Coach Shutt

Geri Woessner

The Tiger track teams had high hopes heading into the NCAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. While both did well, the men lapped the field, winning their first conference title since 1997. The women wound up fifth.

The men's championship, which came on the heels of last year's second-place finish and the 2002 indoor championship second-place finish, was won primarily on the strength of four individuals. Senior Brian Gehle (Huntsville, Ohio/Indian Lake), sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek), freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian) and sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) each scored at least 18 points in the meet, not including relays.

Gehle, who also scored more than 20 points in last year's conference meet, won the decathlon and finished second in the pole vault, third in the long jump and fifth in the 400 meters. Already with a team-best 28 individual points, Gehle also was a member of the 4x400-meter relay team that finished second to score the team eight points. He is a provisional NCAA qualifier in the decathlon.

Rumschlag was next on the Tigers with 27 points. He finished second in the long jump, fourth in the 100, third in the 200 and second in the triple jump. He was also a member of the first-place 4x100 relay team.

Gaal scored 18 points for the team, placing second in the decathlon and first in the javelin. His throw of 206 feet in the javelin was good for an NCAC and Wittenberg school record, as well as automatic qualification in the NCAA Division III Championship meet on May 23-25 in St. Paul, Minn. Gaal is currently the only Tiger track athlete, male of female, to qualify for the national meet.

Ivery won the 110 high hurdles, giving him a sweep of the event for the 2002 season. Ivery has won the indoor title each of the last two years, but he finished third in the outdoor event in 2001. He also added a third-place finish in the 400 intermediate hurdles and a seventh-place finish in the 100. Ivery is provisionally qualified for the national meet in the high hurdles.

Sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) scored 10 points for the Tigers by winning an NCAC title in the discus, finishing with a throw of 148-11. Senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) made it a Wittenberg sweep in the discus with a second-place finish. In addition, freshman Tim Nguyen (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) chipped in with a fourth in the discus and a fourth in the shot put.

In the hurdles, sophomore Derek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Greenon) turned in a second in the 400 intermediates and a fourth in the 100 highs. And the Tigers' other top-four finish was turned in by a pair of aforementioned relays. The 4x100 relay quartet of Rumschlag, sophomore Alex Yurovitsky (Lyndhurst, Ohio/Richmond Heights), junior Mark Trempe (Springfield, Ohio/St. Paris Graham) and senior Jason Jackson (Columbus, Ohio/South) finished first. The 4x400 relay foursome of sophomore Mike Torsell (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central), sophomore Demetrius Ellison (Cleveland, Ohio/Trinity), Gehle and Trempe wound up second.

On the women's side, the highlight of the meet was sophomore Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), who repeated as the NCAC Field Events Athlete of the Year. She scored a team-best 30 points by finishing first in the heptathlon with a school-record and NCAA provisional qualifying 4176 points, third in the javelin, second in the shot put, third in the long jump and running on the second-place 4x400 relay.

Two other women earned All-NCAC honors, which are awarded for top-three finishes. Sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) finished third in the 1500 and fourth in the 800, after turning in the fastest time of the meet in the qualifying race. Senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) finished third in the 800. Both were member of the 4x400 relay, which was rounded out by freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson).

The other high-scoring member of the team was sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian), who scored 15 points with a fifth in the triple jump, fifth in the 400, fourth in the long jump and seventh in the 100.

Finally, Wittenberg Men’s and Women’s Track & Field Head Coach Steve Shutt was named 2002 NCAC Coach of the Year for men’s track after his team romped to the championship by 44 points over defending champion Ohio Wesleyan. It was his first such honor.

The Tiger track teams are off to another great start in the annual NCAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships. This weekend, both hope to continue their strong early showing, as they did a year ago.

Geri Woessner

Joel Drake

Last year, Josh Guerreri and Geri Woessner claimed the decathlon and heptathlon titles respectively, both setting school records and scoring 10 points each for their teams in the overall meet standings. Brian Gehle added to the haul with a second-place finish in the decathlon.

The names have changed, only slightly, but the results were the same for the Tigers in 2002. Senior Brian Gehle (Huntsville, Ohio/Indian Lake) and sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) finished first and second respectively in the decathlon last weekend at Wooster. Gehle's mark of 6040 was good for provisional qualification to the NCAA Division III Championships next month. Meanwhile, sophomore Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) cruised to her second straight crown on the women's side, breaking her own school record in the process.

