Colorado State University Athletics
Track and Field Heads to MWC Championships
5/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Outdoor Track & Field
May 9, 2007
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Championship Bound: The Colorado State track & field team heads to San Diego for the 2007 Mountain West Conference Championship. The heptathlon and decathlon begin on Wednesday, while the individual events begin on Friday. Last season, the women's team finished second with 150.5 points, while the men were also second, scoring 178 points. This is the second time the Mountain West Championship has been held at San Diego State, as the Aztecs also hosted in 2001.
The Schedule: The heptathlon and decathlon begin Wednesday, May 9, with individual events beginning Friday.
Regional Qualifiers: Colorado State's regional qualifiers compete May 25-26 in the Midwest Region. The NCAA Championships are scheduled June 6-9.
Ram Open Highlights: Colorado State's men's hammer throwers were impressive in the final regular-season meet of the season. The Rams swept the top four spots with personal records and NCAA Regional qualifying throws. Senior Nate Heyrman won the event with a throw of 207-4. Sophomore Alex Godell was second, 205-2, followed by junior Jason Schutz, 196-9, and senior Trey Eder, 195-0. Heyrman's throw is the fifth-best in school history. Godell's mark is the sixth best ever, Schutz ninth and Eder 10th.
Double Up: Heyrman was a two-time winner in the Ram open, winning the shot put with a mark of 55-6.5. Shutz won the discus with a thrown of 182-1.
Double Hazzard: Senior Justin Hazzard was also a double-winner, earning top spots in the 110- and 400-meter hurdles. He won the 110-meter race in 14.23, and clocked a season-best and NCAA Regional qualifying mark of 51.3 in the 400-meter race, just ahead of teammate Kyle Keller, a sophomore, who was second in 52.42.
Hurdle Hazzard: Hazzard enters the Mountain West Conference Championship with the best time in the 110 meter hurdles after clocking a 14.22 at the Drake Relays. Hazzard finished third in the 110 meter hurdles last season at the championship and was also second in the 400 meter hurdles, earning all-conference honors in both events. He also has the second-fastest time in school history with a 14.01 from last April, and ranks third in the 400 meter hurdles at 51.04.
In The Hunt: Haley Hunt is peaking at the right time of the season. In the last three weeks, the senior has thrown personal bests in both the shot put (45-11.75) and the discus (156-6) and is throwing extremely well in the hammer, with a season best throw of 189-9 at the Ram Open this past weekend to win the event. Hunt is regionally qualified in both the discus and the hammer and ranks second in the Mountain West in the hammer, third in the discus and seventh in the shot put.
Wearing A Target: Junior Emily Pearson leads the Mountain West Conference entering the championship in the heptathlon. She scored 5,204 points to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championship at the Cal Invitational earlier this season. A CSU student-athlete has won the last four women's multi-event titles as Katie Lloyd won the 2005 & 2006 outdoor heptathlon titles and the 2006 & 2007 indoor pentathlon championships. Teammate Tonya Cure currently ranks fifth in the MWC in the heptathlon with her total of 4,966 from the Cal Invitational and freshmen Kristen Kugler and Sonni Russell rank ninth and 10th, respectively.
Defense: Senior Rae Backes will attempt to defend her outdoor title in the high jump. Last year, Backes cleared 5-7.75 to win the Mountain West Conference crown. Backes also won the 2006 indoor title after clearing 5-10. Backes has qualified for the NCAA Regionals all four years of her career.
Undefeated: The women's 4x100 meter relay has now won all four races they have entered this season. The quartet of senior Megan Fox, freshman Tanesha Johnson, Emily Pearson and senior Janay DeLoach won the Ram Open for their fourth straight victory with a season best time of 46.12. At the Rob Upton Invitational, the foursome ran a 47.88, then at the Tom Benich Classic they clocked a 46.47 and ran a 46.17 at the Jack Christiansen Invitational.
Elitists: Colorado State is the only school in the nation to have four men throw over 195-0 feet (59.45m) in the nation this season. Nate Heyrman, Alex Godell, Jason Schutz and Trey Eder have all hit 195-0 or better this year - and all four did so at the Ram Open on Saturday. Three other institutions have had three student-athletes hit the mark, as Georgia, Manhattan and Missouri all also have strong hammer programs. Still Perfect: Colorado State's 4x100 meter relay team remaned undefeated on the year by clocking a season-best 46.12 time in the Ram Open. The m en's team also won its relay.
