January 31, 2014
NEW ORLEANS – Arkansas, Grand Valley State and UW-Whitewater are the sites of this weekend’s USTFCCCA National Meets of the Week — the creme of the crop in a weekend with more than 80 collegiate meets around the country.
World-class match-ups await fans of collegiate track & field in Fayetteville, Ark., Friday and Saturday at theDivision I National Meet of the Week Razorback Team Invitational, where seemingly each and every sprints, hurdles and jumps event features at the very least one top-ranked competitor and sometimes the top two in the nation
Speaking of the top two, that’s exactly the match-up that will be taking place in Allendale, Mich., on Saturday as the No. 1 Lincoln (Mo.) women take on No. 2 Grand Valley State at the GVSU Five-Way in the Division II National Meet of the Week.
On the opposite side of Lake Michigan, UW-Whitewater will on Friday be hosting the men’s Leonard "Squig" Converse Invitational and on Saturday the women’s Warhawk Classic Invitational, which combine as the Division III National Meet of the Week. Among the numerous top-ranked teams slated to compete are defending indoor men’s champion No. 1 UW-La Crosse and women’s champion No. 4 UW-Oshkosh.
And be sure to take a look at the latest list of times/marks made by 2013 college football players during the 2014 indoor season, which could come in handy during your Super Bowl viewing experience this Sunday.
Also on the horizon next weekend are the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Though the USTFCCA doesn’t keep a list of top marks by student-athletes who split between indoor track & field and ice hockey, we can report that Hannah Jaiven of Hamilton in Division III is not only competing in both but excelling at both. Not only is she the school’s pole vault record holder, she has scored two goals and notched two assists on defense this season for the hockey team.
She pulled off perhaps the most unique double of the season two weekends ago, competing at Colgate in the morning with the track & field team before returning to campus in the afternoon for a home hockey game against Williams.
USTFCCCA InfoZone: Broadcast Schedule
Friday, January 31, 2014
Penn State National
(State College, Pa.) WEB: Flotrack Pro LIVE
sub. required
Washington Invitational
(Seattle, Wash.) WEB: Flotrack Pro LIVE
sub. required
5:55 PM ET /
4:55 PM CT Razorback Team Invitational
(Fayetteville, Ark.) WEB: ArkansasRazorbacks.com LIVE
sub. Required
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Penn State National
(State College, Pa.) WEB: Flotrack Pro LIVE
sub. required
Washington Invitational
(Seattle, Wash.) WEB: Flotrack Pro LIVE
sub. required
11:00 AM ET Concordia (Neb.) Indoor Invitational
(Seward, Neb.) WEB: CUNE.edu LIVE
11:55 AM ET /
10:55 AM CT Razorback Team Invitational
(Fayetteville, Ark.) WEB: ArkansasRazorbacks.com LIVE
sub. Required
Division I National Meet of the Week
Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
Friday, Jan. 31 – Saturday, Feb. 1 | Full Schedule | Randal Tyson Track Complex – Fayetteville, Ark.
FOLLOW LIVE: Video | Results
Defending men’s indoor national champion No. 1 Arkansas and the Razorbacks’ No. 7 women will play host this weekend to a bevy of ranked programs – albeit in varying levels of participation – at its Razorback Team Invitational Friday and Saturday.
Both No. 2 squads will be in town as the second-ranked Florida men bring a significant contingent of its team and the second-ranked Texas women will split its squad between Fayetteville and Iowa State.
Other ranked teams in the men’s competition include No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 6 Florida State, No. 10 Oklahoma State, No. 19 Texas and No. 20 Stanford. Top-25 women’s teams scheduled to compete are No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Florida, No. 9 Stanford and No. 17 Florida State.
As they typically do in SEC Country, the sprints and jumps are expected to take center stage in Fayetteville with match-ups reminiscent of conference-championship level competition.
That list is topped by the men’s 400, which features The Bowerman Watch-Listers Deon Lendore of Texas A&M and Arman Hall of Florida – ranked No. 1 and 2 in 2014, respectively – up against No. 3 Neil Braddy of Arkansas and six other top-20 performers in 2014.
It will be Hall’s second match-up against a rival Watch-Lister in as many weeks after taking down Oregon’s Mike Berry (also receiving votes) last week at Kentucky.
Hall also figures to be a major player at 200 meters, where the third-ranked Gator will take on another collegiate leader from Texas A&M in Prezel Hardy, Jr., and three other top-10 sprinters in Tulsa’s No. 6 Bryce Robinson and A&M’s No. 7 Michael Bryan and No. 10 Shavez Hart.
Hardy has already equaled the 2013 time of preseason No. 1 at 60 meters, Dentarius Locke of Florida State, and the two will line up against one another this weekend.
