For Immediate Release
Monday, January 13, 2014
NSIC Media Relations
Full PDF Release

NSIC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week:
Minnesota State Keyvan Rudd (HJ, Sr., Davenport, Iowa)  provisionally qualified in the high jump for the NCAA Championships with a leap of 7’ 0.25” at the Minnesota State Alumni Open on Saturday. That jump is currently the highest mark in all of Division II.

NSIC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week:
Minnesota State’s Jerrell Hancock (Sprints, St. Louis, Mo.) automatically qualified in the 200-meter dash at the MSU Alumni Open on Saturday with a time of 21.67. That currently puts him in the top spot for all of Division II. He also met the provisional-qualifying standard in the 60-meter dash as he finished in first-place with a time of 6.84.

NSIC Women’s Field  Athlete of the Week:
Sioux Falls’ Brigitte Gross (Sr., Alexandria, S.D./Hanson HS) punched her ticket to the NCAA Championships in Salem, N.C. when she won the Minnesota State Alumni Open with a vault of 13’-1.5” (4.00m). The mark is a NCAA automatic qualifying mark and is the top mark in the NSIC and Division II this year.  This marks the seond time this season Gross has been named NSIC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week (12/10/13).

NSIC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week:
Minnesota State’s Zevin Carter (Hurdles, Sr., Ypsilanti, Mich.) met the provisional qualifying standard and set a personal-record in the 60-meter hurdles on Saturday at the MSU Alumni Open as she finished with a time of 8.89.

NSIC Team Notes
Augustana
Augustana track and field was idle this past weekend. The Vikings return to action at the Dordt Open in Sioux Center, Iowa on Jan. 18.

Bemidji State
Women Track:  After more than a month free of competition, the Bemidji State University track and field team gets its 2014 indoor season rolling this weekend as it hosts a pair of events. A handful of BSU student-athletes will participate in the BSU Multi beginning at 7 p.m. Friday. After the heptathlon and pentathlon wrap up Saturday morning, the Beavers will host a the Super 8. The event featuring student-atheltes from at least eight teams will begin at 3 p.m. At the Gillett Recreation-Fitness Center.

Concordia-St. Paul
The Concordia University track and field team had a solid day with 14 PR’s highlighted by a school record performance in the 200m by Alyssa Christianson and a school record tying performance by Michelle Ndely in the 60m hurdle at the Minnesota State Alumni Open.
Women Field: Martina Ware (Throws, 5’6”, Jr., Eagan, Minn., Eastview HS) led the Golden Bears with a team-best 11.14 meter throw in the shot put, good for seventh in the event, and set a PR with a throw of 14.73 meters in the weighted throw.  Her performance in the weighted throw registered in at third in the solid field for the event.
Women Track: Alyssa Christianson (Sprints, 5’6”, Sr., Marshall, Minn. / HS) had a Concordia record-setting day in the 200 meter dash by running with a time of 25.74, shattering the previous school record of 26.10.  She also ran the 60 meter dash, registering in with a time of 7.97 in the prelims to qualify for the finals.
 Men Track: Nic Rudolph (Mid Distance, 6’2”, Jr., Waseca, Minn. / HS) had a strong showing for the Golden Bears in the mile, setting a new PR with a time of 4:34.53.  He shaved nearly five seconds off of his previous career best in an indoor event as he took fourth in the event.  Rudolph also took part in the 4x400m and helped CU to a time of 3:40.68.
Men Field:  Bryan Elyea-Wheeler (Pole Vault, 6’0”, So., Eden Prairie, Minn. / HS) set a new PR by clearing the 4.60 meter mark in the high jump.  The performance was best on the team and helped him finish fourth in the event.

University of Mary
After a six-week layoff, the University of Mary men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams return to competition at NDSU Invitational on Jan. 18. The Marauders then compete every weekend through the Northern Sun championships on Feb. 28 - March 1.
 
