SIUC men’s track and field coach Bill Cornell calls Saturday’s meet a yard stick to measure his team’s prospects for the season.

The men’s and women’s track and field teams will compete in the SIU Booster Club Invite Saturday at the Recreation Center, where they will attempt to improve on their last-place finishes at Illinois State University Dec. 6.

Obviously, it’s an important meet for us, Cornell said. We’re a young team with only four seniors, so I’m pretty excited about the upcoming year.

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Cornell wants his team to come together for a solid performance after more than a month off.

It will show what kind of talent we have if the kids can come off Christmas break with a good meet, Cornell said.

The Salukis’ toughest competition is expected to come from Southeastern Conference opponents University of Mississippi and Mississippi State University and Atlantic Coast Conference foe Georgia Tech University.

The men’s team features a solid core of jumpers. Although the team is without top jumper Neophytos Kalogerou, the squad is still a consistent pack. Kalogerou suffered a torn Achilles tendon during a jump-off at 6 feet 10 inches against teammate Loren King at the Illinois State meet.

Along with King, the Salukis will rely on triple jumper Sam Rone and long jumpers Orlando McKee and Jeraldo Henry to carry the load.

McKee and Henry did not compete at the Illinois State meet because they were not fully trained after finishing the Saluki football season. Henry, who will also compete in the 200-meter dash, said the tough competition will not alter his focus.

I’m just looking forward to everything, Henry said. I feel pretty confident about my chances. I just want to establish where I’m at now.

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The women’s track and field team is also attempting to build on its third-place finish at Illinois State.

Women’s coach Don DeNoon said the meet should provide quality competition.

It will be a very, very tough meet, DeNoon said. It appears as Mississippi State and Georgia Tech are the toughest of the bunch. We will definitely have our hands full.

DeNoon is looking for a solid meet from distance runner Kelly French, pole vaulter Leah Steele and 600-meter runner Mindy Bruck. Also high on his list is the distance medley relay team of Becky Cox, Leah Nolden, Bruck and Raina Larsen.

French placed first at the Illinois State meet in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 10 minutes and 24.82 seconds. Steele triumphed in the pole vault competition with a 9-foot vault.

DeNoon wants the team to establish a solid team effort and recover from the disappointment at Illinois State.

It will be tough, quality competition all along the line, DeNoon said. I would like to finish in the top four or five.

Factoid:The men’s and women’s track and field team will compete in the Booster Club Invite in Carbondale at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Recreation Center.