The results put the Tigers in the early lead for the team titles. Like last year, the rest of the events will be contested at Ohio Wesleyan University this Friday and Saturday.

For their performances last weekend, Gehle and Woessner were named NCAC Field Events Athletes of the Week.

Also last week, several Tiger athletes competed in the Otterbein Twilight Invitational on Wednesday, with sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) winning the discus on the men's side and senior Melanie Ziarko (Hiram, Ohio/Crestwood) taking top honors in the 5000. Then at Baldwin-Wallace on Friday, in a meet that included more than 50 schools from around the country from all divisions, several Tiger athletes turned in strong performances, including Drake and senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington), who finished fifth and sixth respectively in the discus, and sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison), who took third in the 110-meter hurdles.

Skip Ivery	Kelly Zilli

Running against some of the best teams in the state at the annual All-Ohio Championships last weekend at Otterbein College and Ohio Wesleyan University, the Tiger track teams continued to excel. The men's team finished fifth in the 17-team field and the women's team wound up 11th.

For the men, sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) became the first athlete on the team to post an NCAA Division III provisional qualifying time. Ivery, who was named the NCAC Track and Field Runner of the Week for his first-place finish at the All-Ohio Championships, hit the line in the 110-meter high hurdles in 14.83.

He wasn't the only Tiger athlete to finish strong at the meet. In addition, sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) and senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) finished second and third respectively in the hammer throw, freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian) was seventh in the long jump and fifth in the 100, sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) was second in the javelin, and senior Brian Gehle (Huntsville, Ohio/Indian Lake) was third in the long jump, fourth in the high jump and sixth in the pole vault.

For the women, sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) finished third in the 1500 and second in the 800, sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) finished eighth in the 100, eighth in the 200, sixth in the long jump and third in the triple jump, sophomore Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) wound up third in the javelin and junior Erin Zayicek (Solon, Ohio/Solon) was fourth in the hammer throw.

Nick Dewald	Kristen Mumper

It was another good week for the Tigers, as they convened for a meet on their home track for the final time in 2002 last Friday. Both the men and women claimed first-place team finishes in the Wittenberg Challenge, a competition that was shortened by thunderstorms.

For the men, junior Nick Dewald (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior) ran a strong time of 10:12.37 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to win the event by 22 seconds. Sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) captured the discus and hammer, followed closely by teammate, senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington), in both events.

For the women, sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) and senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) topped the field in the 800. Sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) swept the long jump and triple jump and sophomore Haley Warden (Loveland, Ohio/Indian Hill) posted a first in the javelin and a second in the shot put.

Sarah Weide

Nick Dewald

The Tigers ran well on their own track on Friday in a non-scoring meet that included competitors from Findlay, Kentucky State and Capital. It was the first of two Friday night meets at the Earl F. Morris Track that rings Wittenberg's Edwards-Maurer Field.

Among the top Tiger performances were those turned in by senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) and junior Nick Dewald (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior), both of whom won the steeplechase in their first time running the event.

Sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) had a personal best in the long jump, while sophomore Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), sophomore Haley Warden (Loveland, Ohio/Indian Hill) and freshman Ashley Allen (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) finished in a 1-2-3 sweep with personal bests of 107-3, 106-1 and 81-11 respectively.

Sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) had a personal best of 14.92 in the 110-meter Hurdles, a mark that was just short of an NCAA provisional standard. Freshman Jason Toman (Greenville, Ohio/Greenville) had a personal best in both hurdles events and freshman Greer Illingworth (Irvine, Calif./University) also had a personal best in the 400 Hurdles.

The Tigers had a 1-2-3 sweep in the men's long jump as freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian), senior Brian Gehle (Huntsville, Ohio/Indian Lake) and sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) all posted strong marks, backed by a personal best by junior Adrian Crane (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis). In the discus, sophomore Dorian Dixon (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy), Clyde Mayer (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) and sophomore Mike Rill (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) all had personal bests in the discus and sophomore Alex Yurovitsky (Richmond Heights, Ohio/Lyndhurst Brush) and Eric Weber (Huntington Valley, Ohio) had personal best tosses in the javelin.

