Weekly Release #19

5/11/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field

Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sun., May 16-18 -- at Big Ten Outdoor Championships (West Lafayette, Ind.)
Fri-Sat., May 30-31 -- at NCAA Mideast Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)

This Week: Big Ten Championships ...
The two-time defending Big Ten Conference champion University of Michigan women's track and field team heads to West Lafayette, Ind., this Friday through Sunday (May 14-16), as the Boilermakers of Purdue play host to the 2004 league meet. Michigan's defense of its outdoor crown begins at 12:15 p.m. EST/CDT Friday afternoon, as the weekend's first action begins with the heptathlon 100-meter hurdles. Saturday's action gets under way at 10:15 a.m. with the heptathlon long jump, while trials of the 4x100-meter relay begin at 2:10 p.m. The triple jump opens the final day of competition at 11:40 a.m., followed shortly by the finals of 4x100-meter relay at 12:45 p.m.

U-M has never won the Big Ten outdoor title three consecutive years. Wisconsin is the only team in league history to have won the title three or more years in a row, as the Badgers claimed four of the first five conference outdoor crowns (1983-86).

Last Year in Minneapolis: Triple Crown Champs ...
The Wolverines hoisted their third Big Ten team trophy of the 2002-03 season last year at the Big Ten Conference Outdoor Championships in Minneapolis, Minn., as they totaled 137 points over three days of competition at Bierman Stadium to complete the league triple crown of team hardware (cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field). Defending its team championship from 2002, Michigan received four Big Ten individual titles as well as four individual runner-up showings to lift the Maize and Blue past Indiana and Penn State.

Heading into the final two events -- the high jump and 4x400-meter relay -- three points separated the top three teams, with Indiana (120) holding a one-point cushion on Penn State (119) and Michigan resting in third with 117.

In the first of those two events, sophomores Stephanie Linz (2002-03) and Jennifer Kulchar (Burton, Mich./Atherton HS) took it upon themselves to make sure the Wolverines would take home the triple crown hardware as they went 2-3 in the high jump with NCAA Regional qualifying clears of 5-10 1/2 and 5-8, respectively. The 2-3 finish earned U-M a much-needed 14 points, pushing it into sole possession of the team points lead with a 10-point cushion with one event remaining.

It was scene much like the 2002 outdoor conference championships: all the Wolverines needed to do was finish the final race, the 4x400-meter relay, with no baton faults and they would again be hoisting the hardware. Michigan did more than that though as the foursome of Shavonne Maclin (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Beaumont School), tri-captain Rachel Sturtz (2000-03), Sierra Hauser-Price (Van Nuys, Calif./Van Nuys HS) and Vera Simms (Mililani, Hawaii/Mililani HS) finished ahead of both Indiana and Penn State (sixth and seventh respectively), crossing in third place with a time of 3:40.58. The third-place finish improved U-M's three-day total to 137, 13 points better than the Hoosiers and Nittany Lions, who finished tied for second with 124.

Tri-captain April Phillips, Sturtz and Simms were the Wolverines' three individual victors. Phillips posted a pair of first-place finishes, winning both the hammer throw and shot put. Sturtz won her fifth career 800-meter title and third straight at the outdoor championships, while Simms defended her 400-meter crown.

Robin Landfair (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS) did her part to rewrite the Michigan record book, as she shattered her own school 100-meter hurdles mark, crossing the finish line in 13.42 for fourth place in the event's final on Sunday.

Following the championships, Phillips was selected the Big Ten Outdoor Athlete of the Year and Michigan head coach James Henry collected Big Ten Outdoor Coach of the Year accolades.

Michigan at the Big Ten Outdoors ...
The Wolverines have won the outdoor team title five times in the program's 22 years of Big Ten Conference outdoor competition. Michigan's five conference titles came in 1993, '94, '98, 2002 and '03. U-M's 179 total points in 1994 rank as the most points ever scored by a Big Ten program. The Maize and Blue also produced three second-place finishes in 1982, 1983 and 1997. The Wolverines have had two athletes named Athlete of the Championship as Richelle Webb (1991-94) won the award in 1994 and Tania Longe (1995-98) earned the honor in 1998. Head coach James Henry has been named Big Ten Conference Outdoor Coach of the Year on four occasions, in 1994, '98 and following his team's last two championships in 2002 and '03.

The Wolverines' five conference outdoor titles are good enough for the second most total of wins by a program in league history. Wisconsin leads all Big Ten teams with eight conference team titles.

