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March 15, 2005
Men’s track team finishes 4th at MIAC championships
Men’s track finishes fourth
The men’s team met their goal to place in the top four in the conference at the MIAC indoor championships this March.
The Hamdogs scored 83 points and earned a fourth-place finish, after finishing seventh at the championships last season. St. Thomas won with 191 points, taking the team title for the 21st consecutive season. UST was followed by St. Olaf and St. John’s, with 113 and 104 points respectively.
The event to watch was the 35-pound weight throw. Jake Courrier and Ralph Rosario battled for first place. Each broke the school record and hit the provisional national qualifying mark. Courrier was able to pull ahead and won the meet with a throw of 55-10 1/4 on his last throw to take the title. He had finished eighth in the event last season.
Rosario placed second, just half an inch off of Courrier’s mark. Drew Jones and Patrick Mitambo earned personal bests in the event.
Courrier also placed second in the shotput, and teammate Jones finished in eighth. Courrier was named
Co-MIAC Field Athlete of the Year for his outstanding achievements.
Jake Kruger placed second in the pole vault, reaching a height of 14-11. Aaron Smith leaped over 44 feet to place fifth in the triple jump.
Tony Klappa and Jeff Metzdorff led the distance pack. Klappa won the mile with a time of 4:18.97, which is approximately one minute per lap around a standard track. Klappa also came in second in the 1000-meter run with his best time of the season. Metzdorff was second in the 5000-meter run and third in the 3000-meter run.
Travis Bristow and Chris Yotter each ran the 3000-meter and 5000-meter runs as well. Bristow placed seventh and Yotter raced to a personal best time in the 5000-meter event.
Senior Chris Fream scored points for the men by placing seventh in the 55-meter hurdles.
The relays were another strong area for the men. The 4x200-meter relay placed third and consisted of Adam Lehner, Mike Dugas, Ben Ganske, and Josh Johnson. The 4x400-meter relay of Lehner, Shawn
Smith, Klappa, and Alex Brylev carried the baton to a seventh place finish.
Coach Paul Schmaedeke said, “Our challenge now is to have an even better outdoor meet.” Schmaedeke was named MIAC Coach of the Year.
Last year the Hamdogs placed seventh in the MIAC and, despite losing several strong graduating seniors, managed to more than double the number of points from 2004 this season.
Anderson places first in 3000-, 5000-meter events
The Hamline women’s track and field team started the MIAC indoor championships strong, with Dana
Luiken placing fourth in the pentathlon, an event that combines scores from the shotput, high jump, long jump, 55-meter hurdles, and the 800-meter run. Luiken’s 3,104 points were enough to break the school record she set earlier in the season. Luiken also earned personal bests in her two other events, the 55-meter hurdles and the triple jump.
Co-captain Keidra Anderson was named MIAC Outstanding Female Track Athlete after a double win in the 3000-meter and 5000-meter runs. Anderson’s time of 10:21.54 set a new Hamline school record. She also ran a time of 17:38.88 in the 5000-meter run, setting an Olson Forum track record at Concordia, and qualified for the NCAA championships in the same event.
First-year Sara Burns raced to a fifth-place finish in the 800-meter run with a personal best time of 2:20.7.
Melissa Francis and Sara Warnke performed well in the 3000-meter run, Warnke finishing with a personal best for the fifth week in a row.
Lacee Schrupp ran a solid 5000-meter race and crossed the finish line with a personal best time.
The distance medley relay team of Haden Bowie, Katherine Vogel, Francis, and Burns earned a sixth-place finish.
Sophomore Amanda Jones scored points for the Pipers with an eighth-place finish in the weight throw, and senior Danielle St. Louis, although still recovering from injury, placed third in the high jump, having won the event the previous year.
The women’s team placed ninth in the conference with 39 points, just two points shy of Macalester.
St. Thomas won the meet with 140 points for their 18th conference title in the 21-year history of the event.
Posted by msveum at March 15, 2005 02:12 PM
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