Minnesota Duluth
Men Track/Field: Following an extended break, the University of Minnesota Duluth resumed its 2013-14 indoor track and field season Saturday at the Bethel Open in Arden Hills, Minn., and wound up claiming three individual championships.  The Bulldogs, who had last competed on Dec. 7, were joined at the event by two Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schools -- host Bethel University and the College of St. Olaf -- along with a number of unattached athletes. The trio of Bulldog title winners included junior Dan Nielsen in the 1,000-meter run (2:36:14), freshman Jason Lilja in the high jump (1.77 meters) and junior Chris Wilson in the 800-meter run (1:58.25). Lilja also took second in the triple jump (12.09 meters) while sophomore James Ryan did likewise in the 60-meter hurdles (8.98). Nielsen’s time in the 1,000-meter and mile runs (4.22.91; third place) were personal bests.
Next up for UMD is the prestigious Northwest Open next Saturday (Jan. 18) on the University of Minnesota campus.
Women Track/Field: Following an extended break, the University of Minnesota Duluth resumed its 2013-14 indoor track and field season Saturday at the Bethel Open in Arden Hills, Minn., and, with only a select number of Bulldogs on hand, still wound up claiming five individual championships.
 The Bulldogs, who had last competed on Dec. 7, were joined at the event by Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference member and host Bethel University as well as a number of unattached athletes. The quintet of Bulldog title winners included juniors Erin Pangerl in the 60-meter dash (8.01), Amelia Maher in the 400-meter dash (1:00.50) and Jennifer Hitchcock in the weight throw (15.26 meters) and sophomores Madeline Schaeffer in the 60-meter hurdles (9.51) and Hannah Olson in the 1,000-meter run. Maher also took second in the shot put (10.25 meters) and in the 60-meter hurdles (9.55 meters) while sophomore Erica Seidenranz did likewise in the 1-mile run (5:40.45), freshman Brittany Platt in the 1,000-meter run (3:07.80) and  Pangerl in the 200-meter dash (27.55)
Next up for UMD is the prestigious Northwest Open next Saturday (Jan. 18) on the University of Minnesota campus.

Minnesota State
Men Track:  Jerrell Hancock (Sprints, St. Louis, Mo.) automatically qualified in the 200-meter dash at the MSU Alumni Open on Saturday with a time of 21.67. That currently puts him in the top spot for all of Division II. He also met the provisional-qualifying standard in the 60-meter dash as he finished in first-place with a time of 6.84.
Men Field: Keyvan Rudd (HJ, Sr., Davenport, Iowa)  provisionally qualified in the high jump for the NCAA Championships with a leap of 7’ 0.25” at the MSU Alumni Open on Saturday. That jump is currently the highest mark in all of Division II.
Women Track: Zevin Carter (Hurdles, Sr., Ypsilanti, Mich.) met the provisional qualifying standard and set a personal-record in the 60-meter hurdles on Saturday at the MSU Alumni Open as she finished with a time of 8.89.
Women Field: Morgan Stampley (WT, Jr., St. Paul, Minn.) established a new school record and provisionally qualified in the weight throw on Saturday at the MSU Alumni Open with a throw of 57’ 2.25”.
Minnesota State hosted the MSU Alumni Open on Saturday and had four athletes qualify for the National Meet. Senior Jerrell Hancock (St. Louis, Mo.) finished first in both the 60-meter dash and the 200-meter dash. In the 60-meter dash he met the provisional-qualifying standard finishing with a time of 6.84 while running an automatic-qualifying time of 21.67 in the 200-meter dash. Fellow Senior Carmono Lane (Chicago, Ill.) took third-place in the 200-meter dash with a provisional-qualifying time of 22.23. Senior Keyvan Rudd (Davenport, Iowa) had a leap of 7’ 0.25” in the high jump as he also provisionally qualified. Senior Chris Reed (Omaha, Neb.) broke his own school record of 61’ 10.25’ in the weight throw with a provisional-qualifying toss of 62’6.75” en route to a first-place finish.
The women also had four athletes qualify for the National Meet. Junior Morgan Stampley (St. Paul, Minn.) broke the school record in the weight throw and provisionally qualified for nationals with a throw of 57’ 2.25” as she finished in first place. In the pole vault sophomore Faryn Wirkus (Edgar Wis.) and junior Bryanna Sudman (Eden Prairie, Minn.) both met the provisional-qualifying standard as Wirkus finished in second-place with a vault of 12’ 2” while Sudman took third vaulting 11’ 10”. Senior Zevin Carter (Ypsilanti, Mich.) established a personal record and provisionally qualified in the 60-meter dash with a time of 8.89.

