Ali Bishel picked up right where she left off.
The Ball State University sophomore won the 800-meter run at the 2008 Ball State University Open Friday. Her time of 2:21.47 was a personal best.
"It felt good to compete," said Bishel, who also runs cross country for the Cardinals. "I haven't run the 800 in almost a year."
Bishel qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships in the fall. Although she began practicing for track a week later, she said she had no trouble making the adjustment.
"It's pretty much the same mileage but there are no hills," Bishel said. "That's a plus."
The Cardinals competed against the University of Dayton's distance group and a handful of other individual athletes in their first meet of the season.
Ball State head coach Randy Heisler said he was impressed with the effort his team put forth.
"We knew going into this meet that other than in distance events, it was going to be our kids against ourselves," Heisler said. "We still had a couple kids who almost broke school records. In virtual time trials, that's pretty good."
Heisler particularly cited the efforts of Lauren McNichols and Cara Collins. McNichols took first place in both the pole vault and the high jump. She cleared 11-feet-6-inches in the pole vault, less than two inches off her school record. Collins moved from fifth place to second place in Ball State history in the weight throw with a toss of 60-feet and 1 and-three-quarter inches. Her distance of 43 feet and 5 and half-inches in the shot put was also a personal best.
The Cardinals will be without sprinter and hurdler Amber Williams this season. An All-American a year ago, Williams will redshirt the 2008 season as she trains for the Olympic trials in July. She competed in Friday's meet as an unattached athlete. Williams won both the 60-meter dash and the 200-meter dash with times of 7.64 and 25.6 seconds. Katie Johnson finished second in both events.
Heisler said he knows other athletes will have to step up in Williams' absence if the Cardinals hope to reach their goals this season.
"My goal at the beginning of the year is to win the conference," Heisler said. "Everything we do is built towards reaching that goal. To do this, everybody's going to have to perform well."
One Ball State athlete who did just that was senior Laura Bandy. Bandy finished second in the one-mile run, in her first collegiate race. The four-year member of the Ball State soccer team clocked in at 5:21.53, 0.24 seconds behind Dayton's Brigitte Sherman.
Next up for the Cardinals is the Bowling Green Quadrangular Jan. 18.
After a full year as head coach, Heisler said he feels encouraged by the progress he's seen.
"Last year at this meet, I had only been here for three days," he said. "I'm pleased with the difference [Friday] from last year. We're in a lot better shape. Plus, I know everybody's name."
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