St. Norbert's Graybill Wins National 800-Meter Indoor Title

Terre Haute, Ind. - St. Norbert College’s Ashley Graybill (right) won the Green Knights’ first female individual national championship in 16 years with a brilliant performance in the 800-meter run in the NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championship at Rose-Hulman Institute’s Hulbert Arena.

Graybill, a senior from Delafield, ran a Division III season-best time of 2 minutes 9.95 seconds to cop the first women’s national title for St. Norbert since Laura Salm claimed indoor high jump titles in 1991 and 1993. Graybill’s time was exactly a second faster than runner-up Jessica Scott of UW-Platteville, who ran a 2:10.95. Other than Scott, Graybill’s run was over two seconds faster than the rest of the field.

The Green Knights finished with 15 team points to tie for eighth at the championship with Hardin-Simmons University. It is St. Norbert’s highest national finish ever in women’s track and field and is the best national placement for any women’s team at the school since the women’s basketball team advanced to the Division III Final Four in 1985.

Wartburg College won the national title with 51 points, while UW-La Crosse was second with 41.5 points. St. Norbert was just three points out of sixth, as North Central College was sixth with 18 points and UW-Eau Claire was seventh with 16 points.

Monmouth Men Drop Out Of Top 25, Women Fall Two Spots

The Monmouth College men have fallen out of the USTFCCCA Top 25 for the first time since the Week 3 poll, while the women have slipped from the 20th spot to the 22nd. Both the Fighting Scot men and women won the Midwest Conference Championship this season, tallying ten and eight consecutive titles, respectively.

For the fourth straight week, UW-Oshkosh tops the men's poll while UW-La Crosse holds the women's top spot for the third week in a row.

Click Here for USTFCCCA Men's Poll
Click Here for USTFCCCA Women's Poll

16 MWC Athletes Headed To Nationals

Four Midwest Conference schools will be represented at the 2009 NCAA Indoor Track and Field National Championships. Carroll, Illinois College, Monmouth, and St. Norbert will be sending a total of 16 student-athletes to compete this Friday and Saturday, March 13-14 at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Ind.

The Monmouth men, coming off a second place finish at the 2008 Championships, will be sending Luke Reschke (400m), Jacob Stott (400m), and Logan Hohl (55m Hurdles) to this year's version. The 4x400 Relay team of Reschke, Stott, Hohl, and Ryan Hardman will also be competing. Shannon Turczyn (55m Hurdles) and Gloria Lehr (shot put) will be representing the Fighting Scot women.

St. Norbert will be sending three student-athletes and its 4x400 Relay Team to Nationals. Dann Schneider (400m), Ashley Graybill (800m), and Jenny Scherer (5000m) will all be competing while the Relay team of Graybill, Katie Meyer, Emily Schudrowitz, and Marisa Trakanovich will also be present.

Carroll and Illinois College will be represented in three events each. The Pioneers' Josh Hurlebaus (55m), Rebecca Grafenhauer (pole), and 4x400 Relay team of Hurlebaus, Jay Finster, L.J. Hyland, and Justin Troeller will be vying for All-American status while the Blueboys will be sending D.J. Jackson (long) and Dillon Binkley (high) with Katie Miller (long) being the lone Lady Blue representative.

Monmouth Men, Women Still Rank Among Nation's Best

Both the Monmouth College men and women moved up in the Top 25 this week in the USTFCCCA Division III Indoor Track and Field Dual Meet Rankings.

The Fighting Scot men currently sit at No. 23, while the women hold the 20th spot. UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse sit atop the men's and women's polls, respectively.

Click Here for USTFCCCA Men's Poll
Click Here for USTFCCCA Women's Poll

Monmouth Looks To Extend Title Streak As Host of 2009 Championships

Monmouth will play host to the 2009 Midwest Conference Men's and Women's Indoor Track and Field Championships as the Fighting Scot men and women look to extend their title streaks to ten and eight, respectively. The Championships will begin at 3 p.m. on Friday, February 27 and pick up again at 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 28.

Carroll's Duchow Breaks Record in 200-Meter Dash

Waukesha, Wis. - Carroll University's Sarah Duchow (right) tied Melissa Roesch's school record in the 200 meter dash when she clocked a 26.30 at the Monmouth Invitational on Feb. 14. One week later at the UW-Stevens Point Invitational (Feb. 21) Duchow is in sole possession of the record as she posted a time of 26.15.

Lawrence Asst. Coach Woodman Wins UK Championships Title

Appleton, Wis. - Lawrence University assistant track and field coach Amy Woodman (right) won the long jump at the Aviva United Kingdom Indoor Championships this past Saturday. 

