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Gophers Deliver on B1G Day One
2/28/2020 8:10:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Men's Track & Field, Women's Cross Country, Women's Track & Field
Bethany Hasz, Nayoka Clunis, Ayesha Champagnie, and Kieran McKeag finished as Big Ten runners-up on Friday.
GENEVA, Ohio -- The University of Minnesota track & field program opened the 2020 Big Ten Indoor Track & Field Championships with a total of four All-Big Ten performances on Friday at the SPIRE Institute.
The Gopher women lead the team competition with 39 points through six events scored with Indiana (37 points) and Penn State (32 points) rounding out the top three. On the men's side, Minnesota is second with 33 points and trails only Indiana (48.5 points).
Women's Day One Highlights
The Gopher women earned three runner-up showings to kick off the B1G Championships as Bethany Hasz (3,000 meters), Nayoka Clunis (weight throw), and Ayesha Champagnie (pentathlon) each placed second in their respective events. The Maroon & Gold posted multiple scoring finishes in both the 3,000 meters and the weight throw to make up the team's top events on day one at the meet.
Hasz finished second in the 3,000 meters in 9:24.74 and secured eight points for the Gophers while Abby Kohut-Jackson finished fourth in 9:32.94 and earned five points in the team race. They both also advanced to Saturday's mile final as well.
The Gophers also had multiple scorers in weight throw, totaling 11 points in the event. Clunis recorded a career-best throw of 22.13 meters (72-07.25) to finish second at the meet and improve her second-ranked mark in Minnesota history while Tess Keyzers finished sixth with a throw of 20.10 meters (65-11.50 ft.).
Champagnie rounded out the Gophers' runner-up finishes with a career-best 4,155 points in the pentathlon, improving her mark at third among all-time Gophers in the event; she clocked a PR of 8.39 seconds in the pentathlon 60-meter hurdles to move into third in program history in the event. Champagnie's runner-up pentathlon showing also included a winning shot put mark of 14.26 meters (46‑09.50 ft.) and an 800-meter PR of 2:25.60.
Lexi Kiefer cleared an indoor career-best 4.05 meters (13‑03.50 ft.) to place fourth in pole vault and improve her mark at eighth among all-time Gophers, and Minnesota's distance medley relay team of Sophie Schmitz, Lauren Hansen, Libby Halbmaier, and Anastasia Korzenowski picked up two points with a seventh-place time of 11:36.19.
Amira Young advanced to Saturday's finals in both the 60 meters and the 200 meters, improving on her Minnesota program record with a time of 23.64 seconds in the 200 meters. Octavia Cato joined her in securing a place in the 60-meter dash final while Lexi Romero climbed into a tie for fourth in Minnesota history with a 10th-place time of 24.21 seconds in the 200 meters.
Rachel Schow, Janielle Josephs, and Val Larson also used career-best times to run their way into Saturday's finals. Schow ran a career-best 8.39 seconds to move on in the 60-meter hurdles and tie for third in Minnesota history while Josephs clocked a 400-meter PR of 54.48 seconds to advance and move into fifth among all-time Gophers. Larson moved on in the 600 meters with a career-best time of 1:29.15, improving her mark at fourth among all-time Gophers.
Women's B1G Scoring Finishes
2nd - Ayesha Champagnie, pentathlon (8 points)
2nd - Nayoka Clunis, weight throw (8 points)
2nd - Bethany Hasz, 3,000 meters (8 points)
4th - Abby Kohut-Jackson, 3,000 meters (5 points)
4th - Lexi Kiefer, pole vault (5 points)
6th - Tess Keyzers, weight throw (3 points)
7th - Sophie Schmitz, Lauren Hansen, Libby Halbmaier, and Anastasia Korzenowski, distance medley relay (2 points)
Men's Day One Highlights
On the men's side, the Gophers throwers led the way on the opening day of competition at the SPIRE Institute with 16 of the team's 33 points coming in the men's weight throw.
Kieran McKeag paced the event for the Maroon & Gold, earning Second Team All-Big Ten honors with a second-place performance at 22.05 meters (72-04.25 ft.). Kaleb Siekmeier added a fifth-place showing at 21.65 meters (71-00.50 ft.) while Jon Nerdal came in sixth at 21.39 meters (70-02.25 ft.). Connor Rousemiller added an eighth-place finish for Minnesota at 20.72 meters (67-11.75) – moving into 10th all-time at the University of Minnesota while all four scorers for the Maroon & Gold are now ranked among the program's all-time top 10.
