TicketsBearcats Look For Repeat Performance at C-USAs
Men in search of fourth title, women for first
Contact: Jeremy Martin
5/10/2005
Ashley Wilhelm is currently ranked second in C-USA in the heptathlon |
BEARCATS LOOK FOR REPEAT PERFORMANCE: The University of Cincinnati track and field teams will travel to Houston, Texas for the 2005 Conference USA Outdoor Championships. The University of Houston will host the three day event beginning on May 12 at the Carl Lewis/Tom Tellez Track and Field Complex. The UC men seek a second consecutive C-USA outdoor title, while the Bearcat women are in search of their first conference crown.
MEET INFORMATION:
2005 Conference USA Outdoor Championships
?Host: University of Houston
?Final results: Available at www.flashresults.com/flashtexas
?Teams Competing: Cincinnati, Charlotte, DePaul, East Carolina, Houston, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, Southen Miss, TCU, Tulane, UAB, USF.
YOUNG DOMINANT AT NATIONAL CITY INVITE: Jo Young broke two of her own school records and regionally-qualified in the hammer throw, highlighting action at the National City Track and Field Invitational at Western Kentucky?s Charles M. Ruter Track on April 30. Young has also qualified in the shot put.
Young won the shot with a school-record 48' 8-3/4" heave and captured the hammer throw title, posting a 183' 0" toss, breaking the UC record for the second time in three weeks. She also grabbed the discus title with a season-best 152' 10". All three marks also broke Ruter Track records.
The other event champion for the Bearcat women was freshman pole vaulter Brittany Klima, who cleared 11' 5-3/4" to capture her second title of the season.
For the men, Justin Bending won the high jump with a 6' 9-3/4" leap, just 1/4" short of a regional qualifying mark. Ben Haber captured the men?s pole vault, clearing 14' 7-1/4". Also of note for the Bearcats, Steve Kahle posted a season-best in the shot put (54' 5-1/2"), finishing second.
PENN RELAYS RECAP: The University of Cincinnati track and field teams competed at the prestigious Penn Relays April 27-30 at historic Franklin Field. The 111th annual event attracted high school athletes as well as elite collegians and olympic hopefuls.
UC?s top performance was the men?s 4 x 800 relay team. Alex Ramsey, Jake Richards, Pat Starkey, and Eric Graves posted a 7:36.39, the eighth-best time in a 26-team field.
Other Bearcat highlights included the women?s sprint medley relay team?s performance. Ashley Wilhelm, Adrienne Shipman, Dominique Davis, and Jocelyn Gibson ran to a 17th-place finish in the 40-team field with a 4:02.70.
YOUNG NABS SECOND C-USA WEEKLY HONOR: Jo Young added to her outstanding weekend when she earned her second C-USA Athlete of the Week honor on May 3. Young also grabbed the award for the week ending on March 20. Chris Smith was named Athlete of the Week following his performance at the Miami Invitational on April 9.
YOUNG ADDS HAMMER TO REGIONAL QUALIFYING MARKS: Jo Young qualified for regional competition in the hammer throw on April 20, making her UC?s only two-event qualifier. Ashley Wilhelm and Andrew Smith became the sixth and seventh Bearcats to qualify for postseason action on April 16 at the All-Ohio Championships. Wilhelm set a school record in winning the heptathlon (5137), while Smith placed third in the high jump with a personal-best 6? 10-3/4? leap. They join Kenny Wade (200 meters), Jimmy Mount (decathlon), Chris Smith (pole vault), and Renee Hein (high jump) as Bearcat qualifiers.
DEFENDING THE CROWN: The UC men?s team will be looking to defend its Conference USA title this season. Last year, the men won their third C-USA crown in nine years. The Bearcat men have finished no lower than third at the C-USA Championships and placed second on four occasions.
The women?s team has improved since the league started in 1996. UC finished last, scoring only one team point in 1996, but has finished sixth and fifth, respectively in the last two years.
2004 C-USA CHAMPIONSHIPS: With a steady blend of top-five finishes and three individual champions, the University of Cincinnati men?s track and field team captured the 2004 Outdoor Championship on May 15, 2004 at Louisville?s Cardinal Park.
