After a series of long road trips, Eastern’s track and field team will compete in Lantz Fieldhouse for the first time since mid-January’s EIU Mega Meet.

The Panthers enter the Friday Night Special as the No. 9 ranked team in the Midwest Region. Also competing in the event with the Panthers will be Butler, Illinois State, Indiana State, Southern Illinois and Southern Illinois- Edwardsville.

Southern Illinois, which currently sits at No. 16 in the Midwest regional poll, have been on a steady decline since the start of the season. The Salukis started out the season ranked in the top ten of the Midwest, but have since fallen out. The Salukis fell six spots in this week’s regional poll, the farthest drop for any team in the Midwest’s top 25.

Illinois State enters the Friday Night Special as the No. 19 team in the Midwest Region. The Redbirds have eight team members ranked in the region’s top ten in their respective events.

Southern Illinois- Edwardsville comes to the meet as an Ohio Valley Conference rival to the Panthers. Southern Illinois- Edwardsville will likely use the Friday Night Special as a way for their athletes to get acquainted with the track and other conditions at Lantz Fieldhouse, as they will be returning again next weekend for the OVC Indoor Championships, also hosted by the Panthers.

The women’s teams of Butler and Indiana State both bring top fifteen talent to the Friday Night Special, with Indiana State sitting at No. 13 and Butler following right behind at No. 14 in the Great Lakes Region. The men’s teams of Indiana State and Butler are also ranked No. 11 and No. 13 respectively.

The Panthers have faced both Butler and Indiana State at the EIU Early Bird at the beginning of the season.

With one week to go until the OVC Indoor Championships, freshman Ryan Ballard said the team looks to use the meet as a way to prepare for their conference foes.

“We’ll use the Friday Night Special as a bit of a tune-up for conference. It will also give us a chance to finalize the roster,” Ballard said.

Ballard also said the team does not feel any pressure from its top ten regional ranking, but that the team uses it as a motivational tool.

“I see it as motivation. We want to try and get ranked as high as we can, and we’re always looking to compete our best,” Ballard said.

With the weather being as nice as it is, one could think it could be easy for the Panthers to already have their minds set on the outdoor season, but the team is focused to close out their indoor season in a great way.

“We still have to take care of business with two meets left,” Ballard said.

The Panthers will begin the Friday Night Special at 2 p.m. at Lantz Fieldhouse.

Dominic Renzetti can be reached at 581-7944

or [email protected]