THIS WEEK IN SIOUX FALLS TRACK & FIELD
Sioux Falls track and field will be competing for the second straight week in Sioux Falls. They begin their 2012-13 outdoor post-season with the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Championships May 10-11 at Howard Wood Field. The Cougars were picked to finish third (women) and fourth (men) in the conference outdoor preseason coaches' poll. Click HERE for the weekend schedule and heat sheets can be found in the related links box.

Follow results live http://results.pttiming.com/liveresults/2013/nsicoutdoor/

COLIN KOTH INTERVIEW



NSIC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Individuals with the top eight marks of each event will advance to their respective final and at minimum earn all-conference honors. The scoring scale is as follows: 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1. 10 team points are awarded to first place, eight to second etc.

Thanks to strong performances by Katlyn Sawtelle (2nd, 4728 pts.) and Taylor Majerus (6th, 5618 pts.) at the NSIC Multi Event (April 28-29), USF enters the weekend with points for both the men's (4) and women's (8) teams.

GROSS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Brigitte Gross was selected as the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Women's Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week, announced by the conference office Tuesday.

Gross' recognition came after she cleared 13-5.75 (4.11m) to earn the women's pole vault title last weekend at the Howard Wood Relays and break the school record which she previously set in 2011. Her record-setting performance ranks fourth in the NCAA DII. She heads into the conference championships ranked first in the NSIC.

She became the first field athlete to win the award twice this season, as she earned the same honor last month following the Vance Butler Invitational.

NCAA QUALIFIERS
Automatic: Brigitte Gross, pole vault (13-5.75); Kristin Majerus, pole vault (12-11.75); 

Provisional: Kayla Coffee, pole vault (12-8.25); Samantha Koch, pole vault (12-0); Courtney Crandall, pole vault (11-6.25); Jagger Gran, pole vault (16-0); Scott Greenman, pole vault (15-10.5); Brandon Rogers, pole vault (15-4.5); Katlyn Sawtelle, heptathlon (4728); Jordan Bents, shot put (52-7.25); Jazzelena Black, long jump (19-6.75) & triple jump (40-6)

The 2013 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be May 23-25 at the Neta & Eddie DeRose Thunderbowl in Pueblo, Colo. The NCAA will announce participants via press release May 14.

WHERE THEY RANK
After another solid weekend of performances at the Howard Wood Relays, Sioux Falls women's track and field gained one spot in the national poll this week, moving to No. 21 in the latest USTFCCCA rankings announced Tuesday. Click HERE to see where individuals rank in the conference heading into this weekend.

RECORD-BREAKING PERFORMANCES
To this point, USF has set 10 program records this season.

Men's: Jordan Bents, hammer throw (168-4); Billy Brockmueller, 10,000m (30:57.65); Bobby Brockmueller, 1500m (3:35.33) & 5000m (14:55.46)

Women's: Jazzelena Black, 100m (12.25), long jump (19-6.75) & triple jump (40-6); Brigitte Gross, pole vault (13-5.75); Katlyn Sawtelle, 200m (25.32) & heptathlon (4,728)  

LAST TIME OUT
Sioux Falls track and field competed at the Howard Wood Relays last weekend.  

The Cougars had another successful showing in the pole vault USF took three of the top five spots in the men's field. Jagger Gran finished in second (16-00) Scott Greenman finished in third (15-05.75). In the women's pole vault, USF took four of the top six spots in the field. Brigitte Gross led the way, breaking the school record with a clearance of 13-5.75 (4.11m) for second.  Kristin Majerus met NCAA automatic qualification with her vault of 12-11.75 (3.96m).

Colin Koth took first place in the men's 400m dash with his time of 48.56. He also placed second in the 200m Dash where he clocked a 21.91.

In the men's 5000m Run, Billy Brockmueller outkicked the competition on his way to a first place finish with his time of 14:52.77. Bobby Brockmueller ran a 3:53.33 on his way to a third place finish in the 1500m run.  This time broke the previous school record, and is the second fastest 1500m time in the NSIC this season.

Jordan Bents broke the school record in the hammer throw for the second straight week. His heave of 168-4 (51.30m) was good for third place. Bents' mark in the hammer throw ranks third in the NSIC. He also finished third overall in the shot put at Howard Wood where he recorded a toss of 51-11.75 (15.84m).

Kendra Knight claimed second in the women's 400m dash with a time of 56.59.

In the women's 4x100m Relay, USF's Danielle Moyer, Katlyn Sawtelle, DeAndra Richardson, and Brigitte Gross teamed up for a third place finish with their time of 47.9.

NSIC INDOOR RECAP
The University of Sioux Falls wrapped up their first-ever Northern Sun Conference Championship with 34 all-conference finishes and four individual conference titles in Mankato, Minn.

The Cougar women finished third place overall with a score of 92 points, while the men finished in fourth place with 89 points.

To read the full recap, click HERE.

UP NEXT
The 2013 NCAA Championships will be May 23-25 in Pueblo, Colo.