WICHITA, Kan. – The Wichita State track and field teams open the 2018-19 schedule Nov. 30 at the Shocker Multi, which will be at the Heskett Center.
 
Wichita State will host seven meets during the indoor and outdoor seasons, including the American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships on May 10-12.
 
The Shockers return 94 student-athletes and welcome 27 newcomers to the 2018-19 season. The returners tally a total of 23 individual conference titles, 22 NCAA West preliminary appearances, 10 school records and three NCAA All-America honors.   
 
Indoor Preview
 
The Shockers open the season with the Shocker Multi on Nov. 30, followed by the Intrasquad Meet on Dec. 7 ending 2018. Opening up 2019, Wichita State travels to Big Ten country to compete at the Hawkeye Invitational on Jan. 12 before traveling to Lawrence, Kan., to compete against in-state rivals Kansas and Kansas State at the KU/KSU/WSU Triangular on Jan. 18. Saturday, Jan. 19 the Shockers host their last indoor meet of the season with the Shocker Prelude.
 
On Jan. 24 the Shockers travel west to Colorado Springs, Colo., to compete at the Air Force Invitational. Last season the Shockers found success competing at the Cadet Field House Indoor Track facility as they compiled 52 personal best marks and nine additions to the indoor all-time top-10 list, including a school record by Denvoir Griffin in the 60m (6.76).
 
In February, the Shockers will send a majority of the team to compete at the Gorilla Classic in Pittsburg, Kan., on February 8-9, while a select few will travel to Arkansas for the Tyson Invitational at the Randal Tyson Track Center. The Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark., is recognized as "The Home of the Fastest Indoor Track in the World." Since it's opening in 2000, the $8 million facility has played host to numerous world-class indoor meets, including 12 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships and eight SEC Indoor Championships.
 
To round out the indoor regular season, the track and field program will split the team on Feb. 15, sending athletes to compete at the Arkansas Qualifier in Fayetteville, Ark., and the K-State Tune-Up in Manhattan, Kan.
 
The Birmingham CrossPlex will be home for all postseason action beginning with the 2018 American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships on Feb. 22-23, followed by the NCAA Indoor Championships on March 8-9.  Last season the Shockers walked away from the Birmingham CrossPlex with 10 All-Conference honors, two individual conference titles and one school record set by Kelsey Slawson in the shot put (15.48m/50-9.5)
 
Outdoor Preview
 
Opening the 2019 outdoor season, the Shockers will send the throwers to Emporia, Kan., to compete at the ESU Spring Invite on March 16, followed by the first of four home meets on March 21-23 with the Shocker Spring Invitational. The non-scored meet will feature Southeastern Conference foe Missouri and Big Ten member Nebraska. Missouri's Gabi Jacobs, a redshirt senior for the 2019 season and a two-time NCAA All-American placed fifth in the women's discus for the second consecutive year at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Jacobs is also a two-time SEC conference champion and the Missouri school record holder in the discus. Nebraska returns first team All-American Luke Siedhoff on the men's team. Siedhoff, a junior from Crete, Neb., finished seventh in the 110m hurdles (13.99) at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
 
The last week of March, the Shockers will split between four destinations, the top distance runners will travel to the West Coast on March 29-30 to compete at either the Stanford Invitational in Stanford, Calif., or the San Francisco Distance Carnival in San Francisco, Calif. Qualified athletes will travel south to Austin, Texas to compete at the 92nd Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays on March 27-30, while the rest of the team will compete at the ESU Relays on Saturday, March 30 in Emporia, Kan.
 
The Shockers host the Pre-State Challenge/K.T. Woodman Classic, beginning with the K.T. Woodman Multis on April 10-11, followed by the Pre-State Challenge on April, 11-12, while the K.T. Woodman resumes on Friday, April 12-13.
 
Wichita State will return to the Kansas Relays on April 17-20, after not traveling to Lawrence during the 2018 season, the Shockers are entered in the quadrangular with Kansas, Purdue and a team to later be announced. Multiple athletes not competing in the quadrangular will enter the Kansas Relays open events.
 
The fourth week of April, the top distance runners will travel to Des Moines, Iowa to compete at the Drake Relays on April 24-27, while the rest of the Shockers will head to Lubbock, Texas, to battle in the Red Raider Shootout. The distance runners found great success running in Des Moines during the 2018 outdoor season. Winny Koskei ran the sixth fastest time in Shocker history finishing third overall in the women's 5000m seeded race on April 26, while Rebekah Topham set a school record on June 21, in the 3000m steeplechase (10:00.59) at USATF Outdoor Championships.
 
The Shockers wrap up the outdoor regular season hosting the Shocker Open on Friday, May 3. In 2018, the Shockers set 23 personal best marks at the meet, while Slawson bettered her previous school record winning the shot put with a mark of 15.56m/51-0.75. Zack Penrod ran the fifth fastest 1500m time in Shocker history winning the race in 3:45.41.
 
In just the second year as members of the American Athletic Conference, Wichita State will host the 2019 American Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships on May 10-12 in Cessna Stadium. Qualified athletes will continue post-season action with the NCAA West Preliminaries in Sacramento, Calif., on May 23-25, finishing up the 2019 outdoor season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships on June 5-8 in Austin, Texas, at Mike A. Myers Stadium.