Three BSU records fall on Day 2 of NSIC meet

February 25, 2006

BEMIDJI, Minn. - The Bemidji State University men's track and field team was unable to hold on to its first place standing as the 2006 NSIC Indoor Track and Field Championships came to an end on Saturday at the Gillett Recreation Fitness Center. The men were edged by the Wayne State College men's team, which had a strong finish on the track on its way to the first NSIC indoor championship in school history.

The men finished in second place for the second consecutive year as they collected 154.5 team points. The women again finished fifth in the team standings with 63 points.

Day 2 of the conference championships began with the completion of the field events. After breaking the BSU record in the long jump on Friday, Rodney Williams captured another first place in the jumping events, this time in the triple jump. Williams' distance of 46-11 3/4 broke the former BSU record of 46-1 1/4 set Mark Nordell in 2003. With his performance in the event, Williams is now ranked 22nd in the nation.

The men's throwers also continued their domination over the rest of the NSIC. On Friday the group consisting of Joe Remitz, Justin Cox, Adam Wilson and Phil McCollam collected 22 team points in the shot put, but, managed to out-do themselves by accumulating a total of 26 points in the weight throw.

Cox won the event with his toss of 55-3 3/4 but was trailed closely by Wilson (55-2 3/4), Remitz (54-6) and McCollam (51-2 3/4), who finished in second, third and fifth, respectively. The group was divided by Minnesota State University, Moorhead's Andrew Haak, who finished in fourth place for the Dragons with his toss of 51-7 3/4.

On the track for the Beavers, just two athletes garnered first place finishes.

Collecting the first top finish for BSU on the day was Todd Zeidler. Zeidler ran in the final heat of the men's 600-meter run, claiming a first place finish in his heat and the event with his time of 1:23.53. Zeidler was also a member of the men's 1600-meter relay team that finished in second with their time of 3:27.16.

Leah Grabil captured the only first place finish for the BSU women's team as she finished the 200-meter dash just one, one-hundredth of a second ahead of Minnesota State University, Moorhead's Katie Flemming, turning in a time of 26.19.

Along with Williams' new school record, Bemidji State also saw two of its record fall on the track.

Shelby Hougen finished the women's 400-meter dash in school-record time, crossing the finish line with a time of 59.31. Hougen finished second in the event but replaces the old BSU record established in 1996 by Amber Bohman.

Before suiting up for BSU's basketball game against Winona State University on Saturday, Nicole Friend laced up her track shoes, setting a new school record in the women's 600-meter dash. Friends time of 1:39.62 earned her a second place finish in the event and replaces Shelby McCrady's 2004 time of 1:40.90 atop the BSU record books.

The NSIC saw two of its records fall on Friday, and they were accompanied by three more on the final day of competition at the conference championships.

MSU-Moorhead's Jennifer Hensel cleared the 13-1 1/2 mark in the pole vault, shattering the former NSIC record of 12-0 previously set by MSU-Moorhead's Aaron Clark in 2000. Hensel's height in the event was good enough for first place in the NSIC and gives her the best mark in the nation among NCAA Division II athletes. In just her freshman year, Hensel was ranked second in the nation entering the conference championships.

Emily King of Winona State University also moved into the NSIC record books after her performance in the women's weight throw. King's toss of 61-4 was more than five feet further than the rest of the competition and broke the old conference record of 59-5 1/2 previously set by MSU-Moorhead's Belinda Eastlack in 2004. With her winning throw, King improved her current second place standing in the nation.

In the 5000-meter run, Northern State University's Jeremy VanVeen garnered a first place finish as he crossed the finish line in 15:22.89, quick enough to break an NSIC record in the event. The old record, previously held by Wayne State University's Andy Tucknott, was 15:26.83, set back in 2001.

For most of the athletes competing in the conference championships, it was their last indoor meet of the season. However, a few select athletes will advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships, scheduled to take place in Boston, Mass., on March 10-11. A complete list of athletes attending the national championships is expected to be released by the NCAA late next week.

Individual conference awards will be announced by the NSIC on Monday at 12 p.m.

