Matched against both Big Ten Conference and Big East Conference competition, Western’s men’s and women’s track teams took the challenge and held their own at the University of Illinois’ Carle/Health Alliance Classic in Champaign, Ill., on Saturday.

The ladies came away with eight top-five finishes, including senior distance runner Marion Kandie’s first-place finish in the 1-Mile Run.

While Kandie said holding off the competition was tough, Head Coach Erik Jenkins gave her credit for her performance.

“It was a very difficult track to run on,” Jenkins said. “She really pulled it out on the backstretch.”

Kandie added a fourth-place finish in the 800-Meter Run.

Sophomore thrower Monte’ka Flowers finished ahead of fellow sohomore thrower Adesola Adeduro in each the Shot Put and Weight throw, finishing third and second in each event, respectively.

The women’s 4×400 Relay team, which includied seniors Kellie Morrison and Samantha Smith, junior Vasily Chemweno and sophomore Monique Harris, came away with first place to cap off what Jenkins considered a “solid meet.”

The men’s team, led by sophomore Hendrik Themas’ seven top-five finishes in the field events, completed the meet with a total of 13 top-five finishes.

Themas came out with first place in both the Pole Vault and Shot Put legs of the Heptathlon.

Senior Patrick Cheptoek took first in the 1-Mile Run, finishing in 4:12.88 minutes—a personal record.

Not to be outdone by the ladies, the men’s 4×400 Relay team composed of seniors Ennis Jones and Terrill McCombs, sophomore Tory Womack and freshman Kendall Gregory, took first place, edging out the University of Pittsburgh by just over one second.

Jenkins acknowledged each team’s performance afterward.

“I think we had a solid meet overall,” Jenkins said. “We have to be very patient to really grasp what it takes to compete.

“We will get there with time and patience.”