Minnesota Track and Field

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2011-03-09T22:04:00.003-06:00

Over the past few months its become pretty clear that this blog is a little redundant... please check out our Facebook Page, where much of my previous blog type material is ending up.

I'll leave the blog up for some of the old posts/video. Thanks for reading!

Updates

2010-11-30T09:56:00.003-06:00

Most years the fall goes very fast and this year has been no exception. Cross Country wrapped up their season with another strong year... 3rd in the Big Ten and a trip to the NCAA Championship meet.

Thanksgiving came and went - which brought with it the annual 'throwers pentathlon' The pent tests the 30-meter acceleration, standing long jump, standing triple jump, overhead back throw and between the legs front throw.

We had the most 300+ scorers in recent history with 14 guys... and a few more in the 296-299 range. Aaron Studt had the highest score (and also a 19.91m overhead back which is unheard of). Sean King was the most improved, taking his score up 35 points from last year.

Next Friday brings the inter-squad... more to come!

Griak Video

2010-10-14T09:54:00.001-05:00

Here is a great video from the Roy Griak Invite a few weeks back...

Fall Training

2010-10-13T20:43:00.003-05:00

Well, Gopher Track and Field is back in action, even if the results page wouldn't show it just yet. Cross Country is off to a solid start and will have a test this weekend at the Pre-National race. The rest of the tracksters are off to a great start in their general prep training. The new guys are adjusting to fall training, and the old guys are preparing well just as the have for several falls gone by now.

If any of our loyal readers have any ideas for some fall postings, I'd be happy to see what I can do. Just email me at rede0025@umn.edu. In the mean-time, here is a highlight video that Becky Bohm put together after our Big Ten Title outdoors last year. You should also check out her Facebook page she put together for the team.

Go Gophers!

USA! USA! USA!

2010-07-14T12:00:00.004-05:00

Well, summer has arrived and things are slowing down a bit around here. This is the case for everyone but Aaron Studt and Ben Blankenship who represented the United States in their first international meet for USA Track and Field. Both came home with the silver medal, Studt in the shot put and Ben in the 1500m. Aaron was interviewed online and talks about his experience with http://downthebackstretch.blogspot.com/ .

On a side note: Please feel free to contact me if you'd see any videos from specific events/meets from the year. I'll do my best to post them... Just email me at rede0025@umn.edu.

Have a great summer!

RJ featured on WCCO

2010-06-08T11:13:00.001-05:00

http://www.wcco.com/video/?id=79922@wcco.dayport.com

Big Ten Championship Video

2010-06-01T11:27:00.004-05:00

RAY:

BEN:

4x100

5k:

800m:

1500m:

Trey:

Micah:

Big Ten Champions!

2010-05-18T12:45:00.002-05:00

What a great win for the guys as they win their 4th straight title. Too many clutch performances to mention, but just an overall great team showing.

As we get some competition video off the camera I'll be sure to post it. Also here is a link to Becky Miller's photo site where I'm sure she's be posting some great pictures in the coming days. Thanks Becky.

http://gophertrackshots.com/

GO GOPHERS!

Big Tens are here... some updates before we go!

2010-05-11T19:30:00.004-05:00

We split up the group 2 weeks back and got things tuned up before Big Tens. Most guys took this past weekend off, with many redshirts heading over to Hamline.

At Stanford distance guys got things rolling. Chris Rombough hit a nice PR in the 5k with his 13:48.80. Mike Torchia just missed going under 14-min for the first time with his 14:02.0. Senior Matt Barrett also hit a PR with his 14:17.73. Ben Blankenship led the way in the middle distances with his PR of 3:41.96. Harun Abda, Travis Burkstrand and Joe McFarland all hit PR's in the 800m.

Down in Iowa City at the Musco Twilight Meet (which has aired, and will air again on the Big Ten Network) we had some great performances as well. In the throws, Micah Hegerle and Paul Hoplin both had breakout performances. Hegerle hit a 10' PR in the hammer moving him into second on the all-time list with his 211' throw. Hoplin hit a 10' PR, and a 30' season best, also moving him into second on the all-time list.

On the track, Oladipo Fagbemi dropped a bomb in his 200m, running 21.44. Sean King had a nice night running a 10.57 in the 100m. Luke Silovich ran a season best (not sure on PR) of 14.56 in the 110mH.

I also failed to get up recognition for RJ McGinnis and Micah Hegerle. Both earned Big Ten Athlete of the week honors. RJ for his win at Drake in the decathlon... Micah for his PR and win at Iowa.

Here is some video from the Iowa throws... I didn't get the track ones downloaded before the Hamline ones replaced them!

We're heading to Big Ten's this weekend to defend the outdoor title from last year. The championship is being hosted at Indiana. HERE is the host site to follow results as they become available. Wish us luck!

Drake Relays!

2010-04-30T10:57:00.002-05:00

Congrats to Oladipo for his win in the triple jump, and also to the decathletes... RJ and Jack going 1-2 and Joey with a nice PR.

We're also excited to see Matt Fisher back in action... Matt cleared 7'2 for a 4th place finish.

Several relays also had good showings, including the 4x800m relay which broke the school record!

I'll post some video soon!

Updates...

2010-04-19T11:10:00.004-05:00

The team is off to the MAC Twilight Meet on Wednesday and then a large group will head to Drake for this weekend. A limited group will also compete at the Drake Alternative at Gustavus on Saturday.

I will work towards getting some videos up this week. We have had some great performances so far this season... here are a few highlights:

100m - Sean King, 10.62
200m - Cameron Boy, 21.51
400m - Jon H0lton, 48.00
800m - Harun Abda, 1:48.96
1500m - Chris Rombough, 3:44.49
10k - Mike Torchia, 29:33.54
400mH - Logan Stroman, 53.31
High Jump - Matt Clauer, 6'8
Pole Vault - Ben Peterson, 17'3
Long Jump - Oladipo Fagbemi, 23'10
Triple Jump - Oladipo Fagbemi, 49'2
Shot Put - Trey Davis, 54'10
Discus Throw- Micah Hegerle, 170'10
Hammer Throw - Micah Hegerle, 202'0
Javelin Throw - Paul Hoplin, 194'1

Spring Break - ASU

2010-03-31T11:21:00.002-05:00

With the weather as great as its been here in Minnesota, the last thing I've wanted to do is sit at the computer and write on the blog! That said, here are some delayed updates and highlights from our spring trip to ASU.

