Huskers Return to Drake and Penn Relays, Open at Triton Invite

Track and FieldApril 25, 2009

Huskers Return to Drake and Penn Relays, Open at Triton Invite

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Nebraska Track and Field Meet Day Information

NU Track and Field Weekly Notes NU Track and Field Media Guide Big 12 Outdoor Performance List NCAA Division I Performance Lists USTFCCCA Division I Rankings Ed Weir Stadium Free NU Track and Field Videos Free NU Track and Field Photo Galleries Free NU Track and Field Wallpapers

100th Annual Drake Relays
Des Moines, Iowa (Drake Stadium)
Thursday, April 23 (9 a.m.) - Saturday, April 25 (8 a.m.)
DrakeRelays.org | MVC-Sports.com
Meet Information | Schedule | Heat Sheets
Live Results | Live Video
Visiting Des Moines | Des Moines Weather

Penn Relays
Philadelphia, Pa. (Franklin Field)
Friday, April 24 (8 a.m.) - Saturday, April 25 (6 a.m.)
ThePennRelays.com | IvyLeagueSports.com
Meet Information | Schedule | Heat Sheets
Live Results | Live Video
Visiting Philadelphia | Philadelphia Weather

- all times Central

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The Nebraska track and field team will be scattered across the country this weekend as it travels to three different meets and hosts the Nebraska Open on Sunday, April 26, at Ed Weir Stadium. On the road, the Huskers will compete at the prestigious Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, and Penn Relays in Philadelphia, Pa., from Thursday, April 23, to Saturday, April 25, while also visiting San Diego, Calif., for the UCSD Triton Invitational on Saturday. The men’s hurdlers, sprinters and a small group of long jumpers and a high jumper will compete at the Penn Relays, while the throws, women’s sprints and hurdles, distance and pole vault squads will be at the 100th Annual Drake Relays. The men’s and women’s high jumpers and horizonal jumpers will travel to the Triton Invitational. All athletes not traveling, as well as the competitors at the Drake Relays, will be in competition in Lincoln on Sunday.

Sunday’s home meet is set to begin at 11 a.m. with the women’s hammer and men’s javelin, while the running events begin at Noon with the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase. All events will take place at Ed Weir Stadium, with the men’s 4x400-meter relay wrapping up the meet at 4:30 p.m.

More information for each meet can be found at the track and field meet day page at Huskers.com, while a full recap following the completion of each day’s events will also available at Huskers.com. Live results can be found at the following links: Drake Relays - GoDrakeBulldogs.com, Penn Relays - FlashResults.com, Nebraska Open - Huskers.com, UCSD Triton Invitational - Not Available at this Time. Live video of the Penn Relays can be found at: ThePennRelays.com.

NU Out of the Blocks

(USTFCCCA Ranking: Men - No. 11 / Women - No. 24)

2009 NCAA Midwest Regional Qualifying Marks: 55

(39-Men / 16-Women)

2009 NCAA Championship Automatic/Provisional Qualifiers: 4 Provisional

(2-Men / 2-Women)

2009 Division I Outdoor Leaders: 1

(0-Men / 1-Women)

2009 Division I Outdoor Top 10: 7

(5-Men / 2-Women)

2009 Big 12 Conference Outdoor Leaders: 8

(6-Men / 2-Women)

2009 Big 12 Conference Outdoor Top 8: 71

(41-Men / 30-Women)

2009 Big 12 Athlete of the Week: 3

(2-Men / 1-Women)

Willer Vaults to the Top of the Outdoor Charts... Indoors

At the John McDonnell Invitational on Saturday, April 18, Natalie Willer and Arkansas’ Katie Stripling each posted a nation-leading vault of 14-3 1/4, topping the previous leading mark of 14-1 1/4, held by three different vaulters. Due to heavy rains, the women’s vault was moved inside to the Randal Tyson Track Center. For regional-qualifying purposes, the NCAA permits meet officials to move the pole vault and high jump to an indoor facility for safety reasons.

Willer, a native of Elkhorn, Neb., was clean through her first four bars, 12-7 1/2, 13-1 1/2, 13-6 1/4 and 13-11, before taking all three attempts to clear 14-3 1/4. Willer and Stripling then both attacked 14-5 1/4, but neither was able to clear. Even though the vault was recorded during the outdoor season, Willer’s vault breaks her own indoor school record of 14-0, set on Jan. 24, 2009 at the Conference Challenge in Lincoln.

