Friday, January 18
Bozeman, MT
4:30 PM
Montana State University
vs
MONTANA STATE DUAL MEET INVITATIONAL
Montana State opens the 2013 season on Friday
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Bobcat Track & Field Preview
1/17/2013 10:10:00 AM | Track & Field
2013 season officially opens on Friday at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational
With the 2013 season just a few days away from its official opening for Montana State Track & Field, the coaching staff and student-athletes are eager to begin competition with a loaded and talented roster. The Bobcats return several All-Big Sky Conference performers along with a motivated group of newcomers in each of the areas of competition and expectations are certainly running high.
“We have a lot of great leadership within our group this year,” said head coach Dale Kennedy, now in his 31st year of coaching. “I think both sides have their sights set pretty high and this particular crew, coaches and athletes included, has the ability to achieve those goals.”
SPRINTS
The men return six upperclassmen, including three all-conference sprinters. Junior Chris Wilson had a huge 2012, earning two individual Big Sky titles (indoor 60m dash, outdoor 100m dash) and anchored the 4x100 relay that smashed the program record. The Great Falls, Mont. native also holds program records in the 55 (6.32), 60 (6.80) and the 100 (10.39).
Joining Wilson as seasoned returnees are Nick Melone, Gage Pickering and Michael Nguyen who enter their third season as Bobcats. Melone and Pickering teamed up with Wilson, along with Jeff Mohl in the conference championship outdoor 4x100 relay.
Slater Powell also returns to the sprints and hurdles, following a ruptured Achilles' tendon injury at the end of the 2012 indoor season. Aaron Johnston will also be looked to for veteran depth, as well.
Newcomers John Daubert and Michael Tobin will be expected to make an immediate impact with the sprinters. Most notably, Michael Tobin, a transfer from Santa Monica College, comes to Bozeman with impressively fast times and was named the Athlete of the Year while at SMC. Daubert was a two-time state champion in the 400 at Billings Senior and should transition well to college competition.
The women returned a full slate of sprint talent and have the ability to vie for several top spots among the Big Sky. Katie Niemeir and Maddie Fuchs return for their senior seasons and will continue to ride the momentum of their respective breakout junior year. Niemeir placed sixth in the 60 hurdles in 2012 and was part of the fourth place indoor 4x400. In outdoor, she was all-Big Sky in the 100 hurdles, 400 hurdles and the 4x400. Fuchs made huge strides, literally and figuratively in her junior campaign, placing second overall in the outdoor 400 hurdles, finishing in 59.85, less than two seconds from the program record. Fuchs was named the team's Most Outstanding Track Athlete for the 2012 outdoor season.
Junior Lierin Flanagan was an All-Big Sky honoree, after coming third in the 800 at the outdoor championships last spring. She was also a part of the outdoor 4x400 relay that placed second.
Chantel Jaeger should also be a front runner, after posting several lifetime bests as a freshman in 2012. Jaeger will be joined by Sonia Antar and Chelsea Bourque who also had strong seasons for MSU.
Returning to the track after injury-plagued freshman seasons are Paige Squire and Iris Hardarson, both of whom had outstanding prep careers with fast times.
“This is probably the deepest group of long sprinters in all my time at Montana State,” Kennedy said. “There are a ton of accolades from 2012 alone so we have pretty high hopes for what we could see from this crew.”
DISTANCE
Grant Grosvenor returns for his sophomore season after winning both the indoor and outdoor 800 at the Big Sky Championships and will anchor the middle distance runners this year. He'll get support from teammates Matt Tex and Forrest Jarvi who have been mainstays in the middle distance events throughout their careers. Freshman Marcus Swan will also compete in the middle distance events and should be able to post points for the Bobcats.
In the long distance events, four returnees will highlight this season's roster along with a newcomer to complete a very strong quintet of runners. Jacob Kirk is the only Big Sky point scorer from 2012 but will be heartily supplemented by Mike Asay, Seth Garbett and Trevor Polson. All three saw much success in cross country this past fall and will seek to keep that momentum on the rise. The fifth member of this crew is transfer Cristian Soratos, who led the Bobcat harriers this fall before dealing with injury in the second half of the season.
