Michigan
Notre Dame Meyo Invitational
Bastien Breaks U-M Heptathlon Record
2/4/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Feb. 4, 2017
» Joe Ellis came within a centimeter of his own school record in the weight throw at Akron.
» Both Khoury Crenshaw and Taylor McLaughlin posted runner-up finishes at the Notre Dame Meyo Invitational.
» Between Akron and Notre Dame, the team combined for five wins and six other top-10 finishes.
Akron Invitational
Site: Akron, Ohio (Stiles Fieldhouse)
Event: Akron Invitational (Day 2)
U-M Team Result: Non-scoring
Next U-M Events: Fri-Sat., Feb. 10-11 -- at Iowa State Classic & SPIRE Invitational (Geneva, Ohio)
AKRON, Ohio -- For the second time in as many heptathlon competitions, Steven Bastien broke his school record in his signature indoor competition to headline the No. 19-ranked University of Michigan men's track and field team's day-two action at the Akron Invitational on Saturday (Feb. 4) at Stiles Fieldhouse.
The senior posted 5,843 points in the seven-event, two-day competition -- his first of the 2017 season -- to surpass the school record of 5,810 he established in an eighth-place NCAA Championships finish to end 2016.
It is a mark that will almost certainly secure him a spot into this March's NCAA Indoor Championships in College Station, Texas. Though the standings might change after the weekend, the score ranks fourth nationally based on results entering this weekend, and 5,700 points and above has historically advanced the past five seasons.
After a career-best 8.17 in the 60-meter hurdles and a season-best 4.75m (15-7) in the pole vault, Bastien needed to run faster than 2:46.97 in the heptathlon finale 1,000 meters to break his record. He did that and more, clocking 2:43.98 to edge out Toronto's Rostam Turner for the fastest time by .04.
In the overall standings, he ended up 177 points clear of runner-up TJ Lawson of Kent State and 215 better than Big Ten rival Tim Ehrhardt of Michigan State.
Bastien got things started with a career-best 8.17 in the 60-meter hurdles, giving him 939 points and putting him 40 points ahead of his school-record pace from last season's NCAA Indoor Championships. The performance was also fast enough to move him to No. 9 on the all-time U-M performers list in the event.
He followed that up with a third-attempt clearance at 4.75m for 834 points.
Bastien's win was not an isolated incident, as the Wolverines topped the charts in four additional events.
Joe Ellis came within one centimeter of crashing the school-record party in the weight throw, as well. Already the school record-holder after his 22.02m (72-3) heave at Notre Dame two weekends ago, Ellis launched a 22.01m (72-2.5) mark on his third attempt to nearly equal his U-M standard. Nevertheless, he earned the win over runner-up teammate Grant Cartwright.
Cartwright himself twice surpassed the 20.48m mark that stood as his career best entering the weekend, going 20.99m (68-10.25) on his second attempt and then 20.71m (67-11.25) on his fourth. He also won the Gold Division shot put with a season-best heave of 18.69m (61-3.75) on his second attempt. He was nearly three feet clear of the next-best finisher in the field.
The Wolverines also claimed the win in the Blue Division shot put, as Andrew Liskowitz emerged victorious with a career-best heave of 17.26m (56-7.5) -- more than two feet farther than his previous personal standard from two weekends ago. The winner -- his fifth attempt of the day -- came right after what would have otherwise been a career-best 16.89m effort on his fourth attempt.
Alex Klemm came away from the Blue Division high jump with a tiebreak victory over Nicholas McKnight of Saint Francis (Pa.). Both men cleared the final height of 1.94m (6-4.25) on their third attempts, with Klemm declared the winner based on clearing the previous height on fewer clearances. He got over 1.90m (6-2.75) on his first attempt, while it took McKnight two.
Maximillian Wagner took fourth place at that 1.90m height.
Notre Dame Meyo Invitational
Site: South Bend, Ind. (Loftus Sports Center)
Event: Meyo Invitational (Day 2)
U-M Team Result: Non-scoring
Next U-M Events: Fri-Sat., Feb. 10-11 -- at Iowa State Classic & SPIRE Invitational (Geneva, Ohio)
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Sprinter Khoury Crenshaw came within thousandths of a second of the 60 meters title to headline a slew of top-10 finishes for the No. 19-ranked U-M men's track and field team on Saturday's (Feb. 4) final day of the Notre Dame Meyo Invitational at the Loftus Sports Center.
The senior was just edged out by four one-thousandths-of-a-second (.004) at the finish line by Miami's Isaiah Taylor in the second section of the two-section final to earn runner-up honors. The second-place finish came after he won both his preliminary and semifinal heats yesterday and today.
His runner-up finish was one of six top-10 finishes on the day in both the sprints and distance events.
Fellow sprinter Taylor McLaughlin also posted a runner-up finish at 400 meters, crossing the line in 47.23 behind winner Mar'yea Harris of Iowa in 46.99. His finish came after a second-half surge that saw him move up from the back of the five-man section halfway through.
McLaughlin also contributed to a sixth-place finish for the Wolverines in the 4x400 relay in 3:13.46.
Connor Mora and Will Sheeran were sixth and seventh in the prestigious Meyo Mile, running 4:03.32 and 4:03.76, respectively. The two came through on the bell lap just under four-minute mile pace, but the duo was not able to hold on over the final fifth of a mile one week after their sub-four spectacle in Boston.
Drake Johnson ran 8.07 in the 60-meter hurdles final to finish eighth overall. Johnson's athleticism averted a potential disaster in the semifinals, maintaining his balance across the line after clipping his trail leg on the final hurdle and stumbling through the remaining 10 meters of the race. He nonetheless ran 8.17 to nab the seventh of eight spots in the final.
Career bests were plentiful for the Wolverine endurance runners competing in the day's early non-invitational session.
Kevin Hall blasted 16 seconds off his career-best at 3000m to finish runner-up in his section in 8:19.10. Milers Austin Benoit and Ben Hill also had career days in their races, finishing fifth and sixth in 4:07.40 and 4:07.67, respectively. Both men earned top-15 finishes in the nearly 60-man field.
NEW SCHOOL RECORD! Steven Bastien does it! He breaks his own heptathlon record with a score of 5843 points! 33 better than at NCAAs in 2016! pic.twitter.com/VFd2J2f2LT
-- Michigan Track&Field (@UMichTrack) February 4, 2017
Communications Contact: Kyle Terwillegar
