U-MARY Wins NSIC Women’s outdoor Championship
Women's All-Conference Performers
The University of Mary won their third straight NSIC Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championship capturing seven titles in 11 of the track events. The Marauders accumulated 169.33 points to finish ahead of Minnesota Duluth with 127.83. Augustana was third at 110, followed by host institution Winona State with 72 points.
Five-time All-American Kathryn Stewart headlined the Marauders efforts with an impressive four titles. The junior from Kingston, Jamaica, won both the 100 and 200 meter dashes and ran on U-Mary’s champion 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams. The final day started on a high note with the Marauders setting a conference record in the 4x100 meter relay. The team of Stewart, Janet Johnson, Brittany Osborne and Cassandra Jones posted an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 46.39 in the win.
The Marauders have now won five NSIC Outdoor titles with the others coming in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2013.
The University of Minnesota Duluth finished second thanks in part to the meet’s high point performer, Chanel Miller. She accumulated a meet-high 28 points by winning the NSIC Outdoor Heptathlon Championship for the second consecutive time last month (10 points), placing third (6 pts.) in both the 100-meter hurdles (14.47) and javelin throw (36.88 meters) and fifth (4 pts.) in the long jump (5.59 meters). The Burnsville, Minn., product also ran a leg on UMD’s 4 x 100-meter relay unit, which took second (2 pts.) and did so in school-record time of 47.85. Teammate Sam Rivard scored 26 points for the Bulldogs after winning the 5000m and 10000m runs and placing third in the 1500 run.
There were also two NCAA automatic qualifying marks performed at the meet. Wayne State’s Sara Wells hit that mark in the shot put with a heave of 15.55 meters, which was an NSIC record, while teammate Carly Fehringer surpassed the auto mark in the weight throw (58.55m).
Three NSIC records were set on the women’s side as Augustana’s Kyle Blakeslee broke her own record from a year ago in the 3000M steeplechase as she clocked a time of 10:27.52, taking over 11 seconds off her time from a last year. Wells record in the shot put broke Sheena Devine’s (BSU) record of 49’ 2 1/4” set in 2007. U-Mary’s record in the 4X100 relay surpassed MSU Moorhead’s mark from 2012.
NSIC Team Notes
Augustana
Replicating their indoor season finishes, Augustana’s men’s track and field team placed second and their women third at the NSIC Outdoor Track nd Field Championships this past weekend. Fueled by six individual titles, the Men were the runner-up to Minnesota State Aduo Omot and Henrik Hansson broke the NSIC meet records in the 800- and 1,500-meter runs as they earned Augustana’s two men’s individual championships. Kyle Blakeslee then broke a third conference meet record when she shattered her own women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase record and won the fourth steeplechase title in her career. Kayla Mescher repeated as NSIC champion in the women’s 400-meter hurdles, clocking a top-20 provisional time. Kristin Brondbo added another All-NSIC finish to her name when she won the women’s 1,500-meter championship and earned a spot at the NCAA meet with a top-10 time. Completing the season sweep, Kelsey Kaufmann won the women’s high jump after she took the indoor title in February. As a team, the Vikings had 19 All-NSIC performances, nine women and a women’s relay team collected honors while nine men earned all-conference accolades. Augustana is projected to send 10 athletes to the NCAA Championships in Allendale, Mich on May 22-24.
Bemidji State
The Bemidji State University track and field team completed in the 2014 NSIC Outdoor Championships May 9-10. BSU posted six season-best marks at the meet, while establishing three personal-bests. Jolynne Denman (So., Esko, Minn.) led the charge of Beavers to post season-best marks at the championships. The sophomore trimmed over 46 seconds from her previous career-best in the 5,000-meter run to place 26th with a time of 20 minutes 19.65 seconds. She was joined by Ciara Brewster (So., Crookston, Minn.), who recorded a mark of 122-feet, seven-inches to finish 24th in the weight throw. Brittany Koss (Fr., Grand Rapids, Minn.) also recorded a career-best mark, clocking a time of 1:02.75 in the 100-meter hurdles. She finished 24th.
