TicketsJan. 26, 2010
Gladstein Invitational
Lady beartracks
We came to the 2010 Gladstein Invitational at Indiana University looking for improvement and new qualifying marks. We achieved that goal in some areas and also realized that we need to step up our game in others.
The highlight of the meet was the 5000m race where UC had three runners making great strides toward their Big East bid. Tamara Masters ran a smart race and paced herself well to use a great kick at the end for a second place finish in a personal best time that qualifies her for the Big East meet and ranks her fifth on our all-time list. Close behind in third place followed Lilian Jelimo, who is still struggling a bit to get back into her old form of years past. New to UC but not to indoor racing, Jocelyn McCauley placed fourth in the event and showed that she will be a welcome addition to our indoor distance squad.
Once again Natasha Burse led the way for our sprinters, finishing in first place both during prelims on day one of the meet and in finals on the second day of competition in the 60 meter dash. Natasha also ran a season best in the 200 invitational with a time of 24.89 and looked much improved as the lead-off runner for our 4x 400m relay.
Sophomore Jenna Heaton is continuing her great season and looks better with every race. She ran a well paced 600m to place second, came back with a very strong 2:13 split in the 4x 800m relay, and looks to be ready to challenge for a place in the 800m finals of the Big East meet. Aricka Rhodes also ran the 600 meters and the 4x 800m relay and while she had a few problems finding the right pace for the 800m distance she ran a nice 600m race to place third. The Bearcats 4x 800m relay squad of Kathy Klump, Aricka Rhodes, Jenny Harsh and Jenna Heaton finished third. The plan was to run a school record but with Kathy just returning to racing and Ashley Arnold sitting out due to illness, we have to wait for the Big East meet to accomplish that feat.
Freshman Shanay Portis had a good showing, finishing third in the open section of the 200m race and will continue her progress throughout the next few meets. Hurdler Paris Campbell is becoming a very dependable runner for our team, clocking fast times in the 60m hurdles. Her technique is steadily improving and she looks ready for a big breakthrough.
Two more athletes made a big step in the right direction, with Michele McKenney running a PR time in the 3,000 meters to finish in fourth and Bridget McNeill improving her weight throw mark to rank ninth on our all-time list.
We now have 17 athletes qualified for the Big East Championships in four weeks in New York City. The best part of our season is yet to come. With more focus on quality, we should be in position to shine at the upcoming Rod McCravy Memorial meet at the University of Kentucky.
MEN'S BEARTRACKS
In some respects we were spectacular at the Gladstein Invitational. In other ways we were very good. In yet still other ways we were disappointing while in a few ways we were absent altogether. No doubt most meets have these good and bad reports, but this one seemed to have more than it's share. Nevertheless, we are off to a good start for the 2010 indoor season, enthusiastic about the winter but realistically preparing for the spring.
The spectacular results came in the 60 M. hurdles and the 3,000 M. run. Terrence Somerville blazed a 7.87 preliminary on Friday night, winning his heat going away. Not only did this place him fourth in the NCAA but second on the all-time UC list with only Olympic silver medalist, David Payne, ahead of him at 7.62. Unfortunately, Terrence aggravated an old groin pull and had troubles in the finals although he still won in 7.99. Fourth in the US and first in the Big East is a big deal but only 0.25 seconds behind David Payne is probably even more of an accomplishment. Watch for Terrence outdoors! Eric Finan was dominating in his section of the 3,000 M., winning in a big personal record time of 8:20.36. Eric looked as if he could have gone much faster but the race did not require that. Even so he moved from eighth to third on the all-time UC list with only Jeremy Bucher (8:19.00) and Brian Hatch (8:19.86) slightly ahead. Later in the evening there was an amazing 3,000 M. Invitational race of mostly professionals. Four runners broke Bob Kennedy's Gladstein Fieldhouse record of 7:55.93, two from IU who are now 1-2 in the NCAA. As a result Eric was the third collegian in the meet but ready for much more.
The "very goods" were all over the place, especially in the 600 M. In that indoor-only race we were 3-4-6-8 with Maurice Norman leading the Bearcat charge at 1:21.49, now sixth on our all-time list. Others were close behind, most notably Allen Moore (4th), Ryan Wynn (6th) and Ethan Freet (8th). The 400 M. was almost as good as Maurice Norman was runner-up in the Invitational (49.08). In the open 400 M. Ethan Freet (50.65, 3rd), Brendan Lyshe (50.68, 4th) and Alex Howell (51.56) made a big impact. All of this 400-600 running was made even more enjoyable when noting that all are freshmen except Allen Moore. The future continues to look bright. UC remains a high jumping school as both Brandon Fitch and Mike Foley tied for first at two meters, 6' 6-3/4". Mike had better jumps at 6' 8" but both were plenty good. Troy Cooper continued his good shot putting. Although he was well off his 56' 1" toss of two weeks ago, he still managed 54' 11-1/4" good for second. The heptathlon field was limited but our two newcomers held their own going 2-3 in their debut. Brandon Smith was second in 4236 in a very solid seven-event effort. Kyle Kubera was right behind with 4178 points, excelling in the high jump and pole vault. Possibly the most pleasant surprise came from recent addition, Blake Moran. Known best for his hurdling, Blake long jumped 21' 11-1/2" to get sixth place. He very much appears to be a two-event man. Terrence was the standout in the hurdles, but almost as rewarding were the 7th and 8th place finishes from Mario Cannon and Allen Moore. Allen's was especially fun since he is a 400 M. hurdler, making his race more unexpected. Anthony Chandler was very rusty in the 60 M. dash, yet still ran 7.04 and got seventh place. Ricky Lupp and Rick King were plenty good in the 3,000 M. run as both set big personal records of 8:38.60 and 8:40.72 respectively. That event has just become a very good one for the Bearcats.
Our relays must be reported under both the "very goods" and also the "disappointing." They were disappointing inasmuch as both were missing some key members. The 4 x 400 was especially sad because neither Antione Drakeford nor Chas VanCura were able to run and Maurice Norman sat out. Instead of setting a UC indoor record, we ran a respectable 3:20.40, good for fifth place with three freshmen and a senior. The 4 x 800 was similar as Kyle Neyer was unable to answer the call. That made a huge difference. Rather than having a go at our record, we ran well but got second in the race, far from record-setting status.
Others who competed at IU did their best and made a difference. Our limitation was that too many stayed home, each with a story. In cross country this fall our motto was "Don't Get Hurt!" Although that was not an exciting motto, it was one which served us extremely well and is possibly the only thing that matters. We can train, we know how to compete, but if we are not in the meet then it really doesn't matter. It will be some time before we will once again be at full strength, but if we are faithful to "Don't Get Hurt" then we will eventually be a real force.