.
Big Picture
The Hawkeyes qualified eight events for the 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships.
Both the men’s and women’s 4×400 relay will be heading to Birmingham, Alabama, for the national championships. Reed and Conway will compete in the 60-meter hurdles, and Walker will race the 60-meter.
McKiver, Lawrence, and freshman Chadwick Richards all qualified to compete nationally in the 400-meter. West’s silver medal put him through to the national championships in heptathlon.
Curtiss will compete in shot put in Birmingham, while senior Tyler Lienau qualified in weight throw with an 11th-place finish of 19.47 meters.
Up Next
The qualifying Hawkeyes will compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Alabama, on March 11-12. The meet will steam on ESPN3.
The rest of the Iowa track and field program will start to prepare for the outdoor season. The Hawkeyes’ first outdoor meet in 2022 will be Baldy Castillo in Tempe, Arizona.