The 2014 NSIC Championships official brings Bemidji State’s outdoor season to a close.
Concordia-St. Paul
Women Track: Alyssa Christianson (Sprints, 5’6”, Sr., Marshall, Minn. / HS) opened the scoring for the women’s team at the NSIC Championships by breaking her own school record in the 400 meter run with a time of 57.03 seconds. She edged out the mark of 57.17 she set at the Drake Alternatives earlier this season. Her time was good for seventh place and two points. Christianson helped add six more points with an impressive showing in the 4x100 meter relay to set another school record with a time of 48.01 seconds. They finished third in the event. She also ran in the 4x400 meter relay as the third women’s school record fell as the team broke the four-minute threshold for the first time in team history. They finished just out of the points with a ninth place finish and a time of 3:58.97.
Men Track: David Stanley (Sprints/Jumps, 5’10”, So., Little Canada, Minn. / Roseville Area HS / UW-River Falls) carried the Concordia-St. Paul men’s team by scoring 14.25 of their 37.5 total points at the NSIC Championships. On day one, he finished third in the long jump to open the scoring for the men with six points. He followed it up with eight points and a second place finish in the 400 meter run and he also helped the 4x100 meter relay team finish eighth for another point.
Men’s Field: Bryan Elyea-Wheeler (Pole Vault, 6’0”, So., Eden Prairie, Minn. / HS) scored 3.5 points for the Golden Bears in the NSIC Championships. He cleared 4.35 meters in the pole vault to finish in fifth place.
University of Mary
Women Track: Led by four-time champion Kathryn Stewart, the University of Mary dominated the running finals on Saturday to capture the 2014 Northern Sun Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships. This was the Marauders third straight outdoor title and sixth in the eight years U-Mary has been a member of the NSIC. The Marauders captured seven of the 11 track titles and the triple jump to easily win the NSIC title by 41.5 points over the University of Minnesota Duluth. In the two days U-Mary posted 15 NCAA provisional qualifying marks and times. Stewart captured the 100 and 200 meter dash titles and also ran on the winning 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams. The junior sprinter finished third overall in individual points with 25. Teammates Janet Johnson finished was sixth in individual points and Cassandra Jones seventh. A senior, Johnson won the 100 meter hurdles for the third time in four years, placed second in the long jump, and ran on the 4x100 relay team. Jones ran on both winning relays and also won the 400 meter dash. Other champions for the Marauders were Brienna Lynch in the 800 meter run and Brittney McKinley in the triple jump. U-Mary posted 169.333 points to place ahead of UMD with 127.833. The Marauders previous titles came in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2013. For head coach Mike Thorson, this was the 44th team conference championship in his career at U-Mary.
Men’s Track & Field: Josh Wilson set a school record in the 10,000 meter run to headline the University of Mary efforts at the 2014 Northern Sun men’s outdoor track & field championships. A native of Bath, S.D., Wilson ran the 10,000 meters in a U-Mary record-breaking time of 32:03.37. The senior’s efforts earned him eighth in the highly competitive race. Several other Marauders also placed in the two-day event. Sophomore Joe Berger posted the Marauders best finish on the weekend, placing fourth in the high jump. In the hammer throw, Travis Gavin pulled down fifth place with a toss of 161’ 6”.
Freshman Nico Fonzi tied for fifth in the pole vault. Jordan Washington snared sixth place in the long jump. Unfortunately the senior from Kady, Texas, came up injured during the event and would only place 14th in the 400 meter run. He had the top time in the conference in the 400 entering the championships. Leading the Marauders efforts on Saturday were underclassmen Nick Roehrich and Ben Gailfus in the javelin. A freshman, Roehrich finished fifth while Gailfus was sixth. In the discus, sophomore Andrew Dubiel claimed sixth. Nathan Inkman posted the Marauders best track effort on Saturday when the junior placed seventh in the 800 meter run. Overall the Marauders placed tenth with 32.5 team points.
