McLean County Times

The Illinois State Track & Field program has unveiled its schedule for the 2024-25 indoor and outdoor seasons. The schedule includes 16 regular season meets, with five events hosted at home.

The Redbirds will start their season by hosting the John Coughlan Invite on December 6 and 7 at Horton Field House. After a holiday break, they will face Indiana State in the annual Coughlan-Malloy Cup on January 17. Last year, Illinois State was defeated by Indiana State after winning the cup for four consecutive years.

On January 24-25, the team will travel to Iowa City for the Larry Wieczorek Invite, marking their third consecutive appearance. The following weekend, they will compete at the Dr. Rick McGuire Invitational in Columbia, Missouri on January 31 and February 1.

Illinois State returns to Bloomington-Normal for the Keck Select Invitational hosted by Illinois-Wesleyan University on February 7-8. They will then head to Nashville for the Vanderbilt Invitational on February 14-15 before concluding their regular season with the Redbird Tune-up on February 21.

In March, Illinois State aims for a conference title at the MVC Championships in Chicago from March 2-3. Qualifying athletes will move on to compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Virginia Beach on March 14-15.

The outdoor season begins with a split squad: some athletes staying in Normal for the Redbird Challenge on March 28-29 while others compete at WashU Distance Festival in St. Louis on March 28.

April starts with a trip to Oxford, Mississippi for the Joe Walker Invite on April 4-5, followed by hosting The Normal Invite on April 11-12. Later that month, athletes will participate in either the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa or Michael Johnson Invitational in Waco from April 16-19. The month concludes with participation in the Drake Relays from April 24-26.

May opens with Illinois State hosting Senior Spotlight on May 2 before traveling to Madison for Wisconsin Twilight on May 9. The postseason begins with MVC Outdoor Championships from May 16-18 in Carbondale.

Qualifying athletes will advance to NCAA West Preliminary Round in College Station from May 28-31, aiming for spots at NCAA Outdoor Championships scheduled from June 11-14 in Eugene, Oregon.