Nebraska Quad Next For Tiger Track & Field
4/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
April 16, 2004
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COLUMBIA, Mo. - The University of Missouri track and field will be one of four teams participating in this weekend's Nebraska Quadrangular to be held Saturday in Lincoln, Neb. Colorado State, Indiana, and Nebraska will be among the competition that will feature nearly 20 athletes in the top 15 in the nation.
The Field
Colorado State, Nebraska, and Indiana will provide tough competition for the Tigers to face in the non-scored meet.
Nebraska's men and women are both ranked in the Trackwire Top 25 poll. Their women led by thrower Becky Breisch, jumper Ineta Radevica, and pole vaulter Jenny Green are ranked No. 4 in the country entering the weekend. Breisch has the nation's leading mark in the discus throw and the third longest national throw in the shot put. Green is third nationally in the pole vault. Radevica has not participated in a meet thus far this season, but is expected to compete this weekend.
The Husker men are ranked No. 7 in the country. Defending outdoor national champion shot putter Carl Myerscough is expected to throw in his first outdoor meet of the season. Nebraska boasts several in the national top 15 including pole vaulter Eric Esbach who enters the weekend as the No. 2 vaulter in the nation and hammer thrower Artur Wszelashi who is No. 7 on the national performance list.
Colorado State has a host of throwers that have made NCAA regional qualifying marks, and many that rank in top spots in the nation. Hammer thrower Loree Smith leads the nation in the event with a mark of 219 feet, 11 inches (67.05m). Maguns Lohse is twelfth in the nation in the men's shot put.
What to Look for This Weekend
Junior Lindsey Markworth is close to hitting a second NCAA regional qualifying mark. Already have qualified in the shot put ring, Markworth is within a foot of the regional mark of 152-10 (46.58). Her personal best distance of 152-0 (46.33m) was set at the College Station Relays four weeks ago.
Once again the men's shot put event should be one of the big highlights of the meet. Six throwers in the competition have eclipsed the NCAA regional qualifying mark, and that doesn't include defending NCAA outdoor champion, Nebraska's Carl Myerscough. Missouri's Conrad Woolsey has the fifth best throw in the collegiate outdoor ranks thus far this season after a toss of 62-5 (19.02m) at the Missouri Relays. Colorado State's Magnue Lohse is number 12 in the country and will matchup well with Indiana's Ryan Ketchum who sets in 15th in the nation.
Senior Holly Scherder could surpass her school record once again in the hammer throw and is looking to hit the 200 foot mark (60.96m) for the first time in her career. The Frankford, Mo., native also holds the school record in the indoor weight throw.
The men's 800-meter could be on the best events for the Tigers on the track. Eight current and two Tiger post-collegians will hit the track in the two-lap race. Missouri is looking for their first NCAA regional qualifier in the event. The qualifying time of 1:50.62 has been achieved in the indoor season by freshman Marcus Mayes, freshman Jimmie Jones, and junior Neville Miller. Mayes has a year-best, personal-best mark of 1:50.03 from the Iowa State Indoor Qualifier in early March.
Two of the Tiger female distance runners are looking to qualify in multiple events for the NCAA Regional Championship. Junior Jill Petersen has already qualified in the 3000-meter Steeplechase and the 5000-meter run and is looking to add the 1500m to the itinerary. Petersen has not ran the 1500 this season, but her personal best of 4:30.94, set at last year's Big 12 Championships, put her close to the 4:29.12 qualifying mark.
Sophomore Amanda Bales will look for her second qualifying mark having after already qualifying in the 1500. Bales will need to run faster than the 2:10.29 qualifying mark in the 800 to achieve that goal, and in doing so may break her personal best of 2:10.28. Bales' season-best of 2:12.55 places her ninth on the Big 12 performance list.
Patten Third; Woolsey Fifth in the Nation In her first meet of the outdoor season at the Stanford Invitational, sophomore Ashley Patten took the field by storm, winning the collegiate title in the 800 with a personal-best time of 2:05.43. That time places her third in the nation entering the weekend and tops on the Big 12 performance list. Patten will be one of five Tigers to race in the 800 this weekend.
Conrad Woolsey has faired well this outdoor season. The junior transfer from Northwest Missouri State has come out the gate early as his personal-best shot put throw of 62 feet, 5 inches (19.02m) places him No. 5 in the nation in the event and second in the Big 12 Conference. Woolsey was, up until last weekend, the only Tiger to have participated in every meet in the indoor and outdoor season. Last weekend at the Tom Botts Invitational, the men's shot put event was washed out, thus not allowing Woolsey to participate.
Freshmen Leading the Way
The Missouri men are very young. Looking down Missouri's performance list, seven events for the Tigers are led by freshmen. Football wide receiver and Tiger sprinter Greg Bracey leads the Tigers in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes. Bracey is expected to run the 200- and 400-meters this weekend. Jimmie Jones is tops in the 400-meter dash and roommate Marcus Mayes leads the team in the 800-meters and is ninth on the Big 12 performance list. Austin Kerkhover is the Tigers 400m Hurdle man. Bobby Musil leads the team in the discus throw. And, Bjorn Sommerfeldt is Missouri's No. 1 man in the decathlon and No. 2 on the Big 12 list.
On Top of the Big 12
Three female Tigers hold the top spot in the Big 12 Conference entering the weekend. Distance runners, sophomores Ashley Patten and Amanda Bales sit first in the 800-meter and 1500-meter runs, respectively. Senior Holly Scherder is number one in the conference in the hammer throw.
Weather or Not
While the rain did not suspend all events last weekend at the Tom Botts Invitational, it did affect all events last Saturday. The cold, wind-driven rain cancelled the men's shot put, women's pole vault, and the 1600-meter relays and affected each event held along the way. This weekend's weather for the Nebraska Quadrangular should be much better. If the Tigers can avoid a pop-up thunderstorm, things should be alright, if not warm. Temperatures should reach the lower 80s for the meet which will be primarily held in the afternoon. Breezy conditions are expected as well as winds will be strong out of the south.
Meet Results and Info
Visit mutigers.com or huskers.com following the meet for complete results. A meet wrap-up should be posted by 9:30 at mutigers.com.
