University of Minnesota Athletics
Big Ten Champs Headed to NCAAs This Week
6/8/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Gopher Track This Week:
NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships
Wednesday-Saturday – June 9-12, 2010
Hayward Field
Eugene, Ore.
Host: University of Oregon
2010 Minnesota Men’s Track & Field Watch List
• Golden Gophers Ready for NCAA Championships - The Minnesota men’s track & field team will be represented by four athletes at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore., on June 9-12.
• The Gopher Lineup - Three Golden Gophers - Ben Blankenship (1,500 meters), Matt Fisher (high jump) and Chris Rombough (5,000 meters) – advanced to the NCAA Championships by earning a top-12 finish at the NCAA West Preliminary Round. R.J. McGinnis earned his NCAA berth by finishing among the top 24 decathletes on the nation’s descending order list.
• Taking the Momentum Outdoors - Minnesota looks to continue its momentum from the indoor season where the Golden Gophers placed eighth in the NCAA Indoor Track Championships.
• Gophers Defend Big Ten Title - Minnesota captured its fourth consecutive (indoor/outdoor) Big Ten team title and celebrated three Gophers winning individual crowns - Ben Peterson (pole vault), Micah Hegerle (hammer) and R.J. McGinnis (decathlon).
Gophers Advance Four to NCAA Championships
The Minnesota men’s track & field team will be represented by four athletes at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, June 9-12, in Eugene, Ore. Ben Blankenship, Matt Fisher and Chris Rombough advanced through the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet, while R.J. McGinnis is one of the 24 decathletes to earn an NCAA invitation. The University of Oregon will host the event at historic Hayward Field.
Television Coverage of the NCAA Meet
CBS will televise two hours of the final day of the NCAA Outdoor Championships live on Saturday, June 12, from 12-2 p.m. (CT). For Comcast customers with a sport tier, CBS College Sports Network will broadcast the Championships for three hours from 5-8 p.m. on Friday, June 11. When CBS is not broadcasting from the Championships, fans can check out live video streaming on NCAA.com.
NCAA Championships History
Texas A&M is the defending team champion, having captured its first NCAA outdoor track title in 2009. Minnesota won its only national team title in 1948. The Gophers’ top national finish in recent history was ninth in 1997 and 2003. The last top-20 finish at the outdoor NCAA meet was a tie for 15th in 2004. Minnesota sent five athletes to the Championships in 2009, and scored 7.0 points to tie for 37th place.
Tough Act to Follow
Minnesota placed eighth at the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships scoring 18 points. Posting a finish like that at the NCAA outdoor meet will be a challenging task with just four participants. Seven of those points at the indoor meet came from two-time All-American thrower Aaron Studt, who is redshirting the outdoor season.
Experienced Gopher Contingent at NCAAs
All four Gophers have NCAA Championships experience on their resumes. Chris Rombough is the veteran having participated in four NCAA Cross Country and five NCAA Track Championships. Rombough is the first three-time cross country All-American in Minnesota history.
A Different Look to the Maroon and Gold
The Golden Gophers heads into the NCAA Championships without two of their standouts from last season, All-Americans Hassan Mead (5,000 meters) and Aaron Studt (shot put). Mead has missed the 2010 indoor and outdoor season with an Achilles tendon injury, while Studt decided to save his last outdoor season of eligibility for his fifth year of school. Both are expected to return to action next season.
Rombough Writes Final Chapter of Brilliant Career
Fifth-year senior Chris Rombough has enjoyed a brilliant running career at the University of Minnesota. He finished his cross country career as the Golden Gophers’ first three-time NCAA cross country All-American and won a Big Ten title in 2006. Rombough ran to NCAA indoor track All-America citations twice and helped the Gophers to back-to-back Big Ten team titles in 2009 and 2010. Minnesota won Big Ten outdoor team crowns those same years. If there is one gap in Rombough’s running resume, it is an All-America honor at the NCAA outdoor meet. He will be making his third appearance in the national meet in the 5,000-meter run.
How’s This for a Busy Month
R.J. McGinnis has lived quite the whirlwind life the past month. McGinnis won the Big Ten decathlon title on May 15, though he missed his graduation ceremony. That’s okay. He made a bigger ceremony a week later getting married. McGinnis and his bride found time for a honeymoon before he travels off the NCAA Championships. To make life even crazier, McGinnis will start a teaching position in Houston the week following the NCAA meet.
Blankenship Takes Record Time in NCAAs
Junior Ben Blankenship heads into his second NCAA Outdoor Championships appearance in the 1,500-meter run on the heels of his school record-breaking performance at the NCAA West Prelims. Blankenship clocked a time of 3:39.77 to break a 14 year-old Minnesota record and garner his invitation to the national meet. During the 2010 indoor season, Blankenship earned his first All-America honor as a member of the Gophers’ distance medley relay, as well as set Minnesota history as the first runner to post a sub-4 minute mile.
McGinnis, Fisher Return to NCAAs in Good Health
The 2009 NCAA Championships do not hold good memories for Gopher seniors Matt Fisher and R.J. McGinnis. Fisher shared the top seed in the nation going into the meet but suffered an Achilles tendon tear during the competition and was forced to withdraw. McGinnis managed to complete the decathlon despite an injured elbow that made the throwing events excruciatingly painful. He was in All-America contention until the javelin throw.
NCAA Championships – Gophers’ Event Preview
Following is an event-by-event for the Gophers at the NCAA Championships.
The 1,500 meters – Junior Ben Blankenship is seeded fifth with his career-best and school-record time of 3:39.77 he ran in the NCAA quarterfinals at the West Prelims. Blankenship is making his second appearance in the NCAA 1,500 meters. He earned his first career All-America award during the 2010 indoor season as a member of the Gophers’ third-place distance medley relay.
