The University of Illinois Springfield track and field program competed at multiple meets over the weekend. The Prairie Stars were at the WashU Distance Carnival on Friday in St. Louis, and travelled to the Big Blue Invite in Decatur, Ill. on Saturday.
 
The Prairie Stars had several top-10 finishes in Saturday's competition. Leading the way was Jake Schwartz who was the runner-up in the men's 1,500m. He ran a time of 4:12.72, just over a second behind the race champion.  In the women's race at that distance, Jade Anderson was fifth overall with a time of 5:19.35, and Emma West had a seventh-place showing.
 
Gloria Esarco had the top women's finish when she came in fourth in the 800m with a mark of 2:25.88. Morgan Suttles was eighth in that event. Breanna Chandler was fifth in the 400m with a time of 1:02.90.
 
Other highlights on the men's side included a top-10 finish for Daniel Amponsah in the 100m. He ran a time of 11.88.
 
At the WashU Distance Carnival, UIS had runners in the 5,000m and 10,000m events. The top Prairie Star women were Chandler in the 5,000m (19:16.6) and Thomsen in the 10,000m (39:19.94). For the men, the fastest UIS runners were Chris Cherry in the 5,000m (14:39.08) and Ryan Jones in the 10,000m (31:09.10).  Cherry had a top-10 finish in his race, coming in ninth out of 171 runners.
 
UIS will be in action again next weekend at the Jim Vargo Invitational in Louisville, Ky.