Though not as deep as some of the other fields, the 60-meter hurdles features a showdown between The Bowerman Watch-Lister/outdoor 110-meter hurdles champ Wayne Davis II of Texas A&M and defending indoor 60-meter hurdles champ Eddie Lovett of Florida. Davis was runner-up to Lovett indoors, while Lovett was second to Davis outdoors.
The women’s sprints match-ups are equally captivating, especially at 200 meters. No. 3 Regine Williams of Arkansas will battle No. 4 Ashton Purvis and No. 8 Olivia Ekpone of Texas A&M, and also No. 10 Ebony Eutsey of Florida.
The Bowerman Watch List member Kamaria Brown will have her hands full in her 2014 400 meters debut, with No. 2 Eutsey of Florida, No. 7 Chrishuna Williams of Arkansas and No. 8 Save Watson of Florida State also on the start line.
In the field, The Bowerman Watch List member and defending men’s indoor long jump champion Marquis Dendy of Florida will compete in his signature event for the first time this season. He will be joined by rival preseason No. 2 Raymond Higgs of Arkansas and No. 7 Stefan Brits of Florida State, both of whom are also debuting.
Dendy is also the preseason No. 1 in the triple jump, an event in which he will also make his 2014 debut. Florida State’s Jonathan Reid has staked his claim as the No. 1 in 2014 with a 53-3¾ (16.25m) mark identical to Dendy’s best in 2013.
Top-ranked women’s triple jumper LaQue Moen-Davis of Texas A&M is set to duel with No. 2 Ciarra Brewer of Florida. Moen-Davis is also No. 6 in the long jump, up against No. 2 Robin Reynolds of Florida and No. 9 Der’Renae Freeman of Florida State.
Competing in his first heptathlon of the season is 2013 national champ Kevin Lazas of Arkansas. His outdoor rival, The Bowerman Watch-Lister and outdoor decathlon champ Johannes Hock of Texas, won’t compete in the full heptathlon but is entered in the open long jump and 60-meter hurdle events.
Highlighting the distance events are the men’s 800 – which features preseason No. 1 and No. 4 Tomas Squella and Patrick Rono of Arkansas against the Florida duo of Sean Obinwa and Andres Arroyo – and the men’s 3000. Contesting the 3k are preseason No. 2 Kirubel Erassa of Oklahoma State, No. 16 Stanley Kebenei of Arkansas and No. 17 Ryan Dohner of Texas.
Arkansas’ duo of former National Athlete of the Week Dominique Scott and Grace Heymsfield headline the women’s mile, while Texas Marielle Hall of Texas tops the women’s 3K.
Four More DI Meets to Watch:
Washington Invitational
Friday/Saturday | Full Schedule | Live Results | Flotrack Pro Live Stream
Ranked Men’s Teams: #3 Oregon; #8 Arizona; #14 Colorado; #20 Stanford
Ranked Women’s Teams: #1 Oregon; #9 Stanford; #18 Washington
Penn State National
Friday/Saturday | Full Schedule | Live Results | Flotrack Pro Live Stream
Ranked Men’s Teams: #7 Penn State; #20 Stanford
Ranked Women’s Teams: #9 Stanford; #13 Dartmouth; #20 Georgetown; #23 Villanova
New Mexico Invitational
Saturday | Live Results
Ranked Men’s Teams: #9 Nebraska; #11 Arizona State
Ranked Women’s Teams: #8 LSU; #22 Arizona State
Army-Navy Dual "Star Meet"
Saturday | Meet Preview
TOP 10 DI MEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. Arkansas Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
2. Florida Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
3. Oregon Washington Invitational
4. Wisconsin Iowa State Bill Bergan Invitational
UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
5. Texas A&M Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
6. Florida State Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
7. Penn State Penn State National (Indoor)
8. Arizona Washington Invitational
9. Nebraska New Mexico Invitational
10. Oklahoma State Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
TOP 10 DI WOMEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. Oregon Washington Invitational
2. Texas Iowa State Bill Bergan Invitational
Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
3. Texas A&M Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
4. Florida Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
7. Arkansas Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
8. LSU New Mexico Invitational
9. Stanford Penn State National (Indoor)
Arkansas Razorback Team Invitational
Washington Invitational
Division II National Meet of the Week
Grand Valley State Five-Way
Saturday, Feb. 1 | Full Schedule | Kelly Family Sports Center – Allendale, Mich.
FOLLOW LIVE: Results
There’s nothing like settling – at least for the time being – a tight National Team Computer Rankings battle with some good ol’ fashioned head-to-head competition. Throw out the rankings, put away the descending order lists and get out your popcorn: the women of No. 1 Lincoln (Mo.) and No. 2 Grand Valley State – the two most dominant women’s programs in recent history — are set to square off this weekend.
Lincoln (Mo.)’s women, powered by their sprints, hurdles and jumps, have either won the NCAA indoor team title (2009, 2010) or finished runners-up (2011, 2013) in all but one of the past five seasons.
