By: USF Athletics
The University of Sioux Falls Track & Field team had another great day of performances at the NSIC Conference Championships despite the windy conditions.
The No. 21 rated USF women's team finished in fourth place, earning 90 points. The men's team also finished in fourth place, scoring 111 points. USF ends the weekend with seven school records, four conference titles, and five conference runner-up honors.
Highlights from USF's wins in the women's long jump and pole vault events can be found in the Cougar Video player to the right of this article.
USF senior, Colin Koth, had a great day for the Cougars, placing in the 200m dash, 400m dash, 4x100m relay, and 4x400m relay. Koth was the top finisher in the conference in the 400m dash with his time of 48.81. He followed up that performance in the 200m dash where he was named conference runner-up with his school-record and NCAA provisional qualifying standard time of 21.22. Koth was also a member of the 4x400m relay, which placed fourth with their time of 3:21.37. Other Members of the relay included Brady Velgersdyk, Kaleb Lindsey-Stevens, and Blake Stevenson.
When asked about Koth's weekend, Director of Track & Field Reid Ehrisman said, “It was really great having him run so well at a track he has competed at since he was in high school. We appreciate what Colin and all the other seniors have done for our team and they have left an impression on our program that will last forever.”
USF shined in the women's 200m dash, claiming three of the top seven spots. Leading the way for the Cougars was senior, Leah Wensmann who was named conference runner-up with her school-record time of 25.03. She was followed by teammate Katlyn Sawtelle who finished in third, running a 25.13. Also scoring for the Cougars was Kendra Knight who finished in seventh place with her time of 25.79.
Wensmann, Sawtelle, and Knight were joined by Conner Anderson in the 4x400m relay, where they ran a 3:56.71 on their way to a third place finish. Knight (57.39) and Wensmann (58.66) also placed in the 400m dash for the Cougars, finishing in third and sixth place respectively.
“Leah's performances today are a product of her hard work this year,” said Coach Ehrisman. “She came to practice every day wanting to get better and did all the little things to help her accomplish that goal. Katlyn Sawtelle also did a great job this weekend and scored the most points on our women's team as a sophomore.”
In the men's 5000m run, Bobby (15:56.43) and Billy Brockmueller (15:58.54) finished in second and third place respectively. Bobby Brockmueller also finished third in the 1500m run with his time of 4:18.78. Brockmueller's time in the preliminary heat was 4:05.66.
“Having Bobby and Billy both score in the 5000m run was a little bit of a surprise for us,” said Ehrisman. “Coach Watley did a great job of getting all the 5k guys fired up to run knowing that they could help our team.”
In the men's discus, Evan Colfack was named the conference runner-up with his school-record and NCAA provisional qualifying throw of 166-08 (50.81m). Colfack bested the previous school-record by nearly seven feet.
USF's Katlyn Sawtelle finished sixth in the 100m hurdles with her time of 14.45, which matched her school-record effort from the preliminary heat on Friday.
In the men's 800m run, USF junior, Blake Stevenson, ran a 1:56.47 which placed him third in the field.
Asked about Stevensen's weekend, Ehrisman said, “Blake had such an incredible race, He came in with the tenth-fastest entered time and for him to leave this weekend with a third place finish is quite the feat.”
In the women's triple jump, Kristen Townley finished third overall with her leap of 37-10.75 (11.55m).
Jordan Bents finished fourth for the Cougars in the shot put with his throw of 51-07 (15.72m).
When asked about Bents performances this season, Ehrisman said, “He has been so steady and consistent throughout this year. We are definitely excited about what the future holds for our throws program and Jordan is definitely a big part of that.”
Ryan Maloney placed for the Cougars in both the 110m hurdles and the 400m hurdles. Maloney was fifth in both races running a 15.08 in the 110m hurdles and a 57.16 in the 400m hurdles.
Next up, the Cougars will send several athletes to the 2013 NCAA DII Track & Field Championships in Pueblo, Colo. May 23-25.