University of Minnesota Athletics
Local Meets on Gopher Schedule This Week
4/29/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Gopher Track This Week:
St. Thomas Twilight
Wednesday
April 29, 2009
Hosted by St. Thomas
St. Paul, Minn.
Meet of the Unsaintly
Saturday
May 2, 2009
Hosted by Hamline
St. Paul, Minn.
Two Local Meets This Week for the Gophers
The Minnesota women’s track & field team will compete in a pair of local meets this week as the Golden Gophers begin to turn their focus on the Big Ten Championships in two weeks. The Gophers will have a limited number of athletes compete on Wednesday, April 29, at the St. Thomas Twilight Meet. On Saturday, May 2, a larger group of Gophers will compete in Hamline’s Meet of the Unsaintly. Both meets are in St. Paul.
Final Big Ten Tune-Up for Several Gophers
The Meet of the Unsaintly will be the final tune-up for several Gophers as they prepare for the Big Ten Championships, May 13-15, in Columbus, Ohio. The sprints, jumps and throws will be great events to watch on Saturday. The sensational crew of freshman sprinters (Nyoka Giles, Kylie Peterson, Chimerem Okoroji) are expected to compete in the 100 meters and also together in the 4x100-meter relay. The Gophers’ 4x400-meter relay of Adrienne Thomas, Rikita Butler, Nyoka Giles and Heather Dorniden are also entered and hope to chase down a regional qualifier in the event.
Gophers’ List of NCAA Qualifiers Stands at 19
Senior Christin Kingsley (long jump) and freshman DeAnne Hahn (shot put, hammer) added their names to the Golden Gophers’ list of athletes with NCAA regional or national qualifying marks. Minnesota currently has 19 athletes set for postseason competition.
Gophers Ranked No. 19
The Golden Gophers were ranked No. 19 in the April 29 USTFCCCA National Poll. Texas A&M held down the number-one ranking followed by Oregon and LSU. Two other Big Ten schools are ranked: Michigan at No. 11 and Penn State at No. 13.
Minnesota Continues Success at Drake Relays
Minnesota continued its tradition of success at the Drake Relays, picking up a pair of titles at the 100th running of America’s Athletic Classic. The Golden Gophers captured their third consecutive 4x800-meter relay crown with Julie Schwengler, Nikki Swenson, Jamie Cheever and Heather Dorniden clocking a time of 8:37.20. Swenson and Dorniden joined forces with Ladia Albertson-Junkans and Elizabeth Yetzer to win the 4x1,600-meter relay in a time of 19:14.09.
Dorniden Finishes WIth Six Drake Relays Titles
Heather Dorniden has taken part in six victory laps at the prestigious Drake Relays. Last weekend, Dorniden added her fifth and sixth Drake Relays crowns, the most by any Golden Gopher. She anchored three champion 4x800m relays (2007, 2008, 2009), ran a leg of a winning distance medley relay (2007) and was part of two champion 4x1,600m relays (2006, 2009). Another Gopher senior Jamie Cheever finished with five Drake Relays titles on her resume.
Duwell Sixth Gopher With 1,500m Qualifier
Megan Duwell became the sixth Golden Gopher to qualify for the NCAA Midwest Region Championships in the 1,500 meters when she clocked a time of 4:25.81 to place second in the Drake Relays. Duwell advanced to regionals a year ago in the steeplechase and has already posted a regional qualifying time in the 5,000 meters this season.
Rue, Giles Pace Gophers at Sooner Invitational
Alicia Rue captured the lone title for the Gophers at the Sooner Invitational. Rue matched her season best in the pole vault with a height of 13 feet, 9 1/4.
Two Gophers added their names to the list of NCAA Regional Championships qualifiers, Christin Kingsley and DeAnne Hahn. Kingsley landed a season-best leap of 19-11 in the long jump to finish third. Hahn finished eighth in the shot put with a season best of 46-6 1/4.
Nyoka Giles continued her impressive freshman season in the sprints. Giles finished second in the 200 meters in a time of 23.98 seconds, the second-fastest time in Minnesota history. She also moved up the all-time list in the 100 meters with a fifth-place time of 11.84 seconds, good for seventh best in Gopher history. Giles also led off the 4x100-meter relay and along with Chimerem Okoroji, Kylie Peterson and Chioma Omeoga finished second in 46.03 seconds.
Drake Relays in Review
Saturday, April 25 - Minnesota collected its second Drake Relays title winning the 4x1,600-meter relay with a time of 19 minutes, 14.09 seconds. The foursome of Ladia Albertson-Junkans, Elizabeth Yetzer, Nikki Swenson and Heather Dorniden won by over six seconds. Dorniden completes her Golden Gopher career with six Drake Relays titles.
Megan Duwell finished second in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:25.81. Jamie Cheever was third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a time of 10:30.37. Felicitas Mensing was sixth in the steeplechase in a time of 10:43.08, the fourth-fastest time in Gopher history.
Friday, April 24 - The Minnesota 4x800-meter relay of Julie Schwengler, Nikki Swenson, Jamie Cheever and Heather Dorniden captured the Drake Relays title, giving the Golden Gophers their third consecutive Relays victory in the event.