We had a great week in Tempe. The weather was perfect. We got some good training in from Wednesday-Friday... with a solid meet on Saturday. Our flight didn't leave until a little later on Sunday, so we were able to get some work in before our departure, even on our last day.

As far as the meet:

Micah Hegerle had an outstanding opening meet. Micah broke the freshman record in the hammer throw with his 192'10 throw. The previous record was 181'-something by yours truly. Hopefully Micah will continue to wipe me from the record book! He then went on to his a 171' throw in the discus. A great start.

David Pachuta opened up his outdoor season strong with a 1:50.52 win in the 800m. Travis Burkstrand also put down a solid 3:51.32. Ben Peterson knocked out another 17'+ day in the pole vault.

With all the training during the week the results weren't eye popping, but the the time was well spent.

We're off to Arizona again this weekend, this time to University of Arizona for the Jim Click Shootout.

Pachuta's 800m:

Peterson's Vault:

Micah's Hammer:

Ibes at Worlds!

2010-03-16T18:14:00.002-05:00

Ibes qualified for, and competed at the IAAF World Indoor Championships. Congrats Ibes... the program is very proud of you!

Here is more about Ibes on gophersports.com

http://www.gophersports.com/ViewArticle.dbmlSPSID=38682&SPID=3305&DB_OEM_ID=8400&ATCLID=204907118.

Some Updates

2010-03-16T18:01:00.002-05:00

Sorry for the delay in posts. Here are some highlights since I last posted...

The team qualified a DMR, 3 Heps (RJ,and Brock) Blankenship in the Mile, Rombough in the 3k, Fisher in the high jump and Studt in the shot put and weight throw.

The guys competed this weekend and did great, placing 8th as a team. The top eight Americans in the field earn All-American status, and all our guys made it. Our 9 All-Americans ties for the most by any team in the NCAA Championship. NCAA Champs Florida and runners-up Oregon both also had 9 athletes earn All-American.

Pretty good company.

The DMR took third (I'll post video when available). Blankenship led it off - passed to Stroman and then to Harun. Rombough ran the anchor, and with a few laps to go rolled his ankle pretty bad on the rail... it was quite swollen after the race, and there was question as to his ability to race the 3k the next night. That said, Rombough ran down several people in the final 200-meters to move into third in the final meters.

Studt earned his first All-American in the weight, matching his lifetime best at 69-7. He also earned All-American in the shot, placing 6th. He was one of only two athletes to earn All-American in both throwing event (Jason Lewis from ASU, 7th in shot and 6th in weight throw).

The Multi-eventers all earned All-American status with their performance in the hepathlon. RJ finished 6th, Brock was 9th and Jack was 10th (and also the top freshman in the NCAA). They had the unique experience of being part of a world record performance in the hepathlon... Oregon's Ashton Eaton broke the world record with his score of 6,499.

Fisher earned his first All-American honor by making the first two heights with no misses. His jump of 7'.25 tied for 9th.

Great job guys. Now onto spring break down in Tempe, Az.

Big Ten Network

2010-03-09T12:20:00.002-06:00

The Big Ten Network will air their coverage of the 2010 Big Ten Championship meet tonight at 8pm!

Big Ten Awards - Congrats!

2010-03-03T13:00:00.001-06:00

Aaron Studt - 'Big Ten Field Athlete of the Championships'

and

Steve Plasencia - 'Coach of the Year'

Big Ten Champs!

2010-03-01T09:28:00.008-06:00

What a special weekend for the program. The guys stepped up huge and put together an incredible meet. Check http://www.gophersports.com/ for pretty solid coverage of the meet (pictures, results, etc). As you probably know already - the team won the Big Ten team title going away... we put down 160.50 points. Ohio State was second with 112.50.

Individual Big Ten Champs include Aaron Studt in both weight and shot put, Ben Peterson in pole vault, Harun Abda in the 600m, Ben Blankenship in the mile and RJ McGinnis in the heptathlon.

--Ben Peterson won the vault on his final attempt.

--Aaron Studt won both the shot and weight on his final attempts.

--RJ trailed going into the final event.

--Blankenship took the lead with 200m to go.

GAMERS!

--Harun on the other hand just kicked the hell out of everyone. SO BORING! :)

There were too many outstanding performance to mention! I will put up video of the individual Big Ten Champions as they become available. Here are a few...

MILE:

SHOT:

600m:

GO TIME!

2010-02-26T10:25:00.001-06:00

Alumni Event

2010-02-24T11:05:00.001-06:00

Come for dinner and to catch up with friends after the first day of the Big Ten Indoor Men’s Track & Field Meet. Tours of TCF Bank Stadium will be available!

Alumni, parents of team members, spouses, kids, – ALL are welcome!

Where: Mariucci Arena Club Room

When: Saturday, February 27th: 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Cost is $10 per person – kids 12 and under are free! You may pay in cash or check when you arrive.

Please RSVP by Wednesday, February 24th to rmckess@umn.edu

*Indicate in your RSVP if you would like to go on the tour of TCF Bank Stadium.

Big Ten Week!

2010-02-23T10:24:00.003-06:00

We are all set for the Big Ten Championship on our home track this weekend. A few tickets are still available at gophersports.com.

Here are a couple video highlights from the Snowshoe last Friday: Brock Spandl PR'd in the vault (17'3) and Studt had a nice toss in the weight (68+).

GO GOPHERS!!!

Big Weekend

2010-02-14T16:47:00.003-06:00

We had a lot of athletes compete this weekend and had some really good results. This is good timing as we are nearing the Big Ten Championships in 2 weeks on our home track.

Several distance runners traveled to Seattle for a big meet at the University of Washington - the Husky Classic. Chris Rombough broke the school record (previously held by Hassan) with his time of 7:54.57.

Ben Blankenship also ran quite well with a big PR of 7:59.49 - good enough for third on the all-time list behind Chris and Hassan. Several others had solid showings including Mike Torchia and Matt Barrett in the 5k.

The brunt of the team headed south to Ames for the Iowa State Classic. The meet consisted of a reported 91 teams.

Aaron Studt had a monster weekend with his 69-7 in the weight and 62-9 in the shot put. Aaron won the shot and was runner-up in the weight, but was the top collegiate thrower. Kleinhuizen also had a big weekend - tossing PR's in both weight and shot put.

