KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan track and field team will head to Ypsilanti, Mich. for the Indoor MAC Championships on Friday. The two-day meet is being hosted by Eastern Michigan University. All 12 MAC programs will be in attendance. 

LAST TIME OUT
WMU had a trio of athletes compete at the GVSU Tune-Up last weekend. Jade Celestine collected third place in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.98, while Laurie-Ann Desormes posted a time of 7.82 in the 60-meter dash. In the 400-meter dash, Layla Wallace was able to record a time of 1:00.93, which was just .01 off of her personal-best time. 

LAST YEAR'S EVENT
Western Michigan had its best team finish since 2019 at last year's MAC Championships. The Broncos placed sixth with 52 points. Headlining the meet was Sandra Ferrari, who was the MAC Champion in the 60-meter hurdles. She was program's first ever champion in the event. She also finished second in the long jump, leading to her being named the MAC Freshman Field Performer of the Year. 

Outside of her, Mabinty Kebe, Kayla Schiera, Bri'Yanna Robinson, Lane Hagens, Anichka Malachi, Soniya Jones, Annalise James, Laurie-Ann Desormes and Danielle Rinn all helped the Broncos add points to the board. Kebe, Robinson, Hagens, Malachi, Jones and Desormes are all back this season. 

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
The Broncos have had a tremendous indoor season, and that is reflected in the latest polls. Earlier this week, the Brown and Gold checked in at No. 23 in the Great Lakes Region, up from No. 26 just a few weeks ago. The Broncos are among the 10 MAC teams ranked this week. 

In terms of specific events, WMU has a trio of groups ranked in the top 80 nationally. The 60-meter hurdles group of Sandra Ferrari, Mabinty Kebe, Angel Pratt and Jade Celestine currently sits at No. 53. They have an average time of 8.75. Distance wise, the 5K squad has been terrific, combining for an average time of 17:36.69. The group of Lillian Zelasko, Brooke Soper, Larissa McGrath and Lauren Sancrant sits at No. 61 in the nation.

On the throws side, the weight throw has been WMU's strength. That group sits at No. 80 in the nation with an average mark of 14.80 meters. That quartet consists of Bri'Yanna Robinson, Kennedy Hagens, Lane Hagens and Thierry Campbell.

WHO'S COMPETING? (Denotes PR)
LONG JUMP
Sandra Ferrari (6.19 meters)

WEIGHT THROW
Kennedy Hagens (16.39 meters)
Bri'Yanna Robinson (20.24 meters) 

ONE MILE
Lily Overton (4:56.85)

60M HURDLES
Mabinty Kebe (8.56)
Jade Celestine (8.73)
Sandra Ferrari (8.38)

400M DASH
Angel Pratt (55.56)

60M DASH
Sandra Ferrari (7.62)
Laurie-Ann Desormes (7.57)
Soniya Jones (7.42)

800M
Ava Kurczewski (2:14.00)

200M DASH
Soniya Jones (24.20)
Angel Pratt (24.80)

5K
Brooke Soper (17:28.06)
Larissa McGrath (17:22.84)
Lillian Zelasko (16:42.70)

DMR
Lara Machado Pereira, Layla Wallace, Rebekah Asselin, Madison Zarembski (Group Debut)

TRIPLE JUMP
Anichka Malachi (12.16 meters)

SHOT PUT
Lane Hagens (14.00 meters)
Tess Van Dyk (14.79 meters)
Bri'Yanna Robinson (16.65 meters)

3K
Lauren Sancrant (10:08.22)
Lily Overton (9:41.37)
Lillian Zelasko (9:40.48)

4x400 RELAY
Soniya Jones, Layla Wallace, Jade Celestine, Angel Pratt (3:56.48)