The DePaul men's and women's track and field squads keep the season rolling, traveling to West Lafayette, Ind. for the Dave Rankin Invitational. Hammer throw action kicks off the two-day event on Fri., April 16 at 2 p.m. (CST), while all other events
CHICAGO - The DePaul men's and women's track and field squads keep the season rolling, traveling to West Lafayette, Ind. for the Dave Rankin Invitational. Hammer throw action kicks off the two-day event on Fri., April 16 at 2 p.m. (CST), while all other events take place on Saturday, beginning at 10 a.m.
The Blue Demons are set to face several area rivals including Loyola-Chicago, UIC, Valparaiso, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Notre Dame, in addition to meet host Purdue and nearly a dozen other institutions.
Alanna Kovacs gets set for a busy weekend, slated to compete in the shot put, discus, hammer and javelin throws. The sophomore has already earned bids to the BIG EAST Conference Championships in three of the four throwing events, and will look to add the hammer throw to her championship line-up on Friday afternoon.
Joining her in the hammer throw competition is current DePaul record holder Melissa Fraser, as well as Virginia MacFabe, Katelyn MacFabe, Jim Theologes, Tim Nedow and Matt Babicz.
Following Friday's action, the field events resume on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. Blue Demon student-athletes line up for the first race at noon when Idia Omogiate, Brittany Lewis, Ivy Moffett and Lindsey Holden exchange the baton in the 4x100m relay.
Terah Cheatham tests her endurance, running in both the 3,000m steeplechase and the 1,500m-- events that are scheduled back-to-back. The senior holds the best times for DePaul in both events this season, but will be challenged by Courtney Avvampato, Erin Lakie and Toni Salvatore, who will take on the 1,500m along with Cheatham.
Scheduled to race in the men's 1,500m immediately to follow is Greg Udzielak, Zak Koronkiewicz and Dennis Baliga.
Holden continues her afternoon at 1:45 p.m. in the 400m and concludes her weekend in the 200m, slated for 3:15 p.m. Also running the 400m is Edin Pasalic, while 200m racers include Kelcie Daniels, Omogiate, Brittney Thomas, Gilbert Lifton and Chris Kyles.
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Full results and recaps will be available at www.DePaulBlueDemons.com following the conclusion of the competition.
Senior Swagger
Senior Brad Millar unleashed a career-best hammer throw of 66.13m at the Sun Angel Track Classic, bettering his previous PR by 1.73m (5'8.1"). The senior sits on top of the BIG EAST performance list by a staggering nine meters, and currently ranks 10th in the nation.
Quarter Mile Club
Tonderai Tomu lowered his personal record in the 400m to 47.16 at the Sun Angel Track Classic, the fastest time recorded by a Blue Demon since Gabe Harris clocked a 46.87 at the Notre Dame Indoor Opener on Jan. 20, 2006, and the best outdoor time since May 17, 2003 when Larry Inanga posted a 47.01 at the Conference USA Championship. The DePaul all-time best belongs to current assistant coach Dave Dopek, who owns the outdoor record with a time of 46.46.
USTFCCCA MidWest Region Ranking
The latest issue of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Midwest Region polls have the Blue Demon men's squad sitting in 14th with 172.08 points, while the women's have tallied 158.12 points to rank 16th.
The DePaul men's and women's squads were ranked as high as 13th and 14th, respectively, this season, the highest either team has been ranked since head coach Patrick J. Savage took over the helm of the program in 2006.
BIG EAST Track Athlete of the Week
Mary Cate Quiett of the DePaul women's track and field team was named BIG EAST Track Athlete of the Week following back-to-back wins in the 800m at both the 49er Classic and the adidas Raleigh Relays. At the season opener, Quiett dominated the race in a DePaul record time of 2:06.87; a time that currently ranks as the 11th-fastest time amongst all Division I NCAA student-athletes.
National Contenders
Mary Cate Quiett, Melissa Fraser, Alanna Kovacs, Brad Millar, and Tim Nedow all rank within the top-20 nationally in their respective events. In the 800m Quiett ranks 11th, while Fraser and Kovacs sit at No. 11 and 12 in the javelin rankings. Millar currently boasts the 10th best hammer throw of the season, while Tim Nedow owns the 19th best shot put of the 2010 season.
Hammer Time
Melissa Fraser now owns half of DePaul's outdoor throwing records, after launching a hammer throw of 55.54m at the 49er Classic. The throw dethroned two-time Most Outstanding Performer Jamie Holifield as the hammer throw record holder. Fraser also holds the all-time best in the javelin; a record she set during her freshman campaign.
New Season, New Rules
The NCAA will no longer be using a set a qualification standards to determine the field of regional and national championship participants this season. Instead, a student-athlete must rank in the top-48 within their region to earn a bid. In relay events, only the top 24 per region receive the invite to the National First Round. In lieu of the four regional meets used in the past, two sites, one in Austin, Texas, the other in Greensboro, N.C., will serve as the venue for two opening preliminary rounds. The top 12 from each site advance to the National Semifinal the following weekend in Eugene, Oregon.
18 Kids and Counting...
18 Blue Demon student-athletes have eclipsed the BIG EAST standard in 20 events thus far including Terah Cheatham (3,000m steeplechase), Kelcie Daniels (400m hurdles), Melissa Fraser (hammer throw, javelin), Lindsey Holden (200m, 400m), Alanna Kovacs (shot put, discus, javelin), Katelyn MacFabe (discus, hammer throw), Mary Cate Quiett (400m, 800m), Toni Salvatore (800m), Matt Babicz (discus, shot put), Matthew Graham (3,000m steeplechase, 5,000m), Chris Kyles (100m, 200m), Brad Millar (hammer throw), Tim Nedow (discus, shot put), Edin Pasalic (800m), Joe Strawder (long jump, triple jump), Tonderai Tomu (200m, 400m), Tim Vala (discus), and James Waller (discus).
New Season, Same Rules
The BIG EAST Conference will continue to use the same qualification system for the league championship. A student-athlete must eclipse a certain mark that has been established by the conference office in order to receive a bid. There are no qualification standards for relays, as each school is allotted one entry per relay event.
No Halting Holden
Sprinter Lindsey Holden currently ranks No. 2 on the DePaul's all-time 400m performance list. The freshman clocked a blistering time of 55.61 at the Raleigh Relays, approximately half a second shy of Diana Runnels record of 55.02.
Let the Record Show That...
... the Blue Demons will continue their campaign to re-write the outdoor record book after breaking 12 school records during the indoor season. So far, two all-time bests have been reset.
| Name | Event | Mark | Previous Holder | Mark | Year |
| Melissa Fraser | Hammer | 55.54m | Jamie Holifield | 55.49 | 2006 |
| Mary Cate Quiett | 800m | 2:06.87 | Mary Cate Quiett | 2:08.35 | 2008 |
Blue Demon Tweets
For all the latest information on DePaul's cross country and track & field programs, including live race/throw/jump updates when available, become a follower on Twitter. You can find the cross country and track & field team's twitter page at Twitter.com/DePaulXCandTF.
Up Next:
The Blue Demons split forces once again, sending athletes to both the Drake Relays on April 22-24 and the Marquette Twilight on April 24th. This is the final week of competition before the BIG EAST Championship on April 30-May 1.
