WIAC Men's Track and Field Meet to Feature Nation's Best Performers
Fans wishing to see some of the top NCAA Division III men�s track and field competitors in the country have no need to travel to Canton, N.Y. for the 2003 outdoor national championships. A simple trip to Stevens Point for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference outdoor championships should suffice.
With competitors boasting the nation�s top mark in nine of 21 events and another four athletes with the country�s second-best mark in an event, this weekend�s meet will be a sneak preview of the national meet.
Two-time defending national champion UW-La Crosse could also provide a preview of things to come as the Eagles aim for their 13th straight WIAC title. UW-La Crosse already won the indoor national championship in March and looks to win both titles in the same year for the eighth time in school history.
Two-time defending WIAC 400 and 200 meters champion Andrew Rock will help the Eagles� cause, bringing the country�s best time in both events into this weekend. He also won the indoor national title in the 400 meters this season and runs on the 4x400 relay that has posted the nation�s best time this season with Nate Olson, Kris Smith and Derek Toshner.
Toshner is one of the country�s best hurdlers, winning last year�s national title in the 400-meter hurdles and boasting the top time in the event this year and second-best mark in the 110-meter race. He won WIAC titles in both events last season.
UW-La Crosse�s Hans Schmidt won this year�s indoor national title in the pole vault and has the nation�s top outdoor height, but UW-Oshkosh�s Jon Wagner ranks fourth nationally and won the WIAC title last year. UW-Oshkosh�s Matt Groose has won two straight WIAC titles in the 1500 meters and two of the past three 800-meter titles. He is the defending indoor and outdoor national champion in the 800 and has the nation�s best outdoor time this season along with the second-best mark nationally in the 1500. UW-Platteville�s Ryan Kleimenhagen provides some of the country�s top competition in both events after finishing runner-up in the 800 and third in the 1500 at nationals last year.
The conference features the top four discus throwers in the country, led by defending WIAC champion Mike Turgeon of UW-La Crosse. Other contenders are UW-Oshkosh�s Chris Jensen, UW-Platteville�s Andy Paulsen, UW-Stevens Point�s Jeremiah Rolfs and UW-Eau Claire�s John Schuna.
Schuna is the defending conference shot put winner, though Paulsen has the nation�s top heave this season and will also be challenged by Jim Nelson of UW-La Crosse.
UW-Whitewater�s Jeremy Wendt is the defending conference champion in the hammer throw and has the nation�s best throw this season, but will get a strong challenge from UW-Stevens Point�s Noah Eschenbauch, who won the indoor national title in the 35-pound weight throw.
The conference doesn�t have any national qualifiers in the javelin as Scott Dreger of UW-Stevens Point has the best throw this year and will be challenged by defending conference champion Chris Walters of UW-La Crosse.
In jumps, UW-Stevens Point�s Cory Lesperance is back after winning the long jump crown last year, though Todd Gannon of UW-Whitewater has the nation�s fourth best mark this season. The triple jump could be wide open as UW-Whitewater�s Aaron Henderson has the top mark, but eight others have jumped within two feet of his best. Kevin Deering of UW-Oshkosh has the best high jump effort and is the top scorer among five WIAC athletes that rank in the top eight nationally in the decathlon.
UW-Oshkosh�s Eamon McKenna leads the distance runners with the top qualifying times in the 5000 and 10,000 meters after finishing runner-up at conference in both events last year.
John LeRoy of UW-Oshkosh is the conference�s top qualifier in the 3000-meter steeplechase and Nate Templer of UW-Stout brings the best 100-meter dash time.