The 5,000 meters – Fifth-year senior Chris Rombough has advanced to the NCAA Championships in the this event the last two seasons. Rombough contributed two important runner-up finishes in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the Big Ten Championships. He is seeded 18th with a time of 14:08.95 at the NCAA West Prelim. Rombough owns a career-best time of 13:48.80 clocked at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational earlier this season. He finished seventh in the 3,000 meters to earn All-America honors at the 2010 national indoor meet.
The High Jump – Senior Matt Fisher will compete in his second NCAA Outdoor Track Championships. Fisher is one of 14 leapers who advanced out of the Preliminary Rounds with a height of 7-1. Fisher’s best jump of the season is 7-2 1/4 at the Drake Relays. Overall, his career best is 7-4 1/2. Fisher earned his first All-America honor at the 2010 indoor meet.
The Decathlon – Big Ten champion R.J. McGinnis is seeded 19th among the 24 decathletes who advanced to the NCAA Championships. McGinnis is making his third appearance in the event. McGinnis tallied his season-best score of 7,381 in winning the Big Ten title. McGinnis’ career-best total is 7,626 from the 2009 Drake Relays. McGinnis was a 2010 NCAA All-American during the indoor season placing sixth in the heptathlon.
NCAA West Preliminary Round Review
Saturday, May 29 – Ben Blankenship broke the Minnesota school record and earned an NCAA Championships berth in the 1,500-meter run to highlight the third and final day of the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet in Austin, Texas. Chris Rombough also will return to the NCAAs in the 5,000 meters.
Blankenship ran a time of 3 minutes, 39.77 seconds breaking the 14 year-old Gopher record held by Paul Michalek (3:39.94). The Gopher junior from Stillwater, Minn., ran in the first heat of two quarterfinals where eight runners bettered Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium record. Blankenship collected an NCAA automatic qualifier with his fifth-place showing the race. He will make his second trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Rombough, a senior from Fremont, Wis., earned his way into his third NCAA Outdoor Championships field in the 5,000 meters. Rombough placed 11th in the his heat clocking a time of 14:08.95. Mike Torchia also compete in the 5,000 meters running a time of 14:44.51, 16th in his heat and 33rd overall.
The Gophers' 4x400-meter relay of John Holton, Logan Stroman, David Pachuta and Harun Abda placed sixth in their heat and 18th overall in a season-best time of 3:08.59.
Minnesota had three throwers compete in the discus. Micah Hegerle placed 25th with a throw of 167-0, one centimeter farther than teammate Tyler Kleinhuizen in 26th. Trey Davis landed a throw of 158-11 for 37th place.
The Gophers also had two triple jumpers compete. Oladipo finished 30th with a leap of 49-5, while Raymond Blackledge was 34th with an effort of 48-4.
Friday, May 28 – Golden Gopher senior Matt Fisher punched his ticket to the NCAA Championships with a top-12 finish at the NCAA Preliminary Meet. Fisher cleared a height of 7-1 in the high jump to finish seventh among the 12 leapers advancing from the West meet.
Junior Ben Peterson fell one spot shy of making the NCAA Championships field finishing 13th in the pole vault. Peterson, the indoor and outdoor Big Ten champion, cleared 17-2 1/4. Brock Spandl finished in a tie for 22nd with a height of 16-8 3/4.
Micah Hegerle competed in the first of two events at the West Prelims. Hegerle finished 19th in the hammer throw with a toss of 195-0.
Travis Burkstand was the only Gopher in action on the track. Burkstrand placed 21st in the 800-meter run quarterfinals with a tie of 1 minute, 53.22 seconds.
Thursday, May 27 – Minnesota middle distance runners Ben Blankenship and Travis Burkstrand advanced to the quarterfinal rounds of their events to highlight the Golden Gopher men’s track & field team’s performance in the first day of the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet in Austin, Texas.
Blankenship, a junior from Stillwater, Minn., earned an automatic qualifier to the next round by placing fifth in his heat of the 1,500-meter run clocking a time of 3 minutes, 44.43 seconds. Blankenship finished with the 18th-best qualifying time overall as a total of 24 runners move into the Saturday’s quarterfinal round.
Blankenship, a 2010 indoor All-American and a 2009 NCAA Championships participant in the 1,500 meters, ran a strategic race knowing the importance of a top-five finish. At the bell lap, Blankenship was among a group of five runners at the front of the pack. With 200 meters left, Blankenship moved to the outside shoulder of leader and eventual heat winner Andrew Wheating of Oregon. Down the final stretch, Blankenship eased up in the last 30 meters crossing the finish line in fifth place.
Burkstrand, a redshirt freshman from Apple Valley, Minn., enjoyed a successful debut in his first NCAA track post-season competition. Burkstrand ran to a third-place finish in his heat of the 800 meters, finishing with a time of 1:49.63 to advance to Friday’s quarterfinal.
A number of Gophers competed but saw their seasons come to a close. Andy Richardson finished 11th in his heat and 30th overall in the first round of the 1,500 meter with a time of 3:49.86. Harun Abda and David Pachuta finished fifth in their respective heats of the 800 meters but failed to advance. Abda placed 32nd overall with a time of 1:50.28, while Pachuta was 36th in 1:50.64.
Sean King was the only Gopher competing in the sprints. King ran a time of 10/77 seconds in the 100 meters finishing eighth in his heat and 36th overall.
Battling the Texas heat, 82 degrees at the 9 p.m. start, Matt Barrett and Pieter Gagnon competed in the 10,000-meter run. Barrett finished 30th in a time of 30:43.05, while Gagnon was 33rd in 31:21.43. The top 12 advanced to Eugene with the final qualifying spot timed at 29:47.54.
In the field events, Paul Hoplin finished 18th in the javelin with a throw of 195 feet. The top 12 advanced to the NCAA Championships. The distance needed to garner a berth to the NCAA Championships was 214-11.
Trey Davis and Tyler Kleinhuizen competed in the shot put. Davis finished 28th with a throw of 54-7 1/4. Kleinhuizen tied for 40th-place with a throw of 51-7 3/4. The top 12 advanced to the NCAA Championships with the final qualifying throw marked at 57-9 3/4.