Andy Richardson also got a win - his in the mile with a 4:05.29 Paul Hilsen also ran a PR in that event going 4:08.12

A few freshman in their Gopher debut had good showings with Cameron Boy running 21.86 in the 200-meter ... and Oladipo Fagbemi jumping 48-9 in the triple. A slew of 800-meter guys ran 1:51. including Joe McFarland, Harun Abda and David Pachuta.

The vaulters had another solid showing... Ben Peterson over 17'2... Brock over 16'7 and Plencner/Szmanda over 16'2. Brock also added a few 23' jumps in the long jump comp.

If I left anyone out I'm sorry... we had a lot of people competing!

Overall it was a great weekend. I will get some videos posted soon...

Posts might slow a bit...

2010-02-02T10:27:00.004-06:00

I will do my best to keep some posts going... but I'm currently at the hospital with my wife and our newborn son! They are both at a 'nursing' class - and then we'll be packing up and heading home this afternoon. I thought I'd get a quick post up while they are away. Kilen David Reder was born Sunday at 6:13pm - 8lbs-6oz and 19.5 inches. Both mom and baby are doing great.

Although I wasn't able to make it down to Iowa State - I thought I would get some highlights up:

-The multi-event group went crazy - all hitting PR's and NCAA marks. RJ McGinnis hit the NCAA Auto mark and just barely missed the school record. Joey Schweke and Brock Spandl both hit big PR's and the NCAA provo mark. This right on the heals of RS-Freshman Jack Szmanda hitting his provo mark last week (earning Big Ten athlete of the week in the process). What a group!

-Matt Fisher threw his jersey on for the first time this year and hit a solid provo jump of 2.19 (7-2+).

-The weight guys threw quite well in my absence (should I take a hint?) All hit PR's or were very close. Studt moved his NCAA mark up a bit...

-The miler group of Richardson and Hilen put down some solid times...

-Chris Rombough opened up his season with a nice win in the 3,000-meters - 8:04.71 was also a NCAA provo mark

-Kevin Bradley is getting it going with his 48.88 in the 400-meter.

I'll see if I can get some video up later this week. Not a lot of down-time as you can imagine!!!

Better go pack like I said I would :)

Congrats to Jack!

2010-01-26T13:16:00.002-06:00

RS - Freshman Jack Szmanda took down the freshman record and also an NCAA provisional mark in the heptathlon this past weekend at the Jack Johnson Classic. More about it here on gophersports.com.

Jack Johnson

2010-01-26T13:13:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Flotrack.com for coming up to cover the Jack Johnson Classic. Here is a highlight video they put together. There are also interviews here:

Track and Field Videos on Flotrack

I'll get some clips from the meet up soon...

Harun continues to impress...

2010-01-20T13:04:00.002-06:00

We had several bright spots in our second meet of the indoor season, the Minnesota Open. One of the brightest continues to be the young career of Harun Abda. Harun was the 2009 Minnesota Class AA State Champion in the 800m, and has found a nice distance for himself in the 600m race. Although red-shirting, Harun's time of 1:18.43 would be 5th on the all-time list. Video below:

NEXT UP: The team will compete at home again this weekend at the Jack Johnson. Other teams include NDSU, Iowa, University of Northern Iowa, South Florida and Manitoba.

The meet will include an alumni reunion put on by the "M-Club" and a live band during the competition. Should be a fun weekend, so be sure to come by and support the Gophers! If you are an alum, come by and enjoy some food and beverage with other former-tracksters!

In other alumni news: Antonio Vega is the US Half-Marathon Champion. More info and video interview on down-the-backstretch.

Northwest Open Highlights

2010-01-14T10:55:00.002-06:00

First off, sorry for the delayed post... I normally try to get something up earlier in the week, but for whatever reason this week got away from me.

We opened up with a very limited group this past Saturday at home for the Northwest Open.

Here are some highlights:

-Harun Abda turning some heads in his first college race (UNAT) in a 1:19+ 600-meter.

-Some guys returning from injury for nice performances... Ben Peterson hitting a provo in pole vault (17') Matt Fisher in high jump (6'10+) and Joe Plencner in his first day vaulting in a long time (15'7).

-Weight guys looking good... Micah Hegerle just missing a provo in his first official meet as a Gopher (63'8) the mark was 9-centimeters short of provo, but good enough for a new freshman record. Aaron Studt with his best opener ever, hitting a provo (64'+). Transfer redshirt Andy Norman with a 2-foot PR in his opener (57').

-Stroman and Shelendich both opening up well in their 800-meter (1:52+).

-Joey Schweke hitting some nice PR's in the hurdles and high jump (6'8+).

-Addison Demer opening up with a 7.00m+ long jump.

600-Meter:

800-Meter:

Ben Peterson: 17'

NCAA Rankings

2010-01-07T12:32:00.003-06:00

Minnesota will open up the 2010 season with a #10 ranking in the NCAA.

Harun Abda vs. Urkel from 'Family Matters'

2010-01-06T11:06:00.004-06:00

You decide!

...ok... yea... its a little slower pace around here over Christmas break training.

Intersquad Highlights (and some video)

2009-12-17T10:47:00.004-06:00

The team had its annual intersquad meet last Friday and had some really nice performances for this time of year. Here are a few highlights:

-Matt Fisher jumped 6'11 ... compared to his PR of 7'4 this isn't earth shattering, but very encouraging since Matt ruptured his achilles tendon in the NCAA Championship Meet just 6 months ago! The other jumpers are ahead of last year also with Clauer and Parent jumping 6'7.

-Ben Peterson also returning from injury last year to clear 17' in the pole vault. Red-shirt multi-eventer Jack Szmanda vaulting 16'. Brock also looking solid at 16'6.

-David Pachuta looking fit in his 1,000-meter win, running 2:26.80. Logan Stroman ahead of last year in his 600-meter running 1:19.24

-The horizontal jumps group looked good with Ray, Tommy and Dipo all well over 47' in the triple jump from a short approach.

-The throws group had a good showing with Micah Hegerle and Andy Norman providing the main highlights... Micah 66'6 and Norman 63'7 w/30lb weight.

-Cameron Boy debuted well with his win in the 150-meter... Kevin Bradley also looked good in his 300-meter.

-Sean Duling continued his excellent fall training with a near PR in the 60-meter hurdles... 8.16.

Now the boys are working hard on finals before enjoying the holiday break!

Big Ten Indoor Championship

2009-12-07T10:15:00.003-06:00

FROM JO RIDER:

As you know, the University of Minnesota Athletic Department will be hosting the Men’s Indoor Track Big Ten Championships on February 27 & 28, 2010.