Chris Silliman

Tim Gaal

Kelly Zilli

The Tiger track and field teams continue to run strong heading into the meat of the spring schedule.  Last weekend at the Gerald England Invitational at the University of Indianapolis, the Tigers were sixth out of 18 teams on the men's side and seventh of 14 teams on the women's. 

Making those strong finishes possible were a slew of outstanding individual performances. On the men's side, there were several personal best, highlighted by the performance of senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) and sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) in the discus. Silliman finished second with a throw that topped his previous best by more than 10 feet, while Drake was third with a throw that topped his previous best by more than 10 feet as well. Silliman's throw was good for provisional NCAA Division III qualification, the Tigers' first such mark in the outdoor season. 

The other top men's performance was turned in by freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian), who bettered his previous best in the triple jump by more than two feet in capturing first place in the event. He was the team's lone champion in the meet that was primarily attended by teams in higher scholarship divisions. 

Other men's personal bests were sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) in the 110-meter hurdles and discus, junior T.J. Falzone (Coverton, Conn.) in the long jump and triple jump, freshman Chris Waddle (Springfield, Ohio/Greenon) in the shot put, freshman Tim Nguyen (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) in the hammer and freshman Dorian Dixon (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) in the hammer. 

On the women's side, several personal bests were recorded by sophomore Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), managed a mark of 16-3.5 in the long jump, and freshman Hillary Brotzman (Madison, Ohio/The Andrews School) in the 100 and 200. Sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) and senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) were as strong as usual in just missing their top times in the 800 and 1500. 

In news that came out too late for last week's release, Silliman, Zilli and sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) were all named NCAC Athletes of the Week for March 25 after their performances in a meet at Defiance on March 23.

Mumper

In North Carolina, sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/PurcellMarian) turned in yet another great triple jump performance, breaking the outdoor school record en route to a second-place finish in the event after breaking the indoor record three times this year. She also finished second in the long jump.  Also performing particularly well in that event were sophomore KellyZilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter), who was second in the 800 meter run and junior LaRissa O'Neal (Indianapolis, Ind./Broad Ripple), who was third in the pole vault with a personal best mark. And another school record fell in the hammer as junior Erin Zayicek (Solon, Ohio/Solon) posted the strong mark. On the men's side in North Carolina, senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) was second in the discus with a personal best throw. In addition, freshman Greer Illingsworth (Irvine, Calif./University) had a personal best in the 400-meter hurdles.

Drake

For the women in Defiance, Mumper won the triple jump, senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) was second in the 1500 and seniorMelanie Ziarko (Hiram, Ohio/Crestwood) was runner-up in the 10,000.

Next: 3/30, Gerald England Invitational at Indianapolis

At the midway point of the 2002 season, the results have been nothing short of outstanding for the Wittenberg men's and women's track & field teams as they wrapped up the indoor portion of the schedule at the NCAC Championships. Competing at Denison last Friday and Saturday, the Tiger men finished second and the Tiger women wound up fourth.

On the men's side, sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) claimed the team's lone individual title, defending his first-place finish in the 55-meter hurdles by running a personal-best 7.80. That time is a provisional NCAA Division III championship meet qualifier. Ivery also added a persona best and fifth-place finish in the 55-meter dash.

Perhaps the best all-around performance was turned in by freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian), who finished fifth in the triple jump with a personal best mark, fifth in the long jump, second in the 55 with a personal best mark and second in the 200 in a personal best and school record time of 23.15. Rounding out his outstanding meet, Rumschlag was one-quarter of the second-place 1600-meter relay team. He was joined by sophomore Alex Yurovitsky (Richmond Heights, Ohio/Richmond Heights), sophomore Derek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Greenon) and sophomore Mike Torsell (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central). Torsell also had a sixth in the 400 and Yurovitsky  an eighth, both with personal best times, and Thompson had a personal best in the 55 hurdles.

Another outstanding all-around performance was turned in by senior Brian Gehle (Huntsville, Ohio/Indian Lake), who finished second in the pole vault and fourth in the high jump just weeks after returning from a broken foot suffered in preseason basketball. Sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) didn't place but did turn in encouraging personal bests in the high jump and long jump.

