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Pointers Look
to Relay Success at Outdoor Track Nationals
UW-Stevens Point�s participation at the 2006
NCAA Division III outdoor track and field championships this weekend in
Lisle, Ill. will truly be a team effort with much of the Pointers�
success resting on their relays.
Two men�s relays and a women�s relay are among
the 10 events in which UW-Stevens Point has entrants at the
championships, which begin Thurs., May 25 and run through Sat., May 27
at Benedictine University. Overall, the Pointers have six men�s athletes
and seven women�s athletes taking part.
The men�s 1600-meter relay team of Adam
Baumann, Bryan Buechel, Nick Ver Duin and Pat Leonard is ranked seventh
and qualified automatically with a time of 3:13.30. Baumann, Buechel and
Ver Duin will also run the 400-meter relay with Brad Koback. The team
was a late addition to the entries and holds the 15th and final seed
with a time of 41.66 seconds. In addition, Ryan Schroeder and Jeremie
Schwartz will also make the trip as relay alternates.
The women�s 1600-meter relay team is one of
four Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference squads in the event.
The team of Marie Burrows, Andrea Irvine, Jamie Scott and Laura Simonis
earned the 15th and final qualifying spot after posting a time of
3:53.22 at last weekend�s North Central Invitational.
Senior Jenna Mitchler is the Pointers� top
women�s contender, competing in both the 800-meter run and 1500-meter
run. Mitchler was third in the 1500 meters at last year�s championships
in 4:33.25 and enters this year with the fifth-best time despite running
4:30.70 at the WIAC championships. She is also seeded seventh in the
800-meter run in 2:12.27, which is actually faster than her winning time
in the event at the 2005 indoor national championships. Other women
individuals are senior Megan Craig, who was fifth in the 1500-meter run
last year and ranks 17th this year, and senior Teresa Stanley, who is
seeded ninth in the steeplechase after a 12th place finish last year.
Junior Mitch Ellis
leads the men�s individuals as a contender in the high jump, ranking
sixth overall entering the national meet with a best jump of six
feet-9.5 inches. Baumann is ranked 16th in the 400-meter hurdles and Ver
Duin is ranked 17th in the 400-meter dash.
The women's team placed
13th at last year's outdoor championships, while the men were 34th
overall. |
