The invitational will serve as one of two final tune-ups before the team competes in the SEC Indoor Championships in Lexington, Kentucky.
Coach Dan Waters said he is proud of the efforts of his team thus far but hopes to see continued improvement down the home stretch of the regular season.
“We’ve performed very well,” he said. “I’ve been pleased and encouraged, especially with some of our younger athletes. However, with SECs in three weeks, now is the time for us to start kicking things up a notch.”
The men’s team is currently ranked 12th in the country in the Division I coaches’ rankings. The team has been led by several standout individual performances, such as Alex Amankwah’s once world-leading 800-meter performance, and strong showings from Matt Airola and Robbie Farnham-Rose in the mile.
Like his coach, Farnham-Rosef said he is confident the men’s team is capable of more.
“When you have a few guys really succeeding it makes everyone want to strive to perform at their best,” he said. “We just need to keep doing the things we’ve done well and continue to improve.”
While the women’s team may not boast the same high ranking as the men, they are still confident in their abilities to perform this weekend and in future meets.
“I feel really good about our season so far,” sophomore pole vaulter Lakan Taylor said. “We’re all improving and we have a lot to lo look forward to.”
Taylor said she thinks the women’s team will fly under the radar in the last few regular season meets.
“We’re viewed as underdogs right now,” she said. “But by nationals, our team will be one that nobody sees coming.”
Waters said he hopes the Husker Invitational will serve as an opportunity for his team to begin rounding into postseason form.
“We need to continue to strengthen some technical aspects of our team, as well as continue to work on our competitive toughness,” he said. “We’ve performed well to this point, but we have to keep improving if we want to reach our team and individual goals.”