Michigan's Top 10 in the Conference ...
The Wolverines enter the 2004 Big Ten Outdoor Championships with 34 top 10 times/distances in the league, including four athletes who will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., as the top seed in their respective events. Field events lead the charge for U-M, as Melissa Bickett (Akron, Ohio/Revere HS) heads the list in the discus (181-9, 55.39m), Lindsey Stephenson (Hamburg, N.Y./Hamburg HS) tops the charts in the javelin (162-9, 49.60m) and Elizabeth Boyle (Northbrook, Ill./New Trier HS) vaulted to the top of the standings in the pole vault last week with a mark of 13-6 1/4 (4.12m).

Michigan Performers in the Big Ten Top 10

100m Dash 1. Connie Moore, Penn State 11.41 3. Sierra Hauser-Price, U-M 11.71 200m Dash 1. Connie Moore, Penn State 22.71 7. Sierra Hauser-Price, U-M 24.04 400m Dash 1. Shellene Williams, Iowa 52.95 5. Carly Knazze, U-M 55.12 10. Shavonne Maclin, U-M 56.08 800m Run 1. Michelle Lahann, Iowa 2:06.79 2. Lindsey Gallo, U-M 2:06.85 5. Anna Jones, U-M 2:09.09 7. Jackie Gaydos, U-M 2:09.42 10. Theresa Feldkamp, U-M 2:10.35 1,500m Run 1. Hillary Edmondson, Wis. 4:17.5 2. Lindsey Gallo, U-M 4:18.15 4. Jessie Allen-Young, U-M 4:27.07 6. Katie Erdman, U-M 4:28.65 10. Jackie Gaydos, U-M 4:32.21 3,000m Steeplechase 1. Amber Ferner, Penn State 10:16.34 8. Ana Gjesdal, U-M 10:38.09 10. Andrea Parker, U-M 10:42.25 5,000m Run 1. Jamie Krzyminski, MSU 16:08.67 10,000m Run 1. Jamie Krzyminski, MSU 32:52.81 10. Lesley Jurasek, U-M 37:21.08 100m Hurdles 1. Molly Logan, Ohio State 13.06 4. Robin Landfair, U-M 13.80 7. Candice Wilkey, U-M 14.03 400m Hurdles 1. Vera Simms, U-M 58.21 6. Keri Kirk, U-M 1:00.72 9. Kiana Stringfield, U-M 1:02.50 4x100m Relay 1. Penn State 44.65 2. Michigan 45.76 (Landfair, Campbell, Knazze, Hauser-Price) 4x400m Relay 1. Penn State 3:37.38 3. Michigan 3:41.81 High Jump 1. Peaches Roach, Iowa 5-10 3/4 (1.80m) 6. Jennifer Kulchar, U-M 5-8 (1.73m) Long Jump 1. Chi Chi Aduba, Penn State 21-6 (6.55m) Triple Jump 1. Chi Chi Aduba, Penn State 43-4 1/4 (13.21m) Discus 1. Melissa Bickett, U-M 181-9 (55.39m) 6. Bridgette Maynard, U-M 159-10 (48.72m) Hammer Throw 1. Keturah Lofton, Ohio State 200-2 (61.02m) 8. Melissa Bickett, U-M 183-0 (55.79m) 10. Ashley Eckel, U-M 179-5 (54.70m) Javelin  1. Lindsey Stephenson, U-M 162-9 (49.60m) 10. Janelle Jaha, U-M 130-1 (39.66m) Shot Put 1. Amarachi Ukabam, OSU 53-11 1/4 (16.43m) 9. Melissa Bickett, U-M 48-6 1/4 (14.79m) 10. Ashley Eckel, U-M 47-7 1/4 (14.51m) Heptathlon 1. Tiffany Pederson, Iowa 4,864 pts. 5. Beth Vinckier, U-M 4,421 pts. 6. Annessa Schnur, U-M 4,151 pts.

Recapping Last Weekend ...
The Wolverines hosted their lone home meet of the outdoor season last weekend and the home team did not disappoint its fans, posting 15 NCAA Regional qualifying marks, winning 10 events, in addition to sophomore Elizabeth Boyle breaking the school and Ferry Field records in the pole vault during the two-day Len Paddock Invitational (May 7-8).

Boyle led the Maize and Blue charge on the second day of action, as she bettered her own school record in the pole vault to 13-6 1/4 on her first attempt. Boyle previous held the record with a clearance of 13-3 1/2. Her mark also set the Ferry Field record by a whole foot.

On the track Saturday, Sierra Hauser-Price won three races, extending her unbeaten streak at the Len Paddock to 10 dating back to her freshman year.