Gophers Sweep Big Ten Indoor/Outdoor Titles
For the second consecutive year, Minnesota swept the Big Ten team titles for the indoor and outdoor seasons. Minnesota joins only Wisconsin and Indiana as schools to have back-to-back sweeps in the Big Ten over the last 20 years.
Trio of Big Ten Champions Leads Minnesota to Outdoor Title
The Gophers had three athletes capture Big Ten individual titles to help Minnesota defend its team Conference crown. Micah Hegerle won the hammer throw with a toss of 208-3, while Ben Peterson captured the victory in the pole vault with a height of 17-8 1/2. R.J. McGinnis provided the third title, winning the decathlon with a total of 3,381 points.
Big Ten Names Plasencia the Coach of the Year
Minnesota head men’s track & field coach Steve Plasencia was honored as the 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Track Men’s Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Gophers to their fourth consecutive Big Ten title. The Gophers compiled 145.0 points to capture the crown by 21 points over rival Wisconsin. Minnesota has swept the indoor and outdoor Conference titles in both 2009 and 2010. Plasencia is now a four-time Big Ten Coach of the Year honoree.
“I’m honored to receive this award, but it’s so much more of a reflection of this team than anything else,” said Plasencia. “I share this award with an outstanding staff of coaches and obviously a wonderful group of student-athletes.”
The Big Ten also recognized its event champions as All-Big Ten First Team honorees. Three Gophers won Big Ten individual event titles last weekend: Micah Hegerle (hammer), Ben Peterson (pole vault) and R.J. McGinnis (decathlon). Conference runners-up are tabbed All-Big Ten Second Team honorees. Gophers honored on this squad were Chris Rombough (5,000 and 10,000 meters), Raymond Blackledge (triple jump) and Trey Davis (shot put).
Senior Logan Stroman was the Minnesota recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In addition, the student-athletes must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting. These student-athletes are now candidates for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, as the Conference office will honor one male and one female student-athlete from each institution at the end of the school year.
Gophers are Big Ten Champions...Again! - Big Ten Championships Review
Sunday, May 16 – The Golden Gophers extended their streak of Big Ten titles to four with a 21-point margin of victory at the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Bloomington, Ind., this weekend. Minnesota did not add to its individual champion count on Sunday, May 16, but the Gopher depth took over to send the Maroon and Gold home with another team trophy.
Minnesota tallied 145 points, to 124 by runner-up Wisconsin and 115 for third-place Ohio State. The Gophers scored two athletes in the triple jump and 5,000-meter run providing a insurmountable 20-point lead over the Badgers by the last event, the 4x400-meter relay.
After three Gophers celebrated individual crowns – Micah Hegerle in the hammer, Ben Peterson in the pole vault and R.J. McGinnis in the decathlon – in the first two days of competition, it was the sheer number of placewinners that pushed the Gophers over the top on championship Sunday.
The triple jump and 5,000-meter run were pressure-packed events. The Gophers have built a 63-point lead heading into Sunday. Wisconsin won the 4x100-meter relay and grabbed the top two spots in the 1,500-meter run and quickly closed the gap on Sunday. The Gophers countered with three important runner-up performances by Trey Davis in the shot put, Raymond Blackledge in the triple jump and Chris Rombough in the 5,000-meter run, as well as a big scoring output in the 800 meters.
After placing third in the discus on Saturday, Davis enjoyed another career day on Sunday in the shot put. Davis landed a career-best throw of 60-0 1/2 on his third throw of prelims and held the lead until the fifth round of throws in the final. Davis’ toss ranks eighth in school history.
Blackledge, a fifth-year senior, sailed past the 50-foot mark for the first time in his career. He was eighth after the prelims, jumped to third after his first attempt of the final and then up to second with his final jump of 50-2, the eighth-best leap in Minnesota history. Oladipo Fagbemi matched Blackledge’s distance of 50-2, but took third since Blackledge’s second-best jump was farther.
Rombough’s performance in the 5,000 meters was dramatic since at early stages of the race four Wisconsin Badgers were at the front of the pack. Rombough ran a tough, strategic race clocking a time of 13 minutes, 52.48 seconds outlasting each and every one of the Badgers. Rombough also placed second in the 10,000-meter run on Friday. Mike Torchia added a sixth-place finish in the 5,000 meters for the Gophers with a time of 14:04.02.
Minnesota picked up 14 points in the 800-meter run. Travis Burkstrand (1:49.30) edged teammate Harun Abda (1:49.36) for third place. David Pachuta was the third scorer, placing sixth in 1:49.67. Burkstrand’s and Pachuta’s times were career bests.
Ben Blankenship finished third in the 1,500-meter run, helping to outset the Badgers’ outburst in the event. Blankenship posted a time of 3:44.21.
Both the Gophers’ 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays contributed fourth-place finishes. The 4x100 relay of Sean King, Cameron Boy, Ryan Todhunter and Fagbemi ran a time of 41.43 seconds. The 4x400 relay of John Holton, Logan Stroman, Pachuta and Abda ran a season-best time of 3:08.66.
Paul Hoplin added a fourth-place showing in the javelin with a throw of 206-5.
“I’m proud of this team,” said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. “We had some great performances from a lot of people this weekend. What can I say, we did it again!”
Saturday, May 15 – The Minnesota men’s track & field team continues to build on its team lead with titles and depth at the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Bloomington, Ind. After the second day and eight events scored, Minnesota has more than doubled up its nearest competitor. The Gophers have compiled 79 points, followed by Indiana with 36, and Purdue and Wisconsin with 35.
The Golden Gophers’ brightest moment of the second day of the Championships was the performance of senior R.J. McGinnis, who captured the decathlon by just two points over Michigan’s Frank Shotwell. McGinnis needed a gutsy performance in the 1,500-meter run, the decathlon’s 10th and final event, to pull off the victory. McGinnis trailed Shotwell by 23 points going into the 1,500 meters then dug deep to find an extra gear in the race’s last 100 meters. He finished with a time of 4:35.75, beating Shotwell by just over four seconds. The final tally saw McGinnis score 7,381 points to Shotwell’s 7,379.