Minnesota Duluth
Men’s Track: Dan Nielsen celebrated his 21st birthday in memorable fashion Saturday by claiming the 3,000-meter steeplechase title and then, less than two hours later, placing sixth in the 5,000-meter run. Nielsen, a junior from Andover, Minn., ran a NCAA provisional qualifying time of 9:09.26 en route to becoming the second Bulldog in three years to win the conference 3,000-meter steeplechase crown (Kyle Larson did it in 2012 when Nielsen was named the NSIC’s Outdoor Newcomer of the Year) and clocked in at 14:55.24 in the 5,000-meter run.
Men’s Field: UMD received stellar performances in five of the eight field events with junior Nick Moran and freshman Jason Lilja leading the charge. Moran was second in both the discus (48.57 meters) and hammer throws (53.61) -- he lost to Minnesota State-Mankato senior All-American Christopher Reed in each of those two competitions -- and eighth in the shot put (14.39 meters) while Lilja placed third in the high jump (1.99 meters) and fourth in the long jump (6.88 meters). Sophomore Mark Emlaw (6.82 meters in the long jump) and freshman Devin Sowers (43.65 meters in the discus) also chipped in points for the Bulldogs with eighth-place efforts.
Women’s Track & Field: Samantha Rivard won two individual titles, Chanel Miller reigned as the meet’s top point producer for the second straight season. Rivard, the defending NCAA Division II indoor mile champion, prevailed in the meet’s opening event -- the 10,000-meter run -- with a time of 35.50.74 on Friday morning, and then duplicated that feat one day later in the 5,000-meter run (17:00.39 -- a Paul Giel Field record). In the process, she became UMD’s first two-event NSIC outdoor titleholder since 2010 (Morgan Place did it that year in both the 10,000 and 5,000-meter runs). Rivard also placed third in the 1,500-meter run earlier Saturday afternoon (4:31.77) while sophomore Hannah Olson (4:41.98) and freshman Brittany Platt (4:44.15) finished fifth and seventh, respectively, in that same race.
Miller accumulated a league-high 28 points (Rivard had 27), by winning the NSIC Outdoor Hepthathlon Championship for the second consecutive time last month (10 points), placing third (6 pts.) in both the 100-meter hurdles (14.47) and javelin throw (36.88 meters) and fifth (4 pts.) in the long jump (5.59 meters). The Burnsville, Minn., product also ran a leg on UMD’s 4 x 100-meter relay unit, which took second (2 pts.) and did so in school-record time of 47.85.
Minnesota State
Men’s Track & Field: The Minnesota State men’s track and field team won this year’s Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships by a margin of 48 points totaling 177 points. This marks the Mavericks fifth championship in the past six seasons. Senior Chris Reed was the high point performer and won his second NSIC championship in the discus throw with a toss of 165’. Reed also won the championship in the both the shot put and the hammer throw. In the shot put he had a throw of 60’ 7 ¾” and in the hammer throw he broke his own school record and the conference record with a throw of 215’ 11”. This marks the second time he has won the conference championship in the hammer throw and he has won the shot put all four years joining head coach Jim Dilling (high jump,04-07) and Peter Pratt (long jump and triple jump, 74-77) as the only Mavericks to win conference championships in the same event four years in a row. In the triple jump a herd of Mavericks were able tally team points finishing within placing within the top seven of the event. Junior Khalil Jor’dan won his first ever conference championship finishing with a leap of 47’ 4 ¼”. Four freshman followed suit with Alex Campbell finishing second (46’ 8 ¼”), Ben Ojika third (46’ 5 ¼”), London Thurman fifth (46’ 1 ¼”), and Frank Veldman seventh (45’ 3 ½”). In the 200-meter dash senior Jerrell Hancock won his third-straight conference championship finishing with a time of 21.16 previous facility record 21.37. Junior Anthony Gustafson finished second with a time of 21.46 while junior Carmono Lane finished seventh crossing the finish line in 22.00. Jerrell Hancock also finished first in the 100-meter dash claiming his second conference title in that event with a time of 10.62. Gustafson placed fifth with a time of 11.00 and Lane eighth running a time of 11.05. MSU finished in the top four spots in the 100-meter hurdles. Freshman Myles Hunter broke the facility record en route to a first place finish with a time of 14.09. Senior Slater Powell finished second (14.60), Ojika third (14.75), and junior Nathan Hancock rounded out the top four (15.54).
