Iowa Crowns 18 Champions at Musco Twilight XII

April 23, 2011

Musco Twilight XII Photo Gallery | Three Column Results | Complete Results

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa track and field team crowned 18 champions at the 12th annual Musco Twilight at the Francis X. Cretzmeyer Track Saturday.

“It was a great night and another great crowd,” said Head Coach Larry Wieczorek. “We came out and performed at an elite level and gave track and field fans a great show. The athletes really showed up and proved to me we’re ready to hit the championship stretch of our schedule.”

Iowa’s men’s 4×100 meter relay team edged out Iowa State in the final meters to take the first place honors. Tevin-Cee Mincy started on the gun for the Hawkeyes. Mincy rounded the front hundred and handed off to senior Zeke Sayon who sprinted down the back stretch. D’Juan Richardson took the baton for the third leg and pushed the Hawkeyes into the lead. Sophomore Justin Austin anchored the relay, matching strides with Clint Martin, Jr. from Iowa State. Austin leaned ahead for the win at 40.30

The Hawkeye women’s 4×400 meter relay team repeated as Musco Champsions. Junior Nicole Erickson started on the gun for Iowa and handed off to Hendricks for the second quarter. Praska took the baton for the third trip around the track before handing off to Liverpool for the final leg. Iowa recorded a time of 3:43.31. Iowa’s second relay team placed third in the race. The team consisting of Hannah Simonson, Kelsey Mims, Leacock and Adrianne Alexia posted a 3:54.13 finish.

The Hawkeye women’s 400-meter relay team was also crowned champion. Freshman Erin Jones was the first runner on the track and handed off to senior Tiffany Hendricks for the second leg. Freshman Ashley Liverpool increased Iowa’s lead before handing the baton off to classmate Carisa Leacock. The Hawkeyes clocked a 46.85.

The Iowa men owned the 400 meter hurdles, taking the top three places in the event. Holmes was the first to cross the finish line with a Big Ten leading time of 51.05. Richardson followed closely, clocking a 52.03 and Keaton Rickels placed third with a time of 53.09.

Hawkeye sophomore and 2010 Big Ten Champion Matt Byers won the javelin competition. Byers hit the mark of 209-8 (63.90m) for the champion distinction.

Jeffery Herron was the long jump champion with a leap of 23-4 (7.11m). He also finshed as runner-up in the high jump. The junior reached 6-10 ¾ (2.10m), but finished second to teammate Brandon Oest. 6-10 ¾ (2.10m). The sophomore tied his career best jump (6-10 ¾) and earned a mark tied for second in the Big Ten.

The men’s 1,600 meter relay team claimed the first place finish with a time of 3:09.86. Barton was the first Hawkeye to run and Holmes pushed the team into first place during the second leg. Sowinski kept the quick pace through the third quarter and All-American Steven Willey anchored the winning relay team.

Freshmen Carissa Leacock and and Zinnia Miller took the top two spots in the women’s long jump competition. Leacock finished first with her jump of 19-6 ¼ (5.95m), while Miller earned runner-up honors with her mark of 18-1 (5.51m).

Junior Troy Doris won the triple jump competition by nearly two feet. Doris, an indoor All-American, reached 51-5 (15.67m) in his outdoor season opener.

Senior Bethany Praska clocked a career best time of 54.01 in the 400 meters. Praska’s time ranks fifth all-time on Iowa’s top-performers list. Freshman Ashley Liverpool took third in the race with her time of 54.24. Hendricks placed fourth at 55.40.

Sophomore Hawkeye hurdlers Jordan Mullen and Ethan Holmes ran neck and neck through the 110-high hurdles. Mullen, an Atlantic, Iowa native, edged his teammate by recording a time of 13.97. Holmes posted a time of 14.21.

Ashley Wilkinson was the first to cross the line in the women’s 100 meter dash. The freshman sprinted down the stretch to post a time of 12.71.

Junior Erik Sowinski raced to a first place finish in the men’s 800 meter run. Sowinski clocked a 1:48.80 in the event. Senior Adam Hairston finished third in 1:49.86 and sophomore Jeff Thode finished eighth with a time of 1:52.51.

Hannah Simonson was the fastest runner in the women’s 400 meter hurdles. The sophomore from Jefferson, Iowa, clocked a 1:01.35 to move onto Iowa’s all-time top performers list. Junior Nicole Erickson also competed in the event, placing third with a time of 1:02.85.

Jones, the freshman from Highland Village, Texas, won the women’s 200 meter dash. Jones posted a time of 24.52. In the men’s section, Justin Austin ran the fastest time in the Big Ten conference to date. The sophomore from Milwaukee, Wisc. recorded a 20.87 in the race. With the time, Austin etches his name onto Iowa’s all-time top-performers list at ninth place. Mullen finished fourth with a time of 21.78.Senior Steven Willey placed third and Mincy placed ninth, running times of 21.80 and 21.87, respectively.

Two Iowa women 3,000 meter runners improved their stock among Iowa’s all-time top-performers. Junior Betsy Flood won the event with a time of 9:28.89. Classmates Brooke Eilers placed second with a time of 9:30.08 and McKenzie Melander recorded a time of 9:34.13 for third. Flood’s personal record time of 9:22.63 currently ranks third on the top-performers list, while Eilers and Melander took over the No. 7 and 9 spots, respectively.

Sophomore Kelsey Hart ran a career best time of 10:56 in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Hart’s time is the fifth on Iowa’s all-time top-performers list. The West Branch, Iowa native finished second in the event.

Ryan Lamparek posted a season best in the men’s discus competition. The junior hit 170-7 (52.00m), earning third place.

Sophomore Kirsten Weismantle recorded a personal best in the pole vault. The Oak Park, Ill., native finished third with a height of 11-5 ¾ (3.50m). With the finish, Weismantle moved up Iowa’s all-time top-performers list to third.