Jack Szmanda and Joey Schwecke added fourth and fifth-place finishes, respectively. Szmanda tallied a score of 7, 116, while Schwecke scored 7,081.
Minnesota was able to build its lead by having two or more athletes score in an event. The discus is a perfect example. The Gophers went third, fourth and sixth in the final standings. Trey Davis led the way, placing third with a throw of 172-9. Micah Hegerle, who won the hammer title on Friday, was fourth with a toss of 170-1. Tyler Kleinhuizen competed the trio’s scoring by placing sixth in a distance of 164-9.
Oladipo Fagbemi and Addison Demer contributed points in the long jump. Fagbemi placed fifth with a leap of 23-7 1/4. Demer was sixth in 23-5 1/2.
Completing the scoring on Saturday was Matt Fisher in the high jump. Fisher cleared his final bar at 6-11 1/4 .
Friday, May 14 – Minnesota captured two event titles in the first day of the 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. Micah Hegerle captured the win in the hammer throw, while Ben Peterson completed an indoor-outdoor title sweep by winning the pole vault.
Hegerle, a redshirt freshmen, landed his best throw -208 feet, 3 inches – in his third attempt of prelims and the mark held. Hegerle’s winning throw was nearly eight feet farther than the second-place effort. Hegerle, who will compete in the discus on Saturday, is the second Gopher to capture a Big Ten title in the hammer.
Peterson enjoyed a career day in winning his first Big Ten outdoor title, but overall his third Conference pole vault crown. The Gopher junior cleared a personal-best height of 17-8 1/2 to capture Minnesota’s eighth pole vault title but first since 1997 (Vesa Rantanen). Peterson passed until the height of 16-8 3/4, then soared over the bar in his first try and again at 17-0 3/4. He cleared 17-4 1/2 and 17-8 1/2 on his second attempt at each height.
Brock Spandl added a third-place finish in the pole vault, clearing a season-best height of 17-0 3/4.
Day one of the decathlon turned into an interesting battle between two Gophers – R.J. McGinnis and Joey Schwecke. Between the two, the lead changed hands four times over the five events with McGinnis, an indoor heptathlon All-American, grabbing the day one lead with 3,908 points. Schwecke is only 15 points behind McGinnis with a total of 3,893. Jack Szmanda is sixth with 3,751 points.
Schwecke owns the lead through the first two events, first running a career-best time of 10.93 seconds in the 100-meter dash and then landing a season-best long jump of 23-2 1/4.
McGinnis took the lead for the first time by topping the field in the shot put with a throw of 47-4 1/4. Schwecke cleared 6-6 in the high jump to recapture the lead after four events before McGinnis’ time of 50.83 seconds in 400 meters edged him back in front of his Gopher teammate. Schwecke ran a time of 51.47in the race.
Chris Rombough placed second in the 10,000-meter run in the final event of the first day of the Championships. Rombough clocked a career-best time of 29:10.67.
Men’s Track Wins Second Golden Goldy’s Award
The Golden Gopher men’s track & field team was named the Minnesota Male Team of the Year for the second consecutive season at the Golden Goldy’s Awards. The Golden Goldy’s is a year-ending celebration of the Minnesota Athletics Department sponsored by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC).
Minnesota Wins Big Ten Indoor Team Title
The Golden Gophers won six individual titles to win the Big Ten Indoor team title amassing an impressive tally of 160.5 points, the second-highest winning total in Big Ten history. Minnesota’s 48-point margin of victory (over runner-up Ohio State’s 112.5) is also the second-best in the 99th running of the Big Ten Indoor Championships. The Gophers celebrated back-to-back Big Ten team indoor track titles (2009, 2010) for the first time in their history.
Minnesota Finishes Eighth at 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships
The U.S. Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced its list of 366 track & field athletes who competed at last weekend’s NCAA Indoor Championships to earn USTFCCCA All-America honors. Nine Golden Gophers captured All-America acclaim matching the 2004 Minnesota squad for the most in a single indoor season.
All-America honors are awarded to the top eight finishers in each event at the NCAA Championships. In addition, the top eight finishing athletes among U.S. citizens from the national meet earn All-America status.
Minnesota finished eighth as a team, its highest team showing since placing seventh in 2003. The Golden Gophers’ distance medley relay highlighted the NCAAs as the foursome of Ben Blankenship, Harun Abda, Logan Stroman and Chris Rombough turned in a third-place finish. Rombough also earned All-America accord with a seventh-place finish in the 3,000-meter run.
Aaron Studt earned All-America honors in both the shot put (sixth) and weight throw (fifth), while Matt Fisher collected his first career accolade in the high jump (ninth).
All three Gopher heptathletes who competed at the NCAA meet collected All-America acclaim for the first time in their Minnesota careers: R.J. McGinnis (sixth), Jack Szmanda (ninth) and Brock Spandl (10th).
Head Coach Steve Plasencia
Minnesota’s Steve Plasencia is in his second season as the Golden Gopher head coach and has led the Gophers to indoor/outdoor sweeps of Big Ten titles in both years. Plasencia has served the Gophers’ head men’s cross country coach for 14 season and added the title of head track coach in June of 2008. Plasencia is just the fourth Minnesota head track coach since 1937.
Smart Guys in a Good Way
Four Minnesota men’s tracksters were honored with Top-Five Scholar-Athlete Awards at the Annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Ceremony. Mike Torchia (biochemistry major) was honored with his second Top-Five Award and was joined by Addison Demer (genetics/cell biology major), Sean Duling (political science major) and Mike Shelendich (biochemistry major). The award recognized the five male student-athletes with the highest cumulative grade point averages.
The 2010 Team Captains
The Golden Gopher team captains for the 2010 season are R.J. McGinnis, Joe Plencner, Chris Rombough and Aaron Studt.
NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships
Wednesday-Saturday – June 9-12, 2010
Hayward Field
Eugene, Ore.