MSU Moorhead
Men Track: MSU Moorhead will open their season on Jan. 18 at the Jack Johnson Invite at the University of Minnesota.

Minot State
Minot State opens their season on January 18 at the Bemidji State Super 8 Open.

Northern State
NSU competes for the first time this season at the NSU Open on Jan. 18 in Aberdeen, S.D. 

Southwest Minnesota State
Men Track: Redshirt freshman Alejandro Sanchez (Plano, Texas) earned a first place finish in the 800-meter with time of 2:00.98 and also was a member of the first place 4x400 relay team (3:26.33) during SMSU’s first-ever Division II indoor track meet at the Minnesota State Open on Saturday.
Women Track: Freshman Amanda Greng (Minneota, Minn.) finished third in the 800-meter with a time of 2:33.01, leading SMSU in its first-ever Division II indoor track meet at Minnesota State on Saturday.

Sioux Falls
The USF track and field team competed for the first time in 2014 on Saturday at the MSU Mankato Alumni Open. USF came away from the meet with 12 top-two finishes, two NCAA provisional qualifying marks and one NCAA automatic qualifying mark. The Cougars will compete next on January 18 at the Dordt Open in Sioux Center, Iowa.
Women Field: Brigitte Gross (Sr., Alexandria, S.D./Hanson HS) punched her ticket to the NCAA Championships in Salem, N.C. when she won the meet with her vault of 13-1.5 (4.00m). The mark is a NCAA automatic qualifying mark and is the top mark in the NSIC and Division II this year.
Women Track: Kendra Knight (Sr., Mitchell, S.D./Mitchell HS) was the first runner to cross the line in the 600m run as she ran a conference leading time of 1:34.63 on her way to victory.
Men Track: Kaleb Lindsey-Stevens (Sr., Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) came away with a second place finish in the 400m dash with his time of 51.88 which is the third fastest 400m Dash time run in the NSIC this season. Lindsey-Stevens also competed in the Long Jump where he finished second overall with his leap of 22-8.5 (6.92m) which is the top mark in the conference this season.
Men Field:  Scott Greenman (So., Clovis, Calif./Clovis HS) claimed the title in the Pole Vault for the Cougars as he jumped a NCAA provisional mark of 16-0.75 which is the top mark in the NSIC this season and is the third best vault in Division II this year.

St. Cloud State
St. Cloud State track & field competed in their first meet of the 2014 Indoor season Saturday, Jan. 11 as they travel to the MSU Alumni Open, hosted by Minnesota State.
Women’s Track & Field: The Huskies also had a couple second place individual finishes in the women’s 3000m run with freshman Sam Sunstrom’s time of 10:27.72 and the women’s shot put as sophomore Heather Clankie threw a mark of 38-07.75. Freshman Patience Yalartai jumped to a fourth place finish in the long jump with a mark of 17-03.50. In the women’s weight throw, Stephanie Waletzko earned a sixth place finish with a collegiate best mark of 45-10.75. On the track it was freshman Jasmine Grant placing sixth (26.42) in the 200m dash.
Men’s Track & FIeld: Sophomore Ryan Johnson finished fourth in the weight throw with a mark of 52-11.50. Johnson also competed in the shot put taking third on a throw of 48-04.75. In the men’s 200m dash it was freshman Dillando Allotey finishing fourth (22.41).
The Huskies earned top finishes in the men and women’s 4x400m relay as the men took second place (3:26.96) and the women fourth (4:05.33).
The Huskies will be back in action on Saturday, Jan. 18 as they host the 3rd Annual Van Nelson Invitational.
 
Wayne State
The Wayne State track teams resume their season following the holiday break competing at the Dordt College Open in Sioux Center, Iowa on Saturday, January 18th.

Winona State
Winona State will compete in its first meet of 2014 on Saturday when it takes part in the St. Mary’s Opener in Winona.