Heather Haug returns for her final stint of eligibility as a Bobcat this indoor season. Haug has multiple all-conference nods and is the current record holder in the 3,000 steeplechase and 1,500 and ranks second in the indoor 800 and mile. Haug has the potential to reach the NCAA Championships, based on her talents on the track.
Heather Demorest is the other lone returner to the women's distance corps. Demorest led the Blue and Gold on the cross country course this fall, seeing huge time drops for the Darby, Mont. native. Cross country teammate Megan Beam will compete in her first indoor season after a solid fall, as well. Freshmen Rachel Atwood and Rachel Sullivan will appear in their first indoor season after profiting from fall cross country.
JUMPS/MULTIS
Jeff Mohl headlines a talented group of jumpers and multis athletes. The Red Lodge, Mont. native already began his senior season at the MSU Combined Events Invitational where he won the heptathlon with a lifetime best score of 5,590. His score automatically qualifies him for the 2013 Big Sky Indoor Championships in February. Mohl was the Big Sky Championships Outstanding Male Performer, as well as the Mountain Region Field Athlete of the Year for the 2012 outdoor season. Mohl currently ranks second in both the heptathlon and decathlon.
Also in the multis, Powhattan Williamson is prepped for his sophomore season. Williamson earned valuable experience as a freshman, placing among the top ten at both the indoor and outdoor championships in the multis.
Both Mohl and Williamson will add their talents individually in the high jump, long jump and pole vault.
In the pole vault, Ryan Kropp returns, following a second place finish in the outdoor pole vault at the 2012 conference meet.
Kevin Close, Kyler Felton, Jake Mushaben and newcomers Shae Stein and Jordan Franklin will contribute in the jumps, as well.
The women return three all-conference jumpers/multis athletes and will seek many more over the course of 2013. Amber Amsbaugh leads the way after winning the outdoor high jump in 2012 and placed fourth in the indoor event. Joining her in the high jump will be Carley McCutchen, Sarah McGree, Sadie McMillan and Kortnee Barrett who are four of the multis mainstays for Montana State.
Rebekka Chambers will seek her first conference title in the pole vault after placing fourth and fifth, respectively in the indoor and outdoor event last season. Returnees Adessa Durglo and Libby Madison will also add points in the vault, as well as competing in the long and triple jumps.
A slew of newcomers will make their debut as Bobcats in all the jumps events, with hopes of making an immediate impact. Adelheid Langner, Sami Risa and Casey Teska will vie for the podium in the pole vault. Trina Heide, Alisa Gilchrist, Emily Reddish and Sarah Snoozy will add immediate depth to the long jump, triple jump and high jump events.
THROWS
The Bobcat Men throwers have a stacked roster for 2013 with an effective mix of veterans and rookies. Leader David Phillips returns to the indoor season after redshirting 2012 and will hopefully pick up right where he left off. Phillips won the Big Sky indoor shot put and weight throw in 2011, as well as the outdoor hammer. In 2012, he came in second in the hammer throw and third in both the shot put and discus.
Phillips will be joined by Trevor Gilreath, who came in second in the shot put last spring and won the indoor shot put last season. The dynamic duo will also get leverage from Sean Ferriter, Derek Marsh and Eddie Stevenson who have all seen huge improvements over the last year.
Freshmen Jarek Jensen, Connor Kelly, Calvin Root and Zach Sharp bring strong prep careers and state championship titles to Bozeman and will be looked to for big improvements as they transition to the college environment.
Kristi VandeBergh enters her sophomore season with big shoes to fill, following the graduation of Amanda Murphy. VandeBergh saw much improvement in the outdoor season after placing fourth in the Big Sky shot put. Returnees Mary Koppy and Madison Wills will also be joined by freshmen Kelsey Davis, Britnee Grimstad and Aubree Haskins.
The Bobcats will officially open the season on Friday, Jan. 18, at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational. The Bobcats will face off in a scored meet with rival Montana and Big Sky Conference member Idaho State. Last year, the men swept both schools, defeating the Griz, 91-55 and the Bengals, 89.5-58.5. The women were nipped by Montana, 75-73 but won over Idaho State, 85-60.