Host: University of Oregon
2010 Minnesota Men’s Track & Field Watch List
• Golden Gophers Ready for NCAA Championships - The Minnesota men’s track & field team will be represented by four athletes at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore., on June 9-12.
• The Gopher Lineup - Three Golden Gophers - Ben Blankenship (1,500 meters), Matt Fisher (high jump) and Chris Rombough (5,000 meters) – advanced to the NCAA Championships by earning a top-12 finish at the NCAA West Preliminary Round. R.J. McGinnis earned his NCAA berth by finishing among the top 24 decathletes on the nation’s descending order list.
• Taking the Momentum Outdoors - Minnesota looks to continue its momentum from the indoor season where the Golden Gophers placed eighth in the NCAA Indoor Track Championships.
• Gophers Defend Big Ten Title - Minnesota captured its fourth consecutive (indoor/outdoor) Big Ten team title and celebrated three Gophers winning individual crowns - Ben Peterson (pole vault), Micah Hegerle (hammer) and R.J. McGinnis (decathlon).
Gophers Advance Four to NCAA Championships
The Minnesota men’s track & field team will be represented by four athletes at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, June 9-12, in Eugene, Ore. Ben Blankenship, Matt Fisher and Chris Rombough advanced through the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet, while R.J. McGinnis is one of the 24 decathletes to earn an NCAA invitation. The University of Oregon will host the event at historic Hayward Field.
Television Coverage of the NCAA Meet
CBS will televise two hours of the final day of the NCAA Outdoor Championships live on Saturday, June 12, from 12-2 p.m. (CT). For Comcast customers with a sport tier, CBS College Sports Network will broadcast the Championships for three hours from 5-8 p.m. on Friday, June 11. When CBS is not broadcasting from the Championships, fans can check out live video streaming on NCAA.com.
NCAA Championships History
Texas A&M is the defending team champion, having captured its first NCAA outdoor track title in 2009. Minnesota won its only national team title in 1948. The Gophers’ top national finish in recent history was ninth in 1997 and 2003. The last top-20 finish at the outdoor NCAA meet was a tie for 15th in 2004. Minnesota sent five athletes to the Championships in 2009, and scored 7.0 points to tie for 37th place.
Tough Act to Follow
Minnesota placed eighth at the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships scoring 18 points. Posting a finish like that at the NCAA outdoor meet will be a challenging task with just four participants. Seven of those points at the indoor meet came from two-time All-American thrower Aaron Studt, who is redshirting the outdoor season.
Experienced Gopher Contingent at NCAAs
All four Gophers have NCAA Championships experience on their resumes. Chris Rombough is the veteran having participated in four NCAA Cross Country and five NCAA Track Championships. Rombough is the first three-time cross country All-American in Minnesota history.
A Different Look to the Maroon and Gold
The Golden Gophers heads into the NCAA Championships without two of their standouts from last season, All-Americans Hassan Mead (5,000 meters) and Aaron Studt (shot put). Mead has missed the 2010 indoor and outdoor season with an Achilles tendon injury, while Studt decided to save his last outdoor season of eligibility for his fifth year of school. Both are expected to return to action next season.
Rombough Writes Final Chapter of Brilliant Career
Fifth-year senior Chris Rombough has enjoyed a brilliant running career at the University of Minnesota. He finished his cross country career as the Golden Gophers’ first three-time NCAA cross country All-American and won a Big Ten title in 2006. Rombough ran to NCAA indoor track All-America citations twice and helped the Gophers to back-to-back Big Ten team titles in 2009 and 2010. Minnesota won Big Ten outdoor team crowns those same years. If there is one gap in Rombough’s running resume, it is an All-America honor at the NCAA outdoor meet. He will be making his third appearance in the national meet in the 5,000-meter run.
How’s This for a Busy Month
R.J. McGinnis has lived quite the whirlwind life the past month. McGinnis won the Big Ten decathlon title on May 15, though he missed his graduation ceremony. That’s okay. He made a bigger ceremony a week later getting married. McGinnis and his bride found time for a honeymoon before he travels off the NCAA Championships. To make life even crazier, McGinnis will start a teaching position in Houston the week following the NCAA meet.
Blankenship Takes Record Time in NCAAs
Junior Ben Blankenship heads into his second NCAA Outdoor Championships appearance in the 1,500-meter run on the heels of his school record-breaking performance at the NCAA West Prelims. Blankenship clocked a time of 3:39.77 to break a 14 year-old Minnesota record and garner his invitation to the national meet. During the 2010 indoor season, Blankenship earned his first All-America honor as a member of the Gophers’ distance medley relay, as well as set Minnesota history as the first runner to post a sub-4 minute mile.
McGinnis, Fisher Return to NCAAs in Good Health
The 2009 NCAA Championships do not hold good memories for Gopher seniors Matt Fisher and R.J. McGinnis. Fisher shared the top seed in the nation going into the meet but suffered an Achilles tendon tear during the competition and was forced to withdraw. McGinnis managed to complete the decathlon despite an injured elbow that made the throwing events excruciatingly painful. He was in All-America contention until the javelin throw.
NCAA Championships – Gophers’ Event Preview
Following is an event-by-event for the Gophers at the NCAA Championships.
The 1,500 meters – Junior Ben Blankenship is seeded fifth with his career-best and school-record time of 3:39.77 he ran in the NCAA quarterfinals at the West Prelims. Blankenship is making his second appearance in the NCAA 1,500 meters. He earned his first career All-America award during the 2010 indoor season as a member of the Gophers’ third-place distance medley relay.
The 5,000 meters – Fifth-year senior Chris Rombough has advanced to the NCAA Championships in the this event the last two seasons. Rombough contributed two important runner-up finishes in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the Big Ten Championships. He is seeded 18th with a time of 14:08.95 at the NCAA West Prelim. Rombough owns a career-best time of 13:48.80 clocked at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational earlier this season. He finished seventh in the 3,000 meters to earn All-America honors at the 2010 national indoor meet.
