TicketsMay 23, 2006
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FOR STARTERS:
The University of Cincinnati men's and women's track and field teams will send nine student-athletes to the 2006 NCAA Mid-East Regional Championships, which will take place on May 26-27 in Knoxville, Tenn. The two-day event is hosted by the and will see the top five finishers in each event move on to the 2006 NCAA Championships.
BEARCAT BITES:
UC's men and women finished 5th and 13th, respectively, in the first season of competition in the BIG EAST Conference this year. The conference features 16 men's and women's track & field teams, constituting the largest league in the nation.
John Bowie won UC's first BIG EAST individual track championship, capturing the 100 meter title in 10.52.
John Bowie (100 meters), Chandler Groves (long jump), Bob Kandell (long jump), Cedric Powell (400 meters), Kevin Schwarz (3,000 steeplechase), Brittany Klima (pole vault), Tara Meier (pole vault) and Renee Hein (high jump) have each met NCAA regional qualifying marks in their respective events, while the men's 4x100 relay (Justin Conway, Powell, Kandell, and Bowie) squad also has posted a regional qualifying mark.
Seniors Kenny Wade (200 meters), Ashley Wilhelm (long jump, heptathlon), and Shintara Carpenter (triple jump), juniors Renee Hein (javelin) and Tara Meier (pole vault) and sophomore Brittany Klima (pole vault) are current school record holders.
Head men's coach Bill Schnier is in his 26th season at in such a capacity. Head women's coach Jim Schnur is in his 22nd year at and his sixth as head coach.
LAST TIME OUT:
Senior Shintara Carpenter leapt 40' 4-1/4" in the triple jump, breaking her own record at the Ohio River Challenge on May 13. Junior Kevin Schwarz qualified for the regional meet with a personal-best 9:03.58 in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. The event, held at 's , was the last chance for student-athletes to qualify for the NCAA Mideast Regionals. Carpenter's 40' 4-1/4" jump topped her old mark of 40' 3", set in 2003. The mark was just 3/4" shy of a regional qualifying mark.
HEIN OF THE TIMES:
Junior Renee Hein placed second in the high jump at the BIG EAST Championships on May 5-7. The school record-holder in the indoor high jump, Hein is second in UC history in the outdoor jump. She has met regional qualifiers in each of her first three seasons and competed at the NCAA Championships last season.
BLAZIN' :
Sprinter John Bowie, who doubles as a defensive back on UC's football team, sped to UC's only individual title at the BIG EAST Championships on May 5-7. won the 100 meters in 10.52. He had already qualified for regionals with a 10.48 at the Sea Ray Relays. was part of the other UC event title, running the anchor leg of the victorious 4x100 relay team.
TAKING OFF:
Senior Chandler Groves, a regional qualifier in the long jump in 2005, has again met the regional qualifying mark this season. He won the event in the season-opening Early Bird Relays with a leap of 24' 1" and topped that with a 24' 6-1/4" jump in finishing second at the Raleigh Relays. bested that mark by leaping 24' 7" to win the All-Ohio Championship on April 8. He is seven inches shy of his personal best of 25' 2-3/4", set at last season's Conference USA Championships. finished third in the long jump at the 2006 BIG EAST Championships.
LIGHT MY KANDELL:
Junior Bob Kandell had a fantastic meet at the All-Ohio Championships on April 7-8. He qualified for the NCAA Mid-East Regional Championships with a 24' 1-1/2" long jump, finishing second behind teammate Chandler Groves. He won the 400 meters, eclipsing teammate Antione Drakeford at the finish line, and finished fourth in the 200 meters. Kandell also ran a leg in the champion 4x100 relay squad and accounted for 26.5 of UC's 169 team points.
MEIER, KLIMA TOPS IN POLE VAULT:
Junior Tara Meier and sophomore Brittany Klima are battling one another for the UC pole vault record. Klima broke Meier's indoor record this season and Meier returned the favor, topping Klima's outdoor record by 1/4" at the Early Bird Relays. She has since improved the mark, clearing 12' 5-1/2" to qualify for regional competition. Klima matched the mark at the Sea Ray Relays. Together, they hold nine of the top 10 marks in school history in the indoor vault and each of the top 10 marks outdoors. Klima finished third and Meier placed eighth at the 2006 BIG EAST Championships.
MAY THE SCHWARZ BE WITH YOU:
Kevin Schwarz made a big splash at the 2006 BIG EAST Championships, finishing fifth in the 3,000 meter steeplechase in 9:07.90. A week later, he qualified for regional competition with a 9:03.58 at the Ohio River Challenge, moving into fifth all-time at UC. It was just the third steeplechase of the season for the junior who has dealt with injury issues throughout his career.
FOUR BY DOMINATION:
UC's men's 4x100 relay team has been victorious in all but one meet in which it competed this season. The Bearcats won the 4x100 at the BIG EAST Championships in a season-best 40.57, bettering its regional qualifying time set at the Sea Ray Relays.
CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER:
Cedric Powell earned All-BIG EAST honors in two events at the BIG EAST Championships. He sped to a second-place finish in the 200 meters and finished third in the 400 meters, qualifying for the regional meet.
NINE BEARCATS QUALIFY FOR REGIONALS:
Nine Bearcats have met qualifying marks for the NCAA Mid-East Regional Championships. and Bob Kandell each qualified in the long jump, posting leaps of 24' 7" and 24' 1-1/2", respectively. John Bowie sped to a 10.48 in the 100 meters at the Sea Ray Relays to qualify. On the women's side, Renee Hein has cleared 5' 10-3/4" in the high jump, while Tara Meier and Brittany Klima have each qualified with a school-record 12' 5-1/2" in the pole vault. Kevin Schwarz met the regional mark in the 3,000 steeplechase, finishing in 9:02.71 at the Ohio River Challenge. The men's 4x100 relay squad (Justin Conway, Powell, Kandell, and Bowie) also has posted a regional qualifying mark, running a 40.57 at the BIG EAST Championships.