Field events are slated for a 4:30 p.m. start and running events begin at 5:30 p.m. A full meet schedule is available and @msubobcats will tweet out live results.
“We have a lot of great leadership within our group this year,” said head coach Dale Kennedy, now in his 31st year of coaching. “I think both sides have their sights set pretty high and this particular crew, coaches and athletes included, has the ability to achieve those goals.”
SPRINTS
The men return six upperclassmen, including three all-conference sprinters. Junior Chris Wilson had a huge 2012, earning two individual Big Sky titles (indoor 60m dash, outdoor 100m dash) and anchored the 4x100 relay that smashed the program record. The Great Falls, Mont. native also holds program records in the 55 (6.32), 60 (6.80) and the 100 (10.39).
Joining Wilson as seasoned returnees are Nick Melone, Gage Pickering and Michael Nguyen who enter their third season as Bobcats. Melone and Pickering teamed up with Wilson, along with Jeff Mohl in the conference championship outdoor 4x100 relay.
Slater Powell also returns to the sprints and hurdles, following a ruptured Achilles' tendon injury at the end of the 2012 indoor season. Aaron Johnston will also be looked to for veteran depth, as well.
Newcomers John Daubert and Michael Tobin will be expected to make an immediate impact with the sprinters. Most notably, Michael Tobin, a transfer from Santa Monica College, comes to Bozeman with impressively fast times and was named the Athlete of the Year while at SMC. Daubert was a two-time state champion in the 400 at Billings Senior and should transition well to college competition.
The women returned a full slate of sprint talent and have the ability to vie for several top spots among the Big Sky. Katie Niemeir and Maddie Fuchs return for their senior seasons and will continue to ride the momentum of their respective breakout junior year. Niemeir placed sixth in the 60 hurdles in 2012 and was part of the fourth place indoor 4x400. In outdoor, she was all-Big Sky in the 100 hurdles, 400 hurdles and the 4x400. Fuchs made huge strides, literally and figuratively in her junior campaign, placing second overall in the outdoor 400 hurdles, finishing in 59.85, less than two seconds from the program record. Fuchs was named the team's Most Outstanding Track Athlete for the 2012 outdoor season.
Junior Lierin Flanagan was an All-Big Sky honoree, after coming third in the 800 at the outdoor championships last spring. She was also a part of the outdoor 4x400 relay that placed second.
Chantel Jaeger should also be a front runner, after posting several lifetime bests as a freshman in 2012. Jaeger will be joined by Sonia Antar and Chelsea Bourque who also had strong seasons for MSU.
Returning to the track after injury-plagued freshman seasons are Paige Squire and Iris Hardarson, both of whom had outstanding prep careers with fast times.
“This is probably the deepest group of long sprinters in all my time at Montana State,” Kennedy said. “There are a ton of accolades from 2012 alone so we have pretty high hopes for what we could see from this crew.”
DISTANCE
Grant Grosvenor returns for his sophomore season after winning both the indoor and outdoor 800 at the Big Sky Championships and will anchor the middle distance runners this year. He'll get support from teammates Matt Tex and Forrest Jarvi who have been mainstays in the middle distance events throughout their careers. Freshman Marcus Swan will also compete in the middle distance events and should be able to post points for the Bobcats.
In the long distance events, four returnees will highlight this season's roster along with a newcomer to complete a very strong quintet of runners. Jacob Kirk is the only Big Sky point scorer from 2012 but will be heartily supplemented by Mike Asay, Seth Garbett and Trevor Polson. All three saw much success in cross country this past fall and will seek to keep that momentum on the rise. The fifth member of this crew is transfer Cristian Soratos, who led the Bobcat harriers this fall before dealing with injury in the second half of the season.
Heather Haug returns for her final stint of eligibility as a Bobcat this indoor season. Haug has multiple all-conference nods and is the current record holder in the 3,000 steeplechase and 1,500 and ranks second in the indoor 800 and mile. Haug has the potential to reach the NCAA Championships, based on her talents on the track.
