Mavericks Head to Dakota Relays This Week
Apr 30, 2014 | Track & Field
This Week
The Omaha track & field team will be in Sioux Falls, S.D. this weekend to take part in the Howard Wood Dakota Relays on Friday and Saturday, May 2-3. Friday's action begins at 11 a.m., and Saturday's events start at 9 a.m. from Howard Wood Field.
The Coaches
Chris Richardson is in his eighth season with the Omaha track & field program, his first as its head coach after seven seasons as an assistant. Richardson helped guide the Mavericks through some of their most successful years including three conference championships and three top-five NCAA finishes. The highlight of that stretch included a fourth-place finish at the 2010 indoor championship prior to the Mavericks' reclassification to Division I. In 2011, he was named the USTFCCCA South Central Regional Assistant Coach of the Year.
Richardson is assisted by Marc Bierbaum and Ryan Finley. Bierbaum is in his fourth season coaching the distance events in addition to coaching the cross country team. Finley is in his first season, coaching both sprints and jumps.
Last Time Out
The Mavericks took part in two meets last week, posting three first-place finishes at the Kip Janvrin Open while also sending athletes to the Drake Relays.
At the Janvrin, the 4x400 meter relay team consisting of Terri Armstrong, Lauren Psota, Alyssa Thavenet and Katarina Zarudnaya finished first with a meet record time of 3:56.21. Ashley Kildow picked up a win in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:40.34. Also, Kathie-Lee Laidley bested the 21-person field in the high jump with a leap of 5-08 after having previously competed in the long jump at Drake earlier in the day where she finished 17th with a leap of 18-05.
Sami Spenner competed in long jump at the Drake Relays, finishing third with a leap of 20-01 1/4. She also jumped 40-10 1/2 in the triple jump to place fifth in the 25-person field. In addition, Spenner competed in the 100 meters at the Janvrin, finishing second with a time of 11.75.
Thavenet finished sixth in the 800 meters at the Janvrin with a time of 2:18.74 setting a new personal record while Psota finished 10th with a season-best 2:21.10.
In the field events at the Janvrin, Denneil Shaw finish fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 36-08 1/2 while also finishing fifth in the long jump with a leap of 18-01 1/4. Amanda Conlin finished fourth in the shot put at 42-02 1/4, setting a new PR while Liz Thompson finished seventh with a throw of 41-00 1/4.
Where Maverick Athletes Rank in the Summit League
In meets through April 26, many Maverick athletes are tops in the Summit League for individual events. Sami Spenner ranks in the top eight in nine events and has the top marks in the long jump (20-04 1/4), the triple jump (41-10 1/2) and the heptathlon (6,003). Her heptathlon score ranks second in the NCAA. She's also ranked in the 100 meters (3), 200 meters (2), 800 meters (5), 100 meter hurdles (2), high jump (4) and javelin (5).
Kathie-Lee Laidley is ranked second in the high jump with a mark of 5-08 set at the Janvrin Open. She's also ranked third in the 100 meter hurdles and fifth in the long jump.
Also in the field events, Denneil Shaw is ranked fifth in the triple jump and seventh in the long jump. Jessica Ripp ranks sixth in the triple jump while Amanda Alexander (7) and Macy Woitzel (8) also are ranked in the heptathlon. In the throws, Liz Thompson is seventh in the Summit in the shot put while Woitzel is eighth in the javelin.
On the track, Katarina Zarudnaya ranks fifth in the 1,500 meters while Ashley Kildow is eighth. Kristin Rogers is fifth in the 10,000 meters, Celeste Robinson is eighth in in the 100 meter hurdles, and Terri Armstrong is eighth in the 100 meters.
The Maverick 4x100 meter relay team ranks third and the 4x400 meter relay team ranks fourth.
Up Next For The Mavericks
Next week, the Mavericks will stay in-state to compete in the Nebraska Invitational on Saturday, May 10 beginning at 1 p.m. from Ed Weir Stadium in Lincoln. It will be their final competition before the Summit League Championships on May 15-17 in Fargo, N.D.
The Omaha track & field team will be in Sioux Falls, S.D. this weekend to take part in the Howard Wood Dakota Relays on Friday and Saturday, May 2-3. Friday's action begins at 11 a.m., and Saturday's events start at 9 a.m. from Howard Wood Field.