The High Jump – Senior Matt Fisher will compete in his second NCAA Outdoor Track Championships. Fisher is one of 14 leapers who advanced out of the Preliminary Rounds with a height of 7-1. Fisher’s best jump of the season is 7-2 1/4 at the Drake Relays. Overall, his career best is 7-4 1/2. Fisher earned his first All-America honor at the 2010 indoor meet.
The Decathlon – Big Ten champion R.J. McGinnis is seeded 19th among the 24 decathletes who advanced to the NCAA Championships. McGinnis is making his third appearance in the event. McGinnis tallied his season-best score of 7,381 in winning the Big Ten title. McGinnis’ career-best total is 7,626 from the 2009 Drake Relays. McGinnis was a 2010 NCAA All-American during the indoor season placing sixth in the heptathlon.
NCAA West Preliminary Round Review
Saturday, May 29 – Ben Blankenship broke the Minnesota school record and earned an NCAA Championships berth in the 1,500-meter run to highlight the third and final day of the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet in Austin, Texas. Chris Rombough also will return to the NCAAs in the 5,000 meters.
Blankenship ran a time of 3 minutes, 39.77 seconds breaking the 14 year-old Gopher record held by Paul Michalek (3:39.94). The Gopher junior from Stillwater, Minn., ran in the first heat of two quarterfinals where eight runners bettered Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium record. Blankenship collected an NCAA automatic qualifier with his fifth-place showing the race. He will make his second trip to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Rombough, a senior from Fremont, Wis., earned his way into his third NCAA Outdoor Championships field in the 5,000 meters. Rombough placed 11th in the his heat clocking a time of 14:08.95. Mike Torchia also compete in the 5,000 meters running a time of 14:44.51, 16th in his heat and 33rd overall.
The Gophers' 4x400-meter relay of John Holton, Logan Stroman, David Pachuta and Harun Abda placed sixth in their heat and 18th overall in a season-best time of 3:08.59.
Minnesota had three throwers compete in the discus. Micah Hegerle placed 25th with a throw of 167-0, one centimeter farther than teammate Tyler Kleinhuizen in 26th. Trey Davis landed a throw of 158-11 for 37th place.
The Gophers also had two triple jumpers compete. Oladipo finished 30th with a leap of 49-5, while Raymond Blackledge was 34th with an effort of 48-4.
Friday, May 28 – Golden Gopher senior Matt Fisher punched his ticket to the NCAA Championships with a top-12 finish at the NCAA Preliminary Meet. Fisher cleared a height of 7-1 in the high jump to finish seventh among the 12 leapers advancing from the West meet.
Junior Ben Peterson fell one spot shy of making the NCAA Championships field finishing 13th in the pole vault. Peterson, the indoor and outdoor Big Ten champion, cleared 17-2 1/4. Brock Spandl finished in a tie for 22nd with a height of 16-8 3/4.
Micah Hegerle competed in the first of two events at the West Prelims. Hegerle finished 19th in the hammer throw with a toss of 195-0.
Travis Burkstand was the only Gopher in action on the track. Burkstrand placed 21st in the 800-meter run quarterfinals with a tie of 1 minute, 53.22 seconds.
Thursday, May 27 – Minnesota middle distance runners Ben Blankenship and Travis Burkstrand advanced to the quarterfinal rounds of their events to highlight the Golden Gopher men’s track & field team’s performance in the first day of the NCAA West Preliminary Round meet in Austin, Texas.
Blankenship, a junior from Stillwater, Minn., earned an automatic qualifier to the next round by placing fifth in his heat of the 1,500-meter run clocking a time of 3 minutes, 44.43 seconds. Blankenship finished with the 18th-best qualifying time overall as a total of 24 runners move into the Saturday’s quarterfinal round.
Blankenship, a 2010 indoor All-American and a 2009 NCAA Championships participant in the 1,500 meters, ran a strategic race knowing the importance of a top-five finish. At the bell lap, Blankenship was among a group of five runners at the front of the pack. With 200 meters left, Blankenship moved to the outside shoulder of leader and eventual heat winner Andrew Wheating of Oregon. Down the final stretch, Blankenship eased up in the last 30 meters crossing the finish line in fifth place.
Burkstrand, a redshirt freshman from Apple Valley, Minn., enjoyed a successful debut in his first NCAA track post-season competition. Burkstrand ran to a third-place finish in his heat of the 800 meters, finishing with a time of 1:49.63 to advance to Friday’s quarterfinal.
A number of Gophers competed but saw their seasons come to a close. Andy Richardson finished 11th in his heat and 30th overall in the first round of the 1,500 meter with a time of 3:49.86. Harun Abda and David Pachuta finished fifth in their respective heats of the 800 meters but failed to advance. Abda placed 32nd overall with a time of 1:50.28, while Pachuta was 36th in 1:50.64.
Sean King was the only Gopher competing in the sprints. King ran a time of 10/77 seconds in the 100 meters finishing eighth in his heat and 36th overall.
Battling the Texas heat, 82 degrees at the 9 p.m. start, Matt Barrett and Pieter Gagnon competed in the 10,000-meter run. Barrett finished 30th in a time of 30:43.05, while Gagnon was 33rd in 31:21.43. The top 12 advanced to Eugene with the final qualifying spot timed at 29:47.54.
In the field events, Paul Hoplin finished 18th in the javelin with a throw of 195 feet. The top 12 advanced to the NCAA Championships. The distance needed to garner a berth to the NCAA Championships was 214-11.
Trey Davis and Tyler Kleinhuizen competed in the shot put. Davis finished 28th with a throw of 54-7 1/4. Kleinhuizen tied for 40th-place with a throw of 51-7 3/4. The top 12 advanced to the NCAA Championships with the final qualifying throw marked at 57-9 3/4.
Gophers Sweep Big Ten Indoor/Outdoor Titles
For the second consecutive year, Minnesota swept the Big Ten team titles for the indoor and outdoor seasons. Minnesota joins only Wisconsin and Indiana as schools to have back-to-back sweeps in the Big Ten over the last 20 years.
