For Immediate Release
Monday, April 7, 2014
NSIC Medial Relations
Full PDF Release

NSIC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week:
Sioux Falls’ Scott Greenman (Pole Vault, So., Clovis, Calif./Clovis HS) came in second overall at the UNK Loper Invite with his NCAA provisional qualifying leap of 15-11.25 (4.86m). Greenman currently holds the top mark in the Pole Vault in the NSIC and the 15th best mark in Division II.

NSIC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week:
Minnesota Duluth’s junior Dan Nielsen (Andover, Minn. / Andover HS) won the 5000 meters at the Ashton May Invite in La Crosse, Wis. in an outdoor personal best time of 15:11.45. Earlier in the day he finished 4th in the steeplechase in a conference leading time of 9:35.68.  Nielsen’s time in the 5000m was the fourth best time in the NSIC this season.

NSIC Women’s Field  Athlete of the Week:
Wayne State’s Sara Wells (Jr., Albion, Neb.) had a stellar weekend picking up two big wins, breaking a school record and secured her position in the top 5 nationally in 2 events.  She started the day by breaking her own school record in the discus, which she set at the NCAA National Meet last year, with a mark of 164’ 0” to win the event at the UNK Loper Invite.  Wells, who was an All-American in the discus in 2013, moves solidly into 2nd place in the NCAA National Rankings.  In winning the event, she defeated the #3 and #5 nationally ranked throwers.  She picked up her second win of the day, by winning the shot put with a mark of 47’ 9”, in which she defeated a stellar field of throwers which included the #2, #11, #12, #17, and #19 currently ranked throwers in DII.  Her mark of 48’ 4” from last week has her ranked in the #5 position in the National Rankings.

NSIC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week:
Northern State’s MaKenzie Hageman (Sprints, So., Watertown, S.D./ Waverly HS /Dakota Wesleyan) had a stellar meet for the Wolves at the UNK Loper Invite as she set new career-bests in both the 100 and 200-meter dashes. Hageman ran a 12.15 in both the prelims and the finals in the 100m and finished second in the event, which is also the second fastest time in the NSIC this season. The time is just .01 off the Northern program record. Hageman followed that up with a third-place finish in the 200, running a time of 25.54, which is the third fastest time in the NSIC this season.

NSIC Team Notes
Augustana
Augustana was idle this past weekend as they were forced to cancel the Vance Butler Invitational they would have hosted. The Vikings now prepare for the Sioux City Relays on Friday and Saturday, April 11 and 12.
 
Bemidji State
The Bemidji State track and field team had the start of its 2014 outdoor season delayed by wither weather as Saturday’s Hamline Invitational was cancelled due to snow in St. Paul, Minn. The Beavers now set their sights on Collegeville, Minn. and the St. John’s Triangular and Multi April 12.

Concordia-St. Paul
Women Field: Esther Jandrich (Pole Vault, 5’6”, Jr., Forest Lake, Minn. / HS) picked up six points for the Golden Bears in the ESU Relays this weekend with a third place finish in the pole vault as she cleared a height of 3.35m.
Women Track:  Michelle Ndely (Hurdles, 5’6”, So., Champlin, Minn / Champlin Park HS) school record effort in the 100 meter hurdles at the ESU Relays spearheaded a solid team performance on the women’s side as the team finished in 14th in an extremely deep field. She ran the 100m hurdle final in 14.52 seconds to finish fourth and pick up five points for the team. Her previous outdoor record was 14.71 seconds set last year.  The 14.52 is the second fastest 100m hurdles run this season in the NSIC.
Men Field: David Stanley (Sprints/Jumps, 5’10”, So., Little Canada, Minn. / Roseville Area HS / UW-River Falls) contributed a strong effort at the ESU Relays with a good showing in the long jump as he picked up a point in an 11th place finish with a distance of 6.60m. He also finished 12th in the 400m with a time of 50.25.
Men Track:  Sam Anderson (Distance, 5’9”, So., Westin, Wis. / DC Everest HS) set a new school record in the 3000 meter run at the State Farm ESU Relays this weekend. He was the big story for the men’s squad with his time of 9:09.50 in the 3000m run. He edged out Collin Bredeson’s 13 year old record in the event by nearly seven seconds. Anderson finished in 11th in the field.

