The Vincennes University Men’s and Women’s Track and Field teams hit the road again this weekend to head to the 2025 Bellarmine Jim Vargo Invitational in Louisville.
The meet was supposed to be two days, starting Friday April 4, with a majority of the events running Saturday, April 5.
However, rain and flooding expected in the Louisville area caused the Saturday portion of the meet to be cancelled after just a few events running on Friday.
“Friday was wet and rainy but we were able to get a few events in,” VU Interim Head Track and Field Coach Tyler Steigenga said. “Unfortunately, due to expected flooding in Louisville, the majority of the meet, which was scheduled for Saturday, was cancelled.”
The Trailblazers were able to get some good work in before the weekend cancellation, headlined by sophomore Maliek Bush (Jeffersonville, Ind.) and freshman Chase Guthrie (Indianapolis, Ind.) finishing one-two in the long jump.
Bush was able to out jump the field Friday afternoon with a best jump of 6.98 meters to take the top spot in the event.
Guthrie placed right behind his teammate with a best jump of 6.84 meters to take second overall.
Freshman Anis Abdaoui (Kairouan, Tunisia) was the third and final VU athlete who was able to compete this weekend and was also able to leave an impression on the field.
Abdaoui came away with a 10th place finish in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:54.51, qualifying him for the Outdoor National Championships in May.
“Maliek came away from the long jump with a slight PR, just missing the coveted seven-meter mark,” Steigenga added. “Chase had a solid outdoor opener, finishing just behind him. They are now ninth and 10th overall on the VU top 10 list in the long jump.”
“Anis took to the track for the 5000m and came away with a new PR and a time that ranks him third in school history,” Steigenga said. “It was also his second National qualifier of the outdoor season.”
The Trailblazers will look to see if mother nature will be a little more cooperative next weekend as the Blazers get set to head to the 2025 Indiana Little State Championships hosted by Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind.
This meet will begin Friday, April 11 and finish up on Saturday, April 12.
VU will then turn their attention to the 2025 Indiana State University Gibson Invitational in Terre Haute.
The big three-day meet is set to begin Thursday, April 17 and run through Saturday, April 19 at Indiana State University.
“It was disappointing to learn that Saturday’s meet was cancelled, but it was good to be able to come out Friday and come away with three good results,” Steigenga added. “The outdoor season is full of ups and downs with the added element of weather but we’ve got to be ready to take advantage of every opportunity we get, even if it’s not ideal. We did that today and I’m proud of the guys for that.”
MEET RESULTS
5000m
Anis Abdaoui – 10, 14:54.51
Long Jump
Maliek Bush – 1, 6.98m
Chase Guthrie – 2, 6.84m
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