The MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships will be held in St. Paul for the second-straight year, with the 2012 event taking place at the Leonard Center on the Macalester College campus. The conference meet starts Thursday with the multi-event competitions and the rest of the action will be spread out over Friday and Saturday.
Webcast America is also filming the event for the MIAC, and on-demand video will be available shortly following the meet on Webcast’s America’s site.
Thursday’s women’s pentathlon final and men’s first day of heptathlon events starts at 2 p.m. The men’s heptathlon finished Friday morning at 9:30 a.m., with Friday’s field events starting at 3:30 p.m. and track events beginning at 5:15 p.m. Saturday’s field events start at 11:30 a.m. with track events starting at 2 p.m. Saturday’s final event begins at 5:15 p.m., and there will be a short awards ceremony following the conclusion of the meet to honor the team champions.
Admission for the event is $7 for adults and $3 for students per day, with children ages 5 and under admitted free. MIAC passes will be honored. Macalester is offering free parking for spectators in the Leonard Center lot and other campus lots, with street parking available near the facility as well.
Men’s Preview
The Gustavus men’s indoor track and field team will look to build on its third place finish from last season at the 2012 MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships.
The Gusties have eight individuals in 11 different events ranked in the top ten on the MIAC performance list heading into the meet. Sophomore Blair Riegel (Lakeville, Minn.) and junior Josh Owens (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) rank first in their respective events. Riegel has posted the top time in the 200-meter dash (22.26) and the longest jump in the long jump (22-5.0 feet). The Lakeville South product isn’t done there, though, as he ranks third in the 60-meter dash (7.01) and second in the triple jump (46-3.25 feet). Owens ranks first in the pole vault and set the MIAC Indoor record, clearing a height of 16-4.75 feet last weekend at Macalester.
Senior Matt Dvorak has been part of a one-two punch in the sprints with Riegel. A Burnsville, Minn. native, Dvorak ranks second in the 60-meter dash (6.97) and sixth in the 200-meter dash (22.93). Junior Phillip Butler also cracks the top ten in the 60-meter with a time of 7.20, while senior Steve Groskreutz ranks third in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.64.
In the mid-distance races, Eric Jorgenson has the third best time in the 800-meter run (1:55.27), while sophomore Tanner Davenport ranks 10th with a time of 1:57.54. Jorgenson also ranks fourth in the 600-meter with a time of 1:22.96.
In the field events, sophomore Ryan Obele posted the seventh best throw in the weight throw at 52’ 4.75” and eighth best toss in the shot put at 45’ 11.75”.
The MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships begin on Friday, March 2 with the first competitions at 3:30 p.m.
Women’s Preview
The Gustavus women’s indoor track and field team will look to return to the podium after a third place finish last season.
The Gusties have 11 individual in seven different events ranked in the top ten on the MIAC performance list heading into the meet. Junior Allyson Voss (Wausau, Wis.) is the lone Gustie woman to top the conference in her respective event. Voss tops the league in the pole vault with a height of 11-3.75 feet.
Also cracking the top ten in the pole vault is senior Holly Hoffman (7th) with a height of 10-4.0 feet and sophomore Nevada Wendlandt (9th) at 10-0.75 feet. The field competitions are where the Gusties typically excel with five other individuals ranking in the MIAC top ten. Senior Emily Klatt ranks third in the long jump with a distance of 17’ 3.5”, while sophomore Leah Brossoit is eighth with a leap of 16’ 8.75”. Senior Megan Endresen ranks fifth in the weight throw with a toss of 49’ 7.75”. And in the triple jump, junior Lauren Rothschiller ranks seventh with a distance of 34’ 11.25”, while Klatt is tenth at 34’ 4.75”.
On the track, first-year Haley Kemper is tenth in the 400-meter run with a time of 60.15. Junior Beth Hauer ranks ninth in the 3000-meter run at 10:44.50. In the 5000-meter run, first-years Rebecca Hare and Caitlin Fermoyle rank fourth and tenth, respectively, in the league with a times of 18:15.31 and 18:53.23.
The MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships begin on Friday, March 2 with the first competitions at 3:30 p.m.