Gall, Ofili, Taylor and Wade Selected as 2009 Captains
12/22/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's track and field coaching staff announced Monday (Dec. 22) the team's four captains for the upcoming season. Seniors Geena Gall(Grand Blanc, Mich./Grand Blanc), Tiffany Ofili(Ypsilanti, Mich./Ypsilanti), Casey Taylor(Chicago Heights, Ill./Marian Catholic) and Bettie Wade(Northville, Mich./Farmington) have been selected as captains for the 2009 campaign.
"These four seniors have been selected by the coaches based upon their leadership skills both on the track and in the classroom," said head coach James Henry. "They epitomize the ability to be both outstanding students and great athletes. It was difficult to choose just these four because we have other seniors that have shown great leadership and we will be calling upon them as well to take us to some outstanding performances this season."
Last season, Gall won the NCAA 800-meter run outdoor national championship (2:03.91). She also earned a pair of All-America honors during the 2008 indoor season, with a fourth-place finish in the 800 meters (2:05.79) and as part of Michigan's second-place distance medley relay squad. Gall also won the 800-meter Big Ten indoor championship last year and is the current U-M record-holder in the indoor 800 meters (2:03.37).
Ofili has won national championships in the 100-meter hurdles each of the past two seasons and won the indoor 60-meter hurdles NCAA title last season (7.94). She won both the 60-meter hurdles and the long jump last year at the Big Ten Indoor Championships and was named the 2008 Big Ten Indoor Track Athlete of the Year. Ofili is the U-M record-holder in the 60-meter dash (7.42), 60-meter hurdles (7.94) and 100-meter hurdles (12.73).
Taylor is the defending Big Ten champion in the outdoor triple jump (43-6). She was an NCAA Regional qualifier in the triple jump last season and is the current U-M outdoor record-holder. Taylor finished second in the triple jump at the 2008 Big Ten Indoor Championships and placed fourth last season in the long jump at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
Wade earned All-America honors last season in both the pentathlon and the heptathlon. She scored 4,366 points to finish second in the pentathlon at the NCAA Indoor Championships and finished third in the heptathlon at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with 5,738 points. Wade is also the defending Big Ten champion in the indoor long jump (20-6 1/2).
The Wolverines open the 2009 season on Friday, Jan. 9, at the Akron Quad in Akron, Ohio.
Contact: Jeremy Reid (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
