For Immediate Release
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
NSIC Media Relations
Full PDF Release
NSIC All-Conference Performers
NSIC Men’s Field Athlete of the Year:
Wayne State’s Ross Bunchek (Weight Throw, Sr., Valparaiso, Ind.) set a new NSIC meet record to win the hammer throw at last weekend’s NSIC Outdoor Championships with a top mark of 212’ 9”, eclipsing the previous mark by 10 feet. This season, Bunchek was first in every meet except one, the Drake Relays, in the hammer throw. Competing against a stellar Division I field, Bunchek unleashed a career-best throw of 217’ 2” at the Drake Relays on April 28th to place second. The mark was also good for an Olympic Trials “B” qualifying mark. Bunchek currently ranks third in NCAA Division II in the hammer throw.
NSIC Men’s Track Athlete of the Year:
Augustana’s Tom Karbo (Distance, Jr., Stord, Norway) set three school records this outdoor season while also winning his fourth overall outdoor individual title. Karbo won the 5000m run at the NSIC Outdoor Championships in a time of 15:23.40. He also has automatically qualified for the NCAA DII National Championships in the 3000m steeplechase (8.44.37) the second fastest time in the nation. He also provisional qualified for nationals in the 1500m and 5000m run.
NSIC Men’s Newcomer of the Year:
Minnesota Duluth’s Dan Nielsen (Fr., Distance, Andover, Minn.) earned NSIC All-Conference honors in the 3000m steeplechase as he finished in third place with a time of 9:33.61. He also finished ninth in the 5000m run at the NSIC Championships. Nielsen also won the 1500m run at the Carleton Relays in Northfield earlier this season.
NSIC Men’s Coach of the Year:
Minnesota State’s Mark Schuck was voted by his peers as the 2012 NSIC Men’s Outdoor Track & Field Coach of the Year. This marks the third time that Schuck has been voted coach of the year, also earning the award in 2009 and 2010. The Mavericks won their 24th NSIC Outdoor Championship this season and their third in the past four years.
NSIC Women’s Field Athlete of the Year:
Wayne State’s Paige Pollard (Pentathlon, Sr., Newcastle, Neb.) was the high point scorer at the NSIC Outdoor Championships. She won the heptathlon with a new school record mark of 4,923 points, which ranks 11th in NCAA Division II. Pollard also captured first place in the 400 meter hurdles in a time of 1:00.14, a new NSIC meet record. Earlier this season, Pollard set a new school record in the event at 59.39 seconds, which ranks 7th fastest in NCAA Division II this season. She also placed third in the long jump with a career-best mark of 18’ 7”, finished seventh in the 100 meter hurdles (14.60) and ran the anchor leg on the 4 x 400 meter relay team that placed seventh. In her Wildcat career, Pollard is a six time national qualifier and a two-time All-American.
NSIC Women’s Track Athlete of the Year:
U-Mary’s Melissa Agnew (Distance, Jr., Onamia, Minn.) turned in an incredible performance at the 2012 NSIC Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships, setting two conference records in the span of an 50 minutes. The junior from Onamia, Minn., captured the 1,500 meter run in a blazing time of 4:22.40 to establish a new NSIC mark. The six-time All-American followed up 50 minutes later with a time of 2:08.99 in the 800 meter run, setting another NSIC record. An automatic qualifier for the NCAA championships in both events, Agnew is currently ranked third in the nation in each category. She now holds three conference records after setting a new standard in the 1,000 meter run at the 2012 NSIC indoor championships.
NSIC Women’s Newcomer of the Year:
Minnesota’ Duluth’s Chanel Miller posted a pair of second-place finishes (heptathlon and long jump) while also tying for seventh in the high jump at the NSIC Championships. The Burnsville, Minn. native and 2011 graduate of Apple Valley High School provisionally qualified for the NCAA II Outdoor National Championships in the heptathlon with a school-record 4,757 points at the NSIC meet and in the long jump with personal best 18’-7”.
NSIC Women’s Coach of the Year:
U-Mary’s Mike Thorson earned his fourth NSIC Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Coach of the Year honors after the Marauders captured the 2012 conference crown, dominating the field with an 86.5 point edge over runner-up Winona State. This is the fourth title for the Marauders in six years since U-Mary joined the NSIC, previously winning in 2007, 2008 and 2010. U-Mary had a clean sweep in track and field this spring, earlier winning the 2012 conference indoor title for the fourth time.
