MARQUETTE, Mich. - After their strong performance at the Indoor GLIAC Indoor Championships, where they finished fifth out of 10 teams, concluding the indoor season, the Northern Michigan Track & Field team will be back in action this weekend.

The Wildcats will take part in the Joyce Morton-Kief Invite hosted by Illinois State, on Friday and Saturday, March 27-28, as well as the Big Blue Outdoor Opener hosted by Millikin University. 

The Joyce Morton-Kief Invite will begin on Friday, March 27th, at 3 p.m. ET with two Wildcats in the hammer throw. The main field events will begin on Saturday at 11 a.m. ET and the track events will begin at 1 p.m. ET. 

In addition, Northern will have five throwers compete at the Big Blue Outdoor Opener on Saturday, hosted by Millikin.  


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Follow @NMU_Track_Field and @NMU_Wildcats on X for updates leading up to and during the events.


Last Time Out
To close out the indoor season, the Wildcats competed in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Indoor Championships, finishing fifth.  

In total, Northern had eight medalists. The Wildcats had a second-place finish from Alayna Vandegriff and four bronze medal finishes, highlighted by Beverly Harper earning an individual as well as playing a role in two third-place relays. 


Last Season at The Redbird Challenge 
In the first outdoor meet of last season, NMU shined under rainy and windy conditions at the Redbird Challenge, tying for 2nd place among 14 teams. 

The Green and Gold earned a trio of wins on the day, all coming from seniors in their final outdoor opener. Skylar Grubb bested the field in the 5000m race, while the hurdles proved to be no hurdle for the Wildcats, as their two first-place finishes came from Crystal Walker in the 100m hurdle race and from Ahna Larson in the 400m version.  

Northern had three other podium finishes, with Sophia Potter taking second in the 5000m, Adelyn Sanders placing third in the shot put, and Dani VanLente taking third in the 3000m steeplechase. The 'Cats also had seven other finishes in the top-5.