Final Team Standings
Men: 1. Wayne State College (166); 2. Bemidji State University (154.5); 3. Northern State University (119); 4. Concordia University, St. Paul (74.5); 5. Minnesota State University, Moorhead (42)
Women: 1. Winona State University (132); 2. Wayne State College (122); 3. Minnesota State University, Moorhead (118); 4. Northern State University (73); 5. Bemidji State University (63); 6. Concordia University, St. Paul (49)

--bsu--

OTHER BEMIDJI STATE FINISHES: (according to the schedule of events)
FIELD EVENTS
Men's Weight Throw
1. Justin Cox (BSU, 55-3 3/4)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Adam Wilson (55-2 3/4); 3. Joe Remitz (54-6); 5. Phil McCollam (51-2 3/4)

Men's Triple Jump
1. Rodney Williams (BSU, 46-11 3/4)
Other BSU finishes - 6. Tommy Crummy (42-6); 7. Mark Nordell (42-4 3/4); 10. Nate Bahr (40-1 3/4)

Women's Pole Vault
1. Jennifer Hensel (MSUM, 13-1 1/2)
Other BSU finishes - 5. Angela Miller (10-2); t-9. Katie McCrae (9-8)

Women's Weight Throw
1. Emily King (Winona State University, 61-4)
Other BSU finishes - 8. Sheena Devine (46-5 1/4); 9. Sara Olson (44-8 1/4); 11. Libby Schneider (38-7 3/4)

Women's Triple Jump
1. Gretchen Harty (Winona State University, 37-7 3/4)
Other BSU finishes - 4. Shelby Hougen (35-6 1/2); 7. Rebecca Hougen (33-2); 8. Rachel Hendrickson (31-3 1/4); 9. Kristen Mitteness (30-6 1/4)

TRACK EVENTS
Men's Mile Run
1. Jeremy VanVeen (Northern State University, 4:21.46)
Other BSU finishes - Matt Bischof (4:35.81)

Women's Mile Run
1. Amanda Mueller (CSP, 5:23.39)
Other BSU finishes - 3. Christa Pribula (5:26.06)

Men's 55 Meter Hurdles
1. Jake Hamik (Northern State University, 7.85)
Other BSU finishes - 7. Michael Hougen (8.52)

Women's 55 Meter Hurdles
1. Jessica Devine (Winona State University, 8.39)
Other BSU finishes - none

Men's 400 Meter Dash
1. Matt Eicheldinger (CSP, 50.77)
Other BSU finishes - 3. James Winsor (51.05); 8. Tristan White (52.12)

Women's 400 Meter Dash
1. Deidra Faber (Winona State University, 58.24)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Shelby Hougen (59.31)

Men's 600 Meter Dash
1. Todd Zeidler (BSU, 1:23.53)
Other BSU finishes - 11. Stefan Bischof (1:29.68); 13. Michael Hougen (1:30.74)

Women's 600 Meter Dash
1. Erin Oswald (Wayne State College, 1:37.49)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Nicole Friend (1:39.62); 11. Kristen Mittness (1:49.05)

Men's 55 Meter Dash
1. Adrian Perryman (CSP, 6.46)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Jonathon Hawks (6.49); 4. Ben Hopkins (6.62)

Women's 55 Meter Dash
1. Jennifer Hensel (MSUM, 7.48)
Other BSU finishes - 6. M'Kelle Tomberlin (7.59)

Men's 800 Meter Run
1. Ben Jansen (Wayne State College, 1:56.73)
Other BSU finishes - none

Women's 800 Meter Run
1. Deidra Faber (Winona State University, 2:27.86)
Other BSU finishes - 6. Shelby Hougen (2:37.09)

Men's 1000 Meter Run
1. Matt Schneider (Wayne State College, 2:37.11)
Other BSU finishes - 5. Scotty Anderson (2:42.17)

Women's 1000 Meter Run
1. Erin Oswald (Wayne State College (3:16.12
Other BSU finishes - none

Men's 200 Meter Dash
1. Adrian Perryman (CSP, 22.51)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Ben Hopkins (22.70); 4. Jonathon Hawks (22.87); 6. Tristan White (23.13)

Women's 200 Meter Dash
1. Leah Grabil (BSU, 26.19)
Other BSU finishes - none

Men's 5000 Meter Run
1. Jeremy VanVeen (Northern State University, 15.22.89)
Other BSU finishes - none

Women's 5000 Meter Run
1. Nicole McCoy (Wayne State College, 18:33.17)
Other BSU finishes - none

Men's 1600 Meter Relay
1. Concordia University, St. Paul (3:25.01)
Other BSU finishes - 2. Bemidji State University (3:27.16)

Women's 1600 Meter Relay
1. Winona State University (4:05.30)
Other BSU finishes - Bemidji State University (4:06.01)