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(06/11/09 5:02pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Five of the six Hoosiers competing at the national championship Wednesday in Fayetteville, Ark., qualified for the next round of the NCAA Championship.Despite rainy conditions that forced a long weather delay, junior Molly Beckwith in the 800 meter run, senior Tiffany Howard in shot put, sophomore Sara Pease in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, junior Ashley Rhoades in high jump and junior Vera Neuenswander in pole vault all advanced. In a bit of a surprise the only Hoosier not to advance out of the qualifying round was freshman Derek Drouin in high jump. Drouin was previously the Big Ten and Regional Champion as well as second nationally during the indoor season. He also set an all-time Hoosier record this year when he became the first IU athlete to clear 2.22 meters.The Hoosiers return to competition Thursday when Beckwith and Howard compete in the next round of their respective events. Also competing for the first time and only time today will be junior Wendi Robinson in the 10,000 meter run.
(06/07/09 11:39pm)
Seven Hoosiers will try to become forever known as champions in their events this week in Fayetteville, Ark.
(05/31/09 11:45pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>LOUISVILLE, Ky. – IU shined during the NCAA Mideast Regional competition, showing the Hoosiers are capable of competing on the big stage.In particular, two athletes can now be called the best in IU track and field history. Freshman Derek Drouin and junior Vera Neuenswander had record-breaking performances to win the high jump and pole vault, respectively.Drouin cleared a personal best and IU record of 2.22 meters while Neuenswander’s clearance of 4.31 meters was an IU and Mideast Regional record. Drouin said he never expected that his first year at IU would be so successful.“I thought my freshman year would be about getting my feet wet and getting used to competition.” Drouin said. “I never imagined I would be the Mideast Regional champion at the start of the year.”Neuenswander nearly missed the 4.11 meter clearance before easily clearing the next two heights to win and set the record.She said it took calming advice from a mentor to cool herself down. “We had a windy day today and I have a tendency to tense up,” Neuenswander said. “On the third jump, coach Dave Volz came over and said to relax and not be anxious, so I listened and came through.”As a team the women finished in 6th place with 34.5 points while the men completed the meet in 16th place with 16 points.IU coach Ron Helmer said he was proud of the way the women’s team competed in the meet, and he credited his staff.“Our girls have responded to the great expectations we have for them,” he said. “It is a testament to our coaches as we continue to build this team and work towards great achievements.”Overall, seven Hoosiers qualified for the national championship. Qualifying for the finals along with Drouin and Neuenswander were junior Molly Beckwith in the 800-meter run, senior Tiffany Howard in the shot put, sophomore Sarah Pease in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, junior Ashley Rhoades in the high jump and senior Wendi Robinson in the 5,000-meter run.Helmer said that, while he knows a team national championship is out of the question, the team has improved dramatically during his tenure at IU.“We are not a powerhouse track team yet, but we are improving and are lightyears ahead of last year’s pace,” he said.
(05/29/09 7:39pm)
Freshman Derek Drouin and junior Vera Neuenswander both cleared personal records to win the high jump and pole vault, respectively, at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
(05/27/09 10:30pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Hoosiers will compete in the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship on Friday in Louisville, Ky. Eleven on the women’s side and 12 for the men will compete.The meet begins 11 a.m. Friday with the men’s javelin and concludes at 7:20 p.m. Saturday with the men’s 4x400-meter relay.IU coach Ron Helmer said he is looking for all of IU’s players to compete.“Coaches want all athletes to have great performances and that’s what we should be looking for,” he said.To automatically qualify for the national championships June 10 in Fayetteville, Ark., competitors must finish in the top five. Athletes also qualify for nationals with an at-large bid by finishing in 6th through 12th place.
