Mavs Head To K-State, Moore to Heptathlon Champion
Apr 30, 2010 | General, Track & Field
Weekly Release
The Week Ahead:
The University of Nebraska at Omaha track and field team will head to Kansas State on Saturday, May 1, for the Ward Haylett Invitational. The Mavs also will send heptathlete #Shannon Moore# to Joplin, Mo. for the MIAA Heptathlon-Decathlon Championship on Sunday and Monday, May 2 and 3 at Missouri Southern State University.
The Coaches:
Steve Smith is in his fourth season as the head coach of the University of Nebraska at Omaha track program after more than two decades of success as an assistant in Kansas, Nebraska and UNO. Smith was named the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Assocation Indoor Coach of the Year after guiding the Mavericks to a stunning win in the 2009 MIAA Indoor Championships in March and finished the season fifth in the nation indoors. Smith is assisted by #Chris Richardson# (jumps and pentathlon/heptathlon), John Mulligan (distances) and Rich Emsick (throws).
Sprinting To The Record:
UNO broke a seven-year-old Drake Relays record by winning the 1,600 m sprint medley relay last weekend. The team of Moore, #Maja Mihalinec#, #Pinar Saka and Anja Puc# finished in a time of 3:49.11, more than ten seconds ahead of the second-place team, Oklahoma Baptist. The previous record of 3:50.60 was set by Lincoln University in 2003. Incidentally, the time posted by the Mavericks is the fourth-best time in the event in the country this year, bettered only by three Division I schools.
National Rankings:
Puc vaulted to second in the national rankings in the 800 meters when she ran a time of 2:07.55 in an open event at the Drake Relays. Her time is the best in the MIAA by more than five seconds. Moore is ranked third in the nation in the heptathlon after a personal best performance at the Emporia State Multi Events. Her score of 5,261 is the second-best heptathlon score in school history. Along the way, she set personal best marks in the 100 m hurdles (14.26), 200 m (24.89) and the javelin (102-1). Her score leads the MIAA. In addition, UNO's quartet of #Kayla Koepke#, Puc, Moore and Saka ranks third in the nation in the 4 x 400 meter relay after posting a time of 3:41.20 at the Drake Relays. That mark is also best in the MIAA. All four athletes have automatically qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championship.
Conference Rankings:
Koepke has the MIAA's best 400 meter mark after running a stadium record at Doane on April 17. In addition, Mihalinec has posted the MIAA's second-best time in the 100 m this season with a time of 11.81 at the Doane College Relays on April 17. She has the third-best mark in the 200 m at 24.88. In fact, the Mavs have four runners in the top eight in the league in that event. Koepke is second in the 200 m after her performance at Doane, Moore is fourth, and #Molly Belling# is sixth. Belling is also sixth in the MIAA in the 100 m. Puc is second in the league in the 400 m. Moore is all over the leaderboard. Along with her heptathlon and 200 m mark, she ranks third in the 100 m, fourth in the 100 meter hurdles, eighth in the high jump and seventh in the long jump. #Lianne McNaughton is fifth in the shot put while Madison Haugland# is sixth in the hammer throw. #Jody-Ann Coore# is sixth in the 100 m hurdles. #Sami Spenner# is eighth in the triple jump.
Up Next:
The Mavericks will compete in the MIAA Championships on Saturday and Sunday, May 8 and 9 at Pittsburg, Kan. UNO tied for third place in the 2009 MIAA outdoor championship.
