From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Usually, if Bryanna Craig is throwing the javelin, it’s part of a heptathlon.

This weekend, she had the rare luxury of competing in an open javelin, and she responded with a huge PR.

Purdue competed over the weekend in the Hurricane Invitational in Coral Gables, Fla., and while the meet doesn’t have a heptathlon, Craig was busy doing four individual events. Which is terrific heptathlon training two weeks out from her first college multi.

The high point for Craig in Miami was the javelin, which she threw 130-4 and placed 4th overall. Her previous PR was 118-6 from World Junior Championships in Cali, Columbia, in August.

Considering that 118-6 is worth 593 points in a heptathlon and 130-4 is worth 662 points, that’s a significant jump.

Craig also ran a near-PR 14.11 for 7th in the 100-meter hurdles, high jumped 5-5 ¼ and ran the 200 in 25.06, a PR but wind-aided (2.7).

So far this spring, she ranks 3rd in the Big Ten in the high jump, 6th in the hurdles and 8th. She hasn’t long jumped yet this spring, but the top two long jumpers so far this spring in the Big Ten are from South Jersey – Rancocas Valley’s Kristina Tossas, a Rutgers junior and the conference champ and school record holder indoors, is No. 1 at 20-5, and Winslow’s Tionna Tobias is No. 2 at 20-1. Both are outdoor PRs.

The 14.11 is only 3-100ths off her PR of 14.08 from 2021 in Austin. She’s high jumped 5-10 outdoors at a meet in West Monroe, La., last April. Her wind-legal 200 PR is 25.29 from Eugene USA Under 20’s in Eugene in June.

Craig, who spent her first two years of high school at Millville and graduated from Ruston (La.) High, set her lifetime best of 5,388 points in June when she placed 2nd in the USA Under-20 Championships in Eugene.

This winter, she scored 4,046 points to place 2nd in the Big Ten Championships, 49 points ahead of Tobias, who was 3rd. That ranked her 2nd among all collegiate freshmen.

Craig’s other PRs: 58.14 in the 400, 2:14.27 in the 800, 18-8 ¼ in the long jump (19-0 ¼ wind aided) and 34-7 shot put.

Craig will make her collegiate heptathlon debut March 29-30 at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin.

She’ll be competing against a loaded field including indoor NCAA pentathlon champ Jadin O’Brien of Notre Dame and All-Americas Sterling Lester of Florida and Kristine Blazeevica of Texas.