NSIC TEAM NOTES
AUGUSTANA
Both of Augustana’s squads finished third at the 2012 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. It marks the best finish on the men’s side since the Vikings joined the league in 2008-09. The men captured four individual titles, highlighted by junior Tom Karbo bringing home the fourth outdoor title of his career last Saturday. He won the 5,000 meters in 15:23.40, a time one second faster than Augustana’s runner-up finisher Paul Yak. Dylan Buehler, Aduo Omot and Yak are the other conference champions on the men’s side--each who earned the first NSIC titles of their career. In the javelin throw, Buehler recorded a mark of 185 feet, 8 inches, which is eight feet more than the second-place finisher. Omot checked in at 1:52.86 to win the 800 meters and ran the first leg of the 4 x 400 to help his relay squad place third (3:20.50). Yak edged Minnesota State’s Garrett Eklof to win the 10,000 meters by less than a second in 31:32.02. Three Vikings earned titles on the women’s side. Kyle Blakeslee beat her NSIC record set in 2010 by four seconds to win the women’s 3,000 meter steeplechase in 10:39.12. She was fourth in the 5,000 meters (17:35.48). Runa Falch defended her 5,000 meter title with a time of 17:23.32. She finished nine seconds faster than U-Mary’s Jennifer Agnew. Flach also placed fourth in the 1,500 meter run with an automatic qualifying time of 4:26.73. Katie Guse won her first conference championship in the high jump with a mark of 5 feet, 5.75 inches.
Bemidji State
The Bemidji State University women’s track and field team completed the 2012 NSIC Outdoor Championships in 11th place Saturday in Bismarck, N.D. Taylor Sautbine (Jr., Tamarack, Minn.) led the Beavers contributing to 10 point at the meet. The junior placed seventh in the 100-meter dash braking a 33-year-old BSU record in the process. Her time of 12.28 trimmed .14 from Bitsy Sorenson’s school mark set during the spring of 1979. In addition, Sautbine also ran a leg of BSU’s record-breaking 4x100-meter relay team, along with Tia Lindberg (Fr., Chisholm, Minn.), Michelle Ohman (Sr., Prior Lake, Minn.), Ashley Larva (Jr., Floodwood, Minn.), which took seventh (48.75) and was a part of the Beavers’ 4x400-meter relay team, with Ohman, Tina Larson (Bemidji, Minn.) and Kirsten Maras (Sr., Ramsey, Minn.), which finished eighth (4:03.58). Sautbine recorded BSU’s best finish of the championships recording a fifth place finnish in the heptathlon held April 29-30 in Aberdeen, S.D.
CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL
Concordia picked up two fourth place finishers in Jordan Johnson in the 400m with a time of 48.56 and Nate Thienes who did so with a 50-7 3/4 throw in the shot put. Diahn Zeon took fifth in the 100m with a time of 10.64 and sixth in the 200m dash with a time of 22.08. Johnson also took eighth in the 200m with a time of 22.30. The women’s 4x100m relay team of Tolu Ojoyeyi, Brittany Dohmen, Rachel Taylor and Sarah Pieper set a school record with a time of 48.68 setting a school record. Britt Bickert also set a school record taking seventh in the shot put with a distance of 43-10 feet. The men finished with a 34 points and the women finished with 11.50 points.
MINNESOTA DULUTH
The University of Minnesota Duluth men placed fifth while the Bulldog women finished sixth at the two-day Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which concluded Saturday afternoon in Bismarck, N.D. Individually, senior Kyle Larson ran off with the 3,000-meters steeplechase crown (9:29.48) and freshman Dan Nielsen took third the 3,000-meter steeplechase (3rd, 9:33.61) to secure All-NSIC status. Senior Morgan Place was the lone Bulldog woman to capture an individual title, taking the 10,000-meter run championship for the third time in four years with a provisional-qualifying time of 36:38.49. Also attaining All-NSIC status were freshman Chanel Miller (second in the heptathlon with a point total of 4,767 and in the long jump with a 18’-07” effort) senior Lexi Williams in the 800-meter run (2nd place; 2:10.19) and junior Kari Novotny in the pole vault (2nd place; 11’04.25).
