NCAA Division III Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Championship Preview
UW-Oshkosh raised the trophy in 2009 and is
well-represented again in 2010.
BEREA, OHIO – The 2010 NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships is set for Thursday-Saturday, May 27-29, at The George Finnie Stadium on the campus of Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio. The men’s championship will be scored on 21 events and will feature 12 returning champions from last year’s meet at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio.
Defending men’s team champion, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, and 2009 runner-up and 2008 champion McMurry University (Texas), are well-represented. McMurry enters the meet with the No. 1 national ranking in the latest USTFCCCA poll. North Central College (Ill.), the 2010 indoor national champion, is second and followed in the top five by Whitworth University (Wash.), Salisbury University (Md.) and University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
The men’s championship kicks off with the first of the 10-event decathlon at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday. The top-eight individual finishers in each event earn NCAA Division III All-America status.
North Central captured the 2010 indoor
championship at DePauw.
The 100-meter dash will feature 16 athletes, including the top two finishers from last year and three athletes overall from the top eight in 2009. Senior Stephen Headley of Springfield College (Mass.) is the defending champion after winning in 10.51 second last year. Headley, who also placed fourth in the 100 in 2008, enters the meet with the top qualifying time of 10.40. Senior Delannie Spriggs of Salisbury was second last season at 10.70 and owns the third best qualifying mark of 10.52. Spriggs also placed sixth in the 100 as a freshman in 2007. Sophomore Davivorn Dowe of the University of Dubuque (Iowa) has the second fastest qualifying mark of 10.41 and junior Eric Woodruff of Moravian College (Pa.) ranks fourth at 10.56 after placing fifth last season.
The 200-meter dash field will be made up of 17 athletes, including two of last year’s top three finishers and three of last year’s top eight overall. Woodruff is the defending champion with a time of 21.06 seconds and has the top qualifying mark at 20.82. Headley was third in 2009 and has the second-best mark entering the race at 21.10. Freshman Kenneth Turner of McMurry was third in qualifying time at 21.18 and junior Greg Bailey of Methodist University (N.C.) is fourth at 21.26 after placing seventh last season.
The 400-meter dash field also is comprised of 17 athletes and will feature four of last year’s top eight. Senior Luke Reschke of Monmouth College (Ill.) has the top qualifying time of 46.75 seconds and will look for his third All-American finish after placing third in 2008 and sixth in 2007. Senior Alex Eaton of Thiel College (Pa.) enters the race with the second fastest time of 47.13. Eaton was runner-up last year and placed seventh in 2008. Two freshmen hold the third and fourth qualifying spots with Justin Allen of Buffalo State College (N.Y.) and Aric Hoeschen of UW-La Crosse checking in at 47.56 and 47.58, respectively. Also back from last year’s top eight is senior Korey Bucher of Manchester College (Ind.), senior Patrick Jager of the University of St. Thomas (Minn.) and junior Dann Schneider of St. Norbert College (Wisc.).
Emmanuel Bofa of Whitworth is a
three-time All-American and two-time
defending champ in the 800.
The 800-meter run has 15 entrants and two finishers from last year’s top eight. Senior Emmanuel Bofa of Whitworth is the two-time defending champ after winning the 2009 race in 1:48.77 and the 2008 race in 1:51.01. Bofa, who also placed fourth in 2007, has the top mark entering the event at 1:48.69. Seniors Max Hanson of Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) and Peter Najem of Keene State College (N.H.) enter with the second and third top times at 1:50.31 and 1:50.79, respectively. Senior Adam Lang of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point placed fourth last year and is the only other returning runner from last year’s top eight.
The 1,500-meter run has 15 entrants but no returnees from last year’s top eight. Senior Yermi Cohen of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has the top qualifying mark at 3:48.40, junior Will Yochum of Amherst College (Mass.) is second at 3:48.73 and junior Nick Guarino of SUNY-Fredonia (N.Y.) is third at 3:48.74. Junior Matt Turlip of New York University ranks sixth and is the top returning finisher (11th) from last season.
The 5,000-meter run field is comprised of 17 athletes including five of the top 10 finishers from 2009. Senior Jesse Faller of Tufts University (Mass.) has the top qualifying time of 14:17.10 and will look to build on his 11th-place showing in 2009. Senior Nick Karwoski of Dickinson College (Pa.) was second in qualifying at 14:21.93. Junior Chris Marker of Allegheny College (Pa.) was third in qualifying at 14:24.08 and was seventh in the field last year. Junior Mike Spain of North Central College (Ill.) has the fourth best time of 14:24.34 and will look to earn All-American honors after just missing out last year with a ninth-place finish. Senior Ricky Flynn of Lynchburg College (Va.), who won the national championship during the cross country championships hosted by BW in the fall, enters with the fifth best time (14:25.22) after placing fifth last season. Also back from last year’s top 10 is senior Kyle Brady of North Central and junior Mike Heymann of SUNY-Plattsburgh (N.Y.).