GVSU, coming off its second straight cross country title in the fall, has won two of the past three national titles indoors (2011, 2012) and finished runner-up the two years prior (2009, 2010).
That match-up alone is enough to merit "National Meet of the Week" status, made even better by the rest of the women’s field and the men’s field, which includes No. 4 GVSU and No. 11 Lewis – at its best national rank since the beginning of the USTFCCCA rankings in 2010.
Neither Lincoln or GVSU appear to be pulling many punches if the entry lists are any indication, with numerous events featuring top-25 individuals going head-to-head with one another. Generally speaking, Lincoln draws its strength from the sprints, hurdles and jumps while GVSU is powered by its strong distance and throws corps, but there are overlaps that will provide for very intriguing match-ups.
GVSU’s Kalena Franklin is the nation’s top-ranked 60-meter hurdler at this point in the season, and she’ll have to prove her mettle against the Lincoln trio of No. 4 Ladonna Richards, No. 8 Juneille Barker and No. 11 Shakiesha Miller.
The script is flipped in the mile distance, where Lincoln’s Twishana Williams (No. 12 nationally) could potentially take on GVSU’s top distance runners in Jessica Janecke (No. 2, 5000 meters), Allyson Winchester (No. 8, 3000 meters) and Hannah Osborn (No. 9, 3000 meters). Also expected to be in the thick of it is Hillsdale’s sixth-ranked Molly Oren.
If the meet isn’t settled by the time all the individual events have finished, it will come down to the 4×400 meter relay finale, an event in which Lincoln and GVSU are, very fittingly, ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.
Events to watch on the men’s side include the 800 meters and the high jump. Though nation-leading 800-meter man Ethan Barnes of GVSU is stepping up to the mile for this meet, a top-10 tussle is still in the cards with No. 5 Jeremy Wilk of GVSU, No. 8 Matt Jemilo of Lewis and No. 9 Jermaine Blake of Lincoln (Mo.).
The high jump is headlined by a pair of men tied at No. 5 in the nation in GVSU’s Trent Chappell and Lewis’ Isaac Jean-Paul, who both cleared identical heights of 6-10¾ (2.10m) last weekend.
Three More DII Meets to Watch:
Missouri Southern Lion Invitational
Friday/Saturday | Full Schedule | Live Results
Ranked Men’s Teams: #6 Southwest Baptist; #10 Pittsburg State; #12 Missouri Southern
Ranked Women’s Teams: #12 Central Missouri; #25 Southwest Baptist
Minnesota State Open
Friday/Saturday | Full Schedule
Ranked Men’s Teams: #5 Minnesota State; #17 Sioux Falls
Ranked Women’s Teams: # 11 Sioux Falls; #16 Augustana (S.D.); #19 Minnesota Duluth; #23 Wayne State (Neb.)
Adams State-Western State Dual
Friday
Men: #1 Adams State; #18 Western State
Women: #3 Adams State
TOP 10 DII MEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. Adams State DUAL: Adams State-Western State
2. Saint Augustine’s Penn State National (Indoor)
3. Ashland Findlay Open
4. Grand Valley State GVSU Quad
5. Minnesota State Minnesota State Heptathlon & Open
6. Southwest Baptist Missouri Southern Lion Invitational
7. Southern Connecticut Metropolitan Championships (Indoor)
8. Findlay Findlay Open
9. Neb.-Kearney Concordia (Neb.) Alumni Classic
10. Pittsburg State Missouri Southern Lion Invitational
TOP 10 DII WOMEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. Lincoln (Mo.) GVSU Quad
2. Grand Valley State GVSU Quad
3. Adams State DUAL: Adams State-Western State
4. Ashland Findlay Open
5. Johnson C. Smith Penn State National (Indoor)
6. Southern Connecticut Metropolitan Championships (Indoor)
9. Chadron State Chadron State Twilight
10. Findlay Findlay Open
Division III National Meet(s) of the Week
UW-Whitewater Men’s Leonard "Squig" Converse Invitational/Women’s Warhawk Classic Invitational
Friday, Jan. 31 / Saturday, Feb. 1 | Full Schedules: Men / Women | Kachel Fieldhouse – Whitewater, Wis.
Five of the top eight men’s teams in the most recent USTFCCCA Division III National Team Computer Rankings and four of the top 15 women’s teams will be in action this weekend in Whitewater, Wis., as UW-Whitewater hosts the men’s Leonard "Squig" Converse Invitational on Friday and the corresponding women’s Warhawk Classic Invitational Saturday.
No. 1 defending men’s champion UW-La Crosse headlines a deep and talented men’s field that also features host No. 4 UW-Whitewater, No. 5 UW-Oshkosh, No. 7 North Central (Ill.) and No. 8 Monmouth (Ill.). Only six different programs have won national indoor DIII titles since the first championships in 1985, and three of them – UW-La Crosse (16), North Central (4) and UW-Oshkosh (1) – will be represented Friday.
