Track & Field Set for AAC Indoor Championships

// ON THE STARTING LINE
The first championship competition of 2020 is upon the University of Cincinnati track & field program as the Bearcats are set to compete in the American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships this weekend at the CrossPlex in Birmingham, Ala. The two-day meet, which runs Friday and Saturday, will crown team, individual and relay conference champions and serve as the final chance for competitors to post marks to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships.

// OUT OF THE BLOCKS
•    Three Bearcats are returning looking to defend their crowns including Sam Meece in the men's weight throw, Irati Mitxelena in the triple jump, and Angelica Lightfoot in the pentathlon
•    Five Bearcats hold six of the top marks in the AAC heading into the meet, including four by the men and two by the women
•    For the men, league leaders included Aaron Bienenfeld (3,000m & 5,000m), Chris Borzor (200m) and Damien Berthenet (heptathlon) while the women's leaders are Taylor Beard (HJ) and Kennedy Marable (TJ)
•    Beard, who is tied for the lead in the high jump, will look to keep the title in Cincinnati as UC's women have won the event all six previous times with Erika Hurd (2014-16) and Loretta Blaut (2017-19) winning in past years
•    Additionally, four women's and five men's marks rank second in the American ahead of the meet
•    So far this year, eight school records have been recorded, including Caisja Chandler with the top marks in the women's 60m and 200m and Ellie Leather twice in the mile and once with the DMR while Chris Borzor has reset the 200m mark twice for the men

// MEET INFORMATION
•    The AAC Championships run Friday and Saturday at the CrossPlex in Birmingham, Ala.
•    Competitors from all 12 league schools will be on hand to compete
•    Live results can be found at TheAmerican.org both days of the meet
•    The American Digital Network will be streaming the meet live both days on the AAC's Facebook page (Facebook.com/AmericanConf)

// BIENENFELD BLASTS 5K MARK
Aaron Bienenfeld traveled to Seattle February 14 and raced in the 5,000m run at the Husky Classic where finished fifth overall in 13:48.56. His time smashed is own school record by over 20 seconds and made him the first man in UC history to complete the race in under 14 minutes.

// MARVELOUS MARABLE
In Nashville, Kennedy Marable had another breakout performance in the triple jump as she bounced her way to a best of 12.97m (42-06.75) for the win. Her AAC leading mark ranks third all-time at UC and places her just 0.03m away from joining the 13m club.

// FEELING HONORED
For their efforts, both Bienenfeld and Marable were recognized by the American as Bienenfeld was named the AAC Male Track Athlete of the Week and Marable the AAC Female Field Athlete of the Week. The honor for Bienenfeld was his third this indoor season while Marable earned her first of the year and the first of her career.

// RECORD RUSH
Bienenfeld was not the only member of the program to break a school record as both Caisja Chandler and Ellie Leather got in on the action, too. Chandler raced to a time of 7.30 in the 60m to break the previous standard of 7.40 that was run by Natasha Burse in 2011. Leather broke the mile mark for the second meet in a row, this time lowering the standard to 4:46.23 after running 4:47.41 one week prior when she broke the previous best of 4:49.41 that had stood since 2002.

// MIGHTY MILE
Leather was not the only runner that fared well in the mile however as the she and her teammates combined to make several alterations to the program's all-time Top 10. While Leather bettered her #1 time, Hannah Markel (#3), Katrina Patterson (#4) and Maddie Walker (#7) all added to the list as they ran 4:55.20, 4:57.07 and 4:58.86, respectively. As it stands, those marks are four of the five added to the list this year as Sam Mikula is #5 at 4:58.62, a time she ran one week prior.

// RETURNING CHAMPION • MEN
Sam Meece will look to make it 2-for-2 in AAC indoor meets as the sophomore will try to defend the crown he won last year as a freshman. Should he be successful, Meece would become the first man to win the AAC weight throw for a second time as he was the sixth different champion in as many years.

// RETURNING CHAMPIONS • WOMEN
Returning this weekend to try and defend their crowns are Angelica Lightfoot and Irati Mitxelena. Lightfoot captured the pentathlon crown last year, marking the third year in a row the title went to UC after Naomi Urbano won in both 2017 and 2018. Mitxelena is back to try and become the first three-time champion in the event after she won the triple jump each of the past two seasons.

// TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADERS!
Heading into the meet, the Bearcats own six league-leading marks with four on the men's side and two on the women's. For the men, Chris Borzor leads the 200m at 20.92 and is the only man under 21 seconds in the event this year; Aaron Bienenfeld leads in both the 3,000m (8:01.89) and 5,000m (13:48.57); and Damien Berthenet has the top point total in the heptathlon (5,502). On the women's side, Taylor Beard is tied for the lead in the high jump (1.76m/5-09.25) and Kennedy Marable leads the triple jump (12.97m/42-06.75).

// SOCCER IT TO ME!
Sydney Kilgore (senior) and Jane Sensibaugh (junior) both are members of the UC soccer program. While Sensibaugh, a goalkeeper, competes in the throws, Kilgore has been getting faster each time out in the 800m run as she recently ran 2:12.51 to rank #9 in the AAC this season and #7 all-time at UC. What's more impressive is that she has raced the 800m just three times this year, the first three races since her senior year in high school.