Heather Demorest is the other lone returner to the women's distance corps. Demorest led the Blue and Gold on the cross country course this fall, seeing huge time drops for the Darby, Mont. native. Cross country teammate Megan Beam will compete in her first indoor season after a solid fall, as well. Freshmen Rachel Atwood and Rachel Sullivan will appear in their first indoor season after profiting from fall cross country.
JUMPS/MULTIS
Jeff Mohl headlines a talented group of jumpers and multis athletes. The Red Lodge, Mont. native already began his senior season at the MSU Combined Events Invitational where he won the heptathlon with a lifetime best score of 5,590. His score automatically qualifies him for the 2013 Big Sky Indoor Championships in February. Mohl was the Big Sky Championships Outstanding Male Performer, as well as the Mountain Region Field Athlete of the Year for the 2012 outdoor season. Mohl currently ranks second in both the heptathlon and decathlon.
Also in the multis, Powhattan Williamson is prepped for his sophomore season. Williamson earned valuable experience as a freshman, placing among the top ten at both the indoor and outdoor championships in the multis.
Both Mohl and Williamson will add their talents individually in the high jump, long jump and pole vault.
In the pole vault, Ryan Kropp returns, following a second place finish in the outdoor pole vault at the 2012 conference meet.
Kevin Close, Kyler Felton, Jake Mushaben and newcomers Shae Stein and Jordan Franklin will contribute in the jumps, as well.
The women return three all-conference jumpers/multis athletes and will seek many more over the course of 2013. Amber Amsbaugh leads the way after winning the outdoor high jump in 2012 and placed fourth in the indoor event. Joining her in the high jump will be Carley McCutchen, Sarah McGree, Sadie McMillan and Kortnee Barrett who are four of the multis mainstays for Montana State.
Rebekka Chambers will seek her first conference title in the pole vault after placing fourth and fifth, respectively in the indoor and outdoor event last season. Returnees Adessa Durglo and Libby Madison will also add points in the vault, as well as competing in the long and triple jumps.
A slew of newcomers will make their debut as Bobcats in all the jumps events, with hopes of making an immediate impact. Adelheid Langner, Sami Risa and Casey Teska will vie for the podium in the pole vault. Trina Heide, Alisa Gilchrist, Emily Reddish and Sarah Snoozy will add immediate depth to the long jump, triple jump and high jump events.
THROWS
The Bobcat Men throwers have a stacked roster for 2013 with an effective mix of veterans and rookies. Leader David Phillips returns to the indoor season after redshirting 2012 and will hopefully pick up right where he left off. Phillips won the Big Sky indoor shot put and weight throw in 2011, as well as the outdoor hammer. In 2012, he came in second in the hammer throw and third in both the shot put and discus.
Phillips will be joined by Trevor Gilreath, who came in second in the shot put last spring and won the indoor shot put last season. The dynamic duo will also get leverage from Sean Ferriter, Derek Marsh and Eddie Stevenson who have all seen huge improvements over the last year.
Freshmen Jarek Jensen, Connor Kelly, Calvin Root and Zach Sharp bring strong prep careers and state championship titles to Bozeman and will be looked to for big improvements as they transition to the college environment.
Kristi VandeBergh enters her sophomore season with big shoes to fill, following the graduation of Amanda Murphy. VandeBergh saw much improvement in the outdoor season after placing fourth in the Big Sky shot put. Returnees Mary Koppy and Madison Wills will also be joined by freshmen Kelsey Davis, Britnee Grimstad and Aubree Haskins.
The Bobcats will officially open the season on Friday, Jan. 18, at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational. The Bobcats will face off in a scored meet with rival Montana and Big Sky Conference member Idaho State. Last year, the men swept both schools, defeating the Griz, 91-55 and the Bengals, 89.5-58.5. The women were nipped by Montana, 75-73 but won over Idaho State, 85-60.
Field events are slated for a 4:30 p.m. start and running events begin at 5:30 p.m. A full meet schedule is available and @msubobcats will tweet out live results.
Tuesday, May 14
Thursday, August 16
Monday, June 18
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