The Gopher foursome clocked a time of 8 minutes, 37.20 seconds to better runner-up Stanford by over three seconds. Schwengler, Cheever and Dorniden ran on all three of the past champion 4x800-meter relays. Cheever and Dorniden now have five Drake Relays titles on their resumes, sharing the honor of being the Golden Gopher with the most Relays crowns.
Minnesota’s distance medley relay finished fourth in a time of 11:1 7.47. Ladia Albertson-Junkans led off the relay with the 1,200-meter leg. Dorniden ran the 400 meters, while Schwengler handled the 800 meters. Elizabeth Yetzer ran the anchor 1,600-meters leg. Baylor won the event in 11:12.75.
Jamie Dittmar was the only individual to compete on Friday and placed fifth in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:10.91.
Minnesota Captures Big Ten Indoor Three-Peat
Minnesota used headliners Heather Dorniden and Alicia Rue and then plenty of depth to capture the 2009 Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championships title and celebrate their third consecutive Conference crown. Dorniden won individual titles in the 600 meters and mile to pace the Gophers on the track, while Rue defended her pole vault crown to top the field events. Minnesota tallied 129 points to edge runner-up Penn State (125) and third-place Michigan (121.5).
Minnesota Track/Cross Country at its Pinnacle
Minnesota has enjoyed its finest seasons in track and cross country over the last four years. The Gophers have won at least a piece of the Big Ten “triple crown” (cross country, indoor track, outdoor track) in each season. Minnesota won its first Big Ten outdoor track title in 2006 and has won the last three indoor track titles (2007, 2008, 2009) and back-to-back cross country (2007, 2008) crowns as well.
Dorni Pretty Good in the Classroom as Well
Heather Dorniden has collected a lot of honors on the track, but the senior kinesiology major is top notch in the classroom as well. Dorniden carries a 3.9 grade point average and is a two-time recipient of the Minnesota Top-Five Award, honoring student-athletes with the highest cumulative GPAs. She will receive the prestigious 2009 President’s Student Leadership & Service Award in May. Dorniden was an ESPN the Magazine All-America Second Team honoree in 2008.
The Golden Gopher Coaching Staff
Matt Bingle is in his third season as the Golden Gophers head women’s track & field coach and his eighth overall coaching in the Minnesota program. Bingle is a three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year honoree. Bingle heads an extremely experienced coaching staff that includes assistants Gary Wilson (24th season, third as an assistant coach after 21 years as head coach) and Lynne Anderson (29th season).
St. Thomas Twilight
Wednesday
April 29, 2009
Hosted by St. Thomas
St. Paul, Minn.
Meet of the Unsaintly
Saturday
May 2, 2009
Hosted by Hamline
St. Paul, Minn.
Two Local Meets This Week for the Gophers
The Minnesota women’s track & field team will compete in a pair of local meets this week as the Golden Gophers begin to turn their focus on the Big Ten Championships in two weeks. The Gophers will have a limited number of athletes compete on Wednesday, April 29, at the St. Thomas Twilight Meet. On Saturday, May 2, a larger group of Gophers will compete in Hamline’s Meet of the Unsaintly. Both meets are in St. Paul.
Final Big Ten Tune-Up for Several Gophers
The Meet of the Unsaintly will be the final tune-up for several Gophers as they prepare for the Big Ten Championships, May 13-15, in Columbus, Ohio. The sprints, jumps and throws will be great events to watch on Saturday. The sensational crew of freshman sprinters (Nyoka Giles, Kylie Peterson, Chimerem Okoroji) are expected to compete in the 100 meters and also together in the 4x100-meter relay. The Gophers’ 4x400-meter relay of Adrienne Thomas, Rikita Butler, Nyoka Giles and Heather Dorniden are also entered and hope to chase down a regional qualifier in the event.
Gophers’ List of NCAA Qualifiers Stands at 19
Senior Christin Kingsley (long jump) and freshman DeAnne Hahn (shot put, hammer) added their names to the Golden Gophers’ list of athletes with NCAA regional or national qualifying marks. Minnesota currently has 19 athletes set for postseason competition.
Gophers Ranked No. 19
The Golden Gophers were ranked No. 19 in the April 29 USTFCCCA National Poll. Texas A&M held down the number-one ranking followed by Oregon and LSU. Two other Big Ten schools are ranked: Michigan at No. 11 and Penn State at No. 13.
Minnesota Continues Success at Drake Relays
Minnesota continued its tradition of success at the Drake Relays, picking up a pair of titles at the 100th running of America’s Athletic Classic. The Golden Gophers captured their third consecutive 4x800-meter relay crown with Julie Schwengler, Nikki Swenson, Jamie Cheever and Heather Dorniden clocking a time of 8:37.20. Swenson and Dorniden joined forces with Ladia Albertson-Junkans and Elizabeth Yetzer to win the 4x1,600-meter relay in a time of 19:14.09.
