2003 WIAC Men's Outdoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week

2003 WIAC Men's Outdoor Track & Field
Athletes of the Week

Week of April 21 - 27
Track
Matt Groose, Senior (Watertown), of UW-Oshkosh
Competing in the Special Invitational Mile at the Drake Relays held April 24-26 in Des Moines, Iowa, Groose finished third in the event with a time of 4:03.77. Converted to a 1,500-meter run time of 3:45.73, Groose's performance established a school record and became the fastest in the NCAA Division III this season. Boaz Cheboiywo of Eastern Michigan won the invite-only race of nine competitors with a time of 3:59.61.

Also nominated:
UW-La Crosse, 4x400-Meter Relay Team, Derek Toshner, Kris Smith, Nate Olson, Andrew Rock
UW-Platteville, Ryan Kleimenhagen, Junior, Oak Creek
UW-River Falls, Dan Booth, Junior, Hayward
UW-Stevens Point, 4x800-Meter Relay Team, Matt Legel, Steve Gillespie, Adam Bucholz, Jesse Baumann
UW-Stout, Nate Templer, Junior, Beaver Dam

Field
Hans Schmidt, Sophomore (Park Falls), of UW-La Crosse
Schmidt won the pole vault at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. He cleared 17-6 1/2 to defeat several NCAA Division I competitors. Schmidt set a UW-La Crosse record with his effort, which also ranks first in NCAA Division III this season. He improved his automatic qualifying standard for the NCAA Division III Championships.

Also nominated:
UW-Oshkosh, Chris Jensen, Junior, Lake Geneva (Badger)
UW-Platteville, Andy Paulsen, Senior, Blue River (Riverdale)
UW-River Falls, Erik Olson, Freshman, Shoreview, Minn. (Mounds View)
UW-Stevens Point, Jeremiah Rolfs, Senior, Iola (Iola-Scandinavia)
UW-Stout, Lewis Cassellius, Junior, Glenwood City

Week of April 14 - 20
Track
Derek Toshner, Junior (Campbellsport), of UW-La Crosse
Toshner placed fifth in the 110-meter hurdles (14.49) and seventh in the 400-meter hurdles (52.49) at the Pomona-Pitzer (Calif.) Invitational on April 18 to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships in both events. He then placed 23rd in the 400-meter hurdles (52.97) at the Mt. San Antonio (Calif.) Relays on April 19.

Also nominated:
UW-Oshkosh, Eamon McKenna, Senior, Ashippun (Oconomowoc)
UW-River Falls, Darrin Soderberg, Senior, Baldwin (Baldwin-Woodville)
UW-Stevens Point, Matt Legel, Sophomore, Crystal Lake, Ill.
UW-Stout, Tyrone Rhone, Senior, Milwaukee (Vincent)

Field
Kevin Deering, Junior (East Troy/Mukwonago), of UW-Oshkosh
Deering won two events as UW-Oshkosh claimed the top ranking at the Meet of Champions on April 19 in Rock Island, Ill. He took highest honors in the decathlon with 6,581 points and in the high jump with a leap of 6-9 3/4. Deering's performance in the decathlon surpassed the automatic qualifying standard for the NCAA Division III Championships, while his effort in the high jump passed the provisional mark. UW-Oshkosh won the seven-team meet with 321.8 points, while Augustana (Ill.) finished second with 220.3.

Also nominated:
UW-La Crosse, Hans Schmidt, Sophomore, Park Falls
UW-Platteville, Andy Paulsen, Senior, Blue River (Riverdale)
UW-River Falls, B.J. Poore, Senior, Osseo (Osseo-Fairchild)
UW-Stevens Point, Scott Dreger, Cambria

Week of April 7 - 13
Track
Andrew Rock, Junior (Stratford), of UW-La Crosse
Rock won the 400 meter dash at the Phil Esten Challenge on April 12 with a school and facility (Veterans Memorial Stadium) record at 45.73. He automatically qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships with his effort. Rock's time is the fastest in NCAA Division III history and also meets the "B" qualifying standard for the World Track and Field Championships and the United States Olympic Trials.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Zach Severson, Freshman, Sun Prairie
UW-Oshkosh, Matt Groose, Senior, Watertown
UW-Platteville, Ryan Kleimenhagen, Junior, Oak Creek
UW-River Falls, Jim Felling, Senior, Albany, Minn.
UW-Stevens Point, Matt Legel, Sophomore, Crystal Lake, Ill.
UW-Stout, Nate Templer, Junior, Beaver Dam

Field
Andy Paulsen, Senior (Blue River/Riverdale), of UW-Platteville
Paulsen captured the shot put in 55-7 1/4, which guaranteed him a trip to the NCAA Division III Championships. He also won the discus in 166-3 3/4, a provisional qualifying mark for the national meet. Both his event titles were event records at the Wartburg Select Invitational. Paulsen also threw the hammer 163-0 to place second behind teammate Dan Kuehn.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, John Schuna, Sophomore, Hudson
UW-La Crosse, Kevin Becker, Freshman, Rochester, Minn. (Mayo)
UW-Oshkosh, Kevin Deering, Junior, East Troy (Mukwonago)
UW-River Falls, Erik Olson, Freshman, Shoreview, Minn. (Mounds View)
UW-Stevens Point, Noah Eschenbauch, Senior, Rosholt
UW-Stout, Eric Moe, Senior, Hixton (Whitehall)

Week of March 31 - April 6
Track
Ryan Kleimenhagen, Junior (Oak Creek), of UW-Platteville
Kleimenhagen won both the 800-meter run (1:53.79) and 1,500-meter run (3:51.60) at the 20-team Washington (Mo.) Invitational on April 5. He provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships in the 1,500-meter run.

Also nominated:
UW-La Crosse, Derek Toshner, Junior, Campbellsport

Field
Jeremy Wendt, Junior (Burlington, Ill.), of UW-Whitewater
Performing at the Washington (Mo.) Invitational on April 5, Wendt won the hammer throw with a toss of 198-3 (60.44 m) against 53 competitors. His performance established a school record and automatically qualified him for the NCAA Division III Championships.

Also nominated:
UW-La Crosse, Mike Turgeon, Junior, Perham, Minn.
UW-Platteville, Andy Paulsen, Senior, Blue River (Riverdale)

Back to the WIAC home page