Trio of Big Ten Champions Leads Minnesota to Outdoor Title
The Gophers had three athletes capture Big Ten individual titles to help Minnesota defend its team Conference crown. Micah Hegerle won the hammer throw with a toss of 208-3, while Ben Peterson captured the victory in the pole vault with a height of 17-8 1/2. R.J. McGinnis provided the third title, winning the decathlon with a total of 3,381 points.
Big Ten Names Plasencia the Coach of the Year
Minnesota head men’s track & field coach Steve Plasencia was honored as the 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Track Men’s Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Gophers to their fourth consecutive Big Ten title. The Gophers compiled 145.0 points to capture the crown by 21 points over rival Wisconsin. Minnesota has swept the indoor and outdoor Conference titles in both 2009 and 2010. Plasencia is now a four-time Big Ten Coach of the Year honoree.
“I’m honored to receive this award, but it’s so much more of a reflection of this team than anything else,” said Plasencia. “I share this award with an outstanding staff of coaches and obviously a wonderful group of student-athletes.”
The Big Ten also recognized its event champions as All-Big Ten First Team honorees. Three Gophers won Big Ten individual event titles last weekend: Micah Hegerle (hammer), Ben Peterson (pole vault) and R.J. McGinnis (decathlon). Conference runners-up are tabbed All-Big Ten Second Team honorees. Gophers honored on this squad were Chris Rombough (5,000 and 10,000 meters), Raymond Blackledge (triple jump) and Trey Davis (shot put).
Senior Logan Stroman was the Minnesota recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In addition, the student-athletes must be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting. These student-athletes are now candidates for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, as the Conference office will honor one male and one female student-athlete from each institution at the end of the school year.
Gophers are Big Ten Champions...Again! - Big Ten Championships Review
Sunday, May 16 – The Golden Gophers extended their streak of Big Ten titles to four with a 21-point margin of victory at the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Bloomington, Ind., this weekend. Minnesota did not add to its individual champion count on Sunday, May 16, but the Gopher depth took over to send the Maroon and Gold home with another team trophy.
Minnesota tallied 145 points, to 124 by runner-up Wisconsin and 115 for third-place Ohio State. The Gophers scored two athletes in the triple jump and 5,000-meter run providing a insurmountable 20-point lead over the Badgers by the last event, the 4x400-meter relay.
After three Gophers celebrated individual crowns – Micah Hegerle in the hammer, Ben Peterson in the pole vault and R.J. McGinnis in the decathlon – in the first two days of competition, it was the sheer number of placewinners that pushed the Gophers over the top on championship Sunday.
The triple jump and 5,000-meter run were pressure-packed events. The Gophers have built a 63-point lead heading into Sunday. Wisconsin won the 4x100-meter relay and grabbed the top two spots in the 1,500-meter run and quickly closed the gap on Sunday. The Gophers countered with three important runner-up performances by Trey Davis in the shot put, Raymond Blackledge in the triple jump and Chris Rombough in the 5,000-meter run, as well as a big scoring output in the 800 meters.
After placing third in the discus on Saturday, Davis enjoyed another career day on Sunday in the shot put. Davis landed a career-best throw of 60-0 1/2 on his third throw of prelims and held the lead until the fifth round of throws in the final. Davis’ toss ranks eighth in school history.
Blackledge, a fifth-year senior, sailed past the 50-foot mark for the first time in his career. He was eighth after the prelims, jumped to third after his first attempt of the final and then up to second with his final jump of 50-2, the eighth-best leap in Minnesota history. Oladipo Fagbemi matched Blackledge’s distance of 50-2, but took third since Blackledge’s second-best jump was farther.
Rombough’s performance in the 5,000 meters was dramatic since at early stages of the race four Wisconsin Badgers were at the front of the pack. Rombough ran a tough, strategic race clocking a time of 13 minutes, 52.48 seconds outlasting each and every one of the Badgers. Rombough also placed second in the 10,000-meter run on Friday. Mike Torchia added a sixth-place finish in the 5,000 meters for the Gophers with a time of 14:04.02.
Minnesota picked up 14 points in the 800-meter run. Travis Burkstrand (1:49.30) edged teammate Harun Abda (1:49.36) for third place. David Pachuta was the third scorer, placing sixth in 1:49.67. Burkstrand’s and Pachuta’s times were career bests.
Ben Blankenship finished third in the 1,500-meter run, helping to outset the Badgers’ outburst in the event. Blankenship posted a time of 3:44.21.
Both the Gophers’ 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relays contributed fourth-place finishes. The 4x100 relay of Sean King, Cameron Boy, Ryan Todhunter and Fagbemi ran a time of 41.43 seconds. The 4x400 relay of John Holton, Logan Stroman, Pachuta and Abda ran a season-best time of 3:08.66.
Paul Hoplin added a fourth-place showing in the javelin with a throw of 206-5.
“I’m proud of this team,” said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. “We had some great performances from a lot of people this weekend. What can I say, we did it again!”
Saturday, May 15 – The Minnesota men’s track & field team continues to build on its team lead with titles and depth at the Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Bloomington, Ind. After the second day and eight events scored, Minnesota has more than doubled up its nearest competitor. The Gophers have compiled 79 points, followed by Indiana with 36, and Purdue and Wisconsin with 35.
The Golden Gophers’ brightest moment of the second day of the Championships was the performance of senior R.J. McGinnis, who captured the decathlon by just two points over Michigan’s Frank Shotwell. McGinnis needed a gutsy performance in the 1,500-meter run, the decathlon’s 10th and final event, to pull off the victory. McGinnis trailed Shotwell by 23 points going into the 1,500 meters then dug deep to find an extra gear in the race’s last 100 meters. He finished with a time of 4:35.75, beating Shotwell by just over four seconds. The final tally saw McGinnis score 7,381 points to Shotwell’s 7,379.
Jack Szmanda and Joey Schwecke added fourth and fifth-place finishes, respectively. Szmanda tallied a score of 7, 116, while Schwecke scored 7,081.