And Al Makes Four: For his winning effort at the Wyoming Invitational, sophomore Alex Godell was named the Mountain West Men's Athlete of the Week. Godell threw a personal best 197-8 in the hammer, marking the second-straight week he has thrown 60-meters or better in competition. Last week, senior Rob Watson was named the Men's Athlete of the Week, while senior Nicole Feest was the co-winner with Virgil Hodge of TCU. Junior Emily Pearson was named co-athlete of the week for her victory in the Cal Invitational Heptathlon, giving the Rams four awards this season.
Five More Qualify: Four more individuals and the men's 4x100 meter relay team qualified for the NCAA Regionals for the first time this season, while there were five more improvements upon qualifying marks.
Trifecta: Colorado State is one of only three schools in the nation to have four male student-athletes who have all thrown over 190-feet (57.91m) in hammer throw competition this season. Georgia and Missouri are the other two schools and the four Rams are Alex Godell, Nate Heyrman, junior Jason Schutz and junior Trey Eder. Godell has thrown over 60 meters in the last two meets, throwing a personal best 197-8 to win the Wyoming Invitational. Schutz and Eder also threw personal bests in Laramie, throwing 194-11 and 193-5, respectively to finish second and fourth. Heyrman threw a season-best 196-4 at the Sun Angel Classic and has a career-best throw of 203-7 from the NCAA Regionals last year.
Burst of Speed: Both Janay DeLoach and freshman Tanesha Johnson posted career-best times in the 100 meters over the weekend at different meets. DeLoach finished third at the Drake Relays, running an 11.69 in the prelims, which is the third best time in school history, while Johnson won the 100 at the Wyoming Invitational with a time of 12.01, which ranks seventh on the CSU charts. Drew Morano also recorded a personal best in the 100 meters, clocking a 10.58 in Laramie for the eighth fastest time in school history.
Best In The Mountain West: Four Rams hold the top spot in the Mountain West Conference this season. Justin Hazzard has the fastest time in the 110 hurdles with his 14.22 from the Drake Relays, while Rob Watson's 8:38.92 in the steeplechase is the best in the league and is also third in the nation. Nate Heyrman has put the shot further than anyone in the league at 56-2.5 from the Sun Angel Classic and Emily Pearson's 5,204 points in the heptathlon from the California Invitational ranks first.
Qualifiers: A total of 26 qualifying marks have been hit by Colorado State student-athletes this year. The Rams' have two NCAA provisional qualifying marks in Nicole Feest (10,000) and Emily Pearson (heptathlon), while there are 18 individuals and the men's 4x100 relay team that have surpassed the necessary mark to move on into post-season competition.
Titleists: At the Wyoming Invitational, Tanesha Johnson won both the 100 meters and triple jump titles, while junior Danielle Rawlings won the 3000 meters, senior Rae Backes won the high jump, freshman Jennifer Ugochukwu won the shot put, Alex Godell was victorious in the hammer, junior Andres Urbina won the steeplechase and freshman Doug Dieker cleared a personal best 15-7 to win the pole vault. Haley Hunt and Jason Schutz were also the top collegians in the discus, each finishing second overall.
Complete Progress: Cole Tucker has improved his time in both the 200 and 400 meters in four straight meets. The freshman ran a 47.92 in the 400 meters at the Wyoming Invitational to move up to 12th on the CSU descending order list, while he posted a best time of 21.86 in the 200 meters.
Elementary My Dear Watson: Rob Watson shattered the school record in the steeplechase at the Oregon Invitational and currently ranks third in the nation. Watson finished fifth overall and second among collegians, running an 8:38.92, breaking the old record of 8:42.98 held by Mike Nicks from 2005.
The Feest Factor: Nicole Feest also broke a school record at the Oregon Invitational. She finished third overall and was the top collegian in the 10,000 meters, running a 34:00.73, breaking the old record of 34:08.94 by Sarah Piccolo from 1997. Feest also holds the school's indoor 5000 meter record.
Undefeated: The quartet of Megan Fox, Tanesha Johnson, Emily Pearson and Janay DeLoach have won all three 4x100 meter relay races they've entered. At the Rob Upton Invitational, the foursome ran a 47.88, then at the Tom Benich Classic in Greeley they clocked a 46.47 and at the Jack Christiansen they ran a 46.17.
What The Regional Mark Means: Student-athletes who meet or surpass the NCAA Regional qualifying mark in their events are eligible to compete at the NCAA Midwest Regional May 25-26 at Drake. The top five in each event at the regionals then qualify for the NCAA Championship June 6-9, hosted by Sacramento State. In the multi-events and 10,000 meters, there is a provisional and automatic qualifying standard as neither is contested at regionals.
Making The List: Several student-athletes have added their name to the record books this season.
