University of Minnesota Athletics
Quartet Set for NCAA Championship
3/7/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
| 2017 NCAA Indoor Championship | |||||||||||
| Date | Friday, March 10 and Saturday, March 11, 2017 | ||||||||||
| Location | Gilliam Indoor Stadium | College Station, Texas | ||||||||||
| Meet Info | Host Info | Schedule | Declarations | Tickets | NCAA.com Info | ||||||||||
| Time | 12 p.m. Friday | 12 p.m. Saturday | ||||||||||
| Coverage | Friday Video | Saturday Video | Live Results | @GopherWCCTF | #Gophers | ||||||||||
March 7, 2017
MINNEAPOLIS -- Four Golden Gophers are set to represent the University of Minnesota women's track & field team on the national stage at the 2017 NCAA Women's Indoor Track & Field Championships this week. Kimberly Golding and Emma Spagnola will compete in the 60-meter hurdles, Emerald Egwim will run the 400-meter dash, and Kiley Sabin will compete in shot put.
About the 2017 NCAA Indoor Championship
The nation's top 16 individuals and top 12 relays head to the NCAA Women's Indoor Track & Field Championships hosted by Texas A&M at Gilliam Indoor Track in College Station, Texas, this Friday and Saturday.
ESPN3 will stream the meet live at 5:25 p.m. CT Friday and 3:55 p.m. CT Saturday. A re-air of the championship will be broadcast on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. CT Sunday.
How They Got Here
The Gophers' four NCAA qualifiers all broke Minnesota indoor program records on their way to the NCAA Championship. Golding and Spagnola enter the NCAA 60m hurdles after running virtually identical times in both prelims and finals at the Big Ten Championship. The both broke Minnesota's program record in the 60m prelims at 8.13 seconds before Spagnola took third (8.186) and Golding came in fourth (8.189) in the B1G final. Golding is seeded 14th and Spagnola 15th in the NCAA preliminary.
Egwim also heads to the NCAA championship after a record-breaking performance at the Big Ten meet. She ran the top two 400m times in program history at the B1G Championship, improving on the Minnesota program record she already held. Egwim ran 52.73 in prelims before clocking in at 53.07 for fifth place in the final. She is seeded 15th in the NCAA preliminary.
Sabin rounds out Minnesota's NCAA qualifiers after her own record-breaking season. She crushed the Gophers' program record in the shot put earlier this year at the Minnesota-Wisconsin Dual with a career-best throw of 17.17m (56-04.00.). Sabin enters the NCAA Championship seeded 11th.
Gophers at the NCAA Indoor Championship
All four Gophers are making their debuts at the NCAA indoor championship. Golding, Spagnola, and Sabin are making their overall NCAA debuts while Egwim makes her second NCAA appearance after earning Second Team All-American honors as part of Minnesota's 13th-place 4x400-meter relay at the 2015 NCAA outdoor meet.
Minnesota's four individual indoor qualifiers is the most since the program sent five individuals and a relay to the 2008 NCAA indoor meet in Heather Dorniden (800m), Liz Roehrig, Jamie Cheever (mile), Liz Roehrig (pentathlon), Alicia Rue (pole vault), and the distance medley relay team of Rikita Butler, Gabriele Anderson, Dorniden, and Cheever.
Golding, Spagnola, Egwim, and Sabin are the first Gophers to compete at the indoor national championship since Jess Lehman (Herauf) placed fifth in the pentathlon in 2015.
2017 Gophers NCAA Championship Schedule
Sabin kicks off the NCAA Championship in the shot put trials and finals at 5:15 p.m. CT Friday. The Gophers continue with semifinal action on the track Friday evening with Egwim in the 400m semifinal round at 6:20 p.m. before Golding and Spagnola compete in the 60m hurdles semifinal at 6:50 p.m. Event finals in both events are set for Saturday with the 400m final at 4:40 p.m. CT and the 60m hurdles at 5 p.m. CT.