Woodman, a native of Clutton, England, won the title by jumping a career-best 6.40 meters (21 feet, 1 inch) at the meet in Sheffield, England. Her previous best had been 6.31 meters (20-8.5). 

"It still hasn't sunk in yet, I am so happy," Woodman told the British press in the wake of her victory. 

Woodman, a collegiate standout at Ferris State University who won the NCAA Division II indoor title in the long jump in 2008, beat Jade Johnson and Kelly Sotherton. Johnson is Britain's top long jumper and competed at the Beijing Olympics and Sotherton is an Olympic heptathlete. 

Woodman has been balancing coaching athletes at Lawrence with competing herself this winter.

The 24-year-old Woodman has competed unattached at several meets over the past month, winning the long jump at UW-Oshkosh, the St. Olaf Invitational, and the Husker Invitational at the University of Nebraska. 

Woodman is now waiting to see if she will be selected to compete for Great Britain in the European Indoor Championships, slated for March 6-8 in Turin, Italy.

Monmouth Men, Women Rank in Top 25 of USTFCCCA Dual Meet Rankings

Both the Monmouth College men and women cracked the Top 25 this week in the USTFCCCA Division III Indoor Track and Field Dual Meet Rankings.

The Fighting Scot men enter the poll at No. 24, while the women sit at the 22nd spot. UW-Oshkosh and Illinois Wesleyan sit atop the men's and women's polls, respectively.

Click Here for USTFCCCA Men's Poll
Click Here for USTFCCCA Women's Poll

Carroll's Hurlebaus and Fendryk Set New School Records

Stevens Point, Wis. - Carroll University senior Josh Hurlebaus (right) entered the 2009 indoor track and field season tied with R.J. Hoppe with the fastest 55 meter dash time in school history. Hoppe posted a 6.37 in 1997 and was equaled by Hurlebaus at last year's National Championship meet.

Now, Hurlebaus stands alone.

In Saturday's UW-Stevens Point Invitational (Feb. 7), Hurlebaus clocked a meet-best 6.34 to not only set a new school record, but perhaps more importantly to earn an automatic berth into the 2009 National Championship meet.

Hurlebaus also posted a 49.66 to break the previous school record of 49.97 (Adam Smiley/1997) in the 400 meter dash. Hurlebaus now holds the school record in the 55, 200 and 400 meter indoor events.

Senior Amanda Fendryk (left) also entered the Pioneers record book on Saturday as she set a new school record in the women's weight throw. Fendryk's throw of 14.46 meters (47' 5 ¼") broke Amanda Johnson's mark of 13.99 meters (45' 10 ¾") set during the 2002 Midwest Conference Championship meet.

Both Hurlebaus and Fendryk will try to better their new school records when the Pioneers return to competition on Saturday, Feb. 14 at the Monmouth College Invitational.

Illinois College Names Track Meet for Jacksonville Physician

Jacksonville, Ill. - Illinois College will honor a prominent Jacksonville physician Saturday, February 7 during ceremonies officially designating the Dr. Jim Green Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field Classic.

The meet, which was formerly known as the IC Blue Classic, will draw 13 college and university men’s and women’s track teams to the King Field House for events that will start at approximately 11 a.m.

Dr. Green, a 1961 Illinois College graduate, has served his alma mater in several capacities during the past four decades, including a principal role as team physician for countless men’s and women’s sports teams and hundreds of student-athletes.

Click here for complete release

Victor Finch Tabbed As Lawrence Track & Field/XC Coach

Victor Finch (right), the head track and field coach at Ferris State University, is the new head cross country and track & field coach at Lawrence University. Finch's hiring was announced Thursday by co-Interim Director of Athletics Chris Howard.

A native of Midland, Mich., Finch brings two decades of coaching experience at the NCAA Division I level to the job. Finch also has coached two Olympic sprinters who ran in a combined three Olympic Games (1988, 1996, 2000).

A graduate of Indiana State University, Finch majored in physical education and starred in cross country and track and field for the Sycamores.

Finch began his coaching career at Southwestern Michigan College, where he coached sprinter Laurel Johnson. Johnson was a national champion in Jamaica in the 100 and 200 meters and competed in the 1988 Olympics. Finch then served as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level at Indiana State, Eastern Michigan University, and Michigan State University and also coached at Northwood University, a NCAA Division II school.

In one season as the head coach at Ferris State, Finch recruited and coached Amy Woodman to the 2008 NCAA title in the long jump. Ferris State had a school-record seven national qualifiers in 2008. In addition to his track and field duties, Finch was the assistant men's and women's cross country coach at both Northwood and Ferris State. In one season with the cross country squads at Ferris, both teams saw dramatic improvements in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Click here for complete release