Minnesota was able to build its lead by having two or more athletes score in an event. The discus is a perfect example. The Gophers went third, fourth and sixth in the final standings. Trey Davis led the way, placing third with a throw of 172-9. Micah Hegerle, who won the hammer title on Friday, was fourth with a toss of 170-1. Tyler Kleinhuizen competed the trio’s scoring by placing sixth in a distance of 164-9.
Oladipo Fagbemi and Addison Demer contributed points in the long jump. Fagbemi placed fifth with a leap of 23-7 1/4. Demer was sixth in 23-5 1/2.
Completing the scoring on Saturday was Matt Fisher in the high jump. Fisher cleared his final bar at 6-11 1/4 .
Friday, May 14 – Minnesota captured two event titles in the first day of the 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. Micah Hegerle captured the win in the hammer throw, while Ben Peterson completed an indoor-outdoor title sweep by winning the pole vault.
Hegerle, a redshirt freshmen, landed his best throw -208 feet, 3 inches – in his third attempt of prelims and the mark held. Hegerle’s winning throw was nearly eight feet farther than the second-place effort. Hegerle, who will compete in the discus on Saturday, is the second Gopher to capture a Big Ten title in the hammer.
Peterson enjoyed a career day in winning his first Big Ten outdoor title, but overall his third Conference pole vault crown. The Gopher junior cleared a personal-best height of 17-8 1/2 to capture Minnesota’s eighth pole vault title but first since 1997 (Vesa Rantanen). Peterson passed until the height of 16-8 3/4, then soared over the bar in his first try and again at 17-0 3/4. He cleared 17-4 1/2 and 17-8 1/2 on his second attempt at each height.
Brock Spandl added a third-place finish in the pole vault, clearing a season-best height of 17-0 3/4.
Day one of the decathlon turned into an interesting battle between two Gophers – R.J. McGinnis and Joey Schwecke. Between the two, the lead changed hands four times over the five events with McGinnis, an indoor heptathlon All-American, grabbing the day one lead with 3,908 points. Schwecke is only 15 points behind McGinnis with a total of 3,893. Jack Szmanda is sixth with 3,751 points.
Schwecke owns the lead through the first two events, first running a career-best time of 10.93 seconds in the 100-meter dash and then landing a season-best long jump of 23-2 1/4.
McGinnis took the lead for the first time by topping the field in the shot put with a throw of 47-4 1/4. Schwecke cleared 6-6 in the high jump to recapture the lead after four events before McGinnis’ time of 50.83 seconds in 400 meters edged him back in front of his Gopher teammate. Schwecke ran a time of 51.47in the race.
Chris Rombough placed second in the 10,000-meter run in the final event of the first day of the Championships. Rombough clocked a career-best time of 29:10.67.
Men’s Track Wins Second Golden Goldy’s Award
The Golden Gopher men’s track & field team was named the Minnesota Male Team of the Year for the second consecutive season at the Golden Goldy’s Awards. The Golden Goldy’s is a year-ending celebration of the Minnesota Athletics Department sponsored by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC).
Minnesota Wins Big Ten Indoor Team Title
The Golden Gophers won six individual titles to win the Big Ten Indoor team title amassing an impressive tally of 160.5 points, the second-highest winning total in Big Ten history. Minnesota’s 48-point margin of victory (over runner-up Ohio State’s 112.5) is also the second-best in the 99th running of the Big Ten Indoor Championships. The Gophers celebrated back-to-back Big Ten team indoor track titles (2009, 2010) for the first time in their history.
Minnesota Finishes Eighth at 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships
The U.S. Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced its list of 366 track & field athletes who competed at last weekend’s NCAA Indoor Championships to earn USTFCCCA All-America honors. Nine Golden Gophers captured All-America acclaim matching the 2004 Minnesota squad for the most in a single indoor season.
All-America honors are awarded to the top eight finishers in each event at the NCAA Championships. In addition, the top eight finishing athletes among U.S. citizens from the national meet earn All-America status.
Minnesota finished eighth as a team, its highest team showing since placing seventh in 2003. The Golden Gophers’ distance medley relay highlighted the NCAAs as the foursome of Ben Blankenship, Harun Abda, Logan Stroman and Chris Rombough turned in a third-place finish. Rombough also earned All-America accord with a seventh-place finish in the 3,000-meter run.
Aaron Studt earned All-America honors in both the shot put (sixth) and weight throw (fifth), while Matt Fisher collected his first career accolade in the high jump (ninth).
All three Gopher heptathletes who competed at the NCAA meet collected All-America acclaim for the first time in their Minnesota careers: R.J. McGinnis (sixth), Jack Szmanda (ninth) and Brock Spandl (10th).
Head Coach Steve Plasencia
Minnesota’s Steve Plasencia is in his second season as the Golden Gopher head coach and has led the Gophers to indoor/outdoor sweeps of Big Ten titles in both years. Plasencia has served the Gophers’ head men’s cross country coach for 14 season and added the title of head track coach in June of 2008. Plasencia is just the fourth Minnesota head track coach since 1937.
Smart Guys in a Good Way
Four Minnesota men’s tracksters were honored with Top-Five Scholar-Athlete Awards at the Annual Scholar-Athlete Awards Ceremony. Mike Torchia (biochemistry major) was honored with his second Top-Five Award and was joined by Addison Demer (genetics/cell biology major), Sean Duling (political science major) and Mike Shelendich (biochemistry major). The award recognized the five male student-athletes with the highest cumulative grade point averages.
The 2010 Team Captains
The Golden Gopher team captains for the 2010 season are R.J. McGinnis, Joe Plencner, Chris Rombough and Aaron Studt.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Track & FieldCHS Home Grown Gophers: Emmett Gerres
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The Greek Freak of Minnesota
Friday, July 18
Gophers Finish 1-2 in Hammer Throw
Monday, June 16
Mantzouranis Earns NCAA Silver Medal
Thursday, June 12