University of Mary
The University of Mary did not compete last weekend after poor weather conditions forced the cancelation of the team’s annual Marauders Open home meet. The Marauders look to return to action at the North Dakota State Bison Classic in Fargo, N.D., on April 11-12.
 
Minnesota Duluth
With the Hamline University Invitational in St. Paul, Minn., called off because of snow, the University of Minnesota Duluth changed course to La Crosse, Wis., Saturday for the Ashton May Invitational where the Bulldogs took third place out of nine schools in the team standings.
Men’s Track: Junior Dan Nielsen won the 5000 meters at the Ashton May Invite in La Crosse, Wis. in an outdoor personal best time of 15:11.45, after earlier in the day finishing 4th in the steeplechase in a conference leading time of 9:35.68.  Nielsen’s time in the 5000m was the fourth best time in the NSIC this season.
Men’s Field: Freshman Jason Lilja won the high jump at the Ashton May Invite in a lifetime best leap of 1.95 meters (6’-04.50”) after finishing second place in the long jump with a mark of 6.60 meters (21’-08.00”).  Both marks are currently second on the NSIC honor roll.
Senior Nathan Knop won the javelin at the Ashton May Invite with a conference leading throw of 50.94 meters (167’-01”).
Junior Nick Moran was third in the hammer throw with a NCAA Provisional Qualifying Mark of 57.17 meters (187’-07”), which is currently ranked second in the conference.  Earlier in the day, Moran threw the discus 43.86 meters (143’-11”), which is currently ranked 4th in the conference.
Women Track/Field: The Bulldog women were idle last weekend after the cancellation of the Hamline University Invite in St. Paul, Minn.

Minnesota State
The Minnesota State men’s track and field team kicked off its outdoor portion of the season on Saturday taking part in Ashton May Invitational and Carleton Invitational. At the Ashton May Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, junior Anthony Gustafson took first in 100-meter dash and second in the 200-meter dash with times of 10.87 and 22.15 respectively. In the 800-meter run a quartet of Mavericks finished within the top eight with junior Alexander Schoneberger leading the pack placing second crossing the finish line with a time of 1:55.66. A couple of freshman took the top two spots in the high jump at the Carleton Invitational at Carleton College on Saturday. Frank Veldman cleared 6’ 6” to take the top spot while teammate Denzell Oats finished behind him with a leap of 6’ 4”.
Men’s Track: Anthony Gustafson (Jr., Faribault, Minn.) finished first in the 100-meter dash and second in the 200-meter dash with times of 10.87 and 22.15 respectively at the Ashton May Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse on Saturday.
Men’s Field: Frank Veldman (Fr., Eagan, Minn.) at the Carleton Invitational finished in first place clearing 6’ 6”.
The Minnesota State women traveled to Carleton College on Saturday to take part in the Carleton Invitational for their first meet of the outdoor season. Senior Anna Ryan took the top spot in the discus throw.  Her throw of 135’ 5” beat the competition by almost five feet. In the high jump sophomore Kayla Lindell finished in third place while junior Courtney Johnson placed fifth with each of them clearing the bar at 5’ ¼”.  A trio of freshman took the top three spots in the pole vault for the Mavericks. Nicole Larson placed first (12’ 1 ¼”), Grady Keding finished second (11’ ¾”), and Paige Clements finished third (10- 6 ¾”).
Women Field: Nicole Larson (Fr., Milwaukee, Wis.) took the crown in the pole vault at the Carleton Invitational with a provisional-qualifying vault of 12’ ¼”.
 