The Gophers also featured multiple scorers in the men's long jump as Erik Eckleben finished third in his Big Ten championships debut at 7.41 meters (24-03.75 ft.) with Mason Roomes coming in sixth at 7.20 meters (23-07.50 ft.).
On the track, Alec Basten started the Maroon & Gold off with a sixth-place performance in the 3,000 meters, running 8:16.37 at the SPIRE Institute. The distance medley relay team of Shane Streich, Jackson Wellenstein, Dawson LaRance and Jordan MacIntosh later added five team points with a fourth-place showing at 9:45.43.
Additionally, the Maroon & Gold pushed several student-athletes through preliminary events on Friday with Elliott Davis qualifying in the 400 meters behind a time of 47.04 – Minnesota's fastest time of the season and the ninth fastest time in program history. Wellenstein also moved on to the finals after running 47.19.
The Gophers pushed three runners through in the 600 meters as Luke Trapp ran 1:18.75, Josh Tracy ran 1:18.83 and Ben Psicihulis clocked a 1:18.84. Streich and LaRance also moved on in the 800 meters with Streich posting a time of 1:52.77 and LaRance running 1:51.96. The Gophers also carried a pair of runners into the men's mile final on Saturday after Owen Hoeft ran 4:09.00 and MacIntosh ran 4:08.91 in preliminary action. Kion Benjamin moved on in the 60-meter dash at 6.81.
Finally, Teddy Frid sits in seventh place in the heptathlon through four events with 3,005 points.
Men's B1G Scoring Finishes
2nd - Kieran McKeag, weight throw (8 points)
3rd - Erik Eckleben, long jump (6 points)
4th - Shane Streich, Jackson Wellenstein, Dawson LaRance, Jordan MacIntosh, distance medley relay (5 points)
5th - Kaleb Siekmeier, weight throw (4 points)
6th - Jon Nerdal, weight throw (3 points)
6th - Alec Basten, 3,000 meters (3 points)
6th - Mason Roomes, long jump (3 points)
8th - Connor Rousemiller, weight throw (1 point)
Up Next: B1G Day Two
Action continues at the B1G Championships on Saturday, beginning at 10 a.m. CT.
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The Gopher women lead the team competition with 39 points through six events scored with Indiana (37 points) and Penn State (32 points) rounding out the top three. On the men's side, Minnesota is second with 33 points and trails only Indiana (48.5 points).
Women's Day One Highlights
The Gopher women earned three runner-up showings to kick off the B1G Championships as Bethany Hasz (3,000 meters), Nayoka Clunis (weight throw), and Ayesha Champagnie (pentathlon) each placed second in their respective events. The Maroon & Gold posted multiple scoring finishes in both the 3,000 meters and the weight throw to make up the team's top events on day one at the meet.
Hasz finished second in the 3,000 meters in 9:24.74 and secured eight points for the Gophers while Abby Kohut-Jackson finished fourth in 9:32.94 and earned five points in the team race. They both also advanced to Saturday's mile final as well.
The Gophers also had multiple scorers in weight throw, totaling 11 points in the event. Clunis recorded a career-best throw of 22.13 meters (72-07.25) to finish second at the meet and improve her second-ranked mark in Minnesota history while Tess Keyzers finished sixth with a throw of 20.10 meters (65-11.50 ft.).
Champagnie rounded out the Gophers' runner-up finishes with a career-best 4,155 points in the pentathlon, improving her mark at third among all-time Gophers in the event; she clocked a PR of 8.39 seconds in the pentathlon 60-meter hurdles to move into third in program history in the event. Champagnie's runner-up pentathlon showing also included a winning shot put mark of 14.26 meters (46‑09.50 ft.) and an 800-meter PR of 2:25.60.
Lexi Kiefer cleared an indoor career-best 4.05 meters (13‑03.50 ft.) to place fourth in pole vault and improve her mark at eighth among all-time Gophers, and Minnesota's distance medley relay team of Sophie Schmitz, Lauren Hansen, Libby Halbmaier, and Anastasia Korzenowski picked up two points with a seventh-place time of 11:36.19.