Strong Stable of Hurdlers

Hurdles Coach Billy Maxwell has a talent-filled pack of 400-meter hurdles, as Adam Dailey, Lehann Fourie, Eric Lund, Nick Makukutu, Tyrell Ross, Cylend Simmons and Kirkland Thornton have all regionally qualified in the event. Thornton and Dailey each rank in the Division I top 15, with Thornton tied for 12th (50.78) and Dailey ranked 14th (50.88).

Of the seven 400-hurdlers, Fourie, Lund, Ross and Thornton have qualified in the 110-meter hurdles as well. Fourie, Thornton and Ross all ranked in the top 15, with Fourie ranked third (13.57), Thornton fifth (13.62) and Ross tied for 14th (13.87).

Nebraska Natives Make Splash in Steeplechase

Rachel Carrizales, a native of Morrill, Neb., and York, Neb., native David Adams are two of the top 3,000-meter steeplechasers this season with each ranked in the top 10 in the nation. On the women’s list, Carrizales ranks seventh with a personal-best time of 10:09.69 at the Stanford Invitational on Friday, March 27.

This past weekend at the John McDonnell Invitational, Adams dropped his personal best to 8:47.05, ranking fifth in Division I. Adams will be in search of his first trip to the NCAA Championships this season, while Carrizales will be looking to get back to the meet for the first time since 2007.

Up and Over the Bar

Sophomore Seth Burney leads four men’s pole vaulters on the regional-qualifying list, with Burney tied for 18th with a vault of 17-0 3/4. Burney is joined by senior Pat Burke, redshirt freshman Luke Franssen and true freshman Nate Polacek, who are all tied for 42nd in the country with a vault of 16-6 3/4.

Thornton All Over the Charts

Some may think the Nebraska track and field team has two athletes with the name Kirkland Thornton. This is because Thornton has become one of the most diverse track athletes in the nation this season, as he has qualified for the NCAA Midwest Regional meet in an unheard of five events. Thornton has not only qualified in the events, but had put up impressive times, ranking in the top 20 in three individual events, while also running the third leg of the No. 12-ranked 4x100-meter relay. Last weekend at the John McDonnell Invitational, Thornton posted the No. 5 time this season in the 110-meter hurdles with a wind-aided best of 13.62.

Thornton’s 2009 Regional Times and National Rank

100-Meter Dash (10.51 | t-47th)

200-Meter Dash (20.84 | t-18th)

110-Meter Hurdles (13.62w | 5th)

400-Meter Hurdles (50.78 | t-12th)

4x400-Meter Relay (39.80 | 12th)

Hitting the 60-Foot Mark

Husker junior Trey Jordan surpassed 60 feet in the shot put at the John McDonnell Invitational for the first time in his career on Saturday, April 18, winning the meet with a toss of 60-0 1/4. The Troy, Texas, native is now ranked 20th in Division I and No. 1 in the Big 12, as he is the only thrower in the conference to break the 60-foot plateau. A two-time All-Big 12 performer, Jordan will be looking for his first honor outdoors this season, as well as his first trip to the NCAA Championships.

Wims Getting Back on Track

Junior sprinter Scott Wims is looking to regain his 2007 form when he earned NCAA All-America honors outdoors in the 200 meters. Wims, who was plagued by injuries throughout the 2008 indoor and outdoor seasons, has already posted regional-qualifying times in the 100- and 200-meter dashes this season. Recently at the Nebraska Invitational, Wims finished runner-up in the 200 with a time of 20.77, tying for 14th in Division I this season. Wims also ran the anchor leg of the regional-qualifying 4x100-meter relay team at the Jim Click Shootout that posted a time of 39.80, the 12th-best time nationally.

NCAA First Timers

Of the 55 regional-qualifying marks set by Husker athletes so far in 2009, 14 have come from first-time qualifiers.

Women

Arna Erega (So. - 100-Meter Hurdles: 18.52)

Jessica Furlan (Fr. - 3,000m SC: 10:47.86)

Tara Korshoj (Fr. - Triple Jump: 41-2 1/4)

Men

Pat Burke (Sr. - Pole Vault: 16-6 3/4)

Kyle Custer (Jr. - 3,000m SC: 9:04.90)

Dale Ervin (Fr. - 200-Meter Dash: 21.27 & 4x400-Meter Relay: 3:07.70)

Luke Franssen (Fr. - Pole Vault: 16-6 3/4)

Tyler Hitchler (Fr. - Discus: 170-10)

Scott Jorgenson (RFr. - Long Jump: 25-2 3/4w)

Nick Makukutu (So. - 400-Meter Hurdles: 52.36)

Ryan Petrocchi (Jr. - Javelin: 209-3)

Chris Phipps (Fr. - Long Jump: 25-0 3/4)

Nate Polacek (Fr. - Pole Vault: 16-6 3/4)

Tops in the Big 12

Eight Nebraska track and field athletes currently hold the top mark in their event on the Big 12 outdoor performance list. Six Husker men hold No. 1 spots, while the women have two conference leaders.