The Bearcats registered a convincing win, scoring 159.5 points to Houston?s 120. On the women?s side, Cincinnati placed sixth of 13 squads with 48 points. In leading the Bearcat men to the title, UC head coach Bill Schnier was tabbed the C-USA Coach of the Year.
David Payne won both the 110 and 400 hurdles to earn C-USA Athlete of the Year honors. Chris Wineberg won his second C-USA decathlon crown with a school-record 7296 points. Ruth Limo was the lone champion for the women, winning the 10,000 meteres for her second consecutive C-USA title.
MOUNT UP: Decathletes Jimmy Mount and Ben Haber look to continue the strong UC tradition in the combined events. A Bearcat has won the decathlon in five of the first nine C-USA Championships. David Yimsurauy (1996, 1997) and Chris Wineberg (2002, 2004) were two-time winners, while Mike Yoder grabbed the title in 1999. Haber finished a close second last season to teammate Wineberg, while Mount was a fifth-place finisher. Mount owns one of the top marks in the nation this season, posting a 7219 at the All-Ohio Championships on April 16.
LIKE A BROKEN RECORD: Four UC records have fallen this season, all on the women?s side. Freshman Brittany Klima now holds the Bearcats? pole vault honors, clearing 11? 11-3/4? at the Raleigh Relays. Ashley Wilhelm broke her own heptathlon mark at the All-Ohio Championships (5137). Jo Young, the indoor shot put record holder, now owns three school records after breaking her own mark in the shot put (48? 8-3/4?) and setting a new mark in the hammer throw (183? 0?). Young has been a dominant force, winning 11 individual event titles this season and qualifying for regional competition in two events.
KLIMA TIME: Freshman Brittany Klima has made an immediate impact on the women?s team. She owns the UC record in the outdoor pole vault (11? 11-3/4") and has put her name in the UC top 10 in the outdoor high jump (5? 3-3/4?, eighth), indoor high jump (5? 5", seventh) and indoor pole vault (11? 5-3/4", second).
ALL-AROUND ATHLETE: Ashley Wilhelm is quickly making herself into one of UC?s greatest athletes. She holds both the pentathlon (3567) and heptathlon (5137) records, while also owning the top mark in the outdoor long jump (19? 9-1/2?) and javelin (129? 4?). Wilhelm finds her name in UC?s top 10 in several events, including the indoor 60 meters (third), 60 meter hurdles (fourth), long jump (second), pole vault (second), outdoor 100 meter hurdles (fifth), high jump (fifth) and pole vault (sixth). She is also a member of several relay teams, sometimes competing in up to 10 events in a single meet. Looking to improve upon last season?s second-place C-USA finish in the heptathlon, Wilhelm must get past personal rival and defending champion Krystal Ward of Houston, who is currently ranked 15th in the nation.
3 x 800: The Bearcats boast three of the top nine 800 meter runners in Conference USA. Alex Ramsey leads the trio, ranking fifth (1:51.28). Patrick Starkey follows closely in seventh (1:51.82) while Jake Richards ranks ninth (1:52.79). Each has won one 800 title this season.
DEFENDING CHAMP: Renee Hein is the lone Bearcat looking to defend an indoor title. Hein won the high jump at the C-USA Indoor Championships on Feb. 26, edging out Southern Miss.? Krista Miller and Houston?s Krystal Ward in a jump-off. She is currently tied with Miller atop the C-USA rankings (5? 10-3/4?) and has won four individual high jump titles during the outdoor season.
UC IN THE C-USA RANKINGS: The Bearcats produced four top C-USA performers during the 2005 season. Jo Young tops the women?s hammer throw (183? 0?) while Renee Hein is number one in the high jump (5? 10-3/4?). Chris Smith leads the conference in the pole vault (17? 6-1/2?) while Jimmy Mount is tops in the decathlon.
UC IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS: Three Bearcats rank in the top 15 nationally in their respective events. Chris Smith holds the highest national ranking, owning the ninth-best pole vault mark of 2005. Jimmy Mount is currently 15th in the decathlon, while Renee Hein ranks 13th in the high jump.