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Captains Corner: B1G Championship Preview
2/21/2019 10:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field, Women's Track & Field
Hear from some of the Gopher track & field captains as the team prepares for the 2019 Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championship.
MINNEAPOLIS -- Captains from the Gopher track & field program reflect on the team's chemistry and goals heading into this weekend's 2019 Big Ten Conference Indoor Track & Field Championship.
Gopher Sports: How do you feel about where the team is at heading into the Big Ten Championship?
Jonathan Tharaldsen: The overall energy the team has had in training this year has been great. I feel confident this team is ready to take a big step this year during the Big Ten meet. This year is all about improvement, and I'm excited to see everyone put it all on the line and compete!
Temi Ogunrinde: I'm really excited about how are team is doing. We've had huge success and progress made from the young freshman all the way to the fifth years. Everyone has been giving it their all in training and in competition, and I'm excited to have everyone go out there and compete and do what they've been training all season for.
Evan Ferlic: The Big Ten Championship meet is going to be a wonderful opportunity to showcase the amazing talent that we have on both our men's and women's teams. For the men, I definitely think that this will be a building year for us and we will need to head into this competition confident, yet realistic. I feel that we have many guys on this team who are all very capable of scoring and even winning their events, but not without having to hurt and fight to the bitter end. As the years progress, the Big Ten has seen the talent levels of athletes increase exponentially, to the point of being the deepest and best conference in the nation. This makes each race and event fiercely competitive, a challenge that my fellow teammates will be able to handle with the fortitude that comes with being a Golden Gopher. That being said, I am always an optimist, as long as each contributor is finishing on empty, we will see many solid results. Our coaches have worked hard preparing us for the pinnacle event of the indoor season and now it is up to us to make them proud and lay everything out there on the track (or field). Lock in, Gophers!
Kiley Sabin: We are in a great place heading into Big Tens. One of our goals throughout indoor season was to get better each meet and focus on how you can improve, whether it is preparing better, competing better, or cheering on teammates better, and I think everyone has done that. Improving in each of these aspects of competition has built up of lots momentum for Big Tens, and I'm excited to see what everyone can do!
Matthew Rosen: I feel great about where the team is at heading into the Big Ten Championship. This team has worked hard and supported each other throughout the season. I think we are the strongest we have been all season heading into this weekend! No matter what the scoreboard says at the end of the meet, I know we will be leaving it all on the track. We have a vision of where this team is headed and this is great opportunity for us to take a step towards that goal and vision.
Gopher Sports: What are your personal and team goals for the meet?
Tharaldsen: The overall goal I have for our team is take a step forward and obviously to go out and compete hard against the best in the Big Ten. The Big Ten meets are great opportunities for our team to see what it takes to be a championship caliber team, and that experience going forward is going to make us that much better. It's vital for our guys to compete no matter who lines up next to them.
Ogunrinde: Personally, I am hoping to keep building and finish strong at this meet. It's my last season and will be my last time throwing weight, I want to make the most of it. For the team, I just want us to go out there and give it our all. I think we have a younger team, so this will be a great learning experience for a lot of our girls to compete in this environment against very tough competition. This is also our first Big Ten meet as a combined team, and I am so excited to have that energy and 'we're all in this together' mentality with the women and now the men, too. This will definitely be a fun experience.
Sabin: Every meet we have the mindset of going out and having fun, so it is so important to carry that into Big Tens. Big Tens is a bigger meet with more pressure, so it is key to do the little things right and, like mentioned before, continue to improve in all aspects of each of our competitions. Personally, I'm focusing on competing well and especially having fun since this is my last indoor Big Tens!
Rosen: I am excited to see everyone take another step forward this weekend. Our goal is always to be a better athlete, teammate, and competitor than we were the day before. I am very excited to see the team compete and watch what everyone will accomplish this weekend!
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Gopher Sports: How do you feel about where the team is at heading into the Big Ten Championship?
Jonathan Tharaldsen: The overall energy the team has had in training this year has been great. I feel confident this team is ready to take a big step this year during the Big Ten meet. This year is all about improvement, and I'm excited to see everyone put it all on the line and compete!
Temi Ogunrinde: I'm really excited about how are team is doing. We've had huge success and progress made from the young freshman all the way to the fifth years. Everyone has been giving it their all in training and in competition, and I'm excited to have everyone go out there and compete and do what they've been training all season for.
Evan Ferlic: The Big Ten Championship meet is going to be a wonderful opportunity to showcase the amazing talent that we have on both our men's and women's teams. For the men, I definitely think that this will be a building year for us and we will need to head into this competition confident, yet realistic. I feel that we have many guys on this team who are all very capable of scoring and even winning their events, but not without having to hurt and fight to the bitter end. As the years progress, the Big Ten has seen the talent levels of athletes increase exponentially, to the point of being the deepest and best conference in the nation. This makes each race and event fiercely competitive, a challenge that my fellow teammates will be able to handle with the fortitude that comes with being a Golden Gopher. That being said, I am always an optimist, as long as each contributor is finishing on empty, we will see many solid results. Our coaches have worked hard preparing us for the pinnacle event of the indoor season and now it is up to us to make them proud and lay everything out there on the track (or field). Lock in, Gophers!
Kiley Sabin: We are in a great place heading into Big Tens. One of our goals throughout indoor season was to get better each meet and focus on how you can improve, whether it is preparing better, competing better, or cheering on teammates better, and I think everyone has done that. Improving in each of these aspects of competition has built up of lots momentum for Big Tens, and I'm excited to see what everyone can do!
Matthew Rosen: I feel great about where the team is at heading into the Big Ten Championship. This team has worked hard and supported each other throughout the season. I think we are the strongest we have been all season heading into this weekend! No matter what the scoreboard says at the end of the meet, I know we will be leaving it all on the track. We have a vision of where this team is headed and this is great opportunity for us to take a step towards that goal and vision.
Gopher Sports: What are your personal and team goals for the meet?
Tharaldsen: The overall goal I have for our team is take a step forward and obviously to go out and compete hard against the best in the Big Ten. The Big Ten meets are great opportunities for our team to see what it takes to be a championship caliber team, and that experience going forward is going to make us that much better. It's vital for our guys to compete no matter who lines up next to them.
Ogunrinde: Personally, I am hoping to keep building and finish strong at this meet. It's my last season and will be my last time throwing weight, I want to make the most of it. For the team, I just want us to go out there and give it our all. I think we have a younger team, so this will be a great learning experience for a lot of our girls to compete in this environment against very tough competition. This is also our first Big Ten meet as a combined team, and I am so excited to have that energy and 'we're all in this together' mentality with the women and now the men, too. This will definitely be a fun experience.
Sabin: Every meet we have the mindset of going out and having fun, so it is so important to carry that into Big Tens. Big Tens is a bigger meet with more pressure, so it is key to do the little things right and, like mentioned before, continue to improve in all aspects of each of our competitions. Personally, I'm focusing on competing well and especially having fun since this is my last indoor Big Tens!
Rosen: I am excited to see everyone take another step forward this weekend. Our goal is always to be a better athlete, teammate, and competitor than we were the day before. I am very excited to see the team compete and watch what everyone will accomplish this weekend!
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