The Coaches
Chris Richardson is in his eighth season with the Omaha track & field program, his first as its head coach after seven seasons as an assistant. Richardson helped guide the Mavericks through some of their most successful years including three conference championships and three top-five NCAA finishes. The highlight of that stretch included a fourth-place finish at the 2010 indoor championship prior to the Mavericks' reclassification to Division I. In 2011, he was named the USTFCCCA South Central Regional Assistant Coach of the Year.
Richardson is assisted by Marc Bierbaum and Ryan Finley. Bierbaum is in his fourth season coaching the distance events in addition to coaching the cross country team. Finley is in his first season, coaching both sprints and jumps.
Last Time Out
The Mavericks took part in two meets last week, posting three first-place finishes at the Kip Janvrin Open while also sending athletes to the Drake Relays.
At the Janvrin, the 4x400 meter relay team consisting of Terri Armstrong, Lauren Psota, Alyssa Thavenet and Katarina Zarudnaya finished first with a meet record time of 3:56.21. Ashley Kildow picked up a win in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:40.34. Also, Kathie-Lee Laidley bested the 21-person field in the high jump with a leap of 5-08 after having previously competed in the long jump at Drake earlier in the day where she finished 17th with a leap of 18-05.
Sami Spenner competed in long jump at the Drake Relays, finishing third with a leap of 20-01 1/4. She also jumped 40-10 1/2 in the triple jump to place fifth in the 25-person field. In addition, Spenner competed in the 100 meters at the Janvrin, finishing second with a time of 11.75.
Thavenet finished sixth in the 800 meters at the Janvrin with a time of 2:18.74 setting a new personal record while Psota finished 10th with a season-best 2:21.10.
In the field events at the Janvrin, Denneil Shaw finish fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 36-08 1/2 while also finishing fifth in the long jump with a leap of 18-01 1/4. Amanda Conlin finished fourth in the shot put at 42-02 1/4, setting a new PR while Liz Thompson finished seventh with a throw of 41-00 1/4.
Where Maverick Athletes Rank in the Summit League
In meets through April 26, many Maverick athletes are tops in the Summit League for individual events. Sami Spenner ranks in the top eight in nine events and has the top marks in the long jump (20-04 1/4), the triple jump (41-10 1/2) and the heptathlon (6,003). Her heptathlon score ranks second in the NCAA. She's also ranked in the 100 meters (3), 200 meters (2), 800 meters (5), 100 meter hurdles (2), high jump (4) and javelin (5).
Kathie-Lee Laidley is ranked second in the high jump with a mark of 5-08 set at the Janvrin Open. She's also ranked third in the 100 meter hurdles and fifth in the long jump.
Also in the field events, Denneil Shaw is ranked fifth in the triple jump and seventh in the long jump. Jessica Ripp ranks sixth in the triple jump while Amanda Alexander (7) and Macy Woitzel (8) also are ranked in the heptathlon. In the throws, Liz Thompson is seventh in the Summit in the shot put while Woitzel is eighth in the javelin.
On the track, Katarina Zarudnaya ranks fifth in the 1,500 meters while Ashley Kildow is eighth. Kristin Rogers is fifth in the 10,000 meters, Celeste Robinson is eighth in in the 100 meter hurdles, and Terri Armstrong is eighth in the 100 meters.
The Maverick 4x100 meter relay team ranks third and the 4x400 meter relay team ranks fourth.
Up Next For The Mavericks
Next week, the Mavericks will stay in-state to compete in the Nebraska Invitational on Saturday, May 10 beginning at 1 p.m. from Ed Weir Stadium in Lincoln. It will be their final competition before the Summit League Championships on May 15-17 in Fargo, N.D.
Players Mentioned
Jumps/Multi-Even
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Sprints
/ Track & Field
Throws
/ Track & Field
Distance
/ Track & Field
Jumps
/ Track & Field
Sprints
/ Track & Field
Multi-Events
/ Track & Field
Multi-Events
/ Track & Field
Distance
/ Track & Field
Jumps
/ Track & Field
Jumps/Multi-Even
/ Track & Field
Throws
/ Track & Field
Multi-Events
/ Track & Field
Distance
/ Track & FieldWednesday, August 26
Wednesday, August 26
Friday, August 21
Tuesday, April 21