MSU Moorhead
MSUM’s outdoor opener -- which was scheduled to be at the Marauder Open on April 4 -- was pushed back a week because of inclement weather. The Dragons are now scheduled to open the outdoor season on Saturday, April 12 at the Dakota Duals hosted by North Dakota State.

Minot State
Minot State did not compete last weekend after poor weather conditions forced the cancelation of the annual University of Mary Marauders Open. The Beavers look to return to action at the North Dakota State Bison Classic in Fargo, N.D., on April 11-12.

Northern State
Men Track: Andrew Johnson (Sprints/Jumps, Jr., So., Aberdeen, S.D./Central HS) represented the Northern men at the Loper Invite. Johnson got a pair of top-10 finishes on the day as he set a new career-best in the 100 as he finished third in a time of 10.69. Johnson then placed seventh in the 200 dash running a season-best time of 22.40. The 100m time is tops in the NSIC this season and his 200m time ranks fifth.
Women Track: MaKenzie Hageman (Sprints, So., Watertown, S.D./Waverly HS/Dakota Wesleyan) had a stellar meet for NSU at the UNK Loper Invite as she set new career-bests in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes. Hageman ran a 12.15 in both the prelims and the finals in the 100 and finished second in the event, which is also the second fastest time in the NSIC this season. The time is just .01 off the Northern program record. Hageman followed that up with a third-place finish in the 200, running a time of 25.54, which is the third fastest time in the NSIC this season.

Southwest Minnesota State
The Mustang were idle last weekend as the Dordt Invite was cancelled.  The Mustangs will return to action on at the Gustavus Invite in St. Peter, Minn.  on April 12.

Sioux Falls
The USF track & field team traveled to Kearney, Neb. this Saturday to compete in the UNK Loper Invite hosted by the University of Nebraska at Kearney. The Cougars came away from the meet with one event title and two NCAA provisional qualifying marks. The Cougars will have athletes competing next at the Emporia State Multi’s and the Sioux City Relays.
Women Track: In the 800m run, Kendra Knight came away with a fourth place finish with her time of 2:18.73. Knight’s time is the 5th fastest 800m time run in the NSIC this season. She was also a member of the 4x400m Relay that finished second overall with their time of 4:04.40.
Women Field: The 2014 NCAA Division II Indoor Pole Vault champion Brigitte Gross continued her winning ways with a NCAA provisional qualifying and event winning vault of 12-4.5 (3.77m). Gross currently holds the highest mark in the NSIC and the 7th highest mark in Division II.
Men Field: Scott Greenman (Pole Vault, So., Clovis, Calif./Clovis HS) came in second overall at the UNK Loper Invite with his NCAA provisional qualifying leap of 15-11.25 (4.86m). Greenman currently holds the top mark in the Pole Vault in the NSIC and the 15th best mark in Division II. .
Men Track: In the men’s 100m dash, Tanner Townsend came in fourth place with his time of 10.74. Townsend’s time is currently the second fastest 100m time run in the NSIC this season.

St. Cloud State
St. Cloud State track and field ended their second meet of the outdoor season Saturday, April 5th as they competed in Emporia, Kansas at the Emporia State University Relays.
Women Field: Earning the top finish for the women was Patience Yalartai as she finished second in the triple jump with a distance of 38-02.25.
Women Track: Sam Sunstrom (Fr., Sauk Rapids, Minn.) had a great performance in the 5,000m run on Saturday as she posted a time of 18:09.07, which was good for third place. Sunstrom is now ranked second in the conference in the 5,000m.
Senior Kassie Vaness (10:32.06) and freshman Sam Sunstrom (18:09.07) both came away with third place finishes in the 3,000m run and 5,000m run respectively. The Huskies 4x400m relay team consisting of Jasmine Grant, Alicia Evans, Jenny Gilbreath and Laure Olson came in fourth with a time of 4:00.95, while the 4x100m relay team placed sixth on a time of 48.79. Yalartai, Grant, Evans and Gilbreath make up the 4x100m relay team. Running to a sixth place finish in the 800m run, Kylie Baas posted a time of 2:26.82.  
Men Track: Mahdi Koliso (R-So., St. Paul, Minn.) posted the men’s highest finish on the track this past weekend as he took fourth in the 1,500m run on a new personal best time of 4:00.75. He cut almost nine seconds off his previous personal best, which he set last weekend at the Wayne State Classic. Koliso is now ranked fifth in the conference after his performance at the ESU Relays.
Men Field:  Highlights on the men’s side were Rafael Saez earning a second place finish in the discus will a mark of 163-10.00, while Keyshawn Davis took third with a mark of 46-10.75 in the triple jump and Ryan Johnson placed fourth in the Hammer throw off a distance of 168-05.00.
The Huskies will be back in action next weekend April 12th as they compete in the Holst Invite and the St. John’s Multi on April 13th.
 
