Saints' duo leads UMAC women's outdoor track and field awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.--- The 2018 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championship saw the College of St. Scholastica repeat as team champions following a 27-point victory over runner-up University of Wisconsin-Superior. Now, the champion Saints headline the post-meet awards winning two of the top honors, announced Wednesday..
Senior sprint star Sammi Argir of St. Scholastica closed out her career taking the UMAC Female Track Athlete of the Meet while Saints' leader Todd Bouchie was selected as the Coach of the Year by his peers. Runner up Wisconsin-Superior was anchored by junior thrower Taylor Phillips who garnered the UMAC Female Field Athlete of the Meet award.
Argir dominated the sprint events for yet another season winning both the 100-meter and 200-meter dash events. While she didn't break her own records, she managed to record wins in both despite windy conditions on day one. She won the 200-meter event Friday with a time of 27.18 with a negative wind reading (-3.6). Argir followed that up with a victory in the 100-meter dash Saturday clocking 12.56.
Not only did Argir contribute in individual events, she was a star for two event-winning relays squads. The Saints opened Saturday's competition with a record-setting performance in the 4 x 100-meter relay. Argir anchored the Saints to a winning time of 49.20. She then led off the Saints' 4 x 400-meter relay that clocked a top time of 4:06.16.
Argir was just one piece of the puzzle that helped Bouchie lead his squad to victory. While Argir accounted for 25 of the Saints 212 points, Casey Hovland added 20 more in the distance events with two victories. In just his second year at the helm, Bouchie earned the top coaching honor after his women's squad captured a total of seven event wins and had seven women earn all-conference accolades.
After one day of competition, the Yellowjackets were just 10 points behind St. Scholastica but sat in third place. They eventually jumped ahead of the University of Minnesota Morris to place second due in large part to an impressive Saturday from Phillips. She captured victory in both the shot put and discus throw to lead her Yellowjacket team to a day-two surge. In the shot put, she won by over two-and-a-half feet with a top throw of 12.08 meters (39-7.75). Then, she captured victory in the discus with a best toss of 37.05 meters (121-7) that came on her final throw of finals to win the event.
Phillips accounted for 29 total points in four field events. In addition to her event wins Saturday, she also placed in the top eight in two events Friday. The junior took second in the hammer throw with a mark of 42.56 (137-7), and also took eighth in the javelin.
The all-conference list includes individuals who placed first or second in an event and individuals of first-place relay squads. Argir, Hovland and Phillips were among eight women who won at least two events. The others included Melina Avinon (St. Scholastica), Emily Ciesynski (Minnesota Morris), Anika Kling (St. Scholastica), Svenja Ruehl (Wisconsin-Superior) and Breanna Shofner (St. Scholastica). Four others were also all-conference finishers in two events – Jessica Bliese (Minnesota Morris), Maria Mazo (Wisconsin-Superior), Kelli Praska (Wisconsin-Superior) and Natalie St. Marie (St. Scholastica).
Bethany Lutheran won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season. Each team also had one representative named to the individual sportsmanship award list.