Just a friendly reminder that the special ticket “pre-sale” for participating teams ends Friday, December 11. The tickets will go on sale to the public on December 14, 2010 We would sure like to have you join us to cheer on the team as they compete to win another Big Ten Title.

Call 1-800-U-GOPHER or 612-624-8080.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Saturday, February 27th:

10:00 a.m. Heptathlon 60-meters

10:40 a.m. Heptathlon long jump

11:50 a.m. Heptathlon shot put

12:50 p.m. Heptathlon high jump

1:30 p.m. Long jump (trials & finals)

3000-meters – unseeded
section (finals)

1:40 p.m. Shot put (trials & finals)

1:45 p.m. Pole vault (trials & finals)

2:30 p.m. One-mile (trials)

3:00 p.m. 400-meters (trials)

3:20 p.m. 60-meters (trials)

3:30 p.m. 800-meters (semi-finals)

3:50 p.m. 60-meter Hurdles (trials)

4:00 p.m. 600-meters (trials)

4:15 p.m. 200-meters (trials)

4:40 p.m. 3000-meters – seeded section
(finals)

5:00 p.m. Distance medley relay (finals)

Sunday, February 28th:

9 a.m. Heptathlon 60-meter Hurdles

10:00 a.m. Heptathlon pole vault

11:00 a.m. High jump (trials & finals)

12:50 p.m. Weight throw (trials & finals)

1:00 p.m. 5000-meters – unseeded
section (finals)

1:30 p.m. Heptathlon 1000-meters to 3:30

1:50 p.m. One-Mile (finals)

2:00 p.m. 400-meters (finals)

2:10 p.m. 60-meters (finals)

2:20 p.m. 800-meters (finals)

2:30 p.m. 60-meter Hurdles (finals)

2:40 p.m. 600-meters (finals)

2:50 p.m. 200-meters (finals – 2 sections)

3:00 p.m. 5,000-meters – seeded section
(finals)

3:25 p.m. 4x400-meter relay (finals – 2
sections)

3:45 p.m. AWARDS PRESENTATION

Pentathlon Recap

2009-12-01T10:27:00.003-06:00

As is the annual tradition - the track guys took part in the 'throwers pent' last week. This is a fun way to cap off a good fall of training and get the competitive juices flowing.

We test the overhead back throw with a 16lb shot, between the legs front throw (w/16), standing long jump, standing triple jump and 30-meter acceleration. These performances are then plugged into a scoring table. Typically, a 300 point total is a significant bench-mark.

We had a very nice showing all across the board, and quite possibly the deepest 300-point club ever. We had 11 guys score 300-points or more - this not including 3 guys who likely would have gone over 300 (Studt, McGinnis and Kleinhuizen).

Joey Schweke took the 2009 title with his 339 total score. Kenny Schofield, Clay Gosse, Cameron Boy and Dipo Fagbemi all had notable performances for freshman... all going well over the 300 point mark with 324, 323, 319 and 310 respectively.

Jack Szmanda had the honorable mention runner-up finish, and most improved score - improving his 2008 score by 70+ points to 333.

After some Mesa Pizza the guys wrapped up classes on Wednesday and enjoyed their Thanksgiving weekend (so did the coaches).

Congrats to XC and pentathlon predictions...

2009-11-24T10:48:00.004-06:00

Congrats to Hassan Mead who earned All-American honors with his 16th place finish at Monday's NCAA Cross Country Championships. Also, congrats to the entire team for a great season!

Today the track guys will compete in the annual 'throwers pentathlon' ... we test standing long jump, standing triple jump, overhead back throw, between the legs front throw, and 30-meter acceleration. The competition is wide open with perenial favorite Aaron Studt out of the line-up. Some guys that should be in the mix for this years title... Joey Schweke, Jack Szmanzda, Ben Peterson.

Primary goals: Have fun. Stay healthy. Compete hard. Eat Pizza after.

Results tomorrow!

They Keep Rolling In...

2009-11-19T10:14:00.003-06:00

Courtesy: University of Minnesota - Becky Bohm

Minnesota junior Hassan Mead earned his second consecutive U.S. Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Midwest Region Athlete of the Year award, the USTFCCCA announced today. Mead captured back-to-back NCAA Midwest Region titles, winning the 2009 crown by 28 seconds. The Minneapolis (South HS) native also defended his Big Ten Conference title earlier this month as well.

Two-time All-American Mead and his Golden Gopher teammates compete in the NCAA Cross Country Championships on Monday, Nov. 23, in Terre Haute, Ind. The national meet will be televised live by the Versus Network.

“Hassan is a special athlete,” said Minnesota head coach Steve Plasencia. “He continues to work hard to improve his running. He is deserving of the awards that are coming his way. I look forward to Hassan running a great race next week at the NCAAs.”

NCAA At-Large Bid

2009-11-16T09:47:00.002-06:00

The XC team learned of their NCAA At-Large bid Sunday evening... way to go guys!

Big Ten XC Video

2009-11-10T13:08:00.001-06:00

Congrats also to Hassan Mead... 2009 'Big Ten Runner of the Year'!

Mead does it again... XC third.

2009-11-04T12:59:00.003-06:00

STORY FROM GOPHERSPORTS.COM - BECKY BOHM

Minnesota junior Hassan Mead captured the individual title at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships leading the Golden Gophers to a third-place finish in the team standings.

Mead covered the 5.2-mile course at the Penn State Cross Country Course in a time of 25 minutes, 0.2 seconds. He is the third Gopher to win two or more Big Ten cross country crowns, joining Fred Watson (1913-15) and Garry Bjorklund (1969-71). Mead is the 19th Big Ten multiple champion and first since Wisconsin’s Simon Bairu won back-to-back crowns in 2004-04. Mead, who crossed the finish line 5.7 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor, also collected his third All-Big Ten First Team honor of his career.

Senior Matt Barrett contributed a ninth-place finish to earn All-Big Ten Second Team accord. Barrett was timed in 25:35.2.

The Gophers compiled 97 team points to finish third behind Wisconsin (26) and Ohio State (91). The Badgers won their 11th straight Big Ten title.

Completing the scoring for the Gophers was Ben Blankenship, who finished 18th (25:53.4); Pieter Gagnon, who placed 27th in 26:09.4; and Derek Storkel, who finished 42nd in 26:41.9.