MINNESOTA STATE
The Minnesota State men’s track and field team claimed their third Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field title in the past four seasons Saturday afternoon as they racked up 212 points to close the championships. The victory for Minnesota State also marks the third time in the last four years that it has swept both the indoor and outdoor crowns. Minnesota State’s scoring for the day started in the shot put as sophomore Chris Reed defended his title from last year with a heave of 59’ 8 ½” which would be the fifth best throw in the nation this year. Junior Grant Luer and senior Todd DeJong also scored points as they second and fifth in the shot with throws of 52’ 7 ¼” and 50’1 ¼” respectively.
The Minnesota State women’s track and field accumulated 57.5 points en route to a seventh-place finish at the 2012 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships Saturday afternoon. In the field events, sophomore Anna Ryan finished sixth with a throw of 143’9”, a mark which meets the provisional standard for the NCAA Championships. Freshman Anna Veroeven was second in the triple jump with covering 38’9 ¾” with her leap. The relays saw the Maverick 4x100-meter squad finished fourth with a time of :47.67. The quartet was made up of junior Sarah Sannerud, freshman Kaitlyn Seberson, freshman Jenny Peterson and junior Danielle Jones. The 4x400-meter relay team of junior Annie Dahl, sophomore Dedie Richemond, freshman Bonnie Pickford and Jones finished third with a time of 3:52.93.
MSU Moorhead
Men’s Track: DeAs the 2012 outdoor season comes to a close, the Minnesota State University Moorhead track and field team demonstrated that they are not done yet. At the NSIC Championships in Bismarck, N.D., the team broke four NSIC records and qualified athletes in 13 different events for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Clayton Foster broke the NSIC record in the 1500m run, previously set in 2004, with a time of 3:53.01. In the 110m hurdles, Laquone Robinson broke the NSIC record he previously set in 2011 by 11 tenths of a second, finishing in 14.13.
Two women’s relay teams now hold NSIC records after the two-day event. The 4x100m relay compromised of Mary Tanoe, Kendra Mooberry, Karlene Lorenz and Nicole Hall set the record with a time of 46.63 while also provisionally qualifying for the championships. Lorenz, Mooberry, Hall and Amy Wulff finished the 4x400m relay in 3:47.98, breaking the NSIC record and also qualifying them for the championships.
Anna VanWechel qualified for the NCAA Championships in both the 1500m run and the 800m run finishing in 4:24.07 and 2:12.16 for second and fourth place finishes. Foster also placed fifth in the 800m run for the men, finishing in 1:55.69. Spencer Ruebke finished the men’s 3000m steeplechase in 9:36.28 for a fourth place finish.
Northern State
The NSU men’s and women’s track programs both finished eighth in their respective team races at the NSIC Championships in Bismarck, N.D., last weekend. The women’s squad benefitted from three school records and three national qualifying marks, including discus throw champion Yvonne Freese, whose mark of 47.85 meters (157 feet) topped a 25-competitor field. Jill Schaefer also set a new mark in the 400 meter hurdles (1:02.30) and ran the third leg of NSU’s third place 4x100-meter relay squad that finished in 47.59 seconds to crush a 22-year-old school record. Melodi Boke was one of six provisional qualifiers in the shot put, finishing third with her mark of 13.92 meters (45 feet, 8 inches). Alex Webster finished second in the javelin, although her mark of 38.95 meters (127 feet, 9 inches) was well off her previous national qualifying throw of 40.51 meters. The men’s squad got two national qualifying times from Luke Hauert, who finished second in both the 110-meter (14.30 seconds) and 400-meter (53.34 seconds) hurdle races. Sophomore Mark Gilkerson also gave the Wolves a spark with his second-place finish in the 800 meters (1:53.32).
University of Mary
The 10th-ranked Marauders rolled up 200.5 points while the Warriors compiled 116. Augustana closed with 95 points and Wayne State College had 94 to place fourth. The outdoor win for U-Mary follows up a dominating win at the NSIC indoor championships earlier this spring. U-Mary captured eight individual titles over two days, including five on Saturday. Melissa Agnew highlighted the show by claiming two titles in record-setting times on the final day. Melissa Walker was also a double winner, taking the triple jump today after winning the long jump on Friday. In the span of an hour, Agnew captured the 1500 meter run in a blazing time of 4:22.40 to establish a new NSIC mark. It also eclipses the NCAA automatic qualifying standards in the event. The junior All-American followed up 50 minutes later with a time of 2:08.99 in the 800 meter run, setting another NSIC record. Kristyn Nelson also set a conference record for the Marauders, clearing the 100 meter hurdles in 13.92 to take the title and break the mark she set Friday during the preliminaries. The Marauders dominated the 100 meter hurdles as Janet Johnson and Walker claimed second and third behind Nelson.