Track Athlete of the Meet Award – Sammi Argir, Sr., St. Scholastica
Field Athlete of the Meet Award – Taylor Phillips, Jr., Wisconsin-Superior
Coach of the Year Award – Todd Bouchie, St. Scholastica
UMAC All-Conference
| Name |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Elisabeth Anderson |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Bloomer, Wis./Bloomer |
| Sammi Argir |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing |
| Melina Avinon |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
San Martin de los Andes, Argentina/Ontario Hockey Academy |
| Gabby Baker |
Bethany Lutheran |
So. |
Hillsboro, Ore./Evergreen Lutheran |
| Jessica Bliese |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Osakis, Minn./Osakis |
| Mathea Brink |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Rochester, Minn./Century |
| Emily Ciesynski |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Blaine, Minn./Blaine |
| Lydia DeBuhr |
Northwestern |
So. |
Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial |
| Lauren Dynek |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
Duluth, Minn./Duluth East |
| Brooke Hogan |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
Cannon Falls, Minn./Cannon Falls |
| Casey Hovland |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
North Branch, Minn./North Branch |
| Anika Kling |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Hudson, Wis./Hudson |
| Kaitlyn Ladwig |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Granite Falls, Minn./Yellow Medicine East |
| Ali Manthey |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Zimmerman, Minn./Elk River |
| Kari Marzinske |
Bethany Lutheran |
Sr. |
South St. Paul, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran |
| Maria Mazo |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Hendaye, France/Irungo La Salle |
| Molly McGrath |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Ham Lake, Minn./Blaine |
| Katherine Novak |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park |
| Jasmine Pryor |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Williamsburg, Va./Warhill |
| Taylor Phillips |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Superior, Wis./Superior |
| Kelli Praska |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Eagan, Minn./Eagan |
| Svenja Ruehl |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
Kirchvers, Germany/Gymnasium Philippinum Marburg |
| Annie Sheedlo |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Blaine, Minn./Spring Lake Park |
| Breanna Shofner |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
International Falls, Minn./Falls |
| Natalie St. Marie |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
St. Francis, Minn./St. Francis |
| Hannah Van Beusekom |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View |
| Alexa Yeager |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Clearwater, Minn./Monticello |
UMAC Individual Event Champions
| Name |
Event(s) |
School |
Year |
Hometown/High School |
| Elisabeth Anderson |
4 x 800-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Bloomer, Wis./Bloomer |
| Sammi Argir |
100-meter Dash, 200-meter Dash, 4 x 100-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Chisholm, Minn./Hibbing |
| Melina Avinon |
4 x 100-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
San Martin de los Andes, Argentina/Ontario Hockey Academy |
| Gabby Baker |
Javelin |
Bethany Lutheran |
So. |
Hillsboro, Ore./Evergreen Lutheran |
| Emily Ciesynski |
400-meter Dash, 400-meter Hurdles |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Blaine, Minn./Blaine |
| Casey Hovland |
1,500-meter Run, 5,000-meter Run |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
North Branch, Minn./North Branch |
| Anika Kling |
4 x 100-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
Hudson, Wis./Hudson |
| Kaitlyn Ladwig |
4 x 800-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Granite Falls, Minn./Yellow Medicine East |
| Ali Manthey |
3,000-meter Steeplechase |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Zimmerman, Minn./Elk River |
| Kari Marzinske |
High Jump |
Bethany Lutheran |
Sr. |
South St. Paul, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran |
| Maria Mazo |
100-meter Hurdles |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
Hendaye, France/Irungo La Salle |
| Katherine Novak |
4 x 800-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park |
| Kelli Praska |
800-meter Run |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Eagan, Minn./Eagan |
| Taylor Phillips |
Shot Put |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
Superior, Wis./Superior |
| Svenja Ruehl |
Long Jump, Triple Jump |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
Kirchvers, Germany/Gymnasium Philippinum Marburg |
| Breanna Shofner |
4 x 100-meter Relay, 4 x 400-meter Relay |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
International Falls, Minn./Falls |
| Natalie St. Marie |
Hammer Throw |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
St. Francis, Minn./St. Francis |
| Hannah Van Beusekom |
Pole Vault |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View |
| Alexa Yeager |
4 x 800-meter Relay |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
Clearwater, Minn./Monticello |
UMAC Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award – Bethany Lutheran
Bethany Lutheran – Brianna Soutthivong, Jr., Mountain Lake, Minn./Mountain Lake
Crown – Marina Schwanke, Sr., Spring Valley, Minn./Kingsland
Martin Luther – Cassandra Anklam, Jr., Saginaw, Mich./Michigan Lutheran Seminary
Minnesota-Morris – Sierra Paske, Jr., Rochester, Minn./Century
North Central – Raen Barcelon, So., Kodiak, Alaska/Kodiak
Northwestern – Brandhi Whittemore, Fy./Milaca, Minn./Milaca
St. Scholastica – Elizabeth Poskie, So., Cotton, Minn./South Ridge
Wisconsin-Superior – Michaela Ruhman, Jr., Brule, Wis./Northwestern