University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
2015 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships
Record-Breaking Wieland Wins NCAA Title
3/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
Link: 2015 NCAA Indoor Meet Results
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Gophersports.com) - Luca Wieland broke his own school record and posted the eighth-highest point total ever by a collegiate athlete to win the 2015 NCAA heptathlon title on Saturday, giving the University of Minnesota its first-ever national champion in the event.
A sophomore from Berlin, Germany, Wieland scored a 6,070 at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships to edge Georgia's Garrett Scantling by two points - the closest finish in meet history. The national championship stands as the 13th individual NCAA title in University of Minnesota men's track & field history and the first indoor title since Vesa Rantanen won the pole vault in 1998 (Adam Steele won the outdoor 400 meter title in 2003).
"We couldn't be prouder of Luca and the way he has represented the University of Minnesota and our program," Minnesota Director of Men's Track & Field and Cross Country Steve Plasencia said. "He's put together two of the best performances in team history over the last few weeks, and to see his hard work and dedication pay off with a national championship to end the indoor season is unbelievable."
Wieland entered the second day of competition at the Randal Tyson Center leading the heptathlon field and held off a late charge by Scantling in the final three events. The sophomore finished fourth overall in the 60-meter hurdles after leading his heat with a time of 8.13 and then finished seventh in the pole vault with a height of 4.75 meters (15-07 ft.).
Up by 10 points on Scantling, the national championship came down to the event's final competition - the 1,000 meter run. Wieland gutted out a seventh-place finish at 2:45.35 - a personal record for Wieland and less than a second behind Scantling in sixth at 2:44.57 - to secure his place in the Gophers record books.
"It's just an amazing feeling," Wieland said. "Winning a national championship and breaking 6,000 is just incredible. I can't describe it. This is the best feeling."
The Gophers sophomore, who won the 2015 Big Ten heptathlon title late last month, finished among the top-four finishers in all four events on Friday's first day of competition including second-place finishes in the long jump (7.65 meters, 25-01.25 ft.) and the shot put (14.56 meters, 47-09.25 ft.). Wieland also led his heat and finished third overall in the 60 meters (7.01) and finished fourth in the high jump (2.07 meters, 6-09.50 ft.).
Wieland entered the NCAA indoor meet with the fifth-best heptathlon score in the country and the Big Ten's best performance of the year after winning the 2015 Big Ten indoor heptathlon title. His score of5,787 at the conference meet set a new Minnesota record, unseating Benjamin Jensen's score of 5,769 -- a record that had stood for 17 years.
Players Mentioned