(05/18/09 12:01am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Jumping was the Hoosiers forte at the Big Ten Championships in Columbus, Ohio, this weekend.Three members of the IU track and field team scored individual Big Ten Championships in the long jump and high jump.In the high jump, sophomore Derek Drouin and senior Ashley Rhoades both proved to be the Big Ten’s best at the event.Rhoades, whose winning jump was at 1.78 meters, said it took her a while to comprehend the accomplishment. “I am very excited,” Rhoades said. “It didn’t sink in at first, but now I am really excited.”Drouin, who won the high jump with a clearance of 2.19 meters, said he was ecstatic to be a champion because he wasn’t anticipating it.“I am happy and shocked at the same time,” Drouin said.Also scoring a Big Ten title was graduate Kiwan Lawson of the men’s team in the long jump with a leap of 7.64 meters.As a team, the women finished 5th with a score of 74.25 while the men finished 10th with a score of 58.IU coach Ron Helmer said he thought the meet went as expected for the Hoosiers. “On the women’s side, we performed well and our goal was to score 70 points,” Helmer said. “On the men’s side, I didn’t expect us to do much better even though we were disappointed with 10th place.” The Minnesota Golden Gophers won the Big Ten title for the men with a score of 130.For the women, the Penn State Nittany Lions came out victorious with a score of 139.The Hoosiers continue postseason competition on May 29 and 30 when they head to Louisville, Ky., for the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
(05/14/09 12:02am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Now is the time champions are crowned.With postseason play beginning this weekend in Columbus, Ohio, the IU track and field team is out to prove itself as the best team in the Big Ten.But IU coach Ron Helmer has more modest expectations for the Hoosiers.“Our goal is to be in the top five or top half (of the Big Ten),” he said. “I would guess some place between fourth and seventh is a reasonable expectation.”Senior Audrey Smoot, who was the 2008 Big Ten indoor champion in the 600-meter run, said she is hoping to make it through to the final round again this weekend.“I am ranked 11th or 13th in the 800 (-meter run) and hope to pull off a spot in the finals,” Smoot said.To determine a Big Ten champion, the meet will use a scoring system that awards 10 points to each event winner with eight, six, five, four, three, two and one point going to finishers in positions two through eight.Helmer said the Big Ten is talented and, to win, the Hoosiers must be on their game.“It is a great conference with some great people, and to be a Big Ten champion you have to hit a big mark that day,” he said.– By Ari Shifron
(05/10/09 11:46pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A two-hour lightning and pouring rain delay made the track resemble a swimming pool.Neither one deterred the IU men’s and women’s track and field teams Friday night at the Billy Hayes Invitational.Instead of being held back by the weather, the Hoosiers excelled and had their best meet of the season.The meet was highlighted by junior Molly Beckwith, who had the fastest 800-meter run in the NCAA this season.Beckwith credited her record run to having help from a special source.“I had my training partner rabbiting me throughout the race,” Beckwith said, referring to when a lead runner intentionally sets a fast pace for a teammate. “That helped a lot and it calmed me down to have her in front of me.”Career best results also came from freshman Derek Drouin in the high jump, senior Paul Fearnow in the hammer throw, senior Wil Glover in the 100-meter dash, senior Tiffany Howard in the shot put and junior Vera Neuenswander in the pole vault.IU coach Ron Helmer said the most remarkable aspect of the Hoosiers’ production was the fact that it came after an extended period of mental stress. “The most impressive thing is that the great performances came at the end of a long week of exams,” Helmer said. “It is not always easy for people to get composed after exams.”
(05/10/09 11:39pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Many freshman athletes spend their first year in college adjusting to university life.However, some elite freshmen make an immediate impact and achieve results higher than expected.This “immediate impact” has been the script of the season so far for freshman Derek Drouin, who has had several accolades this season in the high jump.IU coach Ron Helmer said Drouin is a grand contender overall.“He is the real deal,” Helmer said. “He has great competitive instincts and a whole lot of talent and is just a great kid.”Drouin hails from the town of Corunna in Ontario, Canada. He lived in Canada all of his life until coming to IU. Drouin said the resemblance between the United States and Canada made it an easy trip across the border when he decided to become a Hoosier.“I didn’t experience any sort of culture shock because the two countries are similar,” he said.Since donning the cream and crimson, Drouin has had a first season many athletes can only dream about.He qualified for the national championship in high jump this first year as a Hoosier. He followed that up by finishing second in both the Big Ten Championship and the national championship during the indoor season.Drouin said he was shocked to have so much success on the big stage.“I definitely wasn’t expecting it,” he said. “Making nationals at all made me ecstatic and then I couldn’t even have dreamed of getting second.” Assistant Jeff Huntoon, who recruited Drouin, said family connections lured Drouin here.“I knew his sister when she competed at Syracuse,” Huntoon said. “We got some information on Derek and things worked out well for all of us.”Looking to the future, Drouin said he thinks a high jump national championship might be in his grasp. “I have set my personal goals pretty high, and I think I can win it all,” he said.