Last Time Out: Big Ten Indoor Championship
Madeline Strandemo won the mile to lead the Gophers at the Big Ten Conference Championship. The Gophers also used double-digit points in the weight throw, 60-meter hurdles, and high jump to secure a fourth-place showing overall. Agnes Esser posted a runner-up finish in the weight throw with a career-best mark of 20.94m (68-08.50) and got a sixth-place finish from Angie Guenther (19.35m, 63-06.00). Emma Spagnola (8.186) and Kimberly Golding (8.189) finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 60-meter hurdles final. In addition, the Gophers combined for 10 points in the high jump behind a third-place finish by Taylor Wiebke (1.79m, 5-10.50) and a fifth-place showing for Heta Tuuri (1.76m, 5-09.25).
In a tight team race, the Gophers were in a four-way tie for fifth place through nine events scored and then picked up points in seven of eight possible points on day two. Penn State won the team title with 96.50 points, claiming a 2.50-point victory over runner-up Purdue (94 points). Ohio State (83), Minnesota (70), and Indiana (69) rounded out the top five teams.
USTFCCCA Releases Week Six National Rankings
No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Arkansas, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 LSU, and No. 5 Kentucky make up the nation's top five in the week seven NCAA Division I National Team Computer Rankings compiled by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Four Big Ten Conference teams are among the top-25 in No. 14 Purdue, No. 16 Penn State, No. 19 Indiana, and No. 21 Michigan. The Gophers are the No. 56-ranked team according to the complete rankings.
Gophers Rank Among Nation's Best
Eight Gophers rank among the nation's top-30 performers this, including Kiley Sabin who was the B1G's top performer in the shot put this season.
T-10. Kiley Sabin, shot put (17.17m, 56-04.00)
15. Emerald Egwim, 400m (52.73)
T-15. Kimberly Golding, 60m hurdles (8.13)
T-15. Emma Spagnola, 60m hurdles (8.13)
19. Agnes Esser, weight throw (20.94m, 68-08.50)
28. Madeline Strandemo, mile (4:38.88)
T-30. Taylor Wiebke, high jump (1.79m, 5-10.50)
T-30. Heta Tuuri, high jump (1.79m, 5-10.50)
2017 Senior Salute
The Gophers honored 18 seniors during the Parents Day Invite: Danielle Anderson, Caitlin Dillon, Megan Flanagan, Cami Gilson, Kimberly Golding, Angie Guenther, Anne Haakenstad, Erin Hawkins, Allie Heifort, Bolade Jinadu, Kailee Kamps, Kat Keller, Naomi Ollila, Carlin Schulz, Tess Wasowicz, Violet Weibel, Laura Werking, and Tayler Whittler.
Sabin Honored By Big Ten
Kiley Sabin was named the Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week following her record-breaking performance at the Minnesota-Wisconsin Dual. Sabin was one of eight event champions to lead the Gophers to an 82-80 win over the rival Badgers in the dual meet. She threw 17.17m (56-04.00) to win the shot put, defeating runner-up Banke Oginni (15.72m) of Wisconsin by 1.45m for the title.
With her throw, Sabin improved on one of Minnesota's oldest program records, besting the record held by Aubrey Schmitt at 16.58m (54-04.75) since 1999 by nearly two feet. Sabin improved on her own career-best mark by nearly five feet (15.79m, 51-09.75).
Minnesota Welcomes 23 Newcomers
The Gophers' 2017 roster includes 23 newcomers, including two who have competed in uniform as true freshmen this season in Brieasha Hobbs and Natalie Manders. Fellow freshmen Hannah Arason, Jane Baude, Meleah Biermaier, Jenna Conzemius, Ryan Crotty, Carissa Dock, Delaney Eigenberger, Alyssa Faucett, Maddie Gourley, Lindsey Greenlund, Bethany Hasz, Megan Hasz, Abby Kohut-Jackson, Val Larson, Zetta Mason, Elyse Prescott, Ashley Ramacher, Kelli Schmidt, Rebekah Walter, and Sarah Werking also join the Minnesota family while senior sprinter Tayler Whittler is making her Gopher debut as a graduate student from DePaul University. The Gophers' roster also includes 18 redshirt freshmen making their official collegiate debuts this year.
