SATURDAY RECAP
UW-Whitewater finished tied for ninth with Hamilton College at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship on Saturday. Marcus Smith was the only UW-W competitor that participated on Saturday. Smith finished ninth in his flight for the triple jump and did not advance to the finals.
FRIDAY RECAP
UW-Whitewater is in second place after two days of competition at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship hosted by Marietta College at Don Drumm Stadium in Marietta, Ohio. Shaun Davis and Ben Stringer earned All-America honors by finishing second and fifith, respectively, in the discus.
THURSDAY RECAP
Shaun Davis highlighted day one of the NCAA III Outdoor Track and Field Championship with a second place finish, earning All-America honors, in the hammer throw. Davis' effort earned UW-W eight points in the team standings after the first day of competition Thursday.
PREVIEW
Isiah Gray, Matt Kovnesky, Marcus Smith, Shaun Davis, and Ben Stringer are representing UW-Whitewater at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship hosted by Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio May 21-23. UW-Whitewater's Championship Central web site
Gray, running the 400 meters, has earned his second national championship spot in his freshman year. He earned All-America honors with a fifth place finish in the event in the Division III indoor meet. He won the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference 400 title outdoors, and his qualifying time of 48.18 compares to the school record of 47.37 set by John Kruchoski in 1982. Andrew Rock of UW-La Crosse holds the Division III record at 45.29 set in in 2003, Hanneus Ollison of McMurry College (TX) won the event last year in 46.40, and he returns with the top qualifying time of 46.59.
Kovnesky joined Gray at the NCAA III indoor championship in March, with Kovnesky qualifying in the 800 meters. He returns in the same event, with the WIAC championship in hand and a qualifying time of 1:51.36. Emmanuel Bofa of Whitworth College won the NCAA III outdoor 800 last year in 1:51.01, off the pace of D3 record holder Clive Terrelonge of Lincoln College of 1:47.56 in 1991. Jimmy O'Brien is the top qualifier for this year's outdoor meet with a time of 1:48.68 and Steve Travis set the UW-W record of 1:50.68 in 1992.
Smith is coming off runnerup a school record breaking performance, going 49-4.5 in the triple jump in a meet in La Crosse May 14. He placed second in both the triple jump and long jump at the WIAC outdoor championship. Al Winsley of Mississippi College heads the field in this NCAA meet with a mark of 51-3.75, and Jan Cado of North Central College set the D3 record of 55-4.75 in 1989. Kamar James of Fisk University won the triple jump title last year with a leap of 48-11.75.
Davis has qualified for two events, the discus and hammer throw. He placed in both events, and the long jump, in the WIAC meet. His discus qualifier is 172-8, with Dan Hytinen setting the UW-W and NCAA III record of 196-5 while winning the national title last year. Bobby Riley of UW-La Crosse has the top mark in this year's field, 177-0.
Davis will be doubling in the hammer, where UW-W's former NCAA III Field Athlete of the Year Jeremy Wendt set the record of 215-5 in 2004. Wendt also pushed the school record, which does not have to be set in the national meet, to 218-1 in 2004. Mark O'Connell of the University of Saint Thomas won the hammer throw last year at 191-0, and Bryan Kolacz of Keene State leads the field in to the outdoor national meet with a distance of 197-5.
Ben Stringer will join Davis in the discus competition. Stringer, who was second in the hammer at the WIAC outdoor meet and placed in both events at the 2008 conference meet, qualified for the discus with a distance of 165-9.
UW-W has been listed among the top Division III teams in the country this year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Warhawks finished among the top ten in the NCAA III outdoor championship six times (2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) in seven years, adding a thirteenth place finish in 2003. UW-W tied for twenty-ninth in the 2008 NCAA III outdoor meet, and tied for thirtieth at the NCAA III indoor meet in March.
For additional information: Darren Schneider, UW-W coach