March 8, 2005
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COLUMBIA, Mo. - The NCAA Track & Field Committee announced late Monday night the field accepted into the NCAA Indoor Championships to be held this weekend in Fayetteville, Ark. Both of the Tigers' Big 12 Champion distance medley relay teams were accepted into the meet along with Conrad Woolsey (men's shot put), Hans Uldal (men's heptathlon), Ashley Patten (women's 800m), and freshman Trisa Nickoley (women's 800m).
"Obviously, we're very happy," said Head Coach Dr. Rick McGuire. "This past weekend, our men's DMR, Hans (Uldal) in the heptathlon, were spectacular. We're going to Fayetteville with 10 kids, not many schools can say they are doing that. We feel real happy, our kids had a good season and we're ready to celebrate one more time. It's worth noting that only top 15 competitors in each event get to go to this thing and we have people in five events, it's just good stuff."
Along with Michigan and Stanford, Missouri is one of only three schools to have both distance medley relay teams accepted into the NCAA meet. The men's relay team comprised of Neville Miller (St. Louis, Mo.), Jimmie Jones (Detroit, Mich.), Marcus Mayes (Sand Springs, Okla.), and Ryan Hampton (Liberty, Mo.), reset Missouri's school record in the event last weekend at the Alex Wilson Invitational with a time of 9:35.25. Tipper O'Brien (Kirkwood, Mo.), who led off the Big 12 Champion relay team, will go to Fayetteville as the relay's alternate.
The women's relay made up of Ashley Patten (Clarkston, Mich.), Whittney Stuart (Fort Wayne, Ind.), freshman Trisa Nickoley (Tecumseh, Kan.), and Amanda Bales (Bettendorf, Iowa) gained their season best in early-February with a run of 11:19.46 at the Meyo Invitational, and are the 11 seed. Kristin Hansen (Okoboji, Iowa) will join the team as their alternate. Missouri's last national championship in an event came with the women's distance medley relay in 2001.
Patten and Nickoley also were accepted into the women's 800-meter run. Patten earned All-America honors in the event in 2004 as she reached the championship final. Nickoley was named the Big 12 Indoor Freshman of the Year after winning the conference title in the 800 and helping the Tigers to victory in the DMR. Patten enters with the eighth-best time from her early-February run of 2:06.54 at the Meyo Invitational.
Sophomore Hans Uldal, 2004 Olympian from Norway, qualified for the meet's heptathlon last weekend at the Intermountain Championships in Pocatello, Idaho. After glazing a hurdle at the Big 12 Indoor which prevented him from gaining a qualifying mark, Uldal had to go to one of the two final heptathlons offered in the nation (both in Idaho) before qualifying expired. Uldal's score from last weekend of 5,437 points stands as the 10th-best mark entering the meet.
Senior Conrad Woolsey (Excelsior Springs, Mo.) was accepted into the men's shot put with his Big 12 Indoor-winning mark of 63 feet, ¾ inches (19.22m). Woolsey placed eighth at last year's indoor NCAAs and seventh outdoors in the shot.
Live results from the meet will be posted on ncaasports.org. ESPN2 will broadcast a tape-delayed broadcast on Wednesday, March 16, starting at 11 a.m., central. For more information, visit mutigers.com.