University of Minnesota Athletics
Four Gophers Bound for NCAA Championships
6/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
| 2015 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships | |||||||||||
| Date | Wednesday, June 10-Saturday, June 13 | ||||||||||
| Location | Hayward Field | Eugene, Ore. | ||||||||||
| Meet Info | Schedule | Live Results | Heat Sheets/Program | Meet Info | ||||||||||
| Coverage | ESPN Network (Info) | ||||||||||
| Gophers | Outdoor Performance List | Top Performers List | ||||||||||
| Social | @GopherMCCTFÂ | Facebook | ||||||||||
June 8, 2015
MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) -- The University of Minnesota men's track & field program will send four Gophers to the 2015 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships this week at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.Â
Goaner Deng (800 meters), Luke Johnson (shot put), Gian Ferretti (hammer throw) and Luca Wieland (decathlon) will represent the Maroon & Gold at the national championship meet.Â
About the 2015 NCAA Championships
The University of Oregon will host the 2015 NCAA Division I Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships Wednesday through Saturday, at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. All-session ticket prices are as follows: $108 reserved; $80 general admission; $44 student; Free children age two and under.
ESPN to Cover NCAA Championships
ESPN Networks will cover all four days of the 2015 NCAA Championships with day one and day two being broadcasted on ESPN3 and ESPNU, starting at 2 p.m. CT. Events on day three can be found on ESPN3 and ESPN, and day four can be found on ESPN2 and ESPN3.
Goaner Deng - 800 Meters Preview
Semifinals: Wednesday at 7:54 p.m. CT
Finals: Friday at 7:50 p.m. CT
The only Gopher on roster to have previously competed at the NCAA outdoor meet, Deng was a Second Team All-American as a freshman in 2013 as part of Minnesota's 4x400 relay squad with Jacob Capek, Harun Abda and Cameron Boy (15th, 3:06.12). This year marks his first trip to the national meet as an individual. Deng clocked a personal record of 1:48.64 at the NCAA West regional to qualify for the 800 meters, a mark that puts Deng 10th on Minnesota's top outdoor performers list.Â
Gian Ferretti - Hammer Throw Preview
Finals: Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. CT
Ferretti makes his first trip to the NCAA outdoor meet in his first official season with the Maroon & Gold. The Italian opened the outdoor season with a new school record in the hammer throw and then bested his own mark with a 69.65 meter (228-06.50 ft.) toss at the Big Ten outdoor meet last month. The junior has finished sixth or better in each of his seven competitions this season including a trio of wins. Ferretti owns four of the top six throws in Minnesota's history.
Luke Johnson - Shot Put Preview
Finals: Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. CT
Johnson also will make his first trip to the NCAA outdoor meet after qualifying with a personal record of 18.70 meters (61-04.25 ft.) at the NCAA West regional. The performances moved the junior up to seventh on the Gophers' top outdoor performers list. Johnson will look to become the first Gopher to earn outdoor All-America honors since Aaron Studt finished fifth in 2009.Â
Luca Wieland - Decathlon Preview
100 Meters: Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. CT
Long Jump: Wednesday at 2:15 p.m. CT
Shot Put: Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. CT
High Jump: Wednesday at 4:45 p.m. CT
400 Meters: 7:44 p.m. CT
110 Hurdles: Thursday at 12:00 p.m. CT
Discus: Thursday at 1:00 p.m. CT
Pole Vault: Thursday at 3:00 p.m. CT
Javelin: Thursday at 5:15 p.m.
1,500 Meters: Thursday at 8:28 p.m.
Already the NCAA champion in the indoor heptathlon this year, Wieland will look to add the decathlon title to his mantle in his first trip to the NCAA outdoor meet. The sophomore from Germany won the 2015 Big Ten decathlon title with a personal record of 7,635 points -- the 10th-best performance ever at Minnesota and one that ranks Wieland fourth on Minnesota's top outdoor performers list. Wieland broke a 17-year old school record to win the 2015 Big Ten heptathlon title earlier this year and then bested the mark with a 6,070 to capture the NCAA heptathlon title -- the eighth-most points ever by a collegiate athlete. The multi-eventer is already a First Team All-American in the heptathlon and a two-time First Team All-Big Ten honoree while Wieland was also honored as the Garry Bjorklund Award recipient this year as Minnesota's most valuable competitor. Wieland will look to become just the third Gopher to earn All-America honors in the decathlon and the first in a decade (Benjamin Jensen in 1997, Travis Brandstatter in 2004 and 2005. Â
Four Gophers Earn Academic All-District Honors
Four members of the Minnesota men's track & field program were honored on the Capital One Academic All-District Team in May with Aaron Bartnik, Mark Jennings, Gian Ferretti and Luca Wieland representing the Maroon & Gold. All four are now eligible for Capital One Academic All-America honors in June. As a whole, the University of Minnesota has now earned 20 Academic All-District honors for the 2014-15 season.
Blankenship Anchors World DMR Record
Gophers All-American and Stillwater native Ben Blankenship anchored a new world distance medley relays for Team USA at the IAAF/BTC World Relays in Nassau, Bahamas. The relay squad clocked a 9:15.50 to break Kenya's nine-year old record as the U.S. won its second-straight Golden Baton at the meet.
Minnesota Names Three Captains for 2015
Three seniors will serve as captains for the 2015 campaign -- Justin Barber, Blayne Dulian and Mark Jennings. Barber and Jennings are two veterans of Minnesota's throwing corps while Dulian, who also served as captain of the cross country team last fall, runs distance for the Gophers.
Players Mentioned
