Colorado State University Athletics
Rams Duo Ready for National Spotlight
3/11/2020 2:00:00 PM | Track & Field, Indoor Track & Field
Hamer, Sieg took different routes to NCAAs
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Two different paths to the same place.
Naturally, both Eric Hamer and Tarynn Sieg are ecstatic about their trip to the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships this weekend in Albuquerque, N.M., but given a choice, Sieg prefers the route Hamer threw down.
The top 16 in the nation qualify for nationals, with Hamer among the first to punch his ticket in the 5,000 meters, doing so back on Dec. 7, 2019 in Boston at the Sharon Colyear Danville Season Opener. He's one of five in his event to qualify out of that meet, with six of them doing it Feb. 14. His time of 13:40.11 was solid enough CSU distance coach Art Siemers trained him the remainder of the season for the meet, not to get there.
On the other hand, Sieg, who battled through early season injuries, waited until the Mountain West Championships to unleash a shot put at 55-6.5 to win the event (she won the weight throw, as well) to punch herself a return ticket back to nationals.
"I think it would be a little less stressful if I'd stop waiting until the last minute to do things," she said, laughing. "It was indoor last year, outdoor last year and indoor again this year. It would be a little less stressful, I feel, but there's something about me where I work well under pressure."
That's not to say Hamer's approach was sans anxiety, because while Siemers took a confident outlook, it took a spell for Hamer to get on the same page with him.
"There was a point where I was a bit nervous. I saw a lot more meets to come and maybe I could PR again," Hamer said. "There came a point where I kinda had a pep talk with myself, and I was like, 'you have to go to sleep every night. You did your bit, and you've just got to let it play its course.'
"Siemers said, 'we're going to train like you're in,' and when your coach says that and you trust your coach, you just kinda go, OK, and if I don't make it, it will be the ultimate case of I told you so and we'll go on from there."
As a senior, this was Hamer's last attempt to qualify for a meet which had evaded him in his career. He has run at the national meet in cross country three times, and he figures those experiences will help him as he enters seeded 14th, as will the fact he won the 5,000 at conference.
To make the indoor meet is an achievement in itself, as they are limited entries. During the outdoor season, the top 48 qualify to attend. The fact boosts his confidence, as does knowing he trains at altitude, he just raced at the facility and he's had success there in the past, dating back to his time as a prep.
A top-eight finish would be a first for a Ram in the event, but Hamer isn't setting any number goals to involve place or time. The one he does carry involves pain.
"I go in with the expectation it's going to hurt like heck. I go in with the expectation to have the race of my life, but also to enjoy it," he said. "I think of the 16 guys, eight of them --including me -- are altitude people. So, I think there's an expectation it's going to be unchartered ground. This is going to be something completely new. The goal is to break into the top eight. That's placing; we haven't done that before, but I also feel that's a realistic expectation of what I can do.
"Going in, you have to have the mentality of, 'hey, when there's one lap to go, what are you kicking for? What are you hanging tough for?"
Siemers, because of the altitude background in the field, figures it to be an honest pace at the sound of the gun. In 2017, when Albuquerque last played host to nationals, it was a quick pace and a strong finish, and he believes Hamer can find success in a repeat performance.
He also likes Hamer's approach, because in the final race of the season, times take a back seat to place, and how much fight you can have at the end can make all the difference. Getting a good time early in the season proved to be beneficial, as the middle part of the season provided some rough spots for Hamer, who is now feeling right for the big moment.
"He's ranked 14th, so he's going to have to run something even more special than what he's already done this year in order to have a chance to get on the podium and place," Siemers said. "I think it's possible, because he looks fit, he looks like he's in his best form he's been in all year and he's really experienced racing on that track. Just put himself out there and see what he can do."
Which is what Sieg had to do at conference. She wasn't in the national field at that point, so there was a bit of internal pressure for a return trip. It wasn't she felt she had to go, it's she knows she ranks with the best in the nation, so it was more of a personal expectation.
She also had to overcome a delayed start to the season, as an injury cost her about four weeks of training.
Naturally she rose to the occasion, as she's built a bit of a reputation of coming through in the big moments -- i.e., see her previous qualifying routes. She also knew she needed to relax, and a book she and teammate Ashton Hallsted read reminded her to trust the process.
"When I went to the Mountain West, my headspace was just kind of allow my body to do what it's supposed to," she said. "My roommate, Ashton actually, we have this book called, 'Mind Gym,' and she highlighted a part that said trust your process. It's just understanding you're going to do what you're supposed to do when you're supposed to do it. That's what I went to.
"My first couple of throws I started to pressure, you need to do well. Then I was like, I need to breathe and relax into what I'm supposed to be doing. That's what I did with my throws. I'm going to relax and not try to do anything, because when you try to do stuff, that's when things don't work out."
Funny how that works. See, she admits Bedard was telling her the same thing over and over all season long, and it irritated the heck out of her, like it was a bad song on repeat playing in her head.
He's OK a book finally drove the point home. Besides, he knew his mantra was getting under her a skin a bit, thus, he amped up the number of repetitions. When you are on the same sarcastic wavelength with someone, the buttons are easy to push.
Besides, you can't argue with the results, no matter when she finally decided it was good, sound advice.
Her ability to come through in the clutch does give her confidence, and Bedard would like to see her extend it a bit further at the championships.
"I think she'd like to compete more to her potential at the national championships, because we've seen it at the conference level, the NCAA first-round level," he said. "She needs to make that next step in the maturity process and compete at nationals the way she's capable, and I think she's ready to do that. She's done a lot of introspection and working on her focus."
The meet runs Friday and Saturday, and both CSU entries will compete on Friday evening. The shot put for Sieg starts at 5 p.m., with Hamer hitting the track at 7:20 p.m. The meet will be streamed on ESPN3, starting at 5 p.m. both days.
