Anstey Named Athlete of the Week

Photo Courtesy: goredbirds.com

NORMAL – Redbird Track & Field senior Jack Anstey was recognized as Missouri Valley Conference athlete of the week following his performance at the Last Chance College Elite Meet in Seattle last weekend.

Anstey ran a sub four-minute mile for the second time in his career. The prior experience of reaching that mark before helped him persevere.

“With a barrier like that it’s super intimidating so if you doubt yourself your chance of doing it is over,” said Anstey. “So, going into it I just had to stay locked in mentally.”

With a time of 3:59.93, Anstey is currently among the nation’s best in the event. He is ranked 30th in the NCAA. Anstey feels that he can continue to climb up the national ranks.

“After finishing seventh at the National Championships last year I want to be able to get back to that level,” said Anstey. It just shows the depth of the NCAA right now. There’s probably 200 guys in the world that could break four minutes and to think that a quarter of those are in the NCAA is pretty ridiculous.”

The task this weekend for Anstey and the Redbirds is the MVC championships at UNI. Both the men’s and women’s teams have won the past two indoor championships. The program is looking to become the first team in conference history to complete a three-year sweep.

This previous experience is both an advantage and a burden for the Redbirds.

“I look at it as a relief because the experience is vital. Having done it before we know what we need to do,” said Anstey. “On the other side of the coin people expect us to win which a lot of pressure but I’m confident we can do it again.”

Events at the MVC Championships will begin Saturday at 9:30 a.m.