PREVIOUSLY NOTED
// MARKEL ROLLING
Hannah Markel took to the track in the 3,000m run for the first time and posted a huge improvement as the senior finished in 9:46.78, an improvement of 8.44 seconds over her previous best. With the time, Markel is now #2 all-time in program history and just the second UC woman to run under 9:50 indoors. She also is now just 3.83 seconds off the school record time of 9:42.95 that was run 12 years ago by Lilian Jelimo (2008).

// BLAZING BORZOR
Speaking of debuts, Chris Borzor made the most of his as he raced in both the 200m and 400m for the first time this year. On Friday at the Indiana Relays, he opened in the 200m and blazed a time of 21.42 to move into #3 all-time in UC history. The next day, he was back on the track and added one lap to finish the 400m in 48.37, the #10 time in program history. With those two marks, he is now among the fastest in program history as he ranks in the Top 10 in all five indoor sprints, including #6 in the 60m (6.83), #3 in the 200m, #1 in the 300m (33.98), #10 in the 400m, and #3 in the 500m (1:03.10). Additionally, all of those marks, with the exception of the 60m, have been attained this indoor season by the sophomore.

// RIDDLE ME THIS
Cannon Riddle competed in his first heptathlon of the indoor season and came away not only with the win, but also numerous personal-best marks and all-time Top 10 rankings. Along with 4,955 points, which rank #6 all-time, he also posted 2,782 points on Day 1 (#8) and 2,173 points on Day 2 (#6). Two of his biggest marks came in the vertical jumps as he cleared personal-best marks of 2.00m (6-06.75) in the high jump and 3.95m (12-11.50) in the pole vault. His high jump clearance ranks #3 in UC heptathlon history and makes him just the third UC man to clear 2.00m+ in the heptathlon. His pole vault mark moved him to #10 on the rankings.

// BIENENFELD IS BACK
Following a successful cross country season and an appearance in the 2019 European XC Championships for the German U23 team, Aaron Bienenfeld was back on the track in the red and black two weeks ago, once again opening with the mile run. The senior lowered his PR by five seconds to place second overall in 4:07.17. His time also pushed him up to #5 the program's all-time Top 10 ledger as just the sixth man to run under 4:10 indoors at UC. He also posted the third-fastest time in the nation on the weekend.

// MIGHTY MITXELENA
Irati Mitxelena bounced her way to the triple jump victory at the Jim Green Invitational as she hit a season-best mark of 12.79m (41-11.50). That mark ranked as the fifth-best in the nation that week (according to the USTFCCCA Top 10) and put her in the lead in the AAC. 

// FEELING HONORED
For their efforts, both Bienenfeld and Mitxelena were selected for weekly awards from the league. Bienenfeld was selected as the AAC Male Track Athlete of the Week (January 15) while Mitxelena was chosen as the AAC Female Field Athlete of the Week (January 15). The honors are the first of season for both and the third of the year for Bienenfeld after he was twice named the AAC Male Runner of the Week in cross country.

// BIG MARKS FROM FRESHMEN
At the Jim Green Invitational, a pair of true freshmen recorded big marks for the women as Maddie Walker made her debut on the track in the 3,000m run and Hannah Jackson continued to throw well in the weight toss. Walker covered the 3,000m run on the 291m flat track in 9:55.27 to finish third in the race and add her name to the all-time Top 10 as she now ranks #4. In the weight, Jackson improved her best of 17.94m (58-10.25) to move up one spot to #5 on UC's Top 10.

// UP AND OVER
In the men's pole vault, Austin Goolsby provided some excitement as the sophomore cleared 5.05m (16-06.75) to finish second in the meet. That clearance is a lifetime best and placed him in a tie for the #9 position on the program's all-time Top 10. He also is now just the 12th man in program history to record an indoor clearance of 5.00m or better. Recently, Nicholas Lauria joined him in the #9 position all-time as he also cleared 5.05m at the Music City Challenge.

// BREAKING AN OLD RECORD
Chris Borzor opened his season in fine form as the sophomore sprinter raced in a pair of non-NCAA events and turned in some of the best times in the nation and in the history of the program. In the first meet of the year, the Jingle Bells Open at Kentucky, Borzor blazed a time of 1:03.10 in the 500m to post the #3 time in program history and the fastest time in the NCAA that week. One week later, he took to the track at the Hoosier Open in Indiana and busted out a time of 33.98 in the 300m for the #2 time in the nation and the fastest recorded in school history. In fact, his time not only was the first in UC history to go under 34 seconds, it also snapped the 33-year-old record of 34.31 run by Chuck Kiser in 1986. Oh, and if you are doing the math, the 33 year-old mark was broken by... 0.33 seconds.

// FOLLOW US
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// UP NEXT
Those that qualify will compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, N.M., March 13-14. The outdoor season gets underway March 19 with the Bearcats traveling to Houston for the Houston Invite.