(05/08/09 2:49am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU volleyball team has improved leaps and bounds during coach Sherry Dunbar’s two-year tenure.Before Dunbar arrived at IU, the team had five combined Big Ten wins from 2004-2006. Since she took the job, the team improved to six Big Ten wins in 2007 and nine Big Ten wins in 2008. Some of the improvement stems from the athletes she has recruited to play for the Hoosiers.Next fall will be no exception when IU welcomes seven new players to the team.Kathleen Donehue, Whitney Granado, Jordan Haverly, Shawn Hindman, Kelci Marschall, Laura Matula and Sam Thrower will don the cream and crimson uniforms next fall as newcomers.Of the seven, Haverly and Thrower come to IU with the most accolades.Haverly was the 20th ranked player in the nation coming out of high school, as well as an All-American. She is also a transfer from 2008 Final Four participant Nebraska. Thrower is a top-50 player out of Chicago.Dunbar said she feels all the new players will make an impact.“I feel like they all will fill a vital role for us,” she said.Dunbar said she is not guaranteeing the recruits playing time right away. Starting spots will rest on how current members of the team perform, she said.“I have no idea (who will start),” she said. “It depends on our returners and how hard they work.” One of those returning team members is junior middle blocker Ashley Benson who is the Hoosiers’ top returning offensive player after recording 372 kills last year.Benson said the new players should gel with the current team right away.“We were really excited to meet them and they seemed to fit in with the program well,” she said.Another returning team member is senior outside hitter Kelsey Hall, who is third on the team among returning players with 229 kills. Hall said the new players bring skills the team has missed that will allow them to think big for the future.“I am really excited because they have what we have been lacking in the past,” she said. “They have competition and drive and really want the program to win a national championship.”Dunbar said the new recruits will make the team deeper and can get the Hoosiers to the NCAA tournament after the team missed it by just one game last year.“For the first time since I have been here we are going to have depth, which is a great competitive advantage in practice,” she said. “We have the talent and it is about integrating the freshman and getting them up to speed as fast as possible.”
(05/04/09 3:50am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU picked up three wins and several Hoosiers cemented their position in the NCAAs with regional marks.Competing on Friday and Saturday at Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio, the Hoosiers were all over the charts.They posted three event wins and seven regional qualifications.Wins were posted by freshman Derek Drouin in high jump, senior Kiwan Lawson in long jump and junior Vera Neuenswander in pole vault.IU also placed itself in NCAA contention with regional performances posted by Drouin and Neuenswander, along with junior Molly Beckwith in the 400-meter dash, sophomore Kristen Crawford in the shot put, senior Paul Fearnow in the hammer throw, sophomore Lindsay Hartman in the 800-meter run and junior Wendi Robinson in the 5,000-meter run.The Hoosiers’ next competition comes Friday in the Billy Hays Invitational.
(05/01/09 3:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A meet at a Big Ten School is next on IU’s schedule. The Hoosiers head to Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio for the Jesse Owens Classic on Friday and Saturday. Freshman Derek Drouin, who has already qualified for the NCAA Mideast Regional later this month, said he is working hard to get a higher clearance. “I feel like I am trusting my training and an even bigger mark will come soon,” Drouin said. While each athlete is in a different situation this weekend, it is key that they all perform well, IU coach Ron Helmer said.“It is important we get some good quality races in,” he said. “In some places we will have individuals shooting to get their regional marks taken care of, while others might go to an off event.”
(04/27/09 3:46am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU track and field team won three events at this weekend’s Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa.The three victorious athletes for the Hoosiers were freshman Derek Drouin in the high jump, junior Sara Pease in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase and sophomore De’Sean Turner in the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase.The Hoosiers also scored top-five finishes from senior Evan Bardach in the men’s 800-meter run, junior Molly Beckwith in the women’s 800-meter run, freshman Olu Olamigoke in the men’s shot put and freshman Andrew Poore in the men’s 3,000-meter Steeplechase.IU returns to action this weekend when they compete in the Jesse Owens Classic at Ohio State.
(04/23/09 3:11am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Members of the IU track and field team will break up this weekend for a split-squad meet. Some competitors will take an eight-hour bus ride to the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, which runs today through Saturday. The other half of the team makes the short 50-mile bus trip up State Road 37 to the campus of IU-Purdue University Indianapolis on Friday for the Stan Lyons Invitational.IU coach Ron Helmer said the reason for splitting his team up is that some of his less-experienced athletes need a break from long trips.“I’ve really taken a small group to (Iowa) because of all the travel lately,” Helmer said. “Our young kids need a week off, so we are taking a group to IUPUI as well.”Senior thrower Paul Fearnow, who is making the trip to Des Moines, said it is a great place for an event.“Drake is a nice place to throw,” Fearnow said. “It also has nice facilities, which makes for good competition.”
(04/20/09 3:09am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Hoosiers’ performance was as gorgeous as the weather on Friday and Saturday.Competing in the Indiana Invitational at Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex, the IU women’s track and field team got its first team victory of the season.Their male counterparts fared slightly worse, placing second to Big Ten foe Michigan State.IU coach Ron Helmer said the results were as good as he could have expected.“I looked at the entries and challenged the team a little bit,” Helmer said. “The entries held fairly true to form, and our women won and the guys competed really well.”The Hoosiers won nine overall events and posted nine regional qualification times to go with them.Junior Laura Williams, who qualified for regionals with a third-place finish in pole vault, said she knew getting to Louisville was an ascertainable goal for her.