Amira Young advanced to Saturday's finals in both the 60 meters and the 200 meters, improving on her Minnesota program record with a time of 23.64 seconds in the 200 meters. Octavia Cato joined her in securing a place in the 60-meter dash final while Lexi Romero climbed into a tie for fourth in Minnesota history with a 10th-place time of 24.21 seconds in the 200 meters.
Rachel Schow, Janielle Josephs, and Val Larson also used career-best times to run their way into Saturday's finals. Schow ran a career-best 8.39 seconds to move on in the 60-meter hurdles and tie for third in Minnesota history while Josephs clocked a 400-meter PR of 54.48 seconds to advance and move into fifth among all-time Gophers. Larson moved on in the 600 meters with a career-best time of 1:29.15, improving her mark at fourth among all-time Gophers.
Women's B1G Scoring Finishes
2nd - Ayesha Champagnie, pentathlon (8 points)
2nd - Nayoka Clunis, weight throw (8 points)
2nd - Bethany Hasz, 3,000 meters (8 points)
4th - Abby Kohut-Jackson, 3,000 meters (5 points)
4th - Lexi Kiefer, pole vault (5 points)
6th - Tess Keyzers, weight throw (3 points)
7th - Sophie Schmitz, Lauren Hansen, Libby Halbmaier, and Anastasia Korzenowski, distance medley relay (2 points)
Men's Day One Highlights
On the men's side, the Gophers throwers led the way on the opening day of competition at the SPIRE Institute with 16 of the team's 33 points coming in the men's weight throw.
Kieran McKeag paced the event for the Maroon & Gold, earning Second Team All-Big Ten honors with a second-place performance at 22.05 meters (72-04.25 ft.). Kaleb Siekmeier added a fifth-place showing at 21.65 meters (71-00.50 ft.) while Jon Nerdal came in sixth at 21.39 meters (70-02.25 ft.). Connor Rousemiller added an eighth-place finish for Minnesota at 20.72 meters (67-11.75) – moving into 10th all-time at the University of Minnesota while all four scorers for the Maroon & Gold are now ranked among the program's all-time top 10.
The Gophers also featured multiple scorers in the men's long jump as Erik Eckleben finished third in his Big Ten championships debut at 7.41 meters (24-03.75 ft.) with Mason Roomes coming in sixth at 7.20 meters (23-07.50 ft.).
On the track, Alec Basten started the Maroon & Gold off with a sixth-place performance in the 3,000 meters, running 8:16.37 at the SPIRE Institute. The distance medley relay team of Shane Streich, Jackson Wellenstein, Dawson LaRance and Jordan MacIntosh later added five team points with a fourth-place showing at 9:45.43.
Additionally, the Maroon & Gold pushed several student-athletes through preliminary events on Friday with Elliott Davis qualifying in the 400 meters behind a time of 47.04 – Minnesota's fastest time of the season and the ninth fastest time in program history. Wellenstein also moved on to the finals after running 47.19.
The Gophers pushed three runners through in the 600 meters as Luke Trapp ran 1:18.75, Josh Tracy ran 1:18.83 and Ben Psicihulis clocked a 1:18.84. Streich and LaRance also moved on in the 800 meters with Streich posting a time of 1:52.77 and LaRance running 1:51.96. The Gophers also carried a pair of runners into the men's mile final on Saturday after Owen Hoeft ran 4:09.00 and MacIntosh ran 4:08.91 in preliminary action. Kion Benjamin moved on in the 60-meter dash at 6.81.
Finally, Teddy Frid sits in seventh place in the heptathlon through four events with 3,005 points.
Men's B1G Scoring Finishes
2nd - Kieran McKeag, weight throw (8 points)
3rd - Erik Eckleben, long jump (6 points)
4th - Shane Streich, Jackson Wellenstein, Dawson LaRance, Jordan MacIntosh, distance medley relay (5 points)
5th - Kaleb Siekmeier, weight throw (4 points)
6th - Jon Nerdal, weight throw (3 points)
6th - Alec Basten, 3,000 meters (3 points)
6th - Mason Roomes, long jump (3 points)
8th - Connor Rousemiller, weight throw (1 point)
Up Next: B1G Day Two
Action continues at the B1G Championships on Saturday, beginning at 10 a.m. CT.
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