Last year, St. Thomas pulled away from the likes of Hamline, Bethel and Gustavus to claim its 28th-straight championship, as the Tommies racked up 189.5 points. The Pipers were second at 129.5, while Bethel (104.5) edged Gustavus (101.0) for third place. St. Olaf - this year's host school - rounded out the 2012 top five with a score of 77.5. Carleton, finished sixth with 69 points, Saint John's finished seventh with 42.5, and Augsburg just barely nipped Concordia to claim eighth place, 31 to 29.5. Macalester scored five points to finish 10th and Saint Mary's rounded out the 2012 MIAC men's standings.
UST 's Eyo Ekpo returns for his senior season after earning both Outstanding Men's Field Athlete and Outstanding Performance of the Meet honors last season. Ekpo's Outstanding Indoor Field Athlete honor was his third in a row. Ekpo will also be in search of his fourth-straight triple jump title, and second-straight wins in both the long jump and high jump. His triple-jump win - a distance of 49-3 (15.01 meters - was honored last season as the Outstanding Performance of the Meet.
The return of Ekpo isn't the only reason UST coach Steve Mathre's bunch has their sights set on title No. 29. Cody Jerabek is ranked first in the 60- and 200, while Bryan Thell is ranked first in the shot put and weight throw. Maxwell Dunne is ranked second in Division III in the heptathlon, and sophomore Doug Thoresen is ranked first in the 400- and 600, and second in the 800.
Hamline brings back Christian Willman, who ranks in the top five in the MIAC in the 400 and 600. Joe Morelli and Joey Grussing give the Pipers a formidable duo in the shot put, while Travis Latzke will lead in the jumping events. Bethel will attempt to challenge St. Thomas with distance runner Zach Haskins and Matt Berens. Ian Moore is the team's top jumper. Rob LeMay leads the sprinters and Bucky Dixon is back for the Royals as an All-Conference thrower.
Gustavus features versatile junior Blair Riegel (jumps/sprints) and reigning MIAC pole vault champion Josh Owens. Thrower Ryan Obele and middle distance runner Eric Jorgenson also hope to help the Gusties climb into one of the top spots. The host school - St. Olaf - will be strong in the distance events after winning the MIAC cross country championship in the fall, with Brian Saska and Tim Lillihaugen leading the way. Sprinters Reggie Woods and Aaron Dunphy and middle distance runner Brian Tomlinson also hope to score points over the weekend.
Sophomore Noah Laack-Veeder leads Carleton with fellow sophomore Colby Seyferth and junior Marcus Hurderle. Saint John's is hoping for points from seniors Kevin Horton (sprints), Ruairi Moynihan (distance), and Derek Rausch (hurdles). Augsburg is led by distance runner Michaele Tesema, sprinter Lekpea Kordah and middle-distance freshman Chase Grieves. Concordia has high hopes for pole vaulter Erik Olson, sprinter Bruce Shields and jumper Brandon Zylstra. Macalester is led by freshman jumper Logan Hovie, junior runner Sebastian Roemer and sophomore runner Konnor Fleming. Saint Mary's sends a trio of distance runners - Aaron Haley, Peter Borash and Jake Traxler.
WOMEN
St. Thomas' women are trying for a 14th-straight conference title. Head Coach Joe Sweeney and the Tommies claimed lthe 2012 title by 50 with 164.0 points a year ago. Carleton (114) was second, St. Olaf(97) third. Bethel(85) was fourth, followed by Saint Benedict (74.0) edged Hamline (70.0) Gustavus(46), Macalester(43.5) and Concordia(43) were neck-and-neck in the next three spots. St. Catherine(21), Augsburg(13.5), and St Mary's(9) grabbed the final three spots.
The Tommies enter the meet with the number one ranked 4x400 team, as well as All-Americans Taylor Berg (distance) and Emily Van Heel (sprints, relays, jumps). They are joined by sophomores Kayla Goeman and twins Erika and Angela Tipp, and freshman Bailey Cook who is ranked in the top two in the MIAC in a pair of jumping events.
Carleton features with defending 1,000 champion Hailey Johnson and distance teammates Colette Celichowski, Sarah Trautman, and freshmen Ruth Steinke. Amelia Campbell (field events) adds to the Knights' depth. The host Oles will be led by sophomore Dani Larson, who won a pair of indoor All-American honors in her first season as well as last year's Outstanding Women's Field Athlete and Women's Outstanding Performance-of-the-Week awards . Middle distance runner Moriah Novacinski and distance runner Emma Lee help give St. Olaf a balanced core of performers.
Bethel brings back talented juniors-- sprinters Ashley Magelssen, Courtney Fregeau; Steph Skoog, the top-ranked high jumper in the Central Region, and Rachel Kalk will contribute in the hurdle and jump events. Saint Benedict will be counting on multi-event junior Mandy Witschen, with thrower Sam Imholte and sprinter Erin Sand. Hamline has a trio of throwers--Shawny Kramer and Becky Culp are among the league's best--and distance runner Maria Theisen.
Gustavus brings back 2012 pole vault champ Allyson Voss as well as sophomore distance runner Rebecca Hare along with freshman thrower Hayley Solheim. Macalester's Irene Gibson will defend her title in the 600, while sophomore Stephanie Goei is the Scots' weight throw record holder, and Kate Rochat will contribute in the jumping events. Concordia's Chelsea Klemetson set an MIAC Championships meet record in the high jump a year ago, and fellow Cobber Morgan Christian has aspirations of a MIAC title in the 800. Senior Kaari Jensen is expected to contend in the multi-event competition and jumper Hilary Thopmson adds to Concordia's depth.
St. Catherine has high hopes for freshman sprinter and hurdler Brittany Moore, with junior pole vaulter Haley Tsuji also looking to contend. Augsburg's is led by All-American sprinter Ashley Carney, who is ranked number one in the 50 and second in the 200, while freshman hurdler Kai Mason and junior middle distance runner Lauren Rice also hope to score points for the Auggies. Saint Mary's Coco Booker hopes to again contend in the shot put after a runner-up finish in 2012, and distance runner Katie Stolz is follow up on a strong cross country season in the fall.
The 2013 MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships begin Thursday with the multi-event competitions. The women's pentathlon starts at 2 p.m. with the men's heptathlon beginning 15 minutes later. The heptathlon finishes up Friday morning at 10:30 a.m., with Friday's field events set to start at 2:30 p.m. and track to follow at 4:15 p.m. Saturday's final starts with 11 a.m. field events and 1 p.m. track events.
Saturday's final event begins at 4:15 p.m., and there will be a short awards ceremony following the conclusion of the meet to honor both team champions. The top three individuals in each event and the first-place relay team will automatically earn All-Conference honors, and the fourth- through sixth-place finishers in each open event and second- through sixth-place relay teams will all be named All-Conference Honorable Mention.
The MIAC has a Web page dedicated to the event, and complete results, recaps, and multimedia coverage of the championships will be available on that site throughout the event. There will be live results available for all events courtesy of Apple Raceberry Jamand fans can also find entries and heat sheets on the MIAC's event page as they become available.
Admission for the event is $7 for adults and $3 for students per day, with children ages 5 and under admitted free. MIAC passes will be honored. St. Olaf is offering parking for spectators in several campus lots, including H Lot, Rand Lot and Buntrock Commons. Visit St. Olaf's event page for complete information, including parking and directions.
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