Both the track and field events will be loaded with superb match-ups, but keep an especially close eye on the long jump and pole vault. Division III long jump leader James Wilson of Monmouth is up against a field that includes No. 5 Kyle Schueller and No. 7 Jonathan Jordan of UW-Oshkosh and No. 9 Justin Bowers and No. 10 Cory Zaeske of UW-Whitewater.
In the pole vault, No. 2 Michael Bennett of Chicago – a former National Athlete of the Week – will take on the three-headed UW-La Crosse vaulting monster that is No. 3 Jeffery Hill, t-No. 4 Bryan Klister and t-No. 4 Rob Rohe, along with t-No. 4 Jake Dickmann of UW-Oshkosh.
The men’s mile will feature a convergence of top distance runners as UW-La Crosse’s Sean Royer (preseason No. 1 at 800 meters), North Central’s John Crain (currently No. 2 at 5000 meters) and preseason No. 9 miler Dawson Miller of UW-Whitewater square off.
Four men are within six-tenths of a second of one another at 60 meters, headlined by No. 3 Corey Broussard of UW-Whitewater. He will take on No. 6 Alex Koenen of UW-La Crosse and a pair of men tied at No. 13 in Kiante Green of Monmouth (Ill.) and Naji Allan of UW-Oshkosh.
Headlining Saturday’s team competition are defending national indoor champion No. 4 UW-Oshkosh, No. 6 UW-Whitewater, No. 12 North Central and No. 13 Monmouth.
Reigning National Athlete of the Week Melanie Brickner of UW-Oshkosh headlines the throws, which are shaping up to be the meet’s most tightly contested events. As the ninth-best weight thrower in Division history, she will take on fourth-ranked No. 4 Shelby Mahr of UW-Whitewater and No. 9 Raven Robinson of Monmouth.
She is the underdog in the shot put at No. 6, behind No. 2 teammate Jecel Klotz, No. 3 Ebony Stallworth and No. 4 Mahr of Whitewater.
Highlights on the track include the 800 and 60 meter races. Preseason No. 4 Amanda Brom of UW-Whitewater will go up at 800 meters against current No. 6 Kylee Verhasselt of Oshkosh and No. 15 Brittany Kozlowski of St. Norbert; while at 60 meters preseason No. 7 Lexie Sondgeroth of Whitewater will take on current No. 6 Felicia Carlson of Beloit and No. 8 Liz LeCaptain of St. Norbert.
Three More DIII Meets to Watch:
Wartburg Select
Friday/Saturday | Full Schedule
Ranked Men’s Teams: #9 Central (Iowa); #14 Wartburg; #24 St. Thomas (Minn.)
Ranked Women’s Teams: #1 Wartburg; #3 UW-La Crosse; #7 St. Thomas (Minn.)
Tufts Stampede
Friday/Saturday
Ranked Men’s Teams: #6 Haverford; #11 MIT; #13 Tufts
Ranked Women’s Teams: #2 MIT; #17 Rhode Island College; #23 Tufts
Springfield (Mass.) Team Challenge
Saturday | Full Schedule
Ranked Women’s Teams: #5 Williams; #11 Wheaton (Mass.); #19 Amherst
TOP 10 DIII MEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. UW-La Crosse UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
2. UW-Eau Claire UW-Stout Warren Bowlus Open
3. Mount Union OAC Split North
4. UW-Whitewater UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
5. UW-Oshkosh UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
6. Haverford Tufts Stampede
7. North Central (Ill.) UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
8. Monmouth (Ill.) UW-Whitewater Leonard "Squig" Converse Invite
9. Central (Iowa) Wartburg Indoor Select
10. Bates Maine State Championships (indoor)
TOP 10 DIII WOMEN’S TEAMS IN ACTION
Team Meet
1. Wartburg Wartburg Indoor Select
2. MIT Tufts Stampede
3. UW-La Crosse Wartburg Indoor Select
4. UW-Oshkosh UW-Whitewater Warhawk Classic Invitational
5. Williams Springfield (Mass.) Team Challenge II
6. UW-Whitewater UW-Whitewater Warhawk Classic Invitational
7. St. Thomas (Minn.) Wartburg Indoor Select
8. Washington (Mo.) Rose-Hulman Engineer Invitational
9. Emory Clemson Bob Pollock Indoor Invitational
University of the South Tiger Indoor Invitational
10. Johns Hopkins Bison Open & Multis
U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association
1100 Poydras Street, Suite 1750
New Orleans, LA 70163
Contact: Kyle Terwillegar
Communications Assistant
kyle@ustfccca.org
(504) 599-8905
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