TicketsFeb. 6, 2011
NEW YORK - The University of Cincinnati indoor track and field team finished in 12th place - its highest finish in a national competition in program history - at the prestigious New Balance Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 5, at the Armory Track and Field Center in Manhattan.
"The team continued to perform well and showed that it is competitive at the national level with a top 12 finish," said UC indoor track and field coach Susan Seaton. "We are excited about three new school records and strong performances in the shot put, pole vault and mid-distance events this weekend."
The Bearcats, who totaled 23 points, established school records in the shot put, 500-meter dash and the 1,000-meter run, while tying another school record in the pole vault.
Freshman Frida Akerstrom (Nynashamn, Sweden/Nynashamn Gymnasium) led UC with eight points after finishing in third place in the shot put with a distance of 15.20m, breaking her own school record of 14.90m set last week at the Rod McCravy Invitational in Lexington, Ky.
Pole vault garnered six points after junior Mackenzie Fields (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mariemont) placed fourth after clearing a height of 4.10 meters, tying her school record set last week at the Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nev. Fellow junior Michelle Eby (Dayton, Ohio/Wayne) cleared 3.95 meters, which was good for eight place.
Junior Kathy Klump (Aurora, Ind./South Dearborn) recorded a time of 1:13.42 in the 500-meter dash, which was good for fourth place and scored five points for UC.
UC's 4x800 relay team, which featured freshman Kaitlyn Good (Vandalia, Ohio/Vandalia), senior Rachel Hanzal (Blaine, Minn./Minnesota Deluth), junior Jenna Heaton (Cincinnati, Ohio/Saint Ursula) and Klump, finished fifth in the championship race with a time of 9:03.31, earning four points for the Bearcats.
Heaton placed sixth in the 1,000-meter run with a school-record time of 2:52.32.
The New Balance Invitational featured 10 of the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's Top 25 teams, but the Bearcats held their own. Their 12th-place finish positioned them ahead of nationally ranked teams No. 13 Villanova, No. 21 South Carolina and No. 22 Georgetown. Additionally, they finished ahead of BIG EAST rivals Pittsburgh and St. John's.
"Now we need to rest up from travel and fine-tune for the upcoming Big East meet in two weeks," said Seaton.
The Bearcats travel to Bloomington, Ind. for the Hoosier Hills Invitational on Feb. 11 before competing in the BIG EAST Indoor Championships on Feb. 19-20 in Akron, Ohio.
GoBEARCATS.com