The 10,000-meter run has 15 athletes including three of the top six finishers from 2009. Senior Daniel Murner of Amherst has the top qualifying time of 29:45.02. Ricky Flynn was runner-up last year and is second in qualifying time (30:03.39) this year. Mike Heymann has the third best time at 30:03.65 and will look to build on an 11th place finish in 2009. Kyle Brady and Mike Spain, who placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in 2009, enter this year’s race with the fourth and fifth best times, respectively.
Lynchburg's Ricky Flynn won a national
championship the last time he ran at a
BW hosted event.
The 110-meter hurdles features 16 athletes including four of last year’s top eight. Senior Edgar Townsend of Greenville College (Ill.) is the returning champ after winning last year in 14.24 seconds. Townsend also has the top qualifying mark at 14.32. Junior William Brown of Montclair State University (N.J.) has the second-best time at 14.36 and will look to build on a seventh-place finish last year. Junior Kyle Gilroy of the College of New Jersey is third in qualifying time at 14.39. Also back from last year’s top eight is senior Taylor Ferda of Bethel University (Minn.) and senior Russell Harris of Wartburg College (Iowa).
The 400-meter hurdle field has 17 entrants including four of last year’s top eight and the top two finishers overall. Senior Cory Beebe of Salisbury (Md.), a native of near-by Medina, Ohio, is the defending champion after winning the 2009 race in 51.28 seconds. Beebe has the top qualifying time entering the event at 50.66. Beebe also finished fifth in the 400 hurdles in 2007 and sixth in the 400 hurdles in 2006. Senior Ben Zill from UW-Oshkosh (Wisc.) was runner-up last year in 52.07 and is second amongst the qualifiers this year at 51.53. Zill also placed fourth in 2008. Junior Wesley Chamblee from Wabash College (Ind.) is third in qualifying time at 52.04. Also back from last year’s top eight is junior Matt Griswold from St. Thomas (Minn.) and sophomore Sutton Coleman from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (Ind.).
The 3,000-meter steeplechase event has 16 entrants but only one top eight finisher from 2009. Senior Chris Wirtz from the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire placed fourth last year in 9:03.95 and is this year’s top qualifier at 8:56.98. Junior Brian Lang from the University of Rochester (N.Y.) was second in qualifying at 9:05.24 and sophomore Anders Crabo from Pomona-Pitzer College (Calif.) is third at 9:05.92.
The 4x100-meter relay field has 15 teams and is led by quartets from Wheaton College (Mass.) and the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Wheaton’s team of junior Raiyan Banaji, seniors Mark Cimino and Merzudin Ibric, and sophomore Cailean Robinson enter the meet with a qualifying time of 40.84. UW-Plateville’s team of freshmen Casey Goffinet, Aaron Hrubes, Jordan Olp and sophomore Lynn Oyawiri enter the meet at 40.98.
The 4x400-meter relay field has 16 teams and also is led by a quartet of Wheaton (Ill.) runners. The team of Merzudin Ibric, freshmen Cecil Jeffrey and Ben Miklovich, and junior Mark Williamson enter the meet with a mark of 3:11.18. Gustavus Adolphus’ team of senior Cole Carlson, junior Colby Citrowske, 800-meter qualifier Max Hanson, and senior Matt Leeb enter with the second-best time of 3:12.88 and return three runners from last year’s team that placed fifth.
Cal Lutheran's Eric Flores enters the
meet with an NCAA record
hammer throw.
The long jump event has 15 entrants but only one top eight finisher from last year. The McMurry sophomore duo of Stryker Pena and Gavan Bass enter with the top two qualifying jumps at 24 feet, 11 inches and 24’5”, respectively. Bass finished runner-up last year at 23’4.” Sophomore David Thomas from Frostburg State University (Md.) was third in qualifying at 24’3.”
The triple jump features 17 entrants and three athletes from last year’s top eight. Junior Chrys Jones from Centre College (Ky.) is the returning champ after winning the event last year with a mark of 50’3.25.” Jones also has the top qualifying mark at 49’2.50.” Junior Drew Jackson from the University of Chicago (Ill.) was second in qualifying at 48’8.75” and sophomore Michael Allen from Eastern Mennonite University (Va.) is third at 48’8.”. Also returning from last year’s top eight is senior James Simms from UW-Oshkosh and senior Alex Samma from Connecticut College. Simms placed fifth last year and third in 2008. Samma has the fourth best mark entering the event at 48’4.75.”
