The Basics
            The Shocker track and field teams are at home this Friday for the Shocker Invitational inside the Heskett Center.
            It's the fourth meet for the Shockers in the young season, It'll also be the second time the Shockers compete at their home track.
            The meet is set to kick off at 10:30 a.m. with the weight throw. Track events are set to kick off at 3 p.m. with the prelims of the 60-meter hurdles.
 
Follow The Meet
            Fans can follow along with updates on Twitter @GoShockersTFXC. A full recap of each day will be posted on Twitter, Facebook and GoShockers.com.
            A live results link will be sent out when it is made available.
 
Meet Schedule
            The Shocker Invitational is slated to begin at 10:30 a.m. with the weight throw competitions.
            Track events are set to start at 3 p.m. with the prelims of the 60-meter hurdles.
 
Last Time Out
            The Shocker track and field squads went to Lawrence for the Jayhawk Classic and the Wichita State cross country team opened its abbreviated season with the JK Gold Classic.
            Winny Koskei kicked off the cross country season with her second consecutive victory at the JK Gold Classic. The performance set the 4 Mile Creek Resort record for the women's 5K. She led the women's team to a victory in the team race.
            Jed Helker led the way for the Wichita State men. The Shocker men came in second in the team race.
            In Lawrence, the Shockers combined for four individual event victories.
            Faith Turner was the lone victor on Friday, winning the women's triple jump.
            Adam Gauzy won the men's 200 meters with a time of 22.08 seconds. After conversion of a flat track, Gauzy's time is No. 73 in the nation and third-best in the conference.
            Joseph Holthusen won the men's 60-meter hurdles and continued the hot start to his season. He ran a time of 8.01 seconds. Holthusen is sitting at No. 2 in the conference in the event and No. 28 in the country.
            Jacque Darby won the women's long jump with a jump of 5.71m/18-8.75. 
            Michael Bryan had another good showing in the men's weight throw. He tossed the weight 18.82m/61-9 to slot himself at No. 1 in the conference and No. 53 in the NCAA this season.
 
Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt on the Meet
On the mood going into the week
"Like I have said before, We are excited to have track meets. I'm excited that the athletes are catching their stride and their vision to prepare for championship track and field. It has been a struggle to get going because of the extended break. I'm pleased that we have some athletes that are doing a nice job of getting going again. It's been great to see our great hurdle crew get going again. It'll be good to see distance runners on the track this week. It feels like we're trying to nurse some different aches and pains. I see it as standard issue, week-to-week track and field. Certainly, we are trying to have a vision for our championship, which we see as the Championship at the Peak at Air Force."
 
On how competing has effected the team mentally
"We had a longer than normal break over the holidays. It was a seven-week off period. It is interesting and thought-provoking and challenging because it doesn't go back to November, it goes back to February and for our freshmen, it goes back to their junior year of high school. It's been nearly two years for our freshmen. We're trying to help our athletes understand what we do, but we have to adjust our expectations because there could be some challenges getting back into track and field. It's a hard process. Their last memory of track was their outdoor high school championships in 2019. Now they think they should be competing at a higher level, but it's a different world on an indoor track. Our job as coaches, is to help these athletes through that. We are encouraging them that the training is going well because the marks naturally won't be as good as what they were when they were at a championship meet in high school nearly two years ago."
 
Home Sweet Home
            The Shockers are back at home this weekend for the Shocker Invitational. The Wichita State track and field and cross country programs are slated to host five competitions this season, including the AAC Cross Country Championships on Feb. 6.
            The meet was originally set for Oct. 31 until the cross country season was postponed to the spring season.
            Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt said he is looking forward to hosting the cross country conference championship meet. 
            "It's exciting to have a championship event," Rainbolt said.
            On the track, the Shockers have three home meets on the schedule, including this week's Shocker Invitational. The Shocker Prelude opened the season for Wichita State.
            The Herm Wilson Invitational is set to have the first full multi-event of the season for the Shockers. That meet and the conference cross country meet will make for three consecutive days of action in Wichita.
 
Have A Week, Throwers!
            The throws group had a good showing at the Jayhawk Classic last weekend.
            Michael Bryan led the way with a conference-leading toss in the weight throw. He threw the weight 18.82m/61-9 for a third-place finish. His throw also slots him at No. 53 in the nation in the event.
            Sadie Boos set a personal best in the weight throw at KU last weekend. She tossed the weight 16.73m/54-10.75, which also puts her at No. 7 in school history in the event.
            Amanda Kakoulias also improved upon a personal best. She threw the shot 14.89m/48-10.25. She is now at No. 2 in the conference and No. 4 in school history in the event.
            The throws group has another chance to improve upon a stellar week at home on Friday at the Shocker Invitational.