May 5, 2007

MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The Bemidji State University men’s and women’s track and field teams traveled to Moorhead, Minn. on this soggy Saturday for the Ron Masanz Invitational--the teams’ final tune-up before the 2007 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Championships May 11-12.

All-American thrower Sheena Devine (Jr., Harris Minn.) led all BSU participants placing in three events including a first place finish in the shot put with a toss of 46-06.50. She remains unbeaten by a single NCAA Division II opponent in the event this year. The junior also took third place in the discus throw posting her best mark of the season (132-07) moving her up to fifth place on the NSIC outdoor performance list and took fourth in the hammer throw stretching the tape to 142-09.

Shelby Hougen (Jr., Bemidji, Minn.) equaled her school-record time of 63:05 in the 400-meter hurdles to place second while Nicole Friend (Sr., International Falls, Minn.) claim second place on the javelin throw (117-09).

On the men’s side of the competition, Todd Zeidler (Sr., Plentywood, Mont.), Jon Clemons (So., Princeton, Minn.) and Justin Cox (Sr., Menahga, Minn.) each garnered second place in their respective events to pace the Beavers.

Cox earned a top-six spot in two events. In addition to taking second in the hammer throw with a distance of 158-05, he also finished fourth in the discus (154-00) coming up just short of his season bests in each event.

Zeidler clocked a 1:57.24 in the 800-meter run to finished second while Clemons took second in the high jump clearing 6-2.00.

This weekend, the squads will again travel to Moorhead, Minn. for the 2007 NSIC Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The BSU men enter the championships with 16 points after Zac Preble (Fr., Coleraine, Minn.) and Michael Hougen (Sr., Bemidji, Minn.) finished first and third respectively in last weekend’s decathlon. The women are currently in second with 10 points after Friend’s heptathlon title.

--bsu--