Wayne State
Women Field: Sara Wells (Jr., Albion, Neb.) had a stellar weekend picking up two big wins, breaking a school record and secured her position in the top 5 nationally in 2 events.  She started the day by breaking her own school record in the discus, which she set at the NCAA National Meet last year, with a mark of 164’ 0” to win the event at the UNK Loper Invite.  Wells, who was an All-American in the discus in 2013, moves solidly into 2nd place in the NCAA National Rankings.  In winning the event, she defeated the #3 and #5 nationally ranked throwers.  She picked up her second win of the day, by winning the shot put with a mark of 47’ 9”, in which she defeated a stellar field of throwers which included the #2, #11, #12, #17, and #19 currently ranked throwers in DII.  Her mark of 48’ 4” from last week has her ranked in the #5 position in the National Rankings.
Women Track: Rebecca Davenport  (Jr., Sargent, NE) won the 400 meter hurdles at the UNK Loper Invite in a time of 1:06.30. That time was the fifth fastest in the NSIC this season. She also ran a leg on the 4 x 400 meter relay with a split of 60.1.
Men Track: Jared Balady  (Jr., Murietta, Calif.) shaved off almost a second of his season best time in the 400 meter hurdles to place 3rd in the UNK Loper Invite with a time of 55.93 seconds.  His time currently ranks second in the NSIC.  Balady also ran the lead-off leg on the 4 x 400 relay team which placed 7th with a time of 3:28.57.
Men Field: Joe Warth (Fr., Columbus, Neb.) hit season best marks in the shot put and discus to move into the top ten in the NSIC in each event.  His mark of 138’ 7” placed him 18th in the event at the UNK Loper Invite.  In the NSIC it ranks him 6th currently.  In the shot put, his mark of 43’ 7 1/4” ranks him 9th in the NSIC. He also ranks 9th in the NSIC in the hammer throw with his mark of 140’ 3” which he set last week at the Wildcat Classic.

Winona State
The Warriors totaled 104 points to earn a second-place team finish, earning one point more than third-place Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Host school Wisconsin-La Crosse claimed the team title with 329 points. DJordana LeSavage won the 5000 meters and Delaney Miller improved her NCAA Division II Outdoor Championship provisional qualifying mark in the hammer throw as the Winona State track and field team finished second at the Ashton May Invite Saturday in La Crosse, Wis.
Women Track: LeSavage claimed the individual title in the 5000 meters, recording a time of 18:50.38, the sixth fastest time in the NSIC this season.. Teammate Heidi Hujik placed third for the Warriors in the event with a mark of 19:07.08.
Women Field: Miller posted a provisional qualifying mark last weekend in the team’s opening meet of the outdoor season, improving the throw to 51.48 meters to finish second in the event Saturday. Nicole Nelson gave the Warriors two throwers in the event’s top-five, placing fourth with a throw of 46.56 meters. Miller also had a fifth-place finish in the shot put with a toss of 12.40 meters while Paige Garriga was sixth with a mark of 12.32.
Winona State will return to competition on April 12 when it competes at the David Suenram Gorilla Classic hosted by Pittsburg State (Kan.).