Other Gophers running were Paul Hilsen, who finished 55th in 27:06.2; and Mike McFarland, who placed 66th in 27:42.9.

Minnesota’s next competition is the NCAA Midwest Region Championships on Nov. 14 in Springfield, Mo.

Big Ten Cross Country Preview

2009-10-30T17:12:00.001-05:00

Griak Video - 2009

2009-10-01T11:25:00.003-05:00

Congrats Hassan!

2009-09-29T14:12:00.003-05:00

After his dominant performance at the 'Griak' this weekend, the Big Ten named Hassan the conference Runner of the Week. Great job Hassan!

New Cross Country Media Guides

2009-09-24T17:40:00.003-05:00

Check out this link for the new XC media guides for 2009! Very cool.

Good luck to the distance guys as they take on the field at the 2009 Roy Griak Invite.

Women's Track/Cross Country Blog

2009-09-15T13:23:00.005-05:00

Check out the women's new blog!

http://minnesotawomenstrack.blogspot.com/

...my guess is it will be almost as cool as ours :)

First Day of Practice

2009-09-14T14:41:00.001-05:00

The cross country guys have been in action for a few weeks... now its the track team's turn. Practice begins today at 3pm!

Message from Athletic Director Joel Maturi

2009-08-17T15:20:00.002-05:00

2009 Big Ten Champions

2009-07-13T18:16:00.002-05:00

2009 Big Ten Outdoors

Click the album above to check out some great pictures from this years outdoor championships!

Summer Time = ROY TIME!

2009-06-20T17:18:00.007-05:00

While the coaching staff and athletes are enjoying a bit of down time... Roy Griak and Jo Rider are hard at work putting the final touches on the golf fundraiser. The event is set for Monday, June 29th at the University Golf Course.

If you have any interest in playing some golf, or even just for joining us for dinner while supporting Gopher Track... we'd love for you see you!

Roy has been working for years now on fundraising for the program, with the ulitimate goal of endowing ALL of the track and field scholarships. This would be a significant step in securing the program for decades to come. The golf outing is the major event of the year.

If you'd like to play, or just support Roy's efforts by donating, please give him a call at 612-625-6063. You can also email me with any questions a rede0025@umn.edu.

Every little bit helps us keep up the kind of success we've experienced this season!

Current Rankings

2009-06-12T15:54:00.002-05:00

Thought I'd post an update on our team national ranking... we're in pretty good company in 16th.

Hassan is up tonight!

Pioneer Press on Mead... NCAA Updates

2009-06-11T13:57:00.003-05:00

Check out their feature of Hassan HERE.

Hassan advanced last night in the 5k after winning his prelim heat. After rain delays, the 5k went off at about 1am. Chris was unable to advance on time from his section. Studt advanced with his 60'5, ranking 9th going into finals this afternoon. Unfortunately Fisher went down with an achilles injury in the prelims of the high jump.

RJ had a solid first day until a hamstring cramp hampered his 400-meter... dropping him from 4th to 11th. He'll get it started again today in 30 minutes!

Wisconsin State Championship Meet Highlights

2009-06-07T22:48:00.001-05:00

Wisconsin State Champions:

Olidipo Fagbemi - Marshfield, Long Jump and Triple Jump

Clay Gosse - Appleton North, Shot Put

Runners-Up:

Derek Storkel - Tomah, 3200-Meter

Minnesota State Championship Meet Highlights

2009-06-07T22:30:00.005-05:00

Minnesota State Champions:

Harun Abda - Fridley, 800-Meter

Cameron Boy - Jordan, 200-Meter

Kenny Schofield - Cotton, Triple Jump

Runners-Up:

Jon Lehman - Coon Rapids, Discus

Kenny Schofield - Long Jump

Cameron Boy - 100-Meter

Across the news wire...

2009-06-04T15:33:00.005-05:00

Gopher's currently third in overall program ranking: Check out more HERE.

...and in other news...

ANOTHER NEW GOPHER!

Harun Abda of Fridley has signed his National Letter of Intent to the University of Minnesota!

Harun has a PR of 1:50.74 from last year's state championship meet. Learn more about Harun HERE.

Regional Highlights

2009-06-02T11:30:00.001-05:00

Wisconsin State Championships

2009-06-02T10:41:00.004-05:00

Here is a preview of the future Gophers at the Wisconsin State Championships this weekend:

Olidipo Fagbemi: Olidipo will compete in the 'Division 1' long jump, triple jump, 200-meter and 400-meter with seed marks of 21'6, 46'1, 22.60 and 50.23. Dipo's PR's are 23'4, 48'10, 22.18 and 48.54 (2008).

Derek Storkel: Derek will compete in the 'Divsion 1' 1600-meter and 3200-meter. with seed times of 4:14.71 and 9:23.04. Both are PR's on the season.

Clay Gosse: Clay will compete in the 'Division 1' shot put and discus throw with seed marks of 59'11 and 158'3. Clay's PR's are 60'5 and 169'6.

Minnesota State Championships

2009-06-02T10:27:00.004-05:00

Here is a quick preview of some future Gophers at the Minnesota State Championships being held this weekend:

Drew Paradis: Drew will compete in 'Class AA' in both the 3200-meter and 1600-meter with seed times of 9:20.95 and 4:25.81. His 3200-meter is a season best and PR.

Cameron Boy: Cameron will compete in 'Class A' in both the 100-meter and 200-meter with seed times of 11.32 and 22.61. His auto timed PR's on the year are 10.77 and 21.54.

Jon Lehman: Jon enters will compete in 'Class AA' in the discus throw with a seed toss of 167'3. His PR on the year is 170'10.

Kenny Schofield: Kenny will compete in 'Class A' in the long jump and triple jump with seed marks of 20'1 and 42'6. His season best jumps are 21'1 and 44'4.

Illinois State Meet Results

2009-06-02T09:54:00.006-05:00

Illinois hosted their state meet this past weekend and some future Gophers had very solid showings.

Steve Sulkin had a nice double with his 9:03.91 in the 3200-meter for the state title, followed by a 4:13.35 for third in the 1600-meter.

Andrew Larsen also had a solid performance in the 3200-meter with a fourth place performance in 9:10.04.

Future Gopher Updates

2009-05-26T12:49:00.003-05:00

Some of the 2009/2010 recruits have been tearing it up in recent weeks at the high school level... here is an update.

