Track and Field

Category: Track and Field

Ranumas breaks school record in 60 hurdles

STEVENS POINT, Wis. — Freshman JP Ranumas broke the Lawrence University record in the 60-meter hurdles on Saturday at the Pointer Invitational at UW-Stevens Point.

Ranumas (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier) finished second in the event in a time of 8.76 seconds. That broke the record of 8.78 set back in 1990.

Ranumas also was part of the 4×200-meter relay team that finished second in 1:39.22. He teamed with Ben Bard, Matt Geleske and Bjorn Gowdy-Jaehnig.

On the women’s side, freshman Clare Bruning was the top individual finisher after a fifth-place run in the 5,000 in 19:44.36.

The Vikings also had two third-place relay teams. The 4×200 team placed third in 1:55.23, and the distance medley relay team was third in 14:08.69.

Results

Laursen takes title for Vikings at UW-Oshkosh Open

OSHKOSH, Wis. — Freshman Jonah Laursen was a winner Friday night for the Lawrence University track and field team at the UW-Oshkosh Open at Kolf Sports Center.

Laursen grabbed first in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:13.90, and teammate Curren Carlile grabbed second in 16:30.62.

The Lawrence men finished fourth with 52 points. The Lawrence women were fourth with 27 points.

The top finisher on the women’s side was Liz Landes, who took third in the 5,000 meters in 21:01.91.

Men’s results

Women’s results

Track teams capture academic honor for third consecutive year

The Lawrence University track and field squads have been chosen as All-Academic Teams by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association for the third consecutive year.

The Vikings earned the All-Academic Team designation by having at least a 3.10 cumulative grade point average. Lawrence has earned the award in each of head coach Jason Fast’s three seasons with the Vikings.

“I’m very proud of our men and women for earning this great distinction for three consecutive years,” Fast said. “This award is a testament to the dedication of this group of student-athletes both on and off the track.”

The Lawrence women were among 137 Division III teams to earn the award. Lawrence had a grade point average of 3.51, which was the 14th-best grade point average in the nation. The Vikings were one of four women’s teams from the Midwest Conference to earn the award, and Lawrence had the highest grade point average among those schools.

The Lawrence men were among 74 Division III teams to earn the All-Academic Team award. The Vikings had a grade point average of 3.38, and that was the highest among the three Midwest Conference teams that earned the award. Lawrence had the 16th-best grade point average in the country.

Lawrence also saw its fortunes improve on the track during this past season. The Lawrence men posted their best finish at the Midwest Conference Championships since 2005, and the women had their best finish at the league championships since 2006.

Bolgrien races to victory in 400 hurdles at MWC Championships

DE PERE, Wis. — Anna Bolgrien won the 400-meter hurdles on Saturday to lead the performances for the Lawrence University track and field team at the Midwest Conference Championships.

Bolgrien, a freshman from Duluth, Minn., won the 400 hurdles in 1:05.60 at Schneider Stadium and narrowly missed Sarah Slivinski’s Lawrence record of 1:05.52. Bolgrien beat Monmouth College’s Haley Jones (1:06.67) by more than a second for her first conference title.

Led by Bolgrien, Lawrence finished seventh in the team standings with 30 points. The Lawrence men were sixth with 50 points.

Bolgrien also grabbed sixth place in the 100 hurdles in 16.36 seconds. Alyssa Herman also placed for the Vikings by taking eighth in the 3,000 steeplechase in 12:31.90.

Both of Lawrence’s relay teams took home sixth-place finishes. The 400 relay team finished in 51.93 seconds and the 1,600 relay posted a time of 4:17.08.

Sophomore Curran Carlile took home his second second-place finish of the championships by grabbing the runner-up spot in the 5,000 in 15:28.12. Carlile was second in the 10,000 on Friday. Teammate Kyle Dockery grabbed seventh in the 5,000 in 15:46.78.

Sam Stevens, who won the 1,500 on Friday, raced to third place in the 3,000 steeplechase on Saturday in 9:27.18.

Nick Kerkman broke his own school record in the hammer throw for the second time in as many weeks. Kerkman finished fourth in the hammer with a heave of 157 feet, 4 inches, shattering his record of 153-7.

Nick Craker grabbed fifth place in the discus with a throw of 134-3.

Lawrence’s 1,600 relay also picked up a seventh-place finish with a time of 3:32.65.

