Weekly Release #12

Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sat., April 5-6 -- at Duke Invitational (Durham, N.C.), 3 p.m./8:30 a.m.
Fri-Sat., April 19-20 -- at Mt. SAC Relays (Walnut, Calif.), 6:30 p.m./11 a.m. PDT
Saturday, April 20 -- at Eastern Michigan Invitational (Ypsilanti, Mich.), 8:30 a.m.

This Week
The University of Michigan men's track and field team will travel to Durham, N.C., to compete at the Duke Invitational on Friday and Saturday (April 5-6). Friday's competition will begin at 3 p.m. at the Wallace Wade Stadium, while Saturday's events are slated to start at 8:30 a.m. Other teams scheduled to compete at the Duke Invitational include Duke, N.C. State, Princeton, Boston College, Georgetown and Pittsburgh amongst others.

Last Meet Recap
Michigan was able to post six top-10 finishes in relay events at the Raleigh Relays (March 29-30), while two other Wolverines competed at the Stanford Invitational (March 29). Senior tri-captain Ike Okenwa (San Diego, Calif./Morse HS) and junior Kevin Lamb (East Lansing, Mich./Haslett HS) took part in four of the relay teams that finished in the top 10 on North Carolina State's Derr Track in Raleigh, N.C., including the 4x100-, 4x200- and 4x400-meter relays and the sprint medley. Individually, the Wolverines' highest individual performance at the Raleigh Relays came from freshman Darren Adams (Mentor, Ohio/St. Ignatius HS), who finished 11th in the high jump after clearing a height of 6-7.

At the Stanford Invitational, which was held on Cobb Track and Angell Field in Palo Alto, Calif., senior tri-captain Mike Wisniewski (Temperance, Mich./Bedford HS) and sophomore Nick Stanko (Wyandotte, Mich./Roosevelt HS) were the only two Michigan representatives, but the duo made a strong impression. Wisniewski placed 10th in the top section of the 10,000-meter run with an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 28:55.89 and Stanko was 23rd in the 'B' section with a mark of 30:18.75.

Automatic for Wisniewski
Mike Wisniewski posted Michigan's first NCAA automatic qualifying time this season when he ran a time of 28.55.89 at the Stanford Invitational. Wisniewski, the 2001 Big Ten champion in the 10,000-meter run, placed 10th in the top section as his time also established a new career best.

Freshmen Step Up
Two freshmen provided Michigan with its highest individual performances at the Raleigh Relays. Darren Adams was able to clear a height of 6-7 in the high jump to place 11th, while DarNell Talbert (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel HS) placed 16th in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 53.20. Adams and Talbert also displayed their versatility as Adams ran a time of 10.99 in the 100-meter dash to place 50th, while Talbert finished 39th in the in the 110-meter hurdles with a mark of 15.09.

Raleigh Good Relays
Not one of Michigan's six relay teams at the Raleigh Relays finished below eighth place. The top team was the 4x800-meter relay, featuring junior Philip Stead (Dearborn, Mich./Divine Child HS), sophomores Tom Greenless (Milford, Mich./Milford HS) and Dan Cooke (Pinckney, Mich./Pinckney HS), and senior Kevin Rogan (Grass Lake, Mich./Grass Lake HS), as it finished runner-up with a time of 7:35.17. Cooke also joined Ike Okenwa, Kevin Lamb and junior Jeremy Schneider (Bloomfield, Mich./Andover HS) on the 1,600-meter sprint medley relay that finished fifth with a time of 3:23.33.

More Than Once
Four Michigan runners competed on more than one relay team that placed in the top eight at the Raleigh Relays. Senior Ike Okenwa and junior Kevin Lamb led the way by competing on four teams, including the 4x100-, 4x200- and 4x400-meter and sprint medley relays. Freshman Nathan Taylor (Courtenay, B.C./GP Vanier HS) joined Okenwa and Lamb on three of those teams, with the lone exception being the 4x400-meter relay. The other representative of the Maize and Blue to compete on two teams was sophomore Dan Cooke, who participated on the sprint medley relay and the 4x800-meter relay.

Webb a Finalist for the Sullivan Award
Freshman Alan Webb (Reston, Va./South Lakes HS) has been selected as one of the five finalists for the prestigious James E. Sullivan Memorial Award, which recognizes the top American amateur athletes. The winner of the award will be announced on April 9 in New York. Joining Webb as finalists are figure skater Michelle Kwan, swimmer Natalie Coughlin, gymnast Sean Townsend and baseball pitcher Mark Prior. Webb's credentials include setting the American high school mile record of 3:53.43, breaking Jim Ryun's time of 3:55.3 in 1965. Webb also ran a sub-four minute mile indoors with a mark of 3:59.86 and posted a time of 1:47.7 in the 800-meter run.

Contact: David Crabtree (734) 763-4423