Trees close 2025 home slate with Sycamore Open

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State hosts its final home meet of the 2025 outdoor season Friday, as the Sycamores welcome teams to the John McNichols Memorial Track at the Gibson Track and Field Complex for the Sycamore Open.
 
Friday’s first events will start at noon, with the first events on the track beginning at 2:30 p.m. Indiana State will recognize its senior class at 4:30 p.m., in between the 4x100m relay and the 110m hurdles finals.
 

 
Who’s In The Field?
Joining Indiana State in the Sycamore Open field are Brescia, Dayton, Eastern Illinois, Huntington (Ind.), Illinois State, IU-Kokomo, Kentucky State, Marian (Ind.), Maryville (Mo.), Millikin, Purdue Northwest, Rose-Hulman, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Southeast Missouri State, Taylor, UIndy, Vincennes and Washington University (Mo.).
 
Last Time Out
Indiana State senior Will Staggs broke his own pole vault record for a second consecutive weekend, headlining the results for the Blue and White at the Jesse Owens Classic.
 
In a meet marred by poor weather, long delays and equipment malfunctions, Staggs cleared the 18-foot mark for the second straight weekend and fifth time in his career with his 5.53m (18-1.75) clearance. Staggs maintained his stranglehold as the highest-ranked MVC athlete in any event, as his pole vault mark ranks in the top 10 nationally.
 
Indiana State also got a top-five program mark from Emerson Fayman in the 5000m (14:14.68) after more than six hours of weather delays on the opening day. The Trees also picked up five event wins over the course of the weekend, with first-place finishes coming from Lillian Gibbs (javelin), Trent Jones (200m), Michelle McDonald (100m), Rachel Mehringer (100m hurdles) and Ivan Weaver (400m).
 
Senior Sendoff
Friday’s meet marks the last home meet for Indiana State’s senior class, with the 2025 class cementing a strong legacy during their time in Terre Haute. Indiana State’s 2025 senior class has been a part of 10 MVC Championship-winning teams over the last four years, including the first men’s and women’s indoor-outdoor sweep in program history.
 
Included in this year’s senior class are two-time All-American Will Staggs, NCAA East First Round qualifiers Noah Bolt, Ali Ilupeju, Daunte Majors, Brooklyn Pfaff, Wyatt Puff and Luigi Rivas, and all-conference honorees Erica Barker, Jason Dworak, Tahj Johnson and Michelle McDonald.
 
Soaring Higher
Indiana State senior pole vaulter Will Staggs won his second straight MVC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week honor Tuesday afternoon after yet another record-breaking performance on the runway.
 
Staggs cleared the 18-foot mark for the second straight weekend and fifth time in his career with his 5.53m (18-1.75) clearance at the Jesse Owens Classic, breaking his own program record for a second consecutive meet. He cleared marks of 5.23m (17-1.75, third attempt) and 5.38m (17-7.75, first attempt) before clearing the record-breaking mark of 5.53m (18-1.75) on his third attempt. Staggs tied for the top clearance in Columbus at 5.53m (18-1.75), a mark which ranks in the top 10 nationally this season, placing second at the meet on misses. He remains the highest-ranked MVC athlete in any event this season, while his pole vault clearance was the best for a Valley athlete since 2007.
 
Staggs is the MVC and Great Lakes Region leader in the pole vault, while his school record-setting mark ranks second in NCAA East Qualifying and eighth nationally. He is the only athlete in the MVC to rank in the top 10 in the nation in any event this season.
 
The weekly honor is the 12th of Staggs’ career and third this outdoor season. Staggs previously earned the honor eight times during indoor track and field seasons and once during a previous outdoor track and field season, prior to his three weekly honors during the 2025 outdoor campaign.
 
Eyes On The Prize
Indiana State seeks to repeat as MVC Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Champions, and the Sycamores will be among the title favorites on both sides in 2025. Entering the final weekend before the conference championships, the Trees are the top-ranked team on both the men’s and women’s side in the USTFCCCA MVC Ratings Index.
 