The sixth-place finish by the men’s team was its highest finish since the Vikings took fourth in 2005. The seventh-place finish by the women was their best since taking seventh in 2006.

Results

Stevens takes title on opening day of MWC Championships

DE PERE, Wis. — Sam Stevens ran to victory in the 1,500 meters to pace the Lawrence University track and field team on Friday’s opening day of the Midwest Conference Championships at Schneider Stadium.

Stevens, a junior from Suamico, Wis., raced to the first outdoor title of his track career with a winning time of 3:59.36. He edged Carroll University’s Joe Pliner, who finished second in 4:00.79.

Curran Carlile ran to a second-place finish in the 10,000 meters in 33:19.02, and teammate Kyle Dockery took eighth in the same event in 34:53.87.

The other point scorer for the men on Friday was freshman Nick Craker, who grabbed fifth in the shot put with a toss of 43 feet, 7 inches.

Rose Tepper vaulted herself to a third-place finish in the high jump with a leap of 5-3. Senior Emily Muhs grabbed fifth in the 10,000 in 41:51.79.

The Lawrence men have 23 points after the opening day, and the women have 10.

Results

Inside LU Athletics: Bolgrien running to top of Midwest Conference

Anna Bolgrien went from thinking about life in the fast lane to living life on the fast track.

The freshman from Duluth, Minn., was coming to Lawrence University last fall intent on swimming for the Vikings, but issues with her shoulders turned her to the track team.

“I was going to swim originally,” Bolgrien said. “My shoulders wouldn’t hold up so I decided to run, and I’m really, really glad I did. Once I talked to (head coach Jason) Fast … I knew it was a place I wanted to be.”

Fast is pretty pleased as well because Bolgrien is one of the Vikings’ top performers. She holds the top time of 1:06.63 in the league in the 400-meter hurdles heading into this weekend’s Midwest Conference Championships at St. Norbert College.

Bolgrien also ranks sixth in the league in the 100 hurdles (16.07 seconds) and will run on both the 400 and 1,600 relay teams.

“Based on Anna’s times from high school and knowing her training background, we anticipated she would be a contributor,” Fast said. “She’s definitely taken a step forward. Her times in high school would have placed her firmly in the top eight (in the conference). She’s taken her training and dedication to the sport to another level.”

Bolgrien credited the coaching staff with her improvement as she honed her technique and made the adjustment from the 300-meter hurdles in high school to the 400 hurdles at the collegiate level. She also has learned to win the mental battle in an event that features speed, technique, strength and flexibility.

“It’s really a race to the next hurdle,” Bolgrien said. “You’ve got to have something to distract yourself with. Can I beat that girl to the next hurdle? Can I cleanly hurdle this next one?”

No one’s been better in the league this season at clearing those mental and physical hurdles, and Bolgrien said her goal is to win the league title. Bolgrien, who is quickly closing in on Sarah Slivinski’s Lawrence record of 1:05.52, admits it is odd to be in the role of favorite.

“I’ve never really been put in that position so it’s exciting to see that I have the opportunity to (win a conference championship),” Bolgrien said. “I hope to drop a little time. If I can just PR that’s the best I can do.”

If past history is any indication, expect a big drop. At the MWC indoor championships in February, Bolgrien lowered her time in the 60 hurdles by a half-second and finished third.

“You saw her talent in how Anna worked every day, but you got a glimpse of how good she could be in the indoor conference meet,” Fast said. That’s when we knew she could be in for some big things.

“She definitely has the skill set to be competitive on the national level. When is that going to be, I don’t know. It could be as early as this year. She would need to take at least three seconds off her 400 hurdles time to get into the national meet.”

On the fast track

Both Lawrence track teams are looking to move up a notch or two at the MWC Championships. The women placed eighth last season and the men were ninth. Now in his third season as the head coach, Fast sees his teams getting deeper and more talented.

“I feel like last year towards the end of the season, because it was such a long winter, everyone was hanging on by a thread. You could tell because the men finished ninth and the women finished eighth,” Fast said.

“This year we have a full head of steam heading into the conference meet. Just about everyone on the team is performing at their best and ready to give a good effort.”

In addition to Bolgrien, the Vikings have several other women that could challenge for titles this weekend. Rose Tepper is a former champion in the high jump, and senior Emily Muhs is one of the league’s best in the 10,000 meters.