Ryan Todhunter: Pretty busy weekend at the ND State Championships this weekend. State record in the 300mH in 37.65 for the title... followed closely by another title in the 110mH in 14.26. For good measure, Ryan threw in a runner-up performance in the 200-meter in 22.39 and a 5th place finish in the 100-meter.

Drew Paradis: Dropped a nice PR in the 3200-meter in 9:21.30 in his conference meet.

Clay Gosse: Has extended his lead on the Wisconsin ranking in the shot put with his 60'5 toss. Also had a 169' discus in the same meet.

Cameron Boy: Dropped yet another bomb in the 200-meter... this time a 21.51 at his sub-section meet.

I'm sure there are other updates of note that I'm missing, but thought I'd get a few highlights up!

Go Gophers!

Pictures

2009-05-21T10:02:00.004-05:00

Be sure to check out Becky Miller's great site for photo's!

GOPHER TRACK SHOTS

BIG TEN AWARDS

2009-05-21T09:47:00.005-05:00

Well, we had a pretty good haul as the BIG TEN announced the season and conference championship award winners... and the winners are...

Track Athlete of the Championships: Hassan Mead

Track Athlete of the Year: Hassan Mead

Field Athlete of the Championships: Aaron Studt

Field Athlete of the Year: Aaron Studt

Big Ten Coach of the Year: Steve Plasencia

Congrats and Go Gophers!

North Dakota State Meet

2009-05-19T16:01:00.002-05:00

HERE are the state qualifiers for the North Dakota State Track and Field Championships. Of particular note is Ryan Todhunter and Jake Malm... both future Gophers!

Ryan is seeded at 11.04 in the 100-meter, 22.48 in the 200-meter, 14.10 in the 110-meter hurdles, and 38.58 in 300-meter hurdles. He also runs on the Red River 4x100 (yea, he's a busy guy). Jake is the top seed in the javelin at 185'8.

Go Gophers!

2009-05-17T14:36:00.001-05:00

Mead 1st, Rombough 3rd, Blankenship 4th (doubled back after 1500 final!). 21 points...

2009-05-17T14:31:00.001-05:00

5k just put it away! 1-3-4. Team leads by 30 points going into 4x4. Team champs again!

2009-05-17T14:25:00.001-05:00

Sorry again for lack if updates... A lot busier outdoors! Highlights: Studt champ in shot. Ibes runner up in 100. Plencner 4th in vault. Linneman 6th in 400

2009-05-16T18:33:00.001-05:00

Ben Puhl gamed up for a pr in the steeple to finish 3rd in 9:01.70! Team leads 67 to Indiana's 41... Purdue is 3rd in 30. Time for team dinner!!!

2009-05-16T17:43:00.001-05:00

Linneman through in 400 meter hurdle final! Ibes also through in 200 final in 21.33. Steeple is up next to wrap up day 2.

2009-05-16T17:41:00.001-05:00

My email is on the fritz... So these are now coming in via text message. Joe Mac through in 800 final... Duling through in 110mH final after an overturned DQ.

Sorry for slow updates...

2009-05-16T16:13:00.001-05:00

Team leads 60 points to Indiana's 33. Decs went 2-3-6. Fisher and Clauer 2nd and 6th. Fish 2.19 Clauer 2.10. Joey and Addison 6-7 in long jump. Jerry 8th in discus at 49.45. Blankenship top seed in 1500 in prelim... Richardson also through to final. 800 prelim up next...

Update

2009-05-16T11:00:00.002-05:00

Team leads after day one after the hammer and 10K. Decs are off to another good start on day 2 with solid hurdles and a few big PR'S in disc. Overall scores leave us in 2nd, 3rd and 8th. (RJ, Joey and Garret). 7 events completed... Vault up next.

10K

2009-05-15T21:00:00.001-05:00

Hassan and Rombough went 1-3... More to come!

Day 1 Final Scores

2009-05-15T17:44:00.002-05:00

RJ leads day 1 with 3,965.... Joey 3rd with 3,828 and Garret is 10th with 3,504. 10k is up next!

Dec 400-Meter Update

2009-05-15T16:52:00.001-05:00

Garrett -50.71, Joey -51.94, RJ -51.11. Final day 1 scores to come...

Dec High Jump Update

2009-05-15T15:48:00.002-05:00

The decs had a good high jump showing. RJ with a 6'7, Joey with a 6'5 and Garret with a 6'0.

Hammer throw and Dec Update

2009-05-15T14:46:00.001-05:00

The hammer just completed and the guys did great! Studt was third with his 60.03 and Bastian was fourth with a 58.78. Studt was just 6 inches out of second. The decathletes continue to do well... All had solid shot tosses with Joey and Garret both hitting PR's. High jump is up now...

Off and Running

2009-05-15T12:07:00.002-05:00

The decs are at it already this morning. I haven't seen scores yet, but all ran solid 100's.... Joey 11.2, RJ 11.3 and Garret 11.6. All had legal and solid long jumps on their first attempt before I had to head to hammer! Bastian is in the first of two flights... Studt and Tyler in 2nd. Weather is warm and sunny.

2009-05-14T22:45:00.001-05:00

We are live from Columbus. I'm planning on updating the blog throught the meet, similar to the indoor championships. Stay tuned!

Big Ten Championship Preview

2009-05-14T10:03:00.000-05:00

Recruit Update

2009-05-13T12:42:00.005-05:00

Future Gopher Andrew Larsen set a new Kane County record with his 9:08.92 through 3200-meters this past Friday. Andrew is a senior at Marmion Academy in Illinois. Andrew also has a 14:34 (5,000-meter) on his resume from earlier this season.

He'll join forcese with Steve Sulkin, another top Illinois-prep runner here on campus next fall... Steve ran 9:01 through 3200-meters a few weeks back.

Also, future Gopher Cameron Boy was featured in a Q&A in the Star Tribune that can be found HERE.

Tune-Up

2009-05-11T10:56:00.003-05:00

We had a nice tune-up on Friday at home and came away with some NCAA Regional marks. Over in the high jump, Matt Clauer hit a lifetime best of 2.10m (6'10-3/4). Joe MacFarland dropped a bomb in the 800-meter with his 1:50.26 for a big PR and regional mark. Aaron Studt also had a nice day with a 60-meter toss for a PR in the hammer, and also another meet over 60' for the win in the shot put.

We're heading out to the Big Ten Championship at Ohio State on Thursday. The meet is Friday/Saturday/Sunday.