Naturally, both Eric Hamer and Tarynn Sieg are ecstatic about their trip to the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships this weekend in Albuquerque, N.M., but given a choice, Sieg prefers the route Hamer threw down.
The top 16 in the nation qualify for nationals, with Hamer among the first to punch his ticket in the 5,000 meters, doing so back on Dec. 7, 2019 in Boston at the Sharon Colyear Danville Season Opener. He's one of five in his event to qualify out of that meet, with six of them doing it Feb. 14. His time of 13:40.11 was solid enough CSU distance coach Art Siemers trained him the remainder of the season for the meet, not to get there.
On the other hand, Sieg, who battled through early season injuries, waited until the Mountain West Championships to unleash a shot put at 55-6.5 to win the event (she won the weight throw, as well) to punch herself a return ticket back to nationals.
"I think it would be a little less stressful if I'd stop waiting until the last minute to do things," she said, laughing. "It was indoor last year, outdoor last year and indoor again this year. It would be a little less stressful, I feel, but there's something about me where I work well under pressure."
That's not to say Hamer's approach was sans anxiety, because while Siemers took a confident outlook, it took a spell for Hamer to get on the same page with him.
"There was a point where I was a bit nervous. I saw a lot more meets to come and maybe I could PR again," Hamer said. "There came a point where I kinda had a pep talk with myself, and I was like, 'you have to go to sleep every night. You did your bit, and you've just got to let it play its course.'
"Siemers said, 'we're going to train like you're in,' and when your coach says that and you trust your coach, you just kinda go, OK, and if I don't make it, it will be the ultimate case of I told you so and we'll go on from there."
As a senior, this was Hamer's last attempt to qualify for a meet which had evaded him in his career. He has run at the national meet in cross country three times, and he figures those experiences will help him as he enters seeded 14th, as will the fact he won the 5,000 at conference.
To make the indoor meet is an achievement in itself, as they are limited entries. During the outdoor season, the top 48 qualify to attend. The fact boosts his confidence, as does knowing he trains at altitude, he just raced at the facility and he's had success there in the past, dating back to his time as a prep.
A top-eight finish would be a first for a Ram in the event, but Hamer isn't setting any number goals to involve place or time. The one he does carry involves pain.
"I go in with the expectation it's going to hurt like heck. I go in with the expectation to have the race of my life, but also to enjoy it," he said. "I think of the 16 guys, eight of them --including me -- are altitude people. So, I think there's an expectation it's going to be unchartered ground. This is going to be something completely new. The goal is to break into the top eight. That's placing; we haven't done that before, but I also feel that's a realistic expectation of what I can do.
"Going in, you have to have the mentality of, 'hey, when there's one lap to go, what are you kicking for? What are you hanging tough for?"
Siemers, because of the altitude background in the field, figures it to be an honest pace at the sound of the gun. In 2017, when Albuquerque last played host to nationals, it was a quick pace and a strong finish, and he believes Hamer can find success in a repeat performance.
He also likes Hamer's approach, because in the final race of the season, times take a back seat to place, and how much fight you can have at the end can make all the difference. Getting a good time early in the season proved to be beneficial, as the middle part of the season provided some rough spots for Hamer, who is now feeling right for the big moment.
"He's ranked 14th, so he's going to have to run something even more special than what he's already done this year in order to have a chance to get on the podium and place," Siemers said. "I think it's possible, because he looks fit, he looks like he's in his best form he's been in all year and he's really experienced racing on that track. Just put himself out there and see what he can do."
Which is what Sieg had to do at conference. She wasn't in the national field at that point, so there was a bit of internal pressure for a return trip. It wasn't she felt she had to go, it's she knows she ranks with the best in the nation, so it was more of a personal expectation.
She also had to overcome a delayed start to the season, as an injury cost her about four weeks of training.
Naturally she rose to the occasion, as she's built a bit of a reputation of coming through in the big moments -- i.e., see her previous qualifying routes. She also knew she needed to relax, and a book she and teammate Ashton Hallsted read reminded her to trust the process.
"When I went to the Mountain West, my headspace was just kind of allow my body to do what it's supposed to," she said. "My roommate, Ashton actually, we have this book called, 'Mind Gym,' and she highlighted a part that said trust your process. It's just understanding you're going to do what you're supposed to do when you're supposed to do it. That's what I went to.
"My first couple of throws I started to pressure, you need to do well. Then I was like, I need to breathe and relax into what I'm supposed to be doing. That's what I did with my throws. I'm going to relax and not try to do anything, because when you try to do stuff, that's when things don't work out."
Funny how that works. See, she admits Bedard was telling her the same thing over and over all season long, and it irritated the heck out of her, like it was a bad song on repeat playing in her head.
He's OK a book finally drove the point home. Besides, he knew his mantra was getting under her a skin a bit, thus, he amped up the number of repetitions. When you are on the same sarcastic wavelength with someone, the buttons are easy to push.
Besides, you can't argue with the results, no matter when she finally decided it was good, sound advice.
Her ability to come through in the clutch does give her confidence, and Bedard would like to see her extend it a bit further at the championships.
"I think she'd like to compete more to her potential at the national championships, because we've seen it at the conference level, the NCAA first-round level," he said. "She needs to make that next step in the maturity process and compete at nationals the way she's capable, and I think she's ready to do that. She's done a lot of introspection and working on her focus."
The meet runs Friday and Saturday, and both CSU entries will compete on Friday evening. The shot put for Sieg starts at 5 p.m., with Hamer hitting the track at 7:20 p.m. The meet will be streamed on ESPN3, starting at 5 p.m. both days.
Players Mentioned
Throws
/ Track & Field
Distance
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