On the men’s side, Sam Stevens is one of the favorites in the steeplechase and also looks to place in both the 800 and 1,500. Freshman Nick Craker is ranked in the top eight in the league in both the shot put and discus, and senior Nick Kerkman is ranked fourth in the hammer throw. The Vikings could also do some damage in the 5,000 and 10,000 with the combination of Kyle Dockery and Curran Carlile.

Putting the hammer down

Kerkman broke his own school record in the hammer throw at the Viking Invitational last Saturday. Kerkman’s throw of 153 feet, 7 inches, broke his 2010 record of 145-1.

Big turnaround

With only Thursday’s doubleheader against Carroll University left, the Lawrence baseball team’s record stands at 14-19. That represents an 11-game improvement in the win column from 2011, and the most wins by the Vikings since the team won 14 games in 2006.

Lawrence needs two wins on Thursday to match the second-highest win total in school history. The 1979 team went 16-11, and the 1977 team went 21-10 to set the school record for victories.

Doares nabs pitching honor

Baseball standout Drew Doares has been named the Midwest Conference Pitcher of the Week.

The freshman from Holly Springs, N.C., earned the honor after tossing his second shutout of the season on May 5. In a 7-0 victory at Carroll University, Doares allowed only five hits, all singles.

The freshman pitcher struck out six and walked only one in a game that was completed in just one hour, 45 minutes. Doares allowed only two runners to advance as far as second base and none made it to third.

Doares, who also tossed a 1-0 shutout against Beloit College on April 21, improved to 4-5 on the season and lowered his earned run average to 5.20.

Editor’s Note: Inside LU Athletics is a notes package written by Lawrence University Sports Information Director Joe Vanden Acker. It will feature teams and individual players, recap weekly awards or highlights and take a look at what’s ahead for the Vikings.

Kerkman smashes record in hammer at Viking Invitational

It had been nine years almost to the day since Lawrence University hosted a track meet at Whiting Field, and Nick Kerkman marked a rebirth for Lawrence track by smashing a school record Saturday at the Viking Invitational.

Kerkman won the hammer throw with a toss of 46.83 meters to easily top his own school record. Kerkman’s throw, which converts to 153 feet, 7 inches, broke the old mark of 145-1.

The field events was where the Vikings posted a number of other first-place finishes. Nick Craker won the shot put with a throw of 45-3 and took second in the discus. On the women’s side, Rose Tepper won the high jump at 4-11.75 and Brielle Bartes took the shot put with a toss of 33-0.25.

Anna Bolgrien ran to victory in the 400-meter hurdles in 1:06.63 and she took second in the 100 hurdles in 16.07 seconds. Mike Mangian grabbed first in the 800 meters in 2:00.96.

Results

Muhs, Tepper take firsts at UW-Whitewater

WHITEWATER, Wis. — Emily Muhs and Rose Tepper both took first-place finishes at the UW-Whitewater Drake Alternative on Saturday.

Muhs ran to first place in the 10,000 meters with a time of 40:23.15, and Tepper tied for first in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 1 inch.

Lawrence’s 400-meter relay team of Tepper, Sam Luebke, Kassidy Rinehart and Anna Bolgrien raced to a second-place finish in 53.10 seconds. Bolgrien also raced to third in the 400 hurdles in 1:09.59.

On the men’s side, Sam Estrem and Tom Coben finished second and third, respectively, in the 10,000. Estrem was second in 34:27.09 and Coben was third in 35:15.73. Curren Carlile raced to a third-place finish in the 5,000 in 15:46.68.

Results

Stevens, Dockery turn in impressive times at Hillsdale

HILLSDALE, Mich. — Sam Stevens and Kyle Dockery both turned in impressive times on Friday at the Hillsdale College Invitational.

Running in races filled with Division I and Division II athletes, Stevens finished 17th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 9:19.38, but the race wasn’t without incident for the Lawrence junior. With just over 200 meters left, Stevens fell while clearing the final barrier. Stevens got up and continued the race but lost about 10 seconds because of the incident.

Dockery finished 25th in the 10,000 meters in his first attempt at that race this season. The freshman ran a time of 31:53.78, and that is the best time by a Midwest Conference runner this season by more than 20 seconds.

The remainder of the Lawrence team competes on Saturday at the UW-Whitewater Invitational.