Women’s Track & Field: The Minnesota State women’s track and field team totaled 61.33 points and finished sixth at the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The sixth place finish is the best finish since 2011 when the team finished in fourth place. Junior Anna Veroeven had the teams highest finish on Saturday finishing in second place in the triple jump with a leap of 38’ 9 ½”. In the discus throw senior Anna Ryan had a toss of 145’ 5” to place fourth. In the pole vault junior Bryanna Sudman vaulted her way her way to tie for second place with a vault of 11’ 9” to earn 6.33 points for the Purple and Gold. Freshman Nicole Larson added four more points finishing in fifth place with a vault of 11’ 9” while fellow freshman Grady Keding added one more team point finishing eighth vaulting 11’ 3”. Junior Morgan Stampley placed third in the hammer throw and garnered six points for MSU with a toss of 173’ 10”.
MSU Moorhead
Men Track & Field: The men’s 4x400, which also won the NSIC Indoor title in February, won the title at the NSIC Outdoor Championsiphs with a time of 3:14.48, edging the Mankato team by nearly two seconds. That relay consisted of juniors Kyle Kastello, Ryan Olson, Matt Loehr and Kenny Andri. Junior Jonathan Demus earned All-NSIC honors in two events. He was third in the 100-meter dash at 10.82 and also third in the 200-meter dash at 22.06.
Women Track & Field: Junior Tia Knight had a huge day for the MSUM women at the NSIC Outdoor Championships in Winona. She had two runner-up finishes to go with a third-place finish. She was second in the 100-meter hurdles with a school record time of 13.99. She was second in the 200-meter dash at 24.68 and third in the 100-meter dash at 12.11. Knight accounted for 22 points for the Dragons in those three events alone.
Sophomore Molly Montonye was second in the 1,500-meter run at 4:31.24 to earn All-NSIC honors in that event. Montonye was fourth in the 800-meter run at 2:13.50, barely missing a top three finish by .23 seconds. That time in the 800 was an NCAA provisional qualifying time.
Senior Kara Nygaard was second in the women’s javelin throw at 128-6, earning All-NSIC honors in that event. She has earned three All-NSIC honors in that event during her Dragon career.
Minot State
Men Track: Minot State University earned its first individual title in outdoor track & field Saturday as freshman Tyler Bates (Sprints, 5-11, Fr., Watford City, N.D. / Watford City) won the 400-meters at the 2014 NSIC Outdoor Championships in Winona, Minn. The Beavers didn’t have to wait too long for its second title in school history as fellow Watford City native Tyler Flatland (Hurdles, 6-0, Jr., Watford City, N.D. / Watford City) took the title in the 400-hurdles. The duo, along with a second-seventh finish by Phillip Streccius (Javelin, 5-8, Jr., Minot, N.D. / Minot) and Anthony Almeida (Javelin, 6-0, Fr., Bothell, Wash. / Cedar Park Christian) in the javelin and a second-place finish in the pole vault from Kirk Capdeville (Pole Vault, 5-11, Jr., Hinsdale, Mont. / Hinsdale), helped the Beavers to a seventh place finish, the highest in their short stint in the league. Flatland and Bates set track records in their finals win and Flatland was on two relay teams that placed fifth (4x400) and sixth (4x100) respectively.
