Yellowjackets claim top athlete honors of Women's Indoor Track and Field Awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.---The 2016 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championships provided plenty of excitement in its first season being hosted by and featuring the University of Wisconsin-Superior.
That excitement continued beyond the meet for the Yellowjackets as they swept the top postseason honors – Track Athlete and Field Athlete of the Meet – while University of Minnesota Morris’ Jessica Devine was named Coach of the Year announced Tuesday.
First-year mid-distance phenom Kelli Praska snatched the Track Athlete of the Meet Award in her first appearance at a collegiate championship as a Yellowjacket, while sophomore jumper Svenja Ruehl captured the Field Athlete of the Meet honor for Wisconsin-Superior.
As a rookie, Praska showed that the future is bright for Wisconsin-Superior track and field winning three individual titles at last weekend’s UMAC Championships. Friday night, Praska clocked a time of 59.91 in the 400-meter dash – she was the only runner in the field to break the one-minute mark.
Then, Saturday she opened the meet taking the title in the mile run with a time of 5:25.45 before later finishing first in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:29.53. Praska also anchored the Yellowjackets’ 4 x 400-meter relay squad that placed third. She finished the meet scoring 30 points individually to be counted in the team score while adding six for her relay performance.
Not to be outdone, in the field events, Ruehl ruled the roost claiming two first-place victories for the Yellowjackets. Friday night was highlighted by the sophomore’s spectacular showing in the long jump – her mark of 5.38 meters (17-8) was the top jump of the day and set a new UMAC record. Ruehl’s mark bettered the previous record of 5.27 meters (17-3.5) set in 2012.
Saturday, Ruehl showed her dominance in the jumps again taking her second UMAC title of the weekend with a mark of 11.25 meters (36-11) in the long jump. She finished the meet scoring 20 points individually toward the Yellowjackets’ score of 126.50 that was good enough for a third place finish.
Not only did Praska and Ruehl make a mark at the championships, but they did in the regular season as well. The two athletes combined for three UMAC Player of the Week honors. Praska also holds a time of 2:15.07 in the 800-meter event that ranks 22nd nationally, while Ruehl owns a long jump mark of 5.56 meters (18-3) that is 21st nationally – both are currently just outside contention to qualify for the NCAA Championships.
Minnesota Morris turned in a solid second-place team finish at the UMAC meet with a score of 173 thanks to solid leadership from Devine who becomes the first female to be voted UMAC Women’s Indoor Coach of the year by her peers.
Under Devine’s leadership, the Cougars recorded 15 top-three finished on the weekend including two individual and one relay title. Devine led Teja Foy to a UMAC record in the 60-meter dash, while the Cougars’ distance medley relay shattered the previous meet record by over 10 seconds.
All-conference honors were also awarded Tuesday to athletes who collected a first- or second-place finish in any individual event and to individual members of a first-place relay team. In addition to Praska and Ruehl, 22 others earned the accolade including 12 from UMAC champion College of St. Scholastica, eight athletes from Minnesota Morris, one other from Wisconsin-Superior for a total of three, as well as one from Bethany Lutheran College.
The Saints’ Sammi Argir, Casey Hovland and Breanna Shofner were the only other athletes to post multiple event wins. Argir and Shofner were both members of St. Scholastica’s winning 4 x 200- and 4 x 400-meter relay squads, while Hovland set new meet records in the 3,000- and 5,000-meter run events. Argir also won the 200-meter dash for an individual title.
Each year the UMAC recognizes the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represented sportsmanship throughout the entire season. Bethany Lutheran earned the honor for the fourth time. Each team also had one representative on the individual sportsmanship award list.
Track Athlete of the Meet Award – Kelli Praska, Fy., Wisconsin-Superior
Field Athlete of the Meet Award – Svenja Ruehl, So., Wisconsin-Superior
Coach of the Year Award – Jessica Devine, Minnesota Morris
UMAC All-Conference
| Name |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Sammi Argir |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing |
| Laura Borkenhagen |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Truman, Minn./Truman |
| Tanna Boyle |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Simla, Colo./Simla |
| Sami Brinkmann |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
Hamburg, Minn./Norwood Young America |
| Nicole Christianson |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids |
| Emily Conley |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Marinette, Wis./Marinette |
| Carly Denler |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park |
| Alicia Doerr |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater |
| Teja Foy |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee |
| Taylor Gibson |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
La Crescent, Minn./La Crescent |
| Hannah Goemann |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Wells, Minn./United South Central |
| Rachel Harmston |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Cook, Minn./North Woods |
| Casey Hovland |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
North Branch, Minn./North Branch |
| Jordan Johnson |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Poplar, Wis./Northwestern |
| Emily Lundgren |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Aitkin, Minn./Aitkin |
| Kari Marzinske |
Bethany Lutheran |
So. |
South St. Paul, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran |
| Taylor Phillips |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
Superior, Wis./Superior |
| Kelli Praska |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
Eagan, Minn./Eagan |
| Katherine Roetering |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove |
| Svenja Ruehl |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Kirchuers, Germany/Gymnasium Philippinum Marburg |
| Hannah Russert |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Caledonia, Minn./Caledonia |
| Nicole Schommer |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson |
| Breanna Shofner |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
International Falls, Minn./Falls |
| Rachel Wingenbach |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Mandan, N.D./Mandan |
UMAC Individual Event Champions
| Name |
Event(s) |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Sammi Argir |
200-meter Dash, 4 x 200-meter Relay
4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing |
| Laura Borkenhagen |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Truman, Minn./Truman |
| Tanna Boyle |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Simla, Colo./Simla |
| Sami Brinkmann |
Weight Throw |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
Hamburg, Minn./Norwood Young America |
| Nicole Christianson |
High Jump |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Coon Rapids, Minn./Coon Rapids |
| Emily Conley |
Shot Put |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Marinette, Wis./Marinette |
| Teja Foy |
60-meter Dash |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee |
| Taylor Gibson |
4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
La Crescent, Minn./La Crescent |
| Hannah Goemann |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Wells, Minn./United South Central |
| Rachel Harmston |
4 x 200-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Cook, Minn./North Woods |
| Casey Hovland |
3,000-meter Run, 5,000-meter Run |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
North Branch, Minn./North Branch |
| Emily Lundgren |
4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Aitkin, Minn./Aitkin |
| Kelli Praska |
400-meter Dash, 800-meter Run
Mile Run |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
Eagan, Minn./Eagan |
| Katherine Roetering |
Pole Vault |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove |
| Svenja Ruehl |
Long Jump, Triple Jump |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Kirchuers, Germany/Gymnasium Philippinum Marburg |
| Hannah Russert |
60-meter Hurdles |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Caledonia, Minn./Caledonia |
| Nicole Schommer |
4 x 200-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson |
| Breanna Shofner |
4 x 200-meter Relay,
4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
International Falls, Minn./Falls |
| Rachel Wingenbach |
Distance Medley Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Mandan, N.D./Mandan |
UMAC Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award – Bethany Lutheran
Bethany Lutheran – Danielle Marzinske, Sr., South St. Paul, Minn.
Crown – Sarah Holmquist, Sr., Sauk Centre, Minn.
Minnesota-Morris – Laura Borkenhagen, Sr., Truman, Minn.
Northwestern – Dominique Ward, So., State Center, Iowa
St. Scholastica – Hannah Russert, Jr., Caledonia, Minn.
Wisconsin-Superior – Valerie Rowe, Fy., Ironwood, Mich.