Dorniden Finishes WIth Six Drake Relays Titles
Heather Dorniden has taken part in six victory laps at the prestigious Drake Relays. Last weekend, Dorniden added her fifth and sixth Drake Relays crowns, the most by any Golden Gopher. She anchored three champion 4x800m relays (2007, 2008, 2009), ran a leg of a winning distance medley relay (2007) and was part of two champion 4x1,600m relays (2006, 2009). Another Gopher senior Jamie Cheever finished with five Drake Relays titles on her resume.
Duwell Sixth Gopher With 1,500m Qualifier
Megan Duwell became the sixth Golden Gopher to qualify for the NCAA Midwest Region Championships in the 1,500 meters when she clocked a time of 4:25.81 to place second in the Drake Relays. Duwell advanced to regionals a year ago in the steeplechase and has already posted a regional qualifying time in the 5,000 meters this season.
Rue, Giles Pace Gophers at Sooner Invitational
Alicia Rue captured the lone title for the Gophers at the Sooner Invitational. Rue matched her season best in the pole vault with a height of 13 feet, 9 1/4.
Two Gophers added their names to the list of NCAA Regional Championships qualifiers, Christin Kingsley and DeAnne Hahn. Kingsley landed a season-best leap of 19-11 in the long jump to finish third. Hahn finished eighth in the shot put with a season best of 46-6 1/4.
Nyoka Giles continued her impressive freshman season in the sprints. Giles finished second in the 200 meters in a time of 23.98 seconds, the second-fastest time in Minnesota history. She also moved up the all-time list in the 100 meters with a fifth-place time of 11.84 seconds, good for seventh best in Gopher history. Giles also led off the 4x100-meter relay and along with Chimerem Okoroji, Kylie Peterson and Chioma Omeoga finished second in 46.03 seconds.
Drake Relays in Review
Saturday, April 25 - Minnesota collected its second Drake Relays title winning the 4x1,600-meter relay with a time of 19 minutes, 14.09 seconds. The foursome of Ladia Albertson-Junkans, Elizabeth Yetzer, Nikki Swenson and Heather Dorniden won by over six seconds. Dorniden completes her Golden Gopher career with six Drake Relays titles.
Megan Duwell finished second in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:25.81. Jamie Cheever was third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a time of 10:30.37. Felicitas Mensing was sixth in the steeplechase in a time of 10:43.08, the fourth-fastest time in Gopher history.
Friday, April 24 - The Minnesota 4x800-meter relay of Julie Schwengler, Nikki Swenson, Jamie Cheever and Heather Dorniden captured the Drake Relays title, giving the Golden Gophers their third consecutive Relays victory in the event.
The Gopher foursome clocked a time of 8 minutes, 37.20 seconds to better runner-up Stanford by over three seconds. Schwengler, Cheever and Dorniden ran on all three of the past champion 4x800-meter relays. Cheever and Dorniden now have five Drake Relays titles on their resumes, sharing the honor of being the Golden Gopher with the most Relays crowns.
Minnesota’s distance medley relay finished fourth in a time of 11:1 7.47. Ladia Albertson-Junkans led off the relay with the 1,200-meter leg. Dorniden ran the 400 meters, while Schwengler handled the 800 meters. Elizabeth Yetzer ran the anchor 1,600-meters leg. Baylor won the event in 11:12.75.
Jamie Dittmar was the only individual to compete on Friday and placed fifth in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:10.91.
Minnesota Captures Big Ten Indoor Three-Peat
Minnesota used headliners Heather Dorniden and Alicia Rue and then plenty of depth to capture the 2009 Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championships title and celebrate their third consecutive Conference crown. Dorniden won individual titles in the 600 meters and mile to pace the Gophers on the track, while Rue defended her pole vault crown to top the field events. Minnesota tallied 129 points to edge runner-up Penn State (125) and third-place Michigan (121.5).
Minnesota Track/Cross Country at its Pinnacle
Minnesota has enjoyed its finest seasons in track and cross country over the last four years. The Gophers have won at least a piece of the Big Ten “triple crown” (cross country, indoor track, outdoor track) in each season. Minnesota won its first Big Ten outdoor track title in 2006 and has won the last three indoor track titles (2007, 2008, 2009) and back-to-back cross country (2007, 2008) crowns as well.
Dorni Pretty Good in the Classroom as Well
Heather Dorniden has collected a lot of honors on the track, but the senior kinesiology major is top notch in the classroom as well. Dorniden carries a 3.9 grade point average and is a two-time recipient of the Minnesota Top-Five Award, honoring student-athletes with the highest cumulative GPAs. She will receive the prestigious 2009 President’s Student Leadership & Service Award in May. Dorniden was an ESPN the Magazine All-America Second Team honoree in 2008.
The Golden Gopher Coaching Staff
Matt Bingle is in his third season as the Golden Gophers head women’s track & field coach and his eighth overall coaching in the Minnesota program. Bingle is a three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year honoree. Bingle heads an extremely experienced coaching staff that includes assistants Gary Wilson (24th season, third as an assistant coach after 21 years as head coach) and Lynne Anderson (29th season).
Players Mentioned
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