Women’s Track & Field: Minot State University broke four school records on its way to an 11th place finish at the 2014 NSIC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Both Beavers’ relay teams broke school records, finishing fourth in the 4x400 relay and fifth in the 4x100. The 4x100 relay team of Dijah Nash (Sprints, 5-4, So., Fallon, Nev. / Churchhill County), Sienna Dailey (Sprints, 5-9, Jr., Glasgow, Mont. / Glasgow), Allie Helterbran (Sprints/Jumps, 5-8, Sr., Billings, Mont. / Billings West) and Mary Roy (Jumps, 5-5, Fr., Mount Vernon, Ore. / Grant Union) broke a 23-year-old record with a time of 48.41 seconds. Dailey also lowered her own school record in the 400-meters, taking fourth overall with a time of 56.49. The final record went to Samantha Huether (Mid-Distance, 5-0, Fr., Minot, N.D. / Minot) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase as she set the MISU mark with a time of 11:21.93, taking seventh overall.
Northern State
Both the Northern State men’s and women’s track and field teams finished in eighth place Saturday at the NSIC Outdoor Championships hosted by Winona State. The NSU women scored 49 points total while the men finished with 41. Devin Olson and Alex Webster both defended their NSIC javelin titles Saturday. Olson won on the men’s side for the second time with a season-best throw of 183’-10” while Webster defended her women’s crown with a toss of 141’-1”.
Men Track: Andrew Johnson made it to the podium twice for the Northern men as he took fourth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11 flat. Johnson followed that up with a fifth-place finish in the 200 dash running a time of 21.7.
Women Track: Makenzie Hageman placed fourth in the 100-meter dash for Northern as she ran a time of 12.16 on Saturday. Madeline Fluharty and Sami Smith both got sixth-place finishes on the day and both ran career-best times in the 100 hurdles and 800 meters, respectively. Fluharty finished in 14.70 while Smith ran a time of 2:15.99.
Southwest Minnesota State
Men Field: Ben Tonsager recorded a sixth place mark in the shot put with a throw of 15.34m to help the team score three points, while Alex Weis earned five team points with a fourth place finish in the discus with a throw of 45.65m.
Men Track: Alejandro Sanchez recorded a second place finish in the 800-meter with a time of 1:51.58 and helped the team earn eight points. Austin LaFollette earned four points with a fifth place finish in the finals of the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 54.54
Women Field: Rylee Armstrong scored the three points for the women’s team with a sixth place finish in the triple jump with a mark of 11.14m.
Sioux Falls
The USF track and field team recorded four school records, four NSIC titles and five NCAA provisional qualifying marks at the NSIC Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Winona, Minn. this past weekend. Event titles from Matt Horan in the 10,000m Run and Bobby Brockmueller in the 5,000m Run propelled the Cougar men to a 3rd place finish while Brigitte Gross claimed the individual in the Pole Vault helping guide the women to a tie for 8th. The Cougars will compete next at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships held in Allendale, Mich. and hosted by Grand Valley State. USF currently has two athletes who have automatically qualified for the championships while the 10 Cougar athletes who have hit NCAA provisional qualifying marks will have to wait until later this week to find out their postseason fate.
St. Cloud State
The St. Cloud State men’s and women’s outdoor track and field teams have completed the 2014 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Championships in Winona Friday and Saturday. The men’s squad placed fourth with 90 points while the women finished in tenth place with 27.5 points.
Women Track: In the 10,000m run Friday, Kassie Vaness placed fifth as she posted a NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 36:43.53. Vaness also placed seventh in the 5000 meter run in a time of 17:35.64 and Sunstrom was eighth, finishing in 17:39.77. The 4x400 relay of Jasmine Grant, Alicia Evans, Laure Olson and Jenny Gilbreath finished eighth in 3:58.47.
Women Field: Finishing third in the women’s shot put was Cassie Cardinal with a throw of 46-03.25. Patience Yalartai took fourth on a jump of 18-06.00 in the long jump finals. Wrapping up the top finishes for the women’s field events is Kellan Flynn with a 5th place finish in the high jump off a mark of 5-02.25.
