Nebraska track and field senior Zach Podraza was crowned the heptathlon champion at the Illini B1G Multi-Meet on Saturday at the UI Armory in Champaign, Illinois.
Podraza, a San Diego native, rallied from third place in the standings after day one to win the heptathlon title by 221 points. He started day two by finishing second in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.39. He then gained the overall lead with the best pole vault clearance of any competitor, 15-5 (4.70m). Podraza finished out the day with a run of 2:54.02 in the 1,000 meters, which was good for third in the event and a comfortable win in the final standings.