Kaitlyn Long and Eric Holst Selected as USATF MN January 2018 Athletes of the Month

January 2018 Athletes of the Month

2/15/2018

The start of 2018 brings with it the start of the indoor track & field season, and also gives us a chance to recognize some of the best field athletes around the state and country - including Kaitlyn Long from the University of Minnesota and Eric Holst from the University of St. Thomas, two of Minnesota’s best weight throwers.

Kaitlyn Long, originally from Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, is a senior competing for the Golden Gophers and has her 2018 season off to a great start. At the 2018 Border Battle meet on January 13th, Long tossed the, at the time, 2nd best weight throw in the NCAA (currently 4th best) at 22.74m (74' 7.25") to crush the Gophers’ previous weight throw school record of 21.05m (69' 0.75") held by Liz Alabi from 2007. This performance earned Long her first B1G Indoor Field Athlete of the Week award, as well as USATF Minnesota’s January Athlete of the Month award.

Long joined the Gophers this season after three years at Winona State University where she was a two-time NCAA Division II indoor national champion in the weight throw.

Eric Holst, a junior at the University of St. Thomas, originally from Lanesboro, Minnesota, has been on fire this indoor season racking up two MIAC Athlete of the Week honors in a row in the month of January. First, Holst threw a career best 59' 5" weight throw on January 12th at the UST Opener. At the time, that ranked him #5 in Division III and #3 all-time at St. Thomas. Then, the following week at the UST Invite on January 19th, Holst moved up to #2 in Division III with a 61' 4.75" toss, nearly two feet farther than his throw the weekend before, earning him USATF Minnesota’s January Athlete of the Month honors. That throw is the 2nd best in St. Thomas school history, and just 18 inches off his now-coach Pat Ahern’s 1993 school record.

Holst has come a long way at St. Thomas from his freshman year best of 42' 5", which was the 9th best weight throw on the St. Thomas team at the time, to now be ranked in the top 5 consistently in all of Division III. He found his stride last spring starting with his breakout performance at the MIAC Outdoor meet in the hammer throw where he threw 177' 11", earning him 2nd place in the conference and top-35 in NCAA Division III.


Honorable Mention Worthy Performances in January

Men:

• Tyler Jermann, and Iowa State alumni and current Team USA Minnesota athlete, placed 7th at the Houston Marathon in a PR of 2:16:39, qualifying him for the 2020 Olympic Marathon Team Trials.
• Kevin Lewis, an Iowa native and also a Team USA Minnesota athlete, placed 38th at the Houston Half Marathon in a time of 1:05:02.
• Jonathan Webb, current University of Minnesota Golden Gopher, swept the sprint event with a win in the 60m dash and the 200m dash at the Border Battle on January 13th in times of 6.80 and 21.86, respectively.
• Ryan Lockard, another current University of Minnesota Golden Gopher, won the high jump in a meet record 2.17 meters (7-01.5 ft.) at the Border Battle meet. 

Women:

• Kelly Boeler, a native of Hutchinson, Minnesota and current Twin Cities Track Club athlete, placed 13th at the Houston Marathon in a PR of 2:43:50, qualifying her for the 2020 Olympic Marathon Team Trials.
• Ayesha Champagnie, a current University of Minnesota Golden Gopher, had a career best long jump of 6.56m (21-06.25 ft.) at the 2018 Border Battle.
• Karlie Place, another current University of Minnesota Golden Gopher, won the pole vault at the Jack Johnson Classic in 4.28m (14-00.50 ft.), which was at the time the best mark in the Big Ten and the 3rd best pole vault of all-time at the U of M. 

We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for USATF Minnesota’s Athlete of the Month award, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to maxwell.kuzara@gmail.com with the subject line “Athlete of the Month Nomination”.

Fans can follow along with USATF Minnesota on Facebook, Twitter, and online at www.minnesota.usatf.org.