Indiana State’s championship aspirations are bolstered by nine conference-leading marks this season. The events in which the Sycamores feature the top-ranked athlete in the MVC are:

 
In addition to the conference-leading marks, Indiana State currently has 44 marks which rank in the top five in the conference, with 12 different events featuring multiple Sycamores in the top five (men’s 100m, men’s 200m, men’s 400m, men’s 110m hurdles, men’s high jump, men’s pole vault, women’s pole vault, men’s long jump, women’s long jump, women’s triple jump, men’s discus, women’s discus).
 
It’s Going Down
Indiana State athletes have broken five school records this season, with at least one program record falling in five of the first six weekends of the 2025 outdoor season. All four disciplines (sprints, distance, jumps, throws) have had at least one school record broken this outdoor season.
 
The Sycamores’ program records broken during the 2025 season are:

 
Indiana State’s record setting ways are just a continuation from the 2024-25 indoor season, where Tahj Johnson (300m – 33.85), Rachel Mehringer (60m hurdles – 8.19) and Staggs (pole vault – 5.56m/18-2.75) all broke program records for the Blue and White.
 
Trees In The National Ranks
Indiana State is seeking its fourth straight season with double-digit entries in the NCAA East First Round, and the Sycamores are currently on pace to accomplish the feat. Included in the Sycamores’ current qualifying entries are the top-ranked pole vaulter in NCAA East Qualifying in Will Staggs and four school record holders (Casey Hood Jr., Will Staggs, Wyatt Puff, Lillian Gibbs)
 
Entering the weekend, Indiana State has 12 entries currently in a qualifying spot, with multiple additional entries near the current cutline. The Sycamores currently in qualifying positions for the NCAA East First Round are:

• Casey Hood Jr. – 100m (13th, 10.08)
• Terrance O’Bannon – 100m (45th, 10.30)
• Rachel Mehringer – 100m hurdles (44th, 13.48)
• Will Staggs – pole vault (second, 5.51m/18-1)
• Brooklyn Pfaff – pole vault (48th, 4.08m/13-4.5)
• Kilan Macklin – long jump (34th, 7.56m/24-9.75)
• Wyatt Puff – shot put (22nd, 18.47m/60-7.25), discus (33rd, 55.06m/180-8)
• Sloan Cox – shot put (37th, 17.97m/58-11.5)
• Aliseonna Garnett – shot put (42nd, 15.34m/50-4)
• Noah Bolt – discus (25th, 56.11m/184-1)
• Lillian Gibbs – javelin (36th, 47.07m/154-5)

 
Indiana State also has multiple athletes within reach of top-48 spots, with Janiya Bowman (100m and long jump), Garnett (discus) and Bolt (hammer throw) all within the top 60 of additional event rankings heading into the weekend.
 
Forever A Sycamore

The Indiana State University Athletic Department has announced the Gibson Track & Field Complex will now honor John McNichols by naming the John McNichols Memorial Track after the legendary Sycamore Hall of Famer. The Sycamores made the announcement in October following the passage of a vote by the Indiana State Board of Trustees.
 
McNichols, who led the Sycamore cross country/track and field programs from 1983 until his death in 2016, guided the Blue and White to 38 MVC Championship titles while winning 23 MVC Coach of the Year honors. He coached 15 NCAA Track National Champions, 112 All-Americans, 173 NCAA Track National Qualifiers and 13 NCAA Cross Country National qualifiers. He oversaw the design, development and construction of the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course which has hosted 13 NCAA Division I Cross Country National Championships.
 
The John McNichols Memorial Track was officially dedicated at the Gibson Invitational, which took place April 17-19.
 
Up Next
Indiana State sets its sights on keeping the conference hardware in Terre Haute when the Trees compete in the MVC Outdoor Championships May 16-17 in Carbondale, Illinois.
 
Follow the Sycamores

For the latest information on the Sycamore Track & Field and Cross Country teams, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
 

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