Eastern Illinois men's track and field added seven faces to the Panthers roster for next season with many of the incoming athletes competing recently at the IHSA Track & Field State Championships held at EIU's O'Brien Field.   The group includes a mixture of state qualifiers in several events.
 
Weston Averkamp competed in track and field at Ottawa Township High School advancing to the IHSA Class 3A State Championships as a senior in both the 110-meter hurdles and 300-meter hurdles.  Averkamp placed third in the state in the 300 hurdles with a finals time of 38.35 after posting a prelim finals time of 38.06.  He finished seventh in the state in the 110 hurdles with a finals time of 14.44.  Averkamp was the Minooka Sectional champion in both events.  He made additional state championship trips in the 300 hurdles as a sophomore and junior placing sixth as a junior.  Averkamp also competed in the state championships in the 110 hurdles as a junior. 
 
Benjamin Roedl competed in track and field at Altamont High School helping the team finish fifth at the IHSA Class 1A State Championships.  Roedl posted three top three podium finishes winning the state title in the triple jump while placing second in the state in the high jump and third in the long jump.  Roedl's gold medal triple jump distance was 45'10.25" while he cleared 6'5.50" to earn silver in the high jump.  His bronze medal jump in the long jump covered 22'1.50".  Roedl had won the Altamont Sectional with a season best long jump of 22'4.25".  During the indoor season he placed second at the Illinois Top Times meet in both the triple jump and high jump while placing fourth in the long jump.  Roedl advanced to the state meet in the high jump all four years of high school with three triple jump state appearances and two long jump state trips.
 
Teegan Simmons competed in track and field at Monroe High School in Michigan.  Simmons qualified for the MHSAA LP Division I Finals as a senior in both the shot put and discus.  During the season he posted a season best mark of 179'0" in the discus with a season best mark of 55'6" in the shot put.  As a junior he placed sixth at the MHSAA LP Division I Finals in the discus with a finals throw of 164'8".  He also advanced to the finals in both the shot put and the 300-meter hurdles.  Simmons qualified for the finals in the discus as both a freshman and sophomore.
 
Gavin Snyder competed in track and field at Cypress Christian High School in Texas.  He finished fourth at the TAPPS State Championships in the 200 meters as a senior with a finals time of 21.91.  He also advanced to the state championship on the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams.  Snyder ran the anchor leg on the 4x200 relay team that placed second in the state with a finals time of 1:30.15.  As a junior he finished fifth at the state meet in the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.01 while also qualifying as a member of the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams.  In addition, Snyder was the state champion in the pole vault as a junior clearing 15'6" at the state meet.  He began his prep career running as a sophomore at Houston Cypress Ranch High School. 
 
Maxwell St. Clair competed in track and field at West Allis Nathan Hale High School in Wisconsin.  As a senior he placed second in the D1 Sectional 6 in both the 110-meter hurdles and 300-meter hurdles.  His time in the 110 hurdles was 14.70 after running a personal best time of 14.05 at the D1 Regional 6A.  His 300 hurdle time in the Sectional was 40.19 after posting a personal record at the GMC Outdoor Championships of 39.86.  During the indoor season St. Clair won the 60-meter hurdles at the Wisconsin Indoor State Championships with a time of 8.01.  He also qualified for the long jump at the indoor state championship.  As a junior St. Clair finished sixth in the state at the WIAA D1 State Championships in the 110-meter hurdles and 12th in the 300-meter hurdles.
 
Will Viken competed in track and field at Rolling Meadows High School qualifying for the IHSA Class 3A State Championships three times in the pole vault.  Viken won the Hoffman Estates Sectional as a senior with a winning vault of 15'8.25".  He cleared 15'9" at the Illinois Indoor Championships as a senior.  As a junior he was second at the Glenbard North Sectional after placing third as a sophomore at the Wheaton Warrenville South Sectional, qualifying for the state championship on height. 
 
Sawyer Woodard competed in track and field at Tuscola High School helping lead the school to a second place finish at the IHSA Class 1A State Championships this season.  Woodard earned bronze at the state meet in both the shot put and discus marking the second straight year he competed at the state championships in both events.  Woodard placed third at the finals in the shot put this season with a mark of 54'9.25" with his third place throw in the discus landing at 170'7".   His season best performance in the shot put came with a first place finish at the Moweaqua Sectional with a mark of 55'0.25".  As a junior he landed on the podium with a fourth place finish in the discus of 157'3".  He placed 11th at the state meet in the shot put as a junior.