Maxwell Kuzara
Athlete of the Month Committee Chair
USA Track & Field Minnesota
e-mail

DECEMBER 2017 USATF MN ATHLETES OF THE MONTH

Eric Loeffler

The month of December was full of championship racing both on the roads and the cross country course, including the Nike Cross Nationals meet for high school cross country runners and the USATF Marathon Championships, among many other races and meets. Minnesotan athletes finished off 2017 with a bang, highlighted by the Wayzata High School Girls Cross Country team placing 7th at Nike Cross Nationals and with 40-year-old Minnesotan Eric Loeffler running 2:17:34 at the California International Marathon to finish 25th in the USATF Marathon Championships - earning both Eric and the entire Wayzata Girls team the title of USATF Minnesota’s December Athletes of the Month.

The Wayzata Girls Cross Country Team ended their 2017 season with an impressive 7th place team finish at Nike Cross Nationals on December 2nd in Portland, Oregon, showing that they were truly one of the best teams in the country this fall, as well as giving them the title of USATF Minnesota’s Girls Athletes of the Month. This year’s team at Nike Cross Nationals consisted of:

·         Emma Atkinson—Sophomore (placed 37th in 18:35.0 for the 5k course)
·         Caroline Sassan—Sophomore (44th in 18:41.2)
·         Rhynn Paulsen—Sophomore (72nd in 19:05.7)
·         Emelia Arnone—Freshman (119th in 19:43.7)
·         Lauren McCollor—Freshman (143rd in 20:02.2)
·         Brooke Young—Senior (171st in 20:34.4)
·         Carmen Rottinghaus—Senior (173rd in 20:37.2)

The Wayzata Girls also captured this year’s Minnesota State High School Cross Country title for Class AA, their fourth title since 2012. They are coached by Dave Emmans, who was recently awarded the Minnesota State High School Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, as well as assistant coach Addy Hallen. With five out of their top seven runners returning next season, they should have a strong team yet again in the fall of 2018.

Eric Loeffler, a native of Fergus Falls, Minnesota and alumni of North Dakota State University, is USATF Minnesota’s Men’s December Athlete of the Month after finishing 25th overall at the 2017 USATF Marathon Championships hosted by the California International Marathon on December 3rd in Sacramento, CA. Loeffler’s time of 2:17:34 is impressive at any age, but even more impressive given Loeffler is 40 years old. He was also able to win the Masters competition within this race, with the next master’s athlete finishing about four minutes behind Loeffler.

Loeffler’s performance also earned him the “B” qualifying standard for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, which would be his third appearance at the Olympic Trials after 2012 and 2016. His current personal best for the marathon is from the 2015 Grandma’s Marathon where he ran 2:16:48.


Honorable Mention Worthy Performances in December

Men:
·         Malcolm Richards from Minneapolis South High School and an alumni of St. Olaf College, placed 6th in the USATF Marathon Championships (hosted by the California International Marathon) in a time of 2:13:28.
·         Trent Lusignan from Shakopee and current member of the Hansons-Brooks Original Distance Project team placed 23rd at the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships in Lexington, Kentucky on December 9th.
·         Danny Docherty from St. Paul and current member of Team USA Minnesota finished 55th at the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships in Lexington, Kentucky on December 9th.
·         Khalid Hussein from Wayzata, our November Athlete of the Month, finished 10th in 15:28.5 at the Nike Cross Nationals meet on December 2nd in Portland, Oregon.
·         The Wayzata Boys Cross Country Team finished 11th as a team at the Nike Cross Nationals meet on December 2nd in Portland, Oregon.

Women:
·         Meghan Peyton from Richfield, our October Athlete of the Month, was 14th in a personal record time of 2:37 at the USATF Marathon Championships (hosted by the California International Marathon).
·         Emily Covert from Minneapolis Washburn High School placed 9th at the Nike Cross Nationals meet on December 2nd in 19:08.6, and then placed 9th at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in San Diego, CA on December 9th in 17:58.8.
·         Tierney Wolfgram from Math & Science Academy, our November Athlete of the Month, placed 27th at Nike Cross Nationals on December 2nd in 18:19.0, and then placed 7th at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships on December 9th in 17:51.9.
·         The Edina Girls Cross Country Team finished 11th as a team at the Nike Cross Nationals meet on December 2nd in Portland, Oregon.


We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for USATF Minnesota’s Athlete of the Month award, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to mskuzara@csbsju.edu with the subject line “Athlete of the Month Nomination”.

Fans can follow along with USATF Minnesota on Facebook, Twitter, and online at www.minnesota.usatf.org.

