NCAA Division I Midwest Regional: Gophers Join the Big 12 (Sorta)

The Minnesota Golden Gopher teams, which have proved themselves more than worthy against Big Ten competition in 2007 -- an indoor title for the women, two runner-up finishes for the men -- will battle largely Big 12-based competition at the NCAA Midwest Regional today and tomorrow at Drake University.

Exit Michigan and Wisconsin; enter Baylor and Colorado. (Iowa sticks around for good measure.)

The Gopher women send 20 athletes to the meet, from which five athletes per event will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Sacramento, California on June 6-9. The Gopher men send 14 athletes down I-35 for the meet.

For the women, national meet hopes rest on the distance/middle-distance crew and the throwers, mainly. Heather Dorniden, Gabrielle Anderson, and Julie Schwengler are ranked #1, #3, #6 in the 800 meters. Emily Brown and Jamie Cheever enter the steeplechase at #1 and #4. Ruby Radocaj is ranked #2 in the javelin. Liz Alabi is ranked #3 in the hammer throw, and she and Liz Podomonick sit #7-8 in the shot put.

Pole vaulters Alicia Rue (#6) and Andrea Smith (#8) could punch a national meet ticket as well.

For the men, two Gopher throwers, quartermiler Aaron Buzard, jumper Derek Gearman, and perhaps a member of the distance crew have the likeliest paths to Sacto. Aaron Studt and Adam Schnaible are ranked #4 and #5 in the shot put, respectively; Schanaible sits in the last paying spot in the hammer throw as well.

Buzard, who is ranked #3 in the event, will battle a trio of rivals from "Quartermiler University" in the 400 meters -- three Baylor runners round out the top four in the region in the event. Super-jumper Gearman is entered in all three jumps, but is ranked highest in the long jump, where he sits #4.

Gopher distance runner Ben Puhl (#9) could steal a spot in a balanced steeplechase; cross country all-American Chris Rombough (#19) should still be a threat at 5000 meters.

Ranked qualifiers lists can be found HERE (women) and HERE (men.)

Heat sheets can be found HERE (women) and HERE (men.)

Results will be posted HERE.

Video is available HERE.