Feb. 23, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format
THIS WEEK — The Hawkeyes will hit the road this weekend for the Big Ten Indoor Championships. The men’s team will head to Penn State for the event, while the women’s team will compete at Indiana Saturday and Sunday.
At Penn State, the Hawkeye men will compete at the Ashenfelter multi-sport facility. Events are set to start at 9 a.m. (CT) Saturday and 9:20 a.m. (CT) Sunday. A limited number of tickets are available from the Penn State University Athletic Ticket Office (814-865-5555). General admission all-session tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for students/youth. Single session tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students/youth. Groups of 20 or more (any age) can be purchased for $4 at the event.
At Indiana, the Hawkeye women will compete at the Harry Gladstein Field House. Events are set to start at 9 a.m. (CT) Saturday and 10 a.m. (CT) Sunday. Two-day passes are available at the event for $10. Single-day tickets are $7 for adults and $5 your youth ages 18 and under.
IOWA IN BIG TEN HISTORY — The Hawkeye men’s team has won three Big Ten indoor titles and 74 event titles since the first meet was held in 1911. The Hawkeyes won titles in 1926 and 1929 and were co-champions with Michigan in 1963. Iowa has had two student-athletes earn Big Ten Men’s Indoor Freshman of the Year honors. Bashir Yamini earned the honor in 1996 for placing second in the high jump and Jeremy Allen earned it in 1998 for placing second in the shot put. Former Hawkeye Ed DeLashmutt set the Big Ten Indoor Championships 1,500-meter record of 3:49.90 in 1981. That record is now retired.
The Hawkeye women’s team has crowned 30 Big Ten champions (21 in individual track events, seven in field events and two in relays) since the first meet in 1983. Iowa’s best finish at the meet was third in 2004. Kineke Alexander earned Big Ten Women’s Track Athlete of the Year and Track Athlete of the Championships in 2007. Erica Broomfield was named Big Ten Women’s Indoor Freshman of the Year in 1998.
2008 BIG TEN INDOOR REVIEW — The Hawkeye women placed sixth with 60 points at the 2008 Big Ten Indoor Championships at Minnesota, while the Iowa men’s team placed eighth with 49 points at Wisconsin.
Senior Meghan Armstrong and junior Renee White took home individual event titles for the women’s team. Armstrong became Iowa’s first Big Ten 3,000-meter champion since 1985 when Nan Doak took the title. Armstrong finished with a career-best time of 9:18.30 for her first conference title. She also placed seventh in the 5,000 meters (16:30.04). White won the triple jump with a school record and provisionally qualifying leap of 42-4, and placed seventh in the 60-meter hurdles (8.48).
Senior Tammilee Kerr broker her own school record of 3,907 in the pentathlon, placing fourth with a point total of 3,973. That score was also a provisional qualifier. Kerr finished first in the 60-meter hurdles tying her career-best time of 8.60, then finished third in the high jump with a career-best height of 5-7 1/4, fourth in the long jump (18-3 3/4) and 800 meters (2:22.42) and sixth in the shot put (36-3).
Iowa’s other top placewinners were senior Kineke Alexander (2nd-200 meters-24.39; 2nd-400 meters-53.77), senior Diane Nukuri (3rd-5,000 meters-16:02.96; 8th-3,000 meters-9:28.39), sophomore Rhonda-Kaye Trusty (6th-60 meters-7.61) and freshman Karessa Farley (8th-60 hurdles-8.70). The 1,600-meter relay of White, Alexander, freshman Tiffany Hendricks and Kerr placed fifth in 3:47.34.
Hawkeye junior John Hickey, senior Shane Maier and sophomore Adam Hairston led the Hawkeye men with their top performances. Hickey won his second career Big Ten shot put title and became Iowa’s fourth Big Ten indoor shot put champion with a winning throw of 61-9 3/4. Maier finished second (59-8 1/2) in the event. The duo had a stranglehold on the top two finishes at the last three conference meets, as Hickey won the 2007 conference outdoor title while Maier placed second. At the 2006 indoor meet the finish was reversed as Maier won the title and Hickey was runner-up. Hairston placed second in the 800 meters (1:53.30).
Iowa’s other top placewinners were seniors Max Milder (7th-200 meters-22.06) and Ryan Niver (7th-hepthathlon-5,149), junior A.J. Curtis (8th-shot put-56-9 1/2), sophomores Dan Rolling (3rd-high jump-6-11), Ray Varner (6th-400 meters-48.52) and Paul Chaney, Jr. (8th-60 meters-6.92; 8th-200 meters-22.07). Niver’s seven-event point total of 5,149 broke the school record of 4,984 he set in 2006.
The Hawkeye 1,600-meter relay of freshman Steven Willey, sophomore Zach Splan, freshman Chris Barton and Varner placed fourth in 3:15.52, while the distance medley relay of freshmen James Paul and Brandon McSkimming and juniors Cannon Dolan and Eric MacTaggart placed eighth in 1:03.14.
LAST MEET — The Hawkeyes celebrated senior night at the Iowa Invite last week, crowning 18 champions and earning 25 new collegiate bests.
Senior Mandy Chandler won the women’s weight throw (54-4 1/2) and shot put (42-9). The weight throw mark was a collegiate best that ranks third in school history. Junior Paul Chaney, Jr.’s victory in the men’s 60-meter dash (1st, 6.80) is a new collegiate best for the multi-sport athlete and ranks third all-time in Iowa history.
Iowa’s other event winners were seniors Renee White (60-meter hurdles-8.60), Mark Schaapveld (weight throw-53-1 3/4), John Hickey (shot put-58-1 3/4), Ryan Kelly (high jump-6-9 1/2), Daniel Peoples (600 meters-1:22.50), and Eric MacTaggart (mile-4:14.67); junior Alex Zona (pole vault-16-0 3/4); sophomores Amanda Hardesty (mile-5:05.26), Cody Mixon (200 meters-22.92), Brandon McSkimming (400 meters- 50.01), Sam Bailin (3,000 meters-8:35.85) and James Paul (800 meters-1:57.87); redshirt freshman Lisa Mellecker (200 meters-25.92); and freshman Betsy Flood (600 meters-1:36.22) and D’Juan Richardson (60-meter hurdles-8.46)
HAWKEYE TRACK STAFF — The Hawkeye coaching staff has some new faces and responsibilities for the 2009 season. Larry Wieczorek is the men’s head track and cross country coach, and Layne Anderson is the women’s head track and cross country coach. The teams now share administrative responsibilities, coordinate their competition schedules and divide coaching responsibilities by event instead of gender.
Assistant Scott Cappos, who is in his 13th year at Iowa, will coach the throws, while third-year assistant Joey Woody will coach the men’s sprints, short hurdles and relays, and women’s long sprints and hurdles. First-year assistant Clive Roberts will coach the women’s short sprints, hurdles and relays, as well as the horizontal jumps for both groups. First-year assistant Christi Smith will direct the multi-events and vertical jumps.
IOWA TRACK TO HOST CLINICS & CAMPS — The Hawkeye coaching staff is scheduled to host a throws and speed/hurdle clinic March 8 and a four-day summer camp June 21-25. For more information contact Assistant Coach Scott Cappos at (319) 335-9392 or scott-cappos@uiowa.edu, or visit www.hawkeyetrack.com.
NEXT UP — The Hawkeyes have one last chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships and will split competitors up between three different meets.
Iowa competitors will be headed to either the Alex Wilson Invite in South Bend, IN, the Washington Qualifier in Seattle, WA, or the Iowa State Last Chance Meet in Ames. The Alex Wilson events are set for March 6-7, while the other two meets are scheduled for March 7.