The ISU track and field teams collected nine first-place finishes highlighted by two NCAA regional meet qualifiers at the Arizona State Invitational.

The meet was Friday and Saturday in Tempe, Ariz.

Jamal Salahuddin was the runner-up in the discus with a throw of 178-9 and also competed in the shot put. Men’s head coach Steve Lynn said Salahuddin qualified for the NCAA regional meet in the discus.

“For Jamal, this was the first time he did two events in the same meet,” Lynn said. “He did really well in the discus, but he didn’t do really well in the shot. So that’s an adjustment thing of getting a chance to do it more.”

Salahuddin agreed it will take some time to adjust to doing another event.

“The main thing we do to prepare for the outdoor season is a lot of drills,” Salahuddin said. “But I didn’t do too hot in the shot.”

Ryan Boyington also regionally qualified in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 52.47.

Dan Taylor won the 1500-meter run, clocking in at 3:52.86, and Dan Wiltgen placed third in the same event with a time of 3:55.16.

Lynn was pleased with both of their performances.

“Dan’s been one of the leaders in the distance group all year, going back to cross country [last fall] and the indoor season,” Lynn said. “He had an injury during the indoor season that set him back a ways. He’s back on top of his game now, and that was a good win for him.

“[Dan Wiltgen] is a senior that was fighting to get on varsity. He had never broken four minutes [in the 1500-meter run], so it was a great start for him as well.”

Matt Murdock and Tyson Hilgenberg finished at the top in the javelin with throws of 217-1 and 216-9, respectively. It was a great start for them considering they compete in the javelin at outdoor meets only.

Lynn was especially pleased with Hilgenberg’s second-place finish and personal best throw, because he is a former ISU baseball player and relatively new to the event.

“He didn’t even know what a javelin looked like three years ago,” Lynn said. “[Throws coach Dan] O’Mara liked him and thought that he would be somebody who would work really hard. With [baseball] getting dropped, we wanted to give him something to do.”

“He qualified for NCAA regionals, and that’s quite an accomplishment. Last year, I think his best throw was 197, and to come out and throw basically 20 feet farther since last year indicates the work he’s been doing.”

On the women’s side, NCAA indoor All-American Sheba Clarke won the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.81 and placed second in the 200-meter dash (24.31). She said competing outdoors is an adjustment for her because of weather conditions.

“Being out in the heat can dehydrate you, and running against the wind can affect your time,” Clarke said.

Clarke holds the ISU record for the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.35.

“I forgot how long the 100-meter dash was,” she said. “I had to keep up and maintain speed for 40 more yards [than I was used to.] I haven’t run it in almost a year.”

Ada Anderson placed third in the 400-meter dash, clocking in at 56.50. Jenny Mockler and Jessica Huff placed first and third in the women’s 800-meter run with times of 2:11.83 and 2:12.19, respectively.