STEVENS POINT, Wis. — The Lawrence University men’s distance medley relay team broke the school record at the UW-Stevens Point Pointer Qualifier on Saturday.
The team of Dan Thoresen, Cam Blegen, Mike Mangian and Sam Stevens raced to a time of 10:33.27. That broke the mark of 10:39.83, which was set in 2010 by Stevens, Mark Sprtel, Matt Frelich and Sam Estrem.
GRINNELL, Iowa — The Lawrence University men’s track and field team finished in seventh place and the women took ninth as the Midwest Conference Championships wrapped up Saturday at Grinnell College.
The top finisher Saturday for the Lawrence men was the distance medley relay team of Dan Thoresen, Jesse Peterson, Mike Mangian and Sam Stevens, which placed third in 10:43.60.
Stevens led the Vikings indivually with a fifth-place finish in the 800 meters in a time of 1:59.29. Freshman Curran Carlile picked up a seventh-place finish in the 3,000 in 9:03.52.
The Lawrence women earned their lone points of the day with a sixth-place finish in the distance medley relay. The team of Amanda Dwyer, Sam Luebke, Alyssa Herman and Annie Sullivan raced to a time of 13:51.90.
GRINNELL, Iowa — Curran Carlile was the Lawrence University track and field team’s top finisher on the opening day of the Midwest Conference Championships at Grinnell College.
Carlile placed fourth in the 5,000 meters in 15:39.06, and teammate David Zane grabbed seventh in 15:52.73.
Sam Stevens was unable to defend his title in the mile run as he took sixth place in 4:30.07.
The Lawrence men are in seventh place in the team standings with 10 points. The Lawrence women are in ninth place with one point. The women’s 800 relay team took eighth place.
Lawrence University standout Nick Kerkman has been named the Midwest Conference Field Performer of the Week after breaking a school record.
Kerkman (Mequon, Wis./Homestead) set the Lawrence record in the 35-pound weight throw at the UW-Stevens Point Eastbay Invitational this past Saturday. Kerkman recorded a throw of 48 feet, 8 inches, to break the record of 45-7.75, which was set by Mike Pierquet in 2008.
It was the first time in his career that Kerkman has won Performer of the Week honors. Kerkman now holds a pair of Lawrence track records. He set the mark in the hammer throw of 145-1 during the 2010 outdoor season.
The Vikings return to action this weekend when they travel to the Midwest Conference Championships at Grinnell College.
STEVENS POINT, Wis. – Rose Tepper was Lawrence University’s top finisher Saturday at the Eastbay Invitational at UW-Stevens Point. Tepper took third in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 3.75 inches. On the men’s side, Sam Stevens paced the Vikings by taking eighth in the 800 meters in 1:58.15.
The record was nice. Qualifying for nationals was a definite bonus. But Rose Tepper had something else on her mind.
“We knew it was her best jump ever, but Rose’s first question was, ‘Did I beat that girl from Northern Michigan?’ ” Lawrence University track and field coach Jason Fast said.
Tepper jumped 5 feet, 5.75 inches (1.67 meters), at last Saturday’s UW-Stevens Point Invitational and tied Northern Michigan’s Bailey Franklin for first place. The jump broke Lawrence’s school record of 5-5.25 and made Tepper a provisional qualifier for the NCAA Division III Championships in March at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.
“More than just the fact that she’s succeeding, Rose brings a great attitude to every competition. She just hates to lose,” Fast said.
“She brings a great competitive aspect to our team that hasn’t been seen in a while. It’s nice to see that and be able to build around that since she’s only a sophomore.”
A native of Mount Vernon, Iowa, Tepper won the high jump at the Midwest Conference Championships during the 2010 outdoor season, but a trip to the NCAA Championships eluded Tepper during her rookie campaign.
“Qualifying for nationals was the main goal (for this season),” Tepper said. “I actually didn’t realize that I was breaking the record until after I jumped.”
Tepper nearly became an automatic qualifier for the NCAA meet but narrowly missed clearing 1.72 meters (5-7.75) last Saturday.