(04/17/09 5:08pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Three weeks of the outdoor season are in the books, and all of the meets so far have taken place on the road for the IU track and field team.This Friday and Saturday, however, the Hoosiers come home for the Indiana Invitational at the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex.The meet begins at 6 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.Freshman Andy Bayer, who qualified for the NCAA Mideast Regional in the 1,500-meter run last weekend in Knoxville, Tenn., said staying in Bloomington will help him mentally prepare.“I think that it is definitely an advantage,” Bayer said. “It will be nice to be at home, where we can relax and focus on racing,”This meet will be the second scored event of the outdoor season for IU and will feature Michigan State, Indiana State and Southern Illinois. IU coach Ron Helmer said while a scored meet generates enthusiasm, it also allows little relaxation for players. “There is a whole lot of team energy that is created,” Helmer said. “You can’t have these meets all the time though, because then the temptation is to race everyone on your team every weekend when they need rest.”
(04/13/09 3:56am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Eight IU athletes earned trips to the NCAA regionals in May in Louisville, Ky., by posting impressive performances at this weekend’s Sea Ray Relays in Knoxville, Tenn.The players qualifying for regionals were freshman Andy Bayer in the 1,500-meter run, junior Molly Beckwith in the 800-meter run, sophomore Kristen Crawford in shot put, senior Paul Fearnow in hammer throw, senior Tiffany Howard in discus and shot put, senior Kiwan Lawson in long jump, junior Vera Neuenswander in pole vault and junior Ashley Rhoades in high jump.The Hoosiers return to action at home this weekend when they compete in the Indiana Invitational at Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex.
(04/10/09 4:13am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After their farthest road trip of the year to Eugene, Ore., the Hoosiers hit the road a bit closer to home.The meet this weekend is the Sea Ray Relays on Friday and Saturday in Knoxville, Tenn.Junior Kayla Smith, who won the 400-meter hurdles on her way to a regional qualification time last week, said she is looking forward to the shorter travel times with her feet on the ground.“Traveling will definitely be less hectic,” Smith said. “Seven hours on a bus is definitely better than 14 hours on a plane.” IU coach Ron Helmer said the meet will be competitive with a lot of squads from the top conferences.“It’s a high-level meet,” Helmer said. “There will be 25 to 30 teams (including) Big Ten, SEC and Big East schools.”
(04/07/09 4:24am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Alaskan Pipeline pumps oil into the lower 48 states. However, IU coach Ron Helmer has created a different type of pipeline to Virginia when it comes to recruiting top talent.Helmer has many connections to Virginia, as he coached high school track and field there for 12 years. He lived there for 21 years while coaching at nearby Georgetown. He also continues to run a camp in the state every summer, which attracts about 500 athletes.Helmer said the connection is beneficial when it comes to recruiting.“My roots are pretty deep there,” he said. “People know me and trust me, so it has been fairly easy to get Virginia kids interested in looking at IU.”Freshmen Kim Blaylock and Kaylan Comer, as well as junior Kristen Crawford, all hail from Virginia. Of the three, Crawford has had the biggest contribution on the season, scoring nine points for IU at the Big Ten Championship by finishing fourth in shotput and fifth in weight throw.She said Helmer’s relationship with Virginia was one of her reasons for coming to IU.“I knew Coach Helmer was the head coach here, and he recruited me in high school,” Crawford said. “I also thought it would be a great opportunity to come here and throw at a big school.”The men’s track and field team includes sophomore Cedric Hudson and freshmen Olu Olamigoke and Rex Parker, who are also from Virginia.Olamigoke has made an immediate impact for the Hoosiers in his first year, finishing third in the triple jump and sixth in the long jump at the Big Ten Championships.He said his long relationship with Helmer lured him to come to Indiana. “Coach Helmer coached with my high school coach,” Olamigoke said. “I already had a connection with him before I even thought I was going to be running in college.” Helmer said while his Virginian roots are helpful, IU is an easy place to sell to all athletes for many reasons. “The cool thing is we have had success selling IU academics and the environment in Bloomington,” he said. “Indiana has great value and it’s a great education, and the facilities and the support staff are outstanding.”
(04/06/09 4:02am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>To be the best you must beat the best.The IU men’s track and field team proved they were the top squad this weekend by taking out recent indoor national champion Oregon to win the Pepsi Team Invitational in Eugene, Ore.Competing in a rare in-season scored meet, the Hoosiers edged out the hosts in the final event of the day, the discus, by placing second and fourth. IU finished with 200 points to Oregon’s 194.IU coach Ron Helmer said he knew beating the recent champions was possible, given the team’s recent improvement.“Our kids got into the spirit of the event,” he said. “Because we are getting better, beating the best team is possible for us.”The women’s team fared only slightly worse than their male counterparts, placing second behind the same Oregon team.Helmer said both squads took advantage of the conditions and showed the visiting spectators how good his team is.“There was good weather and a great crowd that saw Indiana track and field is for real,” he said.