Field set for Saturday's UMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships
UMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships website (including meet schedule and heat sheets)
Video Interview with Minnesota Morris Coach Jeremy Karger-Gatzow
ST. PAUL --The Burns Wellness Fieldhouse at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn. is set to host the 2013 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Indoor Track and Field Championships this Saturday, February 23. Just one school has won both the men’s and women’s championships in each of the UMAC’s three-year indoor track and field history and the Saints from St. Scholastica will look to retain their titles again this weekend.
The St. Scholastica women enter Saturday’s meet ranked fourth in this week’s US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) central region rankings. The Saints have three individual performances in the top 20 nationally, including Becky Huberty’s weight throw of 54’ 4.5” from January 26 that currently has the junior ranked 12th. Huberty also owns the 18th best mark in the Division III shot put at 43’ 8.5”. Huberty, a three-time UMAC Player of the Week, is joined in the top 20 in the country by teammate Tracy Perish, whose 3,144 points in the pentathlon on February 8 has her in 20th.
In Saturday’s track events, keep an eye on St. Scholastica sprinter Rachel Thelen, who boasts the UMAC’s top time in the 60 meter dash at 8.12 seconds, just 14 one-hundredths faster than fellow Saint Katlin Krause. Thelen won the 60 meter race in last year’s UMAC championship event in addition to setting a new CSS program record in the pole vault, another competition that she won. Mid-distance runner Laurel Ohaju was named the 2012 Track Athlete of the Meet in last year’s competition.
The University of Minnesota Morris will line Kat Nelson up against Huberty in the field events. Nelson, a senior, has Division III’s 41st best distance in the weight throw at 49’ 8.25”, a mark that was set on February 8 of this year. Nelson’s top shot put distance, 12.25 meters, is second only to Huberty amongst competitors in Saturday’s competition. The Cougars’ distance medley relay team of Laura Borkenhagen, Anna Peterson, Zoe Bergstrom and Halee Morris has enters the championship with the league’s top time. Bergstrom and Peterson also make up half of the Minnesota Morris 4x400 meter relay team.
Northwestern College’s women’s team will add to the UMAC mix particularly in throws department, where sophomore Karina Nordrum has made a name for herself in the Eagles program this year, setting program records in both the weight throw and shot put events.
Also joining the mix in this year’s championship will be North Central University (Minn.) and Bethany Lutheran College. Amanda Schexneider is the lone Rams women’s participant who won’t be a first timer at the UMAC finale as North Central has four entries in Saturday’s meet. Every competitor from Bethany Lutheran’s squad will also be new as the Vikings are in their first year of sponsoring track and field as a varsity sport. Danielle Marzinske has one of the top UMAC seeds in the high jump with a personal best of 1.42 meters. Marzinske, a freshman, has also posted a respectable long jump distance of 4.54 meters.
St. Scholastica again enters as the team to beat on the men’s side. The Saints have several known entries in Saturday’s meet as well as some newcomers who have quickly made a name for themselves in 2013. Sprinter Justin Hanson is one of those Saints mainstays who was a part of two program records last weekend at the University of Minnesota Snowshoe Open. Hanson, last year’s 60 meter hurdles champion, broke his own 60 meter mark in 8.51 seconds last Friday while also participating in CSS’s record-breaking 4x400 meter relay team that ran a time of 3:27.95. Another Saints runner to watch is Samora Johnson, the 2012 UMAC 200 and 400 meter dash winner who was also a part of his school’s record-breaking performance in the 4x400 meter relay. In field events, junior Travis Ambuehl owns the St. Scholastica program record in the pole vault at 14’ 10.25” (4.53 meters) and enters Saturday’s championship as both the UMAC record holder and top seed.
For Minnesota Morris, sprinter Ryan DeRoeck is one of just three UMAC runners to go below nine seconds in the 60 meter hurdles. Zeke Miller is another Cougar that has put up some rather speedy times in short distances as the senior’s 7.26 second best time this year is second best among all UMAC runners. Miller also competes in some throws events and has one of six conference tosses longer than 12 meters. Mid-distance man Chalmer Combellick has come on strong as a freshman, going sub-two minutes in the 800 meter run and owning the league’s best time so far in the mile run this season.
De Andre’ Floyd has had a solid freshman career for Northwestern thus far in the 2012-2013 season as evidenced by his sub-55 second performance in the 400 meter dash. Ben Anderson has also accomplished the same feat and enters Saturday’s race as the second seed. In addition to the 400 meter race, Anderson posted season-best marks in both the 60 and 200 meter dashes last Saturday at St. Olaf.
For Bethany Lutheran, Andy Gensch has had some strong performances in the sprints, posting a 7.37 time in the 60 meter dash and running the 200 meter dash in 24.16. Gensch also anchors the Vikings’ 4x200 meter relay team that includes fellow freshmen Reagan Tshibangu, Clint Spitzer and LeeRoy Leal. Leal’s 200 meter times have been right in the UMAC mix as have those of Timothy Wildauer.
For North Central, distance running will be the Rams’ game in 2013 as its three male competitors in Paul Chan, Austin Muchow and Jake Guttormson will all compete in one long race – the 5000 meter run.
Saturday’s championships will begin at 12 p.m. For those who are unable to attend, St. Scholastica will offer a
live video stream and chat session with abbreviated event results.