Rounding out the men's performances of note: sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) finished second in shot put with a personal best throw of 47-0.75; freshman Tim Nguyen (Groveport, Ohio/Madison) finished fifth in the shot put; freshman Clyde Mayer (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) placed sixth in the shot put; sophomore Bill Dunlap (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) had a season best in the high jump; senior Dave Hyde (Naperville, Ill./Central) turned in a personal best in the 5,000; junior Nate Henderson (Dayton, Ohio/Carroll) had a season best in the 400; and the 800 relay foursome of senior Mark Trempe (Springfield, Ohio/Greenon), Thompson, Yurovitsky and sophomore Matt Frost (South Vienna, Ohio/Northeastern) had its best time of the season.

On the women's side, the meet started off extremely well as five straight performances were personal bests. Junior Erin Zayicek (Solon, Ohio/Solon) had a two-foot improvement in the shot put; sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) bettered her school record in the triple jump en route to a third-place finish; and then all three runners in the women's 5,000, sophomore Becky Barnes (Williamsport, Ohio/Williamsport), senior Melanie Ziarko (Hiram, Ohio/Crestwood) and Natasha Malackany (Canton, Ohio/Perry), had strong runs in finishing eighth, ninth and 18th.

Sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) and Mumper had the finest all-around performances for the Tigers. Zilli captured a first-place finish in the 800 with a personal best time of 2:21.89, and she also turned in a fourth in the 1500 and a seventh in the pole vault. Senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) finished fifth in the 1500 and the 800, posting season best times in both events.
Also in the pole vault, junior LaRissa O'Neal (Indianapolis, Ind./Broad Ripple) was fourth with a season-best mark of 8-11.75, Jackie Spray (Newark, Ohio/Newark) was fifth. In the long jump, Mumper finished second with a mark of 16-7.25 and newcomer Ayisha Kinamore (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain) wound up seventh in her first collegiate meet.

Kinamore also scored points for the Tigers in the 55 hurdles with a fifth place finish, an event in which she and freshman Travette Harper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Wyoming) both had personal bests. Also posting strong finishes for the Tigers were Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) with a fourth place finish and personal best time in the 400; Mumper with a personal best time and sixth-place finish in the 55, an event in which Kinamore and freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame) also had personal bests; Mumper, Davoll and Valerius all with personal best times in the 200; and Ziarko and Jenny Brill (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) with both personal bests in the 3,000.

To top things off, all three women's relays scored points, and the 1600 quartet of Davoll, Zilli, Weide and sophomore Mary Blonder (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) came within .31 of a school record. In addition, the 800 relay foursome of Mumper, Valerius, Davoll and freshman Ashley Allen (Groveport, Ohio/Madison) finished fourth and the distance medley relay of Ziarko, Valerius, Blonder and Barnes wound up fifth.

Next:
Indoor Season Complete
Outdoor at Wilmington (N.C.)
    Spring Break Meet, 3/16-17

It was another strong week for the Wittenberg track and field teams at the DePauw/SCAC Invitational. The Tigers finished second in the men's competition and fourth in the women's. On the men's side, there was another outstanding performance from senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington), who earned NCAC Men's Track Athlete of the Week honors for his school record mark of 48-10 in the 35# weight throw. That throw is the best in the conference heading into next weekend's NCAC Indoor Track and Field Championship meet at Denison. Silliman was hardly alone in putting up big numbers at DePauw. Junior Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), freshman Tim Nguyen (Groveport, Ohio/Madison) and freshman Clyde Mayer (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) all had personal bests in finishing second, fifth and seventh respectively in the shot

Kelly Zilli

Also on the men's side, sophomore Dorian Dixon (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) and freshman Mike Rill (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview) turned in personal bests in the 35# weight throw, freshman T.J. Falzone (Rivrton, Conn.), Ivery and sophomore Alex Yurovitsky (Richmond Heights, Ohio/Richmond Heights) had personal bests in the  55 meters, with Falzone and Yurovitsky adding top times in the long jump and triple jump respectively. Sophomore Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek) chipped in with a second place finish in the high jump with a personal best of 5-8, freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian) finished fourth in his first-ever 400 meter race, and junior Scott Huntoon (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor) had a season best in the 5,000.

Finally, two relays turned in strong times, the 800 foursome of Rumschlag, Toman, sophomore Matt Frost (South Vienna, Ohio/Northeastern) and Demetrius Ellison (Cleveland, Ohio/Trinity) and the 1600 quartet Thompson, Yurovitsky, sophomore Mike Torsell (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central) and Ellison, which has the top time in the NCAC.