Clauer's 6'10-3/4

800-Meter

It is all Hassan... all Week!!!

2009-05-06T16:35:00.003-05:00

The Big Ten has named Hassan Mead Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week after his monster performance and new school record this past weekend at Stanford. His time of 13:28.45 is 3rd in the NCAA and 17th in the WORLD.

Hassan's performance also vaulted the Gophers 10 spots in the national team rankings to 17th.

Our small tune-up home meet is coming up this Friday and then it is go time next week at Big Ten's!

Hassan on Kare11

2009-05-05T18:59:00.002-05:00

Check out Hassan and Eric Perkins: HERE

A few recruit updates...

2009-05-04T12:44:00.004-05:00

The high school season is heating up, so I thought I'd get some updates posted about our future Gophers! In no particular order...

Olidipo Fagbemi: 'Dipo' leads the state of Wisconsin in the triple with his 48'10 and long jump with his 23'4

Steve Sulkin: Steve just ran 9:01.11 for 3200-meters this weekend which ranks 7th on dyestat.com

Jon Lehman: Jon leads class 'AA' in discus with his 169'3 from last week

Cameron Boy: Cameron leads class 'A' in the 200-meter with his 21.71 from the Elite-Meet

Derek Storkel: Derek leads Wisconsin in the 3200-meter with his 9:25.94 and has also run 4:17.8 in the 1600-meter

Ryan Todhunter: Ryan leads North Dakota in the 110mH with his 14.34 and tied for lead in the 100-meter with his 11.04

Jake Malm: Jake leads North Dakota in the javelin with his 185'3

Clay Gosse: Clay leads Wisconsin in the shot put with his 57'6

Hassan Mead: 'I feel like I can fly right now.'

2009-05-04T12:38:00.004-05:00

As many have already read, Hassan Mead crushed his own school record in the 5,000-meters this weekend at Stanford. The 13:28.45 is 3rd in the NCAA, and also happens to be crazy fast. Here is a link to video of his race and post-race interview:

http://downthebackstretch.blogspot.com/

Big Ten Athlete of the Week (and some video)

2009-04-30T09:36:00.011-05:00

RJ McGinnis was named the Big Ten Athlete of the Week after his decathlon at the 100th Drake Relays this weekend. His score of 7,626 ranks 4th in the NCAA , 3rd on the Minnesota All-Time List and 10th in the world!

The Big Ten award is the programs 9th of the year!!!

Here are some video highlights from last week...

Brock's 17'1

Drake Relays Champions: 4x1600-Meter Relay

Tyler's 58'2

Drake Relays Champion: Studt's 61'6

Resident Viking

2009-04-24T18:45:00.004-05:00

For anyone interested in an update on our resident Minnesota Viking hanging around the track... Robison threw 64' at the Macalester Twilight meet Wednesday. Not bad after just a hand-full of practices. The mark automatically qualifies him for the USA Track and Field Championship in Oregon and currently ranks 30th in the world.

The Star Tribune did a write up about Brian last week... you can check it out HERE.

Here is his 64' at Macalester:

Drake ...so far.

2009-04-24T18:32:00.004-05:00

Here are some highlights from Drake:

... 4x1600 relay team with a gutsy win! Blankenship closed the anchor in 4:01-low to lean out Stanford's Eliott Heath. The Gophers average 4:07's for the win. Team was Mead, Richardson, Rombough and Blankenship.

...Studt takes another Drake title with his 61'6 for his second title in as many years. Kleinhuizen finishing a great week with his 54'11. (Hit 58' on Wednesday at MAC to go with a PR in the discus AND hammer).

... Brock Spandl going big in gusty conditions with his 17'1 vault. (might be an outdoor PR?)

4x800 up is up tonight! Hopefully the thunder storms stay away...

Sunny Saint Paul

2009-04-21T11:25:00.006-05:00

We lucked out and had a beautiful night over at St. Thomas Friday night. With the good weather came some nice performances.

Some major higlights: Ibes having a nice night in the 100/200 with a 10.54 and 21.83, the 110mH guys all hitting big PR's led by Silovich in 14.30, then Duling in 14.49 and RJ in 14.59. Also, down at St. Mary's, the hammer guys had a nice day with Bastian going 196' and Studt going 191'.

Other notables: Joe Plencner 16'11 in vault, Paul Hoplin 201' in javelin, Micah Hegerle 176' in hammer, Kevin Bradley 47.82 in the 400-meter, Fisher hitting 7'0, Demer going 23' in LJ, Ray going 47'4 in triple and Kleinhuizen with another 55+ shot put.

Get to Know Em'

2009-04-17T11:10:00.001-05:00

Matt Fisher

Get to Know Em'

2009-04-17T10:57:00.001-05:00

Joey Plencner

Skol Vikings

2009-04-17T10:15:00.007-05:00

Kare 11's Randy Shaver was out at the track to do a story on Brian Robison making his comeback to track and field... you can see the story HERE.

Joey and Garrett

2009-04-16T23:04:00.002-05:00

The boys had a fine showing down in Kansas! Both had numerous PR's in the individual events and completed the two-day event with total score PR's. Joey took the overall title with his 6,807, while Wankel was 4th with 6,551.

Studt and Decathlon Updates

2009-04-16T11:32:00.004-05:00

Aaron Studt was named 'Big Ten Athlete of the Week' for the second time in 2009. His 61'11 at the Sun Angel Classic is good enough for 6th in the NCAA and 1st in the Big Ten.

Joey Schweke and Garrett Wankel are off to a good start in the Kansas Relays decathlon. Joey leads after Day 1 with five 'Dec' PR's. Both have started off the second day strong with solid performances in the hurdles and discus. Joey remains 1st after 7 events and Garrett has moved into 4th.

Sunny Arizona

2009-04-13T10:11:00.006-05:00

What are the chances you get rained on in the desert? You wouldn't think it would be very likely, right?

Although we hit 'Minnesota spring-like' conditions at ASU during the Sun Angel Classic, we came away with some solid performances. On Friday, the throwers got it started with Andy Bastian and Trey Davis both punching their ticket to the NCAA Regional Championship. Bastian had a season best of 188'9 in the hammer and Davis had a lifetime best of 172' in the discus at Mesa. Jerry Netland also hit a PR as the discus guys were at the Mesa Classic down the road from ASU.

