University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Close Regular-Season on Friday at Home and Hamline
5/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Friday, May 5, 2006 - 2 p.m.
Bierman Track Complex
Minneapolis, Minn.
Hamline Meet of the Unsaintly
Friday, May 5, 2006 - 3:30 p.m.
St. Paul, Minn.
2006 Minnesota Men’s Outdoor T&F Watch List
Minnesota Men’s Track Runs Final Tune-Up for Big Ten Meet - Minnesota will compete in just one event this week, though the meet is split into two locations. The Minnesota Throws is Friday at 2 p.m. at the Bierman Track Complex.The remainder of the events will be contested as part of the Hamline Meet of the Unsaintly, which gets underway Friday at 3:30 in St. Paul.
Karl Erickson Wins Drake Shot Put Title - Senior Karl Erickson garnered Minnesota’s 45th Drake Relays title by winning the shot put competition at the historic track & field event. Erickson also added a third-place finish in the discus.
Gophers’ 4x400m Relay Qualifies for Regionals - The Gophers’ 4x400-meter relay of Adewole Adebayo, Jason Erickson, Walter Langkau and Aaron Buzard notched their first regional qualifying time of the season of 3:09.36 in the prelims of the Drake Relays. The relay went on to finish fourth.
Gophers on NCAA Regional Qualifier List - Minnesota has nine athletes and a relay that have notched NCAA Midwest Region Championships qualifying performances. Throwers Karl Erickson and Adam Schnaible and sprinter Aaron Buzard have each qualified in two individual events. Antonio Vega has also marked a provisional qualifier for the NCAA Championships in the 10,000-meter run.
Regular-Season Finale at Home, Well, Kind Of...
The Minnesota men’s track & field team competes in their last regular-season meet this Friday, May 5. The meet is a combination home and away event. The throwing events will be held at the Bierman Track Complex, beginning at 2 p.m. The rest of the events will be held at the Hamline Meet of the Unsaintly in St. Paul. The events at Hamline get underway at 3:30 p.m.
The Final Tune-Up For Big Tens
The Golden Gophers will use this week’s meet as a final tune-up for the upcoming Big Ten Conference Championships (May 12-14, Michigan State). The throwers and jumpers will all be competing, highlighted by All-American Karl Erickson, making his last home appearance in the shot put and discus events. Two other All-Americans, high jumpers John Albert and Kevin Netzer, will also be competing in their final regular-season track meet.
On the track, Aaron Buzard will be running the 200-meter dash and not his mainstay event the 400 meters. Trent Riter will be competing in the 1,500-meter run and look for Robb Merritt in the 100 and 200 meters.
Erickson Wins Shot Put at Drake Relays
Senior Karl Erickson captured the title in the shot put at the historic Drake Relays. Erickson matched his season-best performance with the winning toss of 61 feet, 9 3/4 inches. Erickson is Minnesota’s 45th Drake Relays champion. He added a third-place showing in the discus with a throw of 182-10.
Gophers’ 4x400m Relay Notches Qualifying Time
Minnesota’s 4x400-meter relay earned they way on to the list of the Gophers’ regional qualifiers with a solid performance at the Drake Relays. The foursome of Adewole Adebayo, Jason Erickson, Walter Langkau and Aaron Buzard notched their first regional qualifying time of the season of 3:09.36 in the prelims. The Gophers then finished fourth in the event with a time of 3:09.57 in the finals.
Buzard Runner-Up in Special 400m Race
Junior Aaron Buzard ran the fastest 400-meter dash of his career and placed second to a familiar competitor on the final day of the Drake Relays in Des Moines. Buzard clocked a time of 46.03 seconds, the fourth-fastest time in school history, but was edged by former Golden Gopher All-American Mitch Potter who won the 400-meter special event with a time of 45.52.
High Jumpers Perform Well at Drake as Well
The Gopher high jumpers performed well in the high jump special event. Kevin Netzer cleared a season-high of 7-0 1/2 to finish third, while John Albert finished fifth with a height of 6-10 3/4.
Gophers Second in 4x800m Relay
The Gophers’ top finish in a relay at Drake Relays this year was contributed by the 4x800-meter contingent of Walter Langkau, Ben Hanson, Hans Storvick and Trent Riter. The relay placed second in a time of 7:24.18, the fifth-fastest time in school history.
Call It an Alternative Thing
Several members of the Gophers competed at the Gustavus Adolphus Drake Alternative Meet in St. Peter, Minn., last Saturday. Winning titles for the Gophers were Mike Linnemann in the 400-meter hurdles (55.19), Jesse Kovash in the javelin (163-1), Jerry Netland in the shot put (47-4 1/2), Ben Graham in the pole vault (15-7) and Parker Robinson in the high jump (6-8).
Graduating Golden Gophers
Several members of the Golden Gopher men’s track & field team will be graduating in the next week. Congratulations to these new Minnesota graduates: John Albert (business), Karl Erickson (kinesiology), Erik Grumstrup (chemistry), Ben Hanson (chemistry), Ryan Malmin (physics), Robb Merritt (human resources and industrial relations), Kevin Netzer (elementary education), Andy Newman (sociology) and Trent Riter (civil engineering).
Players Mentioned