The shot put field is comprised of 18 competitors and six of last year’s top eight finishers. Senior Brandon Fugett from Salisbury (Md.) is the returning champion after winning last year with a throw of 58’10.25.” Fugett also is the top qualifier at 57’10.25.” Senior Jeff Kintner from Whitworth University (Wash.) was second in qualifying at 57’9” and placed fourth last year. Senior Kyle Scofield from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has the third best mark entering the meet at 57’0.25” and placed fifth last year. Also back from last year’s top eight is senior John Schantzen from St. Olaf College (Minn.), senior Greg Patrick from host Baldwin Wallace, senior Adrian Kibiersza from Aurora University (Ill.), and senior Judd Lutz from Mount Union College (Ohio). Lutz also finished third in 2008 and Kittner was fourth.
BW's Kevin Phipps leads a group of six
Yellow Jackets that will compete on
their home turf.
The discus event features 16 entrants and four athletes from last year’s top eight. The event has seen a significant jump in throwing distances as last year’s winning mark would not have even qualified for nationals this year. Junior Tony Baker from UW-Oshkosh is the defending champion after winning last year with a throw of 165’8” and enters with the 12th-best mark this year. Last year’s runner-up and senior Shaun Davis from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater has the top qualifying mark at 177’5.” Judd Lutz has the second best throw of 174’6” and has a fourth-place finish in 2008 and an eighth-place finish in 2007. Lutz’s sophomore teammate Sean Denard of Mount Union has the third best qualifying throw of 173’10.” Also back from last year’s top eight is junior Kevin Phipps from Baldwin Wallace and sophomore Phil Christensen from Augustana College (Ill.). Phipps placed seventh last year and is ranked fourth this year. Christensen finished sixth in 2009 and ranks fifth this year.
The hammer throw event features 17 entrants and five athletes from last year’s top eight. Junior Bryan Kolacz from Keen State is the defending champion after winning last year at 201’8” and is ranked seventh entering this weekend’s competition. Junior Eric Flores from California Lutheran has the top qualifying mark with an NCAA Division III record throw of 220’10.” Senior Sean Larson from the University of Wisconsin-Stout has the second best throw of 201’3.” Junior Taylor Berliant from Claremont-Mudd Scripps (Calif) was third in qualifying at 200’2” and finished third in 2009. Also back from last year’s top eight is Tony Baker, senior Rich McNeil from Bates College (Maine) and Shaun Davis – last year’s runner-up.
The javelin field is made up of 16 competitors and features three of last year’s top eight. Senior Brock Solveson from Concordia University (Wisc.) is the defending champion after winning last year’s event with a throw of 208’5.” Solveson, also the runner-up in 2008, enters the meet with the top qualifying mark of 230’1.”Freshman Stephen Simalchick from Williams College (Mass.) has the second best mark at 216’1.” Senior Sean Corey from Rowan University (N.J.) ranks third at 215’3.” Also back from last year’s top eight is senior Sean Biehn from Rowan and junior Alexander Hymel from Whitworth University (Wash.).
Concorida's Brock Solveson is the
defending javelin champion and is
qualified for the decathlon.
The high jump field is comprised of 18 athletes and five of last year’s top eight finishers. Senior John Kimmel from Manchester College (Ind.) is the returning champion after winning the event last year with a jump of 6’11.5.” Kimmel is tied for first in qualifying (6’11”) with junior John Donkersloot from Hope College (Mich.) who finished third last year. Junior Tyler Hannam from Monmouth has the next best qualifying jump of 6’10.75.” Also back from last year’s top eight is sophomore Braden McMonigle from Wilmington College (Ohio), senior David Stauder from UW-La Crosse, and sophomore Ethan Miller from Central College (Iowa).
The pole vault event features 15 entrants but only two from last year’s top eight. Senior Jake Winder from North Central is the top qualifier with a leap of 18’0.5”. Junior Stephen Toler from McMurry was second in qualifying at 17’0.75.” Junior Michael Dempsey from Rochester Institute of Technology (N.Y.) ranks third at 16’8.75.” Returning from last year’s top eight is senior Thomas Dimitri from McMurry and senior Greg Tow from M.I.T.
The decathlon field is made up 15 entrants including each of the top five finishers from last year and six of the top eight overall. Senior Josh Lovell of Linfield College (Ore.) is the returning champion after winning last year’s decathlon with 7,080 points and placing third in the 2008. Lovell also has the top qualifying score of 7,125 points. Brock Solveson, also a qualifier in the javelin throw, ranked second in qualifying at 6,883 points and will look to build on a 10th-place finish last year. Senior Jeremy Lovell, also from Linfield, enters the event with the third best score (6,868) after finishing runner-up last season. Also back from last year’s top eight is junior Ben Harmon from Washington University (Miss.), senior Jared Engelking from Tufts, senior Obinna Nwanna from Case Western Reserve University (Ohio), and junior Kurtis Brondyke from Central.
You can follow the 2010 NCAA Division III National Championship Meet LIVE from your computer at http://www.bw.edu/athletics/10tracknationals/. The site will provide live results, action photos, award stand photos, video interviews with each winner, and much more. If you can’t make it to the meet, please join us on-line.