A tremendous team performance by the University of Mary lifted the Marauders to fourth place in the 2012 Northern Sun Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Nine different individuals posted points for U-Mary on the second day as the Marauders reached triple digits. Despite not taking any individual titles, the Marauders rolled up 103 points over the two days and jumped two slots over their finish from a year ago. Minnesota State University won the NSIC title with 212 points. Finishing a distant fifth was the University of Minnesota Duluth with 48 points. Competing at home in the Community Bowl, Jesse Bennett and Jordan Washington both claimed runner-up finishes on Saturday and both competed on U-Mary’s second place 4x400 meter relay team. In one of the most exciting finishes of the day, Bennett was edged by .03 seconds by MSU Moorhead’s Clayton Foster in the 1500 meter run. Bennett was timed in 3:53.04 but fell just short to Clayton’s record setting performance. Bennett also claimed third in the 800 at 1:53.99.
ST. CLOUD STATE
Men’s: The St. Cloud State men’s team collected 45 points to place sixth at the NSIC Championships. George Kawalawu (So., Brooklyn Park) Kyle Neumann (Sr., Andover, Minn.) had the top individual finish for the Huskies Kawalawu placed third in the 100 meters in 10.55. He also ran a leg of the men’s third place 4x100 relay that included Tendeh Brownell (So., Osseo), Leon Cheneyon (So., Brooklyn Park) and Alphonso Scott (So., St. Louis, Mo.) and finished in 41.92. Jeremy Davis (Sr., Champlin) had a fourth place finish in the 400 meter hurdles in 54.75. Neumann was third in the 10,000 meters in 32:07.44.
Women’s: The St. Cloud State women’s team finished ninth at the NSIC Championships with 30 points. The Huskies were led by a pair of third place finishes by Felicia Carlson (So., Beloit, Wis.) in the 100 meters in 12.15 and Roshane Boreland (Sr., St. Ann, Jamaica) in the 800 meters in a time of 2:11.59.
Wayne State
Men’s: Wayne State’s men had one conference champion and three All-NSIC performers in the meet. Senior thrower Ross Bunchek won the hammer throw with a new NSIC meet record throw of 212’ 9”. Freshman Jon Williams earned All-NSIC honors with a third place finish in the javelin throw (177’ 3”) while junior thrower Brad Wright reached an NCAA provisional mark with a third place finish in the discus Saturday at 164’ 5”.
Women’s: Seniors Paige Pollard and Nicole Brungardt each won two events to lead the Wayne State College women’s track and field team to a fourth place finish at the Northern Sun Conference Track and Field Championships. Senior Paige Pollard was the high point scorer of the meet in the women’s division to lead the Wildcats. She won the heptathlon with 4,923 points and set a new NSIC meet record Saturday to win the 400 meter hurdles in a time of 1:00.14. She also placed third in the long jump and was seventh in the 100 meter hurdles. Senior Nicole Brungardt was also a conference champion in two events, winning the 100 and 200 meter dashes while setting new school records in both events. The Norfolk Catholic graduate won the 100 in 11.81 seconds, an NCAA provisional mark, and also captured the 200 meter dash Saturday in 24.40 seconds to break her own school record.
Winona State
The Winona State track and field team placed second at the NSIC Championship behind a pair of individual conference champions. Alyssa Rausch claimed the shot put individual title Saturday, adding to Michelle Potter’s victory in the hammer throw Friday. Winona State scored 116 points as a team to place second, trailing only conference champion Mary. The Warriors were a comfortable 11 points ahead of third place Augustana. Rausch won the shot put with a throw of 47’ 10” (14.58 meters) while teammate Paige Garriga placed sixth in the event. Both throws were NCAA Division II Outdoor Championship provisional qualifying marks. Four Warriors achieved provisional qualifying marks in the discus with Caitie Zepczyk (second), Shanai Guider (third), Rausch (fourth) and Elisa Moenkedick (fifth) giving WSU four of the top five finishers in the event.