Maxwell Kuzara
Athlete of the Month Committee Chair
USA Track & Field Minnesota
e-mail

USATF Minnesota Athletes of the Month for October 2017

October 2017 Athletes of the Month

11/7/2017

 
MENDOTA HEIGHTS— A pair of Team USA Minnesota athletes, Ryan Rutherford and Meghan Peyton, took home top Minnesotan honors at this year’s Medtronic TC 10 Mile on October 1, 2017. As this year’s race once again served as the USATF 10 Mile National Championship as well as the USATF Minnesota 10 Mile Championship, the race attracted a very deep field. Rutherford and Peyton were both able to finish in the top 20 and each capture USATF Minnesota 10 Mile titles, thereby earning them each the honor of USATF Minnesota’s October Athlete of the Month.

Ryan Rutherford, originally from Bloomington, Illinois and a 2016 graduate of Illinois State University, placed 18th in a time of 49:12, claiming the honor of USATF Minnesota’s 10 Mile Champion and October Athlete of the Month. Rutherford is a member of Team USA Minnesota, an elite distance training center based in Minneapolis, and has been a member of the team since January 2017.

Before moving to Minneapolis earlier this year, Rutherford was a two-time Missouri Valley Conference Champion (once in the indoor 5000m and once in the outdoor 10,000m) in addition to qualifying for the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon in the 10,000m where he placed 22nd overall. He concluded his career with four Illinois State track & field and cross country records, and was a 10-time All-Conference performer.

Meghan Peyton, a long-time Minnesota resident and another Team USA Minnesota team member, also ran extremely well at this year’s Medtronic TC 10 Mile placing 12th in 57:45, also giving her the title of USATF Minnesota’s 10 Mile Champion and October Athlete of the Month along with her teammate Rutherford. This year’s USATF 10 Mile Championship was Peyton’s fifth time competing in the event, placing 8th in 2014, 9th in 2012, 6th in 2011, and 4th in 2010. Peyton has a long list of top finishes and major accomplishments on both the track and the roads, and her performance last month just adds to that list.

Since 2009, Peyton has finished in the top 10 at twenty-one different USATF National Championship races in distances ranging from the one mile to the marathon, making her one of the most accomplished and consistent athletes in Minnesota. Originally from Tualatin, Oregon, Peyton competed on the cross country and track & field teams at the University of Iowa, eventually becoming a four-time All American. Peyton was the 2008 Big Ten Champion in both the indoor 3,000m and the outdoor 10,000m, later going on to finish 6th in the 10,000m that same year at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Peyton has also been a part of three different international Team USA teams, including the 2013 U.S. team that competed at the Edinburgh International Cross Country Championships in Scotland. In addition to competing as a professional runner, Peyton is the Head Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Coach and Assistant Track & Field Coach at Augsburg University in Minneapolis.

Congratulations to Ryan and Meghan!

Honorable Mention Worthy Performances in October
·         Emma Bates, originally from Elk River, Minnesota and current Boston, Massachusetts resident, placed 6th at the USATF 10 Mile National Championships and TC 10 Mile in a time of 55:36.
·         Joe Klecker, a native of Hopkins, Minnesota and current redshirt sophomore for the University of Colorado at Boulder Buffaloes, placed 2nd at the Pac-12 Cross Country Championships on October 27th.
·         Madeline Strandemo, originally from Fargo, North Dakota and current redshirt senior at the University of Minnesota, placed 2nd at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships on October 29th to claim the second All-Big Ten honor of her career in cross country.
·         Sisters Megan and Bethany Hasz, from Alexandria, Minnesota, also earned the second and first All-Big Ten honors of their careers by placing fifth and 10th respectively at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships.
·         Obsa Ali, from Richfield, Minnesota and current senior at the University of Minnesota, placed 8th at the Big Ten Cross Country Championships, earning the second All-Big Ten honor of his career in cross country.

We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for USATF Minnesota’s Athlete of the Month award, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to mskuzara@csbsju.edu with the subject line “Athlete of the Month Nomination”.

Fans can follow along with USATF Minnesota on Facebook, Twitter, and online at www.minnesota.usatf.org.

Maxwell Kuzara
Athlete of the Month Committee Chair
USA Track & Field Minnesota
e-mail