“She was born to jump,” Fast said of Tepper. “She has steadily been improving as we’ve been able to work with her more and get her more involved with the weight room. That’s one of the biggest changes we’ve made this year. Getting her stronger is already paying dividends.”
Tepper said working with assistant coach Lyndsey Thoma, a national qualifier herself during her days at UW-Oshkosh, has paid big dividends.
“I do feel like coach Thoma has definitely been working on some key things in my approach and that has affected how I’ve been jumping,” Tepper said.
“What I have been working on is getting my last three steps shorter to get my power up. When I shorten those last steps, I’m pounding into the ground to get my momentum up and over.”
And Fast believes Tepper has the physical ability and mental makeup to get up and over even greater heights.
“I have no doubt that she can go higher. It’s just a matter of her getting the opportunity. This is a huge barrier out of the way. She talked about how nervous she was clearing 1.67 and now that’s out of the way,” Fast said.
Tepper currently is tied for the eighth-highest jump in the nation, and Fast said that 1.67 meters has always been good enough to reach the NCAA meet. Getting Tepper to the national stage is an exciting prospect, according to Fast.
“Rose has shown the propensity, in her short career, to jump well at big meets,” Fast said.
Sheridan, Thoren honored
Lawrence standouts Jon Sheridan and William Thoren have earned Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association weekly awards.
Sheridan was named the Defensive Player of the Week and Thoren was chosen as the Freshman of the Week.
Sheridan, a senior defenseman, recorded two assists in Lawrence’s 5-0 win over Northland last Friday and then scored the game-winning goal in a 4-2 victory over the Lumberjacks on Saturday. Sheridan was a plus-four on the weekend.
Thoren, a freshman defenseman, had a pair of assists in the shutout win and another assist in Saturday’s victory. He was a plus-three on the weekend.
Battle of Highway 41 this weekend
The Lawrence and Marian hockey teams play in the Battle of Highway 41 this weekend.
Friday’s game is at Marian and Saturday’s game is at the Appleton Family Ice Center. The winner of the series receives the prodigious Battle of Highway 41 trophy.
Should the teams split the two games, a shootout to determine the winner will take place immediately following Saturday’s game.
Editor’s Note: Inside LU Athletics is a weekly 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.
Lawrence University standout Rose Tepper has been named the Midwest Conference Field Performer of the Week.
Tepper (Mount Vernon, Iowa/Mount Vernon), a sophomore, won the honor after she broke the Lawrence record in the high jump at the UW-Stevens Point Invitational this past Saturday.
Tepper jumped 5 feet, 5.75 inches, to win the event and break the record of 5-5.25, which was set in 2010 by All-American Madeline Steininger.
Tepper also earned a provisional qualifying spot in the NCAA Division III Championships. Her jump of 5-5.75 (1.67 meters) has her tied for the eighth-highest jump in the nation.
The Vikings return to action on Feb. 19 when they travel to the Eastbay Invitational at UW-Stevens Point.
STEVENS POINT, Wis. — Lawrence University track and field standout Rose Tepper broke the school indoor record in the high jump on Saturday at the UW-Stevens Point Pointer Invitational.
Tepper won the event with a jump of 5 feet, 5.75 inches. That tops the record of 5-5.25 set by All-American Madeline Steininger in 2010.
Tepper also secured a provisional qualifying spot for the NCAA Division III Championships next month.
The Lawrence men were paced by Sam Stevens, who placed sixth in the mile run.
WHITEWATER, Wis. – Curran Carlile won the 5,000 meters on Saturday to pace the Lawrence University track team at the UW-Whitewater Invitational.
Carlile raced to the victory in 15:40.45, and David Zane grabbed third place for the Vikings. Zane finished in 16:01.12.
Rose Tepper was the top finisher for the Lawrence women. She placed fourth in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 1.25 inches.
STEVENS POINT, Wis. — The Lawrence University track team opened its indoor season at the UW-Stevens Point Open on Saturday, and the Vikings won three events.
On the women’s side, Rose Tepper took first in the high jump with a winning leap of 1.56 meters. Amanda Dwyer grabbed first in the 800 meters with a time of 2:44.85.
On the men’s side, Nick Kerkman won the weight throw with a toss of 13.49 meters.