Bettering Themselves: A host of student-athletes posted personal best marks in events over the weekend. That list follows with the event in parentheses:
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Mountain West Conference Championship
San Diego, California • SDSU Sports Deck
Date: Wednesday-Saturday, May 9-12
Time: All Day
• Senior Janay DeLoach qualified in the 100 meters with a personal best time of 11.69. She also improved upon her mark in the long jump, finishing third with a season-best leap of 20-6.5.
• Senior Haley Hunt threw a personal best 156-6 to finish second in the discus.
• Emily Pearson qualified for regionals in the javelin with her season-best throw of 143-10, to go along with her provisional qualifying mark of 5,204 from earlier this year in the heptathlon.
• Senior Justin Hazzard ran a season-best 14.22 in the 110 meter hurdles at the Drake Relays to qualify.
• For the first time since 2004, the men's 4x100 meter relay team has regionally qualified. The quartet of Zach Jordan, Denny Majerus, David Eischeid and Drew Morano ran a 40.40.
• Janay DeLoach ranks third in the 100 meters with her time of 11.69, while Tanesha Johnson is seventh at 12.01. Johnson also ranks second in the triple jump at 39-7.25 and ninth in the 200 meters, clocking in at 24.58.
• Sophomore Niomi Ridge moved up to 10th in the 100 hurdles with her time of 14.30, while junior Tonya Cure is now 18th with her best time of 14.91 and she also ranks 15th in the javelin with a throw of 125-3.
• Emily Pearson ranks third in the heptathlon with 5,204 points and 13th in the 200 meters at 24.89.
• Senior Danielle Korb (4:27.29), sophomore Kirsten Anthony (4:28.42), freshman Chantelle Dron (4:30.47), sophomore Heather Loseke (4:32.56) and sophomore Kristen Hemphill (4:34.74) now rank sixth, eighth, 10th, 13th and 17th, respectively in the 1500 meters.
• Kristen Hemphill also posted the second best steeplechase time in school history (10:42.41).
• Nicole Feest holds the school record in the 10,000 meters after clocking a 34:00.73.
• Freshman Sonni Russell cleared 5-6.5 to rank 15th in the high jump and she is 17th in the heptathlon.
• Sophomore Emily Patton now ranks eighth in the triple jump after her leap of 36-7.75.
• Sophomore Kate Colvin cleared 11-6.25 in the pole vault to rank fourth.
• Jennifer Ugochukwu is 10th in the shot put at 47-9.25.
• Haley Hunt is up another three spots to 12th in the discus with her throw of 156-6, while freshman Jennifer Mack is 20th in the discus and 16th in the hammer.
• Sophomore Amanda Johnson moved up to 17th in the hammer throw.
• Junior Ashleigh Morton threw 128-2 in the javelin to rank 14th.
• Kristen Kugler ranks 13th in the heptathlon.
• Drew Morano sped to a 10.58 in the 100 meters, which ranks eighths, while his time of 21.11 in the 200 meters is fifth and his 46.73 in the 400 meters is second.
• Zach Jordan ranks 20th in the 100 at 10.72.
• Cole Tucker moved up one more spot to 12th in the 400 meters with his time of 47.92.
• Kyle Keeler moved up another five spots ot eighth in the 400 meter hurdles after running a 52.42.
• Steve Swartz ranks eighth in the 1500 meters with his time of 3:48.83.
• Rob Watson is the record holder in the steeplechase with his time of 8:38.92.
• Both junior Collin Ferguson and freshman Kevin Wills are tied for 19th in the high jump with a clearance of 6-6.75.
• Junior Jason Smith now ranks fourth in the triple jump with his leap of 49-1, while freshman Ryan Friese now ranks 13th at 46-9.
• Doug Dieker scored 5801 points in the decathlon to rank 18th and with his clearance of 15-7.25 in the pole vault, he now ranks 11th.
• Jason Schutz is now sixth in the discus at 188-3 while freshman Cameron Carter is ninth with his best throw of 180-5.
• Freshman Cameron Carter ranks ninth in the discus with his throw of 178-10.
• The quartet of Nate Heyrman, Alex Godell, Schutz and Trey Eder now rank fifth, sixth, ninth and 10th, respectively in the hammer after all threw career bests at the Ram Open.
Women: Jessica Bruha (200 meters); Kate Colvin (pole vault); Emily Geubelle (discus); Tanesha Johnson (200 meters); Jennifer Mack (hammer); Emily Patton (triple jump); Stacey Robben (discus).
Men: Cameron Carter (discus); Trey Eder (hammer); Jeremy Freed (5000 meters); Alex Godell (hammer); Nate Heyrman (hammer); Kyle Keeler (400 hurdles); Jason Schutz (hammer); Travis Smith (triple jump); Tim Sterrenberg (400 hurdles); Dave Zakavec (5000 meters).