Men, Women sweep MIAC track titles on Saturday

March 5, 2005
For the sixth year in a row it was a St. Thomas men's and women's sweep of the team championships of the MIAC Indoor Track & Field meet. The two-day meet finished Saturday in Moorhead.

In the 21-year history of the event, the Tommie men have now won 21 championships, and the UST women have won 18.

The 21 titles broke an MIAC all-sport consecutive title record as it surpassed St. Olaf's 20-year men's swimming reign as conference champs.

It was St. Thomas' first MIAC men's team championship of 2004-05 after runner-up finishes in golf, football, basketball and hockey. The women's title was UST's second as the women golfers won last fall. It's the 51st MIAC team crown in cross country and track for 25-year head coach Joe Sweeney.

Coach Steve Mathre's men scored 191 to beat runnerup St. Olaf by 78 points. The Toms started the last day with a 37-point lead then won five of the nine events on Saturday including both relays, the high jump and the 1,000. They also had four second-place finishes.

On the meet, UST received points from 20 different athletes, scored in 18 of 20 events, swept all three relays, had six individual firsts and six seconds. They did it without defending pole vault champ Matt Schroeder, who missed the competition with an injury.

Senior Carson Glad swept the 200 and 400 and ran on the winning 4x400 relay. He now has 19 career MIAC titles in relays and individual races. Sophomore P.J. Theisen had a hand in 46 points as he won the long jump, was second in the triple jump and 600, and ran on the winning 800 and 4x400 relays.

Saturday's highlights were a 1-2 finish in the 200 by seniors Carson (22.06) and Cassidy Glad (22.39); senior Cory Fusco's win in the 1,000 (2:30.92); a 1-2 high-jump finish by senior Joe Thomas (6-6 3-4) and junior Mike Draxton (6-4 3-4); the winning 4x400 relay of Carson Glad, Theisen, Cassidy Glad and Jason Schwietz (3:21.26); and the winning 800 relay quartet of Theisen, Travis Birklid, Gray and Chris Mattke.

Other Saturday scorers were Theisen, second in the triple jump (NCAA provisional time of 46-10 3-4); Bryce Beckman, second in the 800 (1:55.57); Bryan Limmer (2:00.58) and Joe Hoovestol (2:00.69), 7th and 8th in the 800; Thomas, fourth in the triple jump (45-9 1-4); and Jarrod Gray and J.J. Kirby, tied for fifth in the high jump (6-0 3-4).

Final cutoffs will be made late Monday for next weekend's national meet in Bloomington, Ill. The Toms are seeded seventh in the 4x400 relay, and Thomas is tied for fifth in the high jump. others with a chance to be selected are Theisen, 14th in the tiple jump; Fusco and Beckman, 11th and 14th in the 800; and Carson Glad, 14th in the 400.

The UST women (140 points) scored 61 points in the long jump, high jump and triple jump and claimed a 23-point win over runner-up Concordia (117). The Toms scored in 14 of 20 events and had seven firsts, three seconds and two thirds.

Junior All-American Kristal Grigsby scored 39 points as she won Friday's long jump and high jump and Saturday's triple jump and scored in the 55 and 200 (sixth in 26.73). Her Saturday triple jump of 38-6 3/4 broke her own meet record from 2004, ranks fourth-best in Division III in 2005 and was 1-4 inch off the school record. Her Friday long jump of 19-0 broke the MIAC meet and all-time record and ranks first nationally.

Senior Brigid Power had a hand in 32 points as she won the 1,000 (building record 3:01.80) and the mile, anchored the runner-up distance-medley relay and was fourth in the 3,000 (10:29.26). Senior Andretta Colley contributed to 34 points as she was second in the long jump and triple jump (37-3) and ran on the runner-up distance-medley relay and the winning 800 relay. Colley ranks sixth nationally in the long jump and 17th in the triple jump.

Junior Molly Bauman was in on 29 points as she won the 55 hurdles, anchored the first-place 800 relay, was fourth in the long jump and anchored the fifth-place 4x400 relay. Her 55 hurdles time hit the NCAA provisional standard.

The winning 800 relay for the women consisted of Colley, Nkechi Alaike, Dehn and Bauman (1:47.12). The fifth-place 4x400 relay was comprised of Chapman, Alicia Wolff, Mary McKee and Bauman (4:05.15).

Other Saturday scorers for the Tommie women were Selina Dehn, seventh in the triple jump (35-1 1-4); Chelsea Guettinger, eighth in the 3,000 (10:40.19); and Christina Chapman, fourth in the 200 (26.50).

Friday's Results
Led by an all-time conference best in the long jump, the St. Thomas women won five events and holds a 24-point lead over Concordia Friday at the halfway point of the 2005 MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships in Moorhead. The meet concludes Saturday with nine other events.

With 11 of 20 events already contested, St. Thomas scored 27 points with four placewinners in the long jump and has 82 points for the day-one lead. Concordia (58), St. Mary's (53), St. Ben's (51.5), Gustavus (44), Carleton (37), Macalester (29), Hamline (25), Augsburg (24), Bethel (14.5) and St. Olaf (11) round out the team scorers.

Coach Joe Sweeney's Tommies are looking to win the MIAC meet for the sixth year in a row and 18th time in the 21-year history of the competition.

Tommie junior All-American Kristal Grigsby scored 26 points Friday. She won the long jump in a meet record and all-time MIAC best of 19-0, which is the best jump in Division III this year and is an automatic NCAA qualifying mark. Grigsby, the 2004 Division III outdoor national champ in the long jump, also won the high jump (5-3 1-4) and took third in the 55 dash (7.34). She'll compete in Saturday's triple jump and 4x400 relay.

Molly Bauman won the 55 hurdles (8.63) and Brigid Power won the mile (5:12.89) to each score 10 points. Also in the long jump, Andretta Colley was second (18-5 3-4), Bauman was fourth (17-1 1-4) and Selina Dehn was fifth (16-7 1-4).

UST also took second in the distance medley relay for eight points in 12:44.45 with Ronni Hamilton, Bauman, Meghan Mayer and Power.

Other Friday scorers were Christina Chapman, third in the 400 (59.95); Dehn, tied for fifth in the high jump (4-11 1/2); Chelsea Guettinger, seventh in the 5,000 (18:44.97).

click here for complete meet results


see men's final results here

see women's results here