On the women's side, sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) was named NCAC Women's Track Athlete of the Week for her meet record time of 61.23 in the 400. Another meet record was turned in by junior LaRissa O'Neal (Indianapolis, Ind./Broad Ripple) in the pole vault. Personal bests among the women included sophomore Jenny Brill (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) and junior Natasha Malackany (Canton, Ohio/Perry) in the 5,000 and sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) in the pole vault and long jump. Mumper's mark of 16-9.5 in the long jump was also a meet record.

Finally, two relays turned in strong times. The 800 relay foursome of freshman Ashley Allen (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison), freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame), O'Neal and freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) and the distance medley relay quartet of senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead), sophomore Mary Blonder (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest), Davoll and Zilli.

3/1-2 @ NCAC Indoor Championships
Hosted by Denison

Mary Blonder

It was another strong week for the Wittenberg track and field teamsat the Scarlet and Grey Invitational at Ohio State University. The Tigers were the only Division III shool in the field.  On the women's side, sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) took ninth in the long jump with a mark of 16-4.75 and captured fifth in the triple jump with a 35-0.5, which was a school record for a third straight week. In addition, sophomore Becky Barnes (Williamsport, Ohio/Williamsport) was sixth in the 600 meters at 1:53.90 and 10th in the mile at 5:48.61, sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) finished seventh in the 800 with a time of 2:23.05 and sixth in the pole vault at 8-6.25, and the 1600-meter relay quartet of freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati,

On the men's side, senior Mark Trempe (Springfield, Ohio/Greenon) was fifth in the 600 at 1:32.08, sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) wound up fifth in the 60-meter hurdles at 8.38, the 1600 relay foursome of sophomore Matt Frost (South Vienna, Ohio/Northeastern), sophomore Alex Yurovitsky (Richmond Heights, Ohio/Richmond Heights), sophomore Derek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) and sophomore Demetrius Ellison (Cleveland, Ohio/Trinity) was 10th at 3:32.41, freshman Joe Rumschlag(Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian) was fifth in the triple jump with a personal-best mark of 41-7.25 and junior Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) was 10th in the shot put with a mark of 44-6.75. 

Next: 2/23 @ DePauw

It was another strong week for the Wittenberg track and field teams, which competed at an open competition with no team scores at the University of Findlay.

Providing the biggest highlight for either team was sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian), who was the NCAC Athleteof the Week the previous week and then outdid herself. While she wasn'tselected Athlete of the Week again, Mumper's first-place triple jump of34-feet, 8.25-inches surpassed the school record she set just last weekat Ohio Northern. Mumper capped another outstanding effort with a 5th-placefinish in the long jump.

Mary Blonder Derek Thompson

Other top performances on the women's side included sophomore KellyZilli (Kettering, Ohio/Alter) and her sixth-place finish in the mile,freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) and her fifth-place finish in the 600-meter run, and the fourth-place finish turned in by the 1600-meter relay foursome of Davoll, freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati,Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame), sophomore Mary Blonder (Lake Forest, Ill./LakeForest) and Zilli. On the men's side, freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian School) made an impression by competing in the triple jump for thefirst time and finishing sixth. Also placing for Wittenberg were sophomoreJoel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), who was 10th in the shotput and 11h in the 35# weight, and the 1600 relay quartet of sophomoreDerek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Greenon), sophomore MattFrost (South Vienna, Ohio/Southeastern), Mike Torsell (Springfield,Ohio/Catholic Central), freshman Chad Kresser (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay),which was ninth.

Finally, heading into the home stretch of the 2002 indoor track andfield season, Wittenberg's teams have made an impression nationally. In a poll that tabulates points based on previous performances and projectsteams based on how they would finish in dual meets, Wittenberg's men areranked 18th and the women 15th. In the Great Lakes Region, the men areranked fourth and the women are third.

Next:   2/16 @ Scarlet & Grey Invitational

The Wittenberg men's and women's track and field teams put together some strong performances last weekend at the Ohio Northern Debow Freed Midwest Elite Meet, hopefully getting their bearings at the site of the 2002 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championship Meet.

