Weekly Release #18
5/27/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Wed-Sat., May 29-June 1 -- at NCAA Outdoor Championships (Baton Rouge, La.)
This Week
The University of Michigan men's track and field team will send three representatives to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships from Wednesday through Saturday (May 29-June 1) in Baton Rouge, La. Senior tri-captain Mike Wisniewski (Temperance, Mich./Bedford HS) and freshmen Alan Webb (Reston, Va./South Lakes HS) and Nathan Brannen (Cambridge, Ontario/Preston HS) will compete at LSU's Bernie Moore Track Stadium.
Schedule for U-M's Runners (Times CDT)
| Nathan Brannen | ||
| 800-meter Prelims | Wednesday, May 29 | 7:30 p.m. |
| 800-meter Final | Friday, May 31 | 8:00 p.m. |
| Alan Webb | ||
| 1,500-meter Prelims | Thursday, May 30 | 7:40 p.m. |
| 1,500-meter Finals | Saturday, June 1 | 8:00 p.m. |
| Mike Wisniewski | ||
| 10,000-meter Final | Thursday, May 30 | 9:15 p.m. |
How They Stack Up
According to the NCAA Championships official web site (ncaachampionships.com), all three of Michigan's runners who will compete at the NCAA Championships own times that rank in the top 15 of their respective event. The following is the top performer in an event Michigan will compete in and how the Wolverines compare to the top runners in the nation:
| 800-meter Run | ||
| 1. | Otukile Lekote, South Carolina | 1:45.27 |
| 6. | Nathan Brannen, U-M | 1:47.62 |
| 1,500-meter Run | ||
| 1. | David Kimani, Alabama | 3:39.35 |
| 7. | Alan Webb, U-M | 3:41.46 |
| 10,000-meter Run | ||
| 1. | Tom McArdle, Dartmouth | 28:18.21 |
| 14. | Mike Wisniewski, U-M | 28:55.89 |
Every Time Out
Freshman Nathan Brannen is getting used to posting NCAA provisional marks when he runs. After an NCAA provisional mark in the 800-meter run (1:48.39) at the Big Ten Conference Championships on May 19, Brannen has now established eight NCAA provisional times in four different events.
Brannen's Provisional Times in 2002
| OUTDOOR | ||
| 800-meter run | 1:48.39 | 5/19 at Big Ten Championships |
| 800-meter run | 1:47.62 | 5/11 at Len Paddock Invitational |
| 800-meter run | 1:48.92 | 5/5 at Jesse Owens Classic |
INDOOR | ||
| 3,000-meter run | 8:09.06 | 1/19 at Red Simmons Invitational |
| Mile | 4:01.40 | 1/28 at Boston Indoor Games |
| Mile | 4:02.12 | 2/2 at George Mason Patriot Games |
| Distance Medley Relay | 9:41.96 | 2/8 at USTCA Collegiate Challenge |
| 800-meter run | 1:48.73 | 2/9 at USTCA Collegiate Challenge |
Two for Two
Nathan Brannen also competed in the 2002 NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. With a time of 4:03.53, Brannen missed by one spot qualifying for the 10-person field final. Brannen's time of 4:03.53 was actually the eighth fastest time of the preliminaries, but failed to qualify for the finals as the top three people in each of the two heats automatically advanced to run on Saturday. John Jefferson of Indiana had the fastest time in heat one with a mark of 4:06.26, over two seconds behind the pace set by Brannen. In heat two, seven of the eight runners made the final, led by Donald Sage of Stanford, who ran the fastest time of the day with a mark of 4:01.80. Brannen was eighth in heat two, 0.84 seconds off the final qualifying position held by Chris Mulvaney of Arkansas (4:02.69).
Big Ten Champion
Alan Webb became the first Michigan freshman since Kevin Sullivan in 1994 to claim a Big Ten Conference outdoor championship when he finished first in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:49.27. Sullivan, who won the event four times (1994-95-97-98), and Jay Cantin (1999) are the only other Wolverines to win a conference championship in the 1,500-meter run.
Return Trip
Mike Wisniewski will be making his third appearance at the NCAA Track and Field Championships when he competes in the 10,000-meter run on Thursday (May 30). The senior tri-captain posted a 13th-place finish in the 10,000-meter run at the 2000 NCAA Outdoor Championships and was a participant in the 10,000-meter run at the 2001 NCAA Indoor Championships.
Michigan and National Champions
Michigan has produced 41 men's track and field national champions, with the last coming in 1998 when Kevin Sullivan won the mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Sullivan captured four NCAA Championships, while Ross Hume (1943-46) and John Scherer (1986-89) accounted for three apiece.
Last Meet Recap
Michigan placed ninth at the Big Ten Conference Outdoor Championships (May 17-19) in Madison, Wis., after scoring 39 points. Leading the way for the Wolverines at Dan McClimon Track were freshmen Alan Webb and Nathan Brannen and senior Mike Wisniewski. Webb was the Wolverines' lone champion as he won the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:49.27, while Brannen and Wisniewski both earned top-three finishes. Brannen posted a third-place finish in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:48.39 and Wisniewski also placed third by finishing the 10,000-meter run with a mark of 29:57.07. The Wolverines also received points from seniors Ike Okenwa (San Diego, Calif./Morse HS) and Brent Sheffer (Traverse City, Mich./Central HS), junior tri-captain Derek Applewhite (Brighton, Colo./Brighton HS) and sophomore Andrew Ochs (Saline, Mich./Saline HS).
Career Bests
Seniors Brent Sheffer and Derek Applewhite and sophomore Andrew Ochs closed out their 2002 seasons by establishing new personal records in their events at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships. Sheffer finished his collegiate career by placing sixth in the pole vault after clearing a height of 16-10 1/4, while Applewhite and Ochs posted times of 50.25 and 52.45, respectively, in the 400-meter hurdles. With Applewhite placing fifth and Ochs finishing eighth, the Maize and Blue picked up five points in the event for the team standings.
Contact: David Crabtree (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