Friday, U-M opened with five event titles, lead by senior/junior Lindsey Gallo's (Freehold, N.J./Howell HS) dominating performance in the 800-meter run, in which she posted a personal-best and NCAA regional qualifying time of 2:06.85.

A Tropical Treat ...
Senior Vera Simms (Mililani, Hawaii/Mililani HS) will look to become the third Wolverine to win three consecutive Big Ten individual event crowns when she takes to the track for the 400-meter hurdles this weekend in West Lafayette, Ind. Simms has posted the top spot in the race at each of the last two conference meets, as she is the only U-M'er to ever win the event. Last year, she earned her second consecutive Big Ten crown in the 400-meter hurdles when she outran the eight-member field with a time of 58.78.

Triple Threat ...
Senior Vera Simms (Mililani, Hawaii/Mililani HS) is looking to join former Michigan standouts Rachel Sturtz (2000-03) and Tania Longe (1995-98) as only the third Wolverine to win three straight Big Ten Conference event titles during the outdoor championships when she competes in the 400-meter hurdles this weekend at the 2004 Big Ten Championships. Simms enters the weekend as the two-time defending conference champion in the event, winning the crown at the 2002 and 2003 league meets. Sturtz made her claim to fame as a dominate force in the 800-meter run during her final three years at Michigan. The most decorated mid-distance runner in U-M history, Sturtz won the event at three-straight league meets from 2001 to 2003, the last helping U-M to its first Triple Crown at the 2003 Big Ten meet. Tonia Longe, was the first to etch her name in to the Michigan record book, as she won three consecutive outdoor event titles when she won the heptathlon in 1996, '97 and '98. Debbie Williams (1979-82) actually won four straight titles in the javelin from 1979-82, however three wins came prior 1982, when women's track and field joined the Big Ten Conference.

Up, Up and Away ...
Sophomore Elizabeth Boyle took full advantage of her home facilities last weekend, as she reset her own school record and etched her name in the Ferry Field record book when she cleared 13-6 1/4 to win the pole vault. Boyle, who is the only Wolverine ever to clear the 13-foot barrier wasted little time in reaching the school record height. After clearing 13-3, a height that gave her the Ferry Field record, she breezed over 13-6 on her first attempt with a good five inches to spare. With the vault, Boyle was named the Big Ten Athlete of the Week for the second time this season and will head to this weekend's conference champions as the No. 1 seed, as she is only one of three league vaulters to clear the 4.00-meter barrier.

No Joke, She's Just Fast ...
Senior/junior Lindsey Gallo annihilated her personal-best time in the 800-meter run, as she clocked a personal-best and NCAA regional-qualifying 2:06.85 to win the Invitational section of the event on the first day of the Len Paddock Invitational last Friday (May 7). The time bettered her previous best in the event by 1.12 seconds, as her old mark stood at 2:07.97 set at the during the 2004 indoor season (Feb. 6). It bettered her outdoor 800-meter time by an even bigger margin. Gallo previous held a PR of 2:10.31 outdoors, which she ran at the 2003 Len Paddock Invitational (5/10/03).

Super Speedy Quick ...
Junior Sierra Hauser-Price continued her domination at the Len Paddock Invitational as she won three events last Saturday (May 8), bringing her total to 10 straight wins at the Michigan home meet. Dating back to her freshman year, 2002, Hauser-Price has finished first in every individual or relay race since taking third in her opening race, the 4x100-meter relay.

Hauser-Price, now with junior standing, began the afternoon as the anchor of the victorious and NCAA regional-qualifying 4x100-meter relay team which clocked in at 45.76. It marks the first time this season the Wolverines have finished under the NCAA standard of 45.80. Individually, she toppled the field in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes with times of 11.74 and 24.17.

Break It Down ...
Started last year, during the 2003 outdoor season, four regional meets will now be held to determine the participants for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Michigan is in the Mideast Region and will compete in its regional meet which will be held May 28-29 at the Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, La. In order for an athlete to automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships, she must finish in the top five of an individual event or be a member of a top three relay at the regional championship. The track and field committee will also select a group of at-large athletes to round out the remainder of the Championships field in each event, similar to provisional-qualifying marks in the past.

Looking Ahead ...
The Wolverines have a week off before several Maize and Blue athletes travel to Baton Rouge, La., Friday and Saturday (May 28-29) for the second annual NCAA Mideast Regional Championships. Each day's action begin at noon, with Friday's action getting under way with the javelin, while Saturday's competition is scheduled to begin with the hammer throw.