Saturday, we woke up to a cold and rainy morning but the Gophers hit some additional NCAA Regional marks as the day went on. Ben Blankenship took the meet title in the 1500-meter in 3:45.73, while the youngster Andy Richardson also hit the regional mark with his 3:46.95. Aaron Studt kept it going later in the evening with his season opener in the shot put. His 61'11 was also good enough for an NCAA regional.

We'll stay in the area this weekend with St. Thomas on Friday night, and a few heading to Carleton on Saturday.

Another new Gopher!

2009-04-09T11:44:00.004-05:00

We are excited to announce the addition of another future Gopher!

Kenny Schofield: Cotton High School, Cotton MN.

Kenny (6'7) is the 2007 Minnesota State Champion in the triple jump. In 2008, he qualified for the State Championship Meet in 4 events (the triple jump, long jump, high jump and the 4x100-meter relay) while finishing runner-up in the triple. Kenny is the top returning triple jumper in both classes.

Big Ten Athlete of the Week

2009-04-09T10:57:00.008-05:00

Matt Fisher was named Big Ten Athlete of the Week after his monster jump of 7-4.5. The jump is currently ranked 1st in the NCAA and 7th in the world. (yea... the WORLD).

Some More Future Gophers!

2009-04-08T10:41:00.003-05:00

The Gopher Track and Field/Cross Country programs are excited to announce some additional commitments for the 2009/2010 recruiting class! In no particular order...

Drew Paradis: Jefferson High School, Alexandria, MN

Drew was the 5th place finisher at the 2008 Minnesota State Cross Country Meet with a time of 15:51. He was 6th at the NXN heartland regional, which qualified him individually for the NXN national meet in Portland, Oregon. He finished 102nd in the meet with a time of 16:27. On the track at Alexandria, he has run 9:36 for 3200 meters and 4:27 for 1600 meters.

Cameron Boy: Jordan High School, Jordan, MN

Cameron (6'4) is the returning Class 'A' State Champion at 200-meters with a personal best at the Minnesota State Track and Field Championships of 22.00 FAT (+.09w).

Steve Sulkin- York High School- Elmhurst, Illinois

Steve was the NXN Midwest Regional champion, and placed 14th at the NXN national finals. He then qualified for the Footlocker National championship, where he finished 23rd in a time of 15:58. He was the runner-up at the state cross country meet, covering the 3-mile course in 14:19. He has also run 9:12 for 3200 meters, earning him 3rd place at the 2008 Illinois state track meet.

7-4.5

2009-04-06T10:29:00.004-05:00

Matt Fisher hit a massive jump of 7-4.5 this weekend down at Auburn to lead the Gophers in the early goings of the outdoor season. The mark currently ranks 1st in the NCAA and 3rd on the all-time list. We'll get a video posted this week.

Also, check out the Big Ten article about Aaron Studt: HERE

Spring Break... etc.

2009-03-24T12:34:00.006-05:00

Well, we can't say we're were TOO excited to return to the great white north after a week at ASU in Tempe, Arizona. We had a great week of training in sunny Arizona, followed by a solid opening outdoor meet. Some highlights included four NCAA Regional Qualifiers... Tyler Kleinhuizen hitting a lifetime best in shot put at 56'1. Paul Hoplin going 196'3... and the vault duo of Joe Plencner and Brock Spandl both going 16'11.

I'll try to post some video highlights from the spring trip later this week.

Also, and I know this is a little delayed, but here is a video of Aaron Studt's 63'7 toss which earned him runner-up in the NCAA meet a few weeks ago (moved him from 6th to second on his last throw).

Sorry we didn't get video of the 3k... the files for the distance races are too large to post regardless!

Mead and Rombough

2009-03-14T22:57:00.004-05:00

Mead and Rombough closed out the NCAA meet with a very good showing in the 3k ending with them both being named All-Americans and the team finishing 14th. Mead broke his own school record with his 7:56.15 to finish 4th, while Rombough ran 8:00.36 for 7th.

Also, Coach Plasencia was named Region 'Coach of the Year'!

Aaron Studt!!!

2009-03-13T23:19:00.002-05:00

Aaron Studt got things started in a big way tonight in the shot put. To be honest, it still hasn't sunk in with his coach yet. Aaron hit a big PR to finish 2nd on his final throw (63'7)! Congrats Aaron and GO GOPHERS! Let's keep it going! Fisher, Mead and Rombough are at it tomorrow.

Aaron's Highlight Video - Thanks Aaron!

2009-03-06T12:50:00.001-06:00

Big Ten Awards

2009-03-06T12:44:00.003-06:00

The Big Ten Honors have come in... Congrats Men!

Steve Plasencia: Big Ten Coach of the Year

Matt Fisher: Big Ten Field Athlete of the Year

Aaron Studt: Big Ten Field Athlete of the Championships

Go Gophers!

A Few Highlights

2009-03-05T12:53:00.012-06:00

Here are a few video highlights from this weekend. The video takes while for me to upload on the site, so I'll put a few up each day. *Also, I'm not as biased towards field event video as it may seem, the running events are just too large of files to load most of the time. I'll try to get a few more uploaded tomorrow.

If you're looking for a little more professional video... check out the Big Ten Network on Saturday at 3pm central (4pm ET) to watch coverage of the Big Ten Championship meet!

Matt Fisher: Big Ten Champion (High Jump 7'3) 2009 Big Ten 'Field Athlete of the Year'. First attempt at 7'3 with no misses to this point...

Andy Bastian: Big Ten Runner (Weight Throw 66'3) Moved up from 8th to 2nd on final throw of indoor career...

Joe Plencner: Big Ten Runner-Up (Pole Vault 17'4) New lifetime best on first attempt...

Sean Duling: Big Ten Finalist (60-meter Hurdles) New PR of 8.11 to make the final...

Aaron Studt: Big Ten Champion (Shot Put 62'11) and 4th Place (Weight Throw) Big Ten 'Field Athlete of the Championships' here with his winning shot put toss...

Joey Schwecke: Big Ten Runner-Up (Heptathlon) New PR in high jump of 6'7 in his hep... if you look closely I believe Joey ropes a calf after his make. Ahhh, you can take Joey outta the country, but you can take the country outta Joey.

RJ McGinnis and Garret Wankel: (1st and 8th in Big Ten Heptathlon) Here is their 60-meter hurdle race...

Brock Spandl: Big Ten Runner Up (Heptathlon) and 5th Place (Pole Vault) Here with his 22'6 LJ in the Hep...