Women

Megan Wheatley (So. - Heptathlon: 5,360)

Natalie Willer (So. - Pole Vault: 14-3 1/4)

Men

David Adams (So. - 3,000m SC: 8:47.07)

Bj?rn Barrefors (Fr. - Decathlon: 7.448)

Kyle Custer (Jr. - 3,000-Meter Run: 8:21.62)

Nicholas Gordon (So. - Long Jump: 25-6 3/4)

Trey Jordan (Jr. - Shot Put: 60-0 1/4)

Kirkland Thornton (Sr. - 400-Meter Hurdles: 50.78)

Jorgenson Returns to the Pit in Big Way

After missing the 2008 outdoor season with a hamstring injury, redshirt freshman Scott Jorgenson has returned to post the No. 14 jump in Division I this season with a wind-aided leap of 25-2 3/4 at the John McDonnell Invitational on Saturday, April 18. A native of Brookings, S.D., Jorgenson has cleared the regional-qualifying standard of 24-1 at all three outdoor meets he has competed in this season. He opened with a then-personal-best jump of 24-5 3/4 at the Jim Click Shootout on Saturday, April 4, topping his previous best of 23-8 1/2. Jorgenson then cleared 24-2 1/4 at the Nebraska Invitational on Saturday, April 11.

Hulett Pours in the Points

Nebraska sprinter Lukas Hulett scored 34.5 of the Huskers’ meet-high 365 points at the Jim Click Shootout on Saturday, April 4, taking top honors individually in the 200- and 400- meter dashes. The Husker junior regionally qualified in both events, running a personal-best time of 21.18 in the 200 and a time of 46.87 in the 400. The Bellevue, Neb., native also teamed with Dax Danns, Kirkland Thornton and Scott Wims to take home the 4x100-meter relay, posting an NCAA regional-qualifying time of 39.80. For his accomplishments, Hulett was named Big 12 Male Track and Field Athlete of the Week for the week of March 30-April 5.

Decathletes Hit Stride in Tucson

True freshman Bj?rn Barrefors and senior Skyler Reising pulled off a 1-2 finish in the decathlon at the Jim Click Shootout on April 2-3. Both Huskers hit personal best scores on their way to surpassing the NCAA provisional-qualifying standard of 6,900 points. Barrefors’ score of 7,448 led the way, while Reising finished runner-up with a score of 7,325.

Barrefors, the indoor heptathlon school-record holder, now ranks fourth all-time on the NU outdoor performance list, while Reising is slotted in the No. 6 spot. The duo trails Rick Schwieger’s 1992 school-record score of 7,707. Barrefors ranks No. 2 in Division I this season, with Reising close behind in fifth. Miami-Ohio’s Kevin Dwyer holds the top spot in Division I with a score of 7,452.

Big 10 and Pac-10 Prove No Match for Big 12

For the second straight year, the Nebraska track and field team won the Jim Click Shootout on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., on Saturday, April 4. Unlike 2008, the meet used a combined conference scoring system, teaming NU with Kansas to form a Big 12 squad. The two Big 12 North Division schools scored 531.5 points, topping the Big 10 squad of Penn State and Wisconsin, which scored 474 points, and the Pac-10 team of Arizona and Washington, which scored 464.5 points. The Big Red scored a meet-high 365 points.

Lloyd Doubles up at Stanford

Senior co-captain Keith Lloyd returned to Lincoln from the Stanford Invitational with two regional-qualifying marks, hitting the standard in the men’s shot put and hammer throw.

A 2008 national qualifier in both events, Lloyd started on Friday, March 27, with a sixth-place a toss of 55-4 1/4 in the shot put invitational division. Lloyd qualified for the 2008 national meet by finishing fourth at the regional meet with a personal-best toss of 61-5.

Lloyd returned the following day to post a throw of 187-11 to finish 11th overall and eighth among collegiate throwers in the invitational division of the hammer throw. Lloyd was one of 12 throws in the invite only division to break the regional mark and one of 15 overall, with the top three throwers in the college division also achieving the mark.

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Huskers Return to Drake and Penn Relays, Open at Triton Invite