The men's team was led once again by sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison), who turned in a second-place finish in the 55-meter hurdles, but more importantly posted an NCAA Provisional Qualifying mark of 7.80.

Other men who finished among the top eight and scored points for Wittenberg in the meet were: sophomore Demetrius Ellison (Cleveland, Ohio/Trinity) in the 400, junior Nick Dewald (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior) in the 1500, sophomore Derek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Greenon) in the 55 hurdles, junior Nate Henderson (Dayton, Ohio/Carroll) in the 55 hurdles, freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian School) in the long jump, sophomore Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) in the shot put and 35# weight, freshman Clyde Mayer (Hilliard, Ohio/Davidson) in the shot put, senior Chris Silliman (Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington) in the 35# weight and sophomore Dorian Dixon (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) in the 35# weight.

In addition, two relays ran strong to finish seven and fifth respectively: the 800-meter relay that included Ellison, freshman Chris Primavera (Dublin, Ohio/Scioto), Rumschlag and sophomore Cody Martin (Bellefontaine, Ohio/Bellefontaine) and the 1600-meter relay that included freshman Jason Toman (Greenville, Ohio/Greenville), sophomore Mike Torsell (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central), freshman Chad Kresser (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay) and Ellison.

On the women's side, three performances stood out from the crowd. Junior Erin Zayicek (Solon, Ohio/Solon) set a school record in the 20# weight as she finished seventh in the meet. Sophomore Becky Barnes (Williamsport, Ohio/Williamsport) dropped her personal best time by an astounding 30 seconds in the 5,000 to finish in fifth place. And sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) set a school record in claiming second place in the triple jump with a mark of 34-feet, 3-inches. She also placed fifth in the long jump with a mark of 15-11, 3/4-inches. The performance was good for recognition as the North Coast Athletic Conference Women's Field Events Athlete of the Week.

Also performing well and capturing top eight finishes were sophomore Jackie Spray (Newark, Ohio/Newark) and LaRissa O'Neal (Indianapolis, Ind./Broad Ripple) tied for eighth in the pole vault, freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) in the 400, senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) in the 800 and sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Alter) in the 800. In addition, two relays finished fourth and fifth respectively: the 1600-meter relay run by Davoll, sophomore Mary Blonder (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest), Zilli and Weide and the 800-meter relay run by freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame), Blonder, Mumper and Davoll.

Next: 2/8, @ Findlay Open, 5 p.m.

Thompson

It was another busy weekend for the men's and women's indoor track & field teams, starting Friday evening at the Findlay-Alltel Classic at the University of Findlay and concluding with the North Coast Athletic Conference relays at Denison University on Saturday. While no team scores were kept at Findlay, several Wittenberg athletes turned in fine performances. Leading the charge was sophomore Joel Drake(Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), who posted a

On Saturday, team scores were kept in the NCAC relays, and the Tigers finished sixth in the men's competition and fourth in the women's.
 

Weide

The women's sprint medley relay was one of the day's highlights as the foursome of senior Sarah Weide (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead), sophomore Kelly Zilli (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) and freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati,Ohio) posted a school-record time of 4:28.21 and captured the team's lone first-place finish. On the men's side, the lone first-place finish was so impressive that it garnered NCAC Athlete of the Week honors. The tandem of sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) and sophomore Derek Thompson(South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) captured first place in the 55-meter hurdles relay. Ivery, the 2001 NCAC indoor 55-meter hurdles champion, posted a personal best time of 7.84, while Thompson had a personal best time of 8.25. Ivery's time was the fastest at the meet and the only one below 8.0 seconds.

Next: 2/2 @ Ohio Northern Elite Meet, Noon

The indoor portion of the track and field season got underway on Friday at Ohio Northern. The Tiger men finished sixth out of 10 teams in the field, while the women were fourth out of nine.

On the men's side, the top finisher was sophomore Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison), who turned in a first-place finish in the 55-meter hurdles. He is the defending NCAC indoor 55 hurdles champion. In addition, junior Joel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) had a personal-best in the shot put to place third.

For the women, leading the charge was sophomore Jackie Spray (Newark, Ohio/Newark), who was first in the pole vault. In addition, sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian) turned in a strong performance in the triple jump as she finished second.
Next: @ Findlay, TBA
NCAC Relays @ Denison, 2 p.m.