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Nebraska Track and Field Meet Day Information
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Nebraska Quad
Lincoln, Neb. (Ed Weir Stadium)
Saturday, May 2 (Noon)
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Huskers End Home Slate with Nebraska Quad
On Saturday, May 2, the No. 11 men’s and No. 18 women’s Nebraska track and field teams will host the Nebraska Quad, the final home meet of the 2009 season. The Huskers will welcome fellow Big 12 Conference foe Kansas State, as well as Missouri Valley Conference schools Wichita State and Northern Iowa to Ed Weir Stadium for the team-scored meet. The meet will allow unlimited entries for the four schools, with a meet champion crowned on both the men’s and women’s side.
Only the top two finishers for each school will be scored for the individual events. Since the meet is between less than five teams, individual scoring will be as follows: 1st - 9 points, 2nd - 7 points, 3rd - 6 points, 4th - 5 points, 5th - 4 points, 6th - 3 points, 7th - 2 points and 8th - 1 point. For the relays, each school will be able to score one relay: 1st - 9 points, 2nd - 7 points, 3rd - 6 points and 4th - 5 points.
The meet will get started on Saturday at Noon with the women’s hammer throw and men’s javelin. Action on the track is set for 1 p.m. with the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase. Admission is free to all, check Huskers.com for more information and live results during the meet.
NU Out of the Blocks
(USTFCCCA Ranking: Men - No. 11 / Women - No. 18)
2009 NCAA Midwest Regional Qualifiers: 48
(31-Men / 17-Women)
2009 NCAA Championship Automatic/Provisional Qualifiers: 4 Provisional
(2-Men / 2-Women)
2009 Division I Outdoor Leaders: 0
(0-Men / 0-Women)
2009 Division I Outdoor Top 10: 8
(5-Men / 3-Women)
2009 Big 12 Conference Outdoor Leaders: 6
(4-Men / 2-Women)
2009 Big 12 Conference Outdoor Top 8 Marks: 73
(42-Men / 31-Women)
2009 Big 12 Athlete of the Week: 3
(2-Men / 1-Women)
Willer Vaults to American Record
Nebraska sophomore Natalie Willer had a memorable Drake Relays on Friday, April 24, as she broke the American Junior, Drake Relays and NU outdoor school records in the women’s pole vault with a then-nation-leading vault of 14-3 1/2.
The Elkhorn, Neb., native started with three straight clearances on her first attempt, before taking two attempts at 13-9 1/4. Willer got back in her groove as she cleared 14-1 1/4 on her first jump, leaving her and 2004 U.S. Olympian Jillian Schwartz as the only vaulters left out of the 29 athlete field. After Schwartz missed on all three attempts at 14-3 1/2 and only one attempt remaining for Willer, the Husker sophomore waited for just the right conditions before sprinting down the runway to her record-breaking vault.
Willer’s vault snapped Tori Anthony’s (Castilleja HS ? Folsom, Calif.) 2007 American Junior Record of 14-1 1/4, Jennifer Bennett’s (Missouri) 2003 Drake Relays record of 13-5 3/4 and Brysun Stately’s 2007 NU outdoor record of 14-3 1/4.
Thornton Adds Name to Record Book at Penn Relays
Tyrell Ross, Lehann Fourie, Eric Lund and Kirkland Thornton combined to set the Big 12 and NU record in the men’s 4x110-shuttle hurdle relay with a time of 54.90 at the Penn Relays on Friday, April 24, finishing second to Florida’s time of 54.30. The four Huskers, who have all regionally qualified in the open 110 hurdles, broke the previous school record of 55.12, set by Richard Davidson Jr., Courtney Jones, Nenad Loncar and Tyrell’s older brother, Aaron, at the Penn Relays in 2005.
Thornton then returned less than 30 minutes later to tie a 12-year old school record in the 110-meter hurdles, posting a time of 13.50 in the preliminaries. Thornton’s time placed him runner-up in the prelims to South Carolina’s Jason Richardson, who posted a time of 13.44.
Bullock Breaks Out at Penn
After struggling early in the outdoor season, Epley Bullock exploded with a personal-best jump of 6-1 1/4 to win the Penn Relays on Friday, April 24, breaking her previous best of 6-0. The jump moved the Allen, Texas, native to No. 3 on the Husker all-time outdoor charts, trailing school-record holder Cris Hall (6-2 1/4) and Tammy Thurman (6-2). Bullock also leapt from being tied for No. 28 in Division I to holding sole possession of the No. 2 spot. The Big 12 Conference now owns the top-two women’s high jumpers in the nation, with Texas’ Destinee Hooker holding the top jump with a mark of 6-3 1/2 on April, 2 at the Texas Relays.
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 13th (50.78) and Dailey ranked 15th (50.88).
Of the seven 400-hurdlers, Fourie, Lund, Ross and Thornton have qualified in the 110-meter hurdles as well. Thornton and Fourie are each ranked in the top 5, with Fourie ranked fifth (13.57w) and Thornton third after his school-record tying time of 13.50 at the Penn Relays.
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.
At the John McDonnell Invitational, Adams dropped his personal best to 8:47.05, ranking sixth 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.
Loaded in the Vault
Sophomore Seth Burney leads five 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 seniors Pat Burke and Zac Holoch, redshirt freshman Luke Franssen and true freshman Nate Polacek, who are all tied for 49th in the country with a vault of 16-6 3/4.
The five Huskers have flooded the Big 12 list, with Burney tied for the No. 2 spot, while the other four are tied for fifth.
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 six 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 second leg of the No. 11-ranked 4x100-meter relay and the second leg of the No. 13 4x400-meter relay.
Thornton’s 2009 Regional Times and National Rank
100-Meter Dash (10.51 | t-54th)
200-Meter Dash (20.84 | t-20th)
110-Meter Hurdles (13.50 | 3rd)
400-Meter Hurdles (50.78 | t-13th)
4x100-Meter Relay (39.80 | 11th)
4x400-Meter Relay (3:06.74 | 13th)
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. 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 11th-best time nationally.
NCAA First Timers
Of the 48 Huskers that have qualified for the NCAA Midwest Regional meet in Norman, Okla., on May 29-30, 17 are first-time qualifiers.
Women
Arna Erega (So. - 100-Meter Hurdles: 13.82)
Jessica Furlan (Fr. - 3,000m SC: 10:47.86)
Tara Korshoj (Fr. - Triple Jump: 41-2 1/4)
Lisa Minnick (Jr. - Hammer Throw: 179-4)
Jen Webers (So. - 3,000m SC: 10:47.19)
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: 176-10)
Scott Jorgenson (RFr. - Long Jump: 25-2 3/4w)
Nick Makukutu (So. - 400-Meter Hurdles: 52.36)
Eric Petersen (Jr. - Hammer Throw: 186-11)
Ryan Petrocchi (Jr. - Javelin: 209-3)
Chris Phipps (Fr. - Long Jump: 25-0 3/4)
Nate Polacek (Fr. - Pole Vault: 16-6 3/4)
Brett Suckstorf (Jr. - Hammer Throw: 191-1)
Tops in the Big 12
Six Nebraska track and field athletes currently hold the top mark in their event on the Big 12 outdoor performance list. Four 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 1/2)
Men
David Adams (So. - 3,000m SC: 8:47.07)
Bj?rn Barrefors (Fr. - Decathlon: 7.448)
Nicholas Gordon (So. - Long Jump: 25-6 3/4)
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.