Men Field: Earning an individual title in the men’s long jump competition was Keyshawn Davis as he jumped to a distance of 23-06.25 and earned a fourth place finish in the triple jump on a mark of 46-04.25. Joe Mooney posted a height of 6-06.25 to take second in the high jump. The men’s shot put brought two top finishes with Rafael Saez (52-02.50) took third and teammate Ryan Johnson (51-11.75) finished fifth. Johnson also came away with a third place finish in the hammer throw on a mark of 173-03.00 and third in the discus with a toss of 155-02. He tied for sixth among the men’s individual point leaders for the championships. Johnson collected 16 points for the Huskies, gaining six points each in the discus and hammer, and four points in the shot put.
Men Track: Leon Cheneyon (Sr., Brooklyn Center, Minn.) had a good weekend for the Huskies placing fifth in the 400m dash for a provisional qualifying time and new personal best of 48.52. He was also a member of the men’s 4x100m relay team that took second place with an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 41.36. Cheneyon was also on the Huskies 4x400m relay team that ran to a third place finish on a time of 3:17.58.
George Kawalawu placed second in the 100m dash in a time of 10.81. Among the highlights for the men was a second place finish with an NCAA provisional qualifying time in the 4x100 relay. The team of Leon Cheneyon, Kawalawu, Dillando Allotey, Richard Carr ran the relay in 41.36. JoVonte Suber and Leon Cheneyon, placed third and fifth, respectively in the 400 meter dash, meeting provisional qualifying marks. Suber ran in 48.38 while Cheneyon finished in 48.52. Allotey tallied a fourth place finish in the 200m dash as he ran it in a time of 21.66.
Wayne State
Women Field: Sara Wells hit an auto qualifying mark in the shot put with a heave of 15.55 meters, which was an NSIC record, while teammate Carly Fehringer surpassed the auto mark in the weight throw (58.55m).
Men Track: - Junior Jared Balady earned All-NSIC honors Saturday with a second place finish in the 400 meter hurdles to lead the Wayne State. Balady improved on his prelim time by nearly two seconds to place second in the 400 hurdles finals with a time of 53.72 seconds.
Men Field: Derek Lahm was sixth in the triple jump with a leap of 45’ 4 1/4”. Sophomore Bryan Dunn recorded a seventh place finish in the hammer throw at 157’ 3”.
Winona State
Winona State posted a fourth-place finish as a team at the NSIC Outdoor Championship, setting a pair of school records on the track. Jessica Young posted a new program mark while finishing fourth in the 10,000 meters while Jordan Paschke set a school record in the 5000 meters to place sixth. Caitie Zepczyk recorded the top individual finish by a Warrior, placing second in the discus. Hannah Mueller (long jump), Jordan Skelly (3000 meter steeplechase), Katie Bagley (800 meters), Catherine Whitcomb (400 meters) and the 4x400 meter relay were all third in their events as well.
2014 NSIC Outdoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week
Men’s Field
3/31/14 Jordon Bents, Sioux Falls
4/7/14 Scott Greenman, Sioux Falls
4/14/14 Scott Greenman, Sioux Falls (2)
4/21/14 Chris Reed, Minnesota State
4/29/14 Nathan Hancock, Minnesota State
5/5/14 Scott Greenman, Sioux Falls (3)
Men’s Track
3/31/14 Paul Yak, Augustana
4/7/14 Dan Nielsen, Minnesota Duluth
4/14/14 Jerrell Hancock, Minnesota State
4/21/14 Myles Hunter, Minnesota State
4/29/14 Jerrell Hancock, Minnesota State
5/5/14 Bobby Brockmueller, Sioux Falls
Women’s Field
3/31/14 Carly Fehringer, Wayne State
4/7/14 Sara Wells, Wayne State
4/14/14 Sara Wells & Carly Fehringer, Wayne State
4/21/14 Emily Wells, Wayne State
4/29/14 Chanel Miller, Minnesota Duluth
5/5/14 Brigitte Gross, Sioux Falls
Women’s Track
3/31/14 Janet Johnson, University of Mary
4/7/14 MaKenzie Hageman, Northern State
4/14/14 Kathryn Stewart, University of Mary
4/21/14 Janet Johnson, University of Mary (2)
4/29/14 Kyle Blakeslee, Augustana
5/5/14 Kristin Brondbo, Augustana