Looking Ahead to Outdoor Track & Field
The Gophers' outdoor schedule has the team traveling to 18 meets in 10 different states, beginning with the Bulls Invitational in Tampa, Fla., Friday, March 17 and Saturday, March 18, hosted by the University of South Florida.
Gophers Sign 10 for 2017-18
The Minnesota women's track & field and cross country program is pleased to announce the addition of 10 student-athletes who have signed for the 2017-18 season. Erin Dunning (Ashwaubenon, Wis.), Allison Gerads (Champlin, Minn.), Alexis Hurst (Robbinsdale, Minn.), Tess Keyzers (Little Chute, Wis.), Elizabeth "Bit" Klecker (Minneapolis), Anastasia Korzenowski (Chanhassen, Minn.), Lorean Murray (Kingston, Jamaica), Sophie Schmitz (Willmar, Minn.), and Jaycie Thomsen (Plymouth, Minn.) will join the Gophers as freshmen next season while Nayoka Clunis (Kingston, Jamaica) comes to the University of Minnesota as a junior after competing for Cloud County Community College in Concordia, Kan., for two seasons.
Seven Gophers Captain 2017 Squad
The seven Gophers who are leading the defending Big Ten Outdoor Track & Field co-champions are Cami Gilson, Kimberly Golding, Angie Guenther, Erin Hawkins, Titania Markland, Nicolle Murphy, and Madeline Strandemo. Markland and Murphy return to the Gophers' leadership group after serving as captains last season while Strandemo was a captain for Minnesota's cross country team this fall. The remaining four Gophers enter their first seasons as captains.
2016 Cross Country Season Rewind
The Gophers wrapped up the 2016 cross country season with three NCAA All-Midwest Region honorees, two All-Big Ten Conference honorees, and one NCAA individual national qualifier. Madeline Strandemo represented Minnesota at the NCAA Championship with a 51st-place showing, running her second fastest 6K time of her career in 20:31.5.
Strandemo, Megan Hasz, and Bethany Hasz led Minnesota with all-region showings at the NCAA Midwest Regional after Strandemo and M. Hasz picked up Second Team All-Big Ten honors. The duo led host Minnesota to a fourth-place team finish at the B1G Championship.
2016 Outdoor Season Rewind
Led by B1G event titles from Jess Lehman (heptathlon) and Nicolle Murphy (javelin) and points from 16 different Gophers, Minnesota secured its second outdoor and fifth overall Big Ten Conference title in program history last spring. The Gophers sealed a share of the B1G title with a fourth-place finish by the 4x400-meter relay team of Erin Hawkins, Kat Keller, Emerald Egwim, and Titania Markland; the Gophers entered the final event trailing Michigan by one point, 102-101, and the 4x400m team finished one place ahead of the Wolverines to finish the meet tied at 106 points each.
Minnesota then finished tied for 22nd place in the team standings at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship, marking the program's highest finish since placing 18th in 2009. Eight Gophers competed at the NCAA Championship, the most since eight also competed at the 2008 national meet. Five Gophers earned All-American honors in Agnes Esser (discus), Jess Lehman (heptathlon), Nicolle Murphy (javelin), Lyndsey Thorpe (hammer throw), and Shanique Wright (triple jump), marking the most individual All-Americans in a single season in program history.
Up Next: Outdoor Season Begins
The Gophers kick off their 2017 outdoor slate with the Bulls Invitational in Tampa, Fla., on Friday, March 17 and Saturday, March 18.
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Players Mentioned
