CSR (Calvin Women's Track and Field Team 5th at NCAAs/Men 18th)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR MAY 27, 2006

NCAA III Track and Field Championship Day Three Report * Calvin Women 5th/Calvin Men 18th

LISLE, IL * Prior to the NCAA III Outdoor Track and Field Championships, the Calvin women's track and field team had a goal of a top-three finish. On Saturday, the Knights came up one point short of that goal, finishing fifth with a team score of 40 points, one point behind Oneonta State of New York and City College of New York which tied for third with 41 points. Williams College of Massachusetts took second with 42 points while Wisconsin-Oshkosh completed an indoor/outdoor national championship sweep with a first place total of 52 points.

On the men's side, Calvin tied for 18th with 15.5 points. Wisconsin-LaCrosse won the men's national crown with a score of 66.5 points.

"We were hoping for a top three (team) finish but we came up just short," said Calvin track and field coach Dr. Jong-il Kim of his women's team. "We are a little disappointed because our athletes worked so hard for this season and for that, I am very proud of them. At a national meet, sometimes there is very little that separates the top teams. We were very close again this year and we will continue to work hard in the future."

Heading into the final event of the meet * the 4x400 meter relay * the Calvin women had a strong shot of reaching their goal, needing only a third place finish in the relay to clinch a three-way tie for third. Calvin's relay of freshman Lauren Bergstrom (Rochester, MN), junior Katie Bolt (Grand Rapids Christian HS), sophomore Sarah Wittingen (East Grand Rapids HS) and junior Lisa Winkle (South Christian HS) came up just short, finishing fourth with a time of 3:48.20. Running in the second leg, Bolt became entangled with three trailing runners and ran the final 125 meters with only one shoe on.

The fourth place finish was another All-America berth for the Calvin women's team on Saturday however, one of six on the afternoon for the Knights. Winkle and Wittingen both landed individual All-America berths with Winkle taking fourth in the 400 meters (55.87) and Wittingen 6th in the 400 meter hurdles (1:01.70). Winkle and Wittingen also teamed up with juniors Lisa Geelhoed (Grand Rapids Christian HS) and Lorilyn Vogel (Orange City, IA) in the 4x100 meter relay for and eighth place and All-America time of 47.96.

In addition, senior Camille Medema (Grand Rapids Christian HS) closed out her collegiate track and field career with a third place finish in the 800 meters in a time of 2:13.44, collecting All-America accolades for the first time. Junior Megann VanderVliet (Oakville, ON) also captured an All-America berth in the shot put with a season-best throw of 45-1.

Calvin middle-distance coach Rick Otte has been coaching Medema since her high school days when he served as a cross country and track and field coach at Grand Rapids Christian. "Camille is the hardest working athlete I have ever coached," said Otte. "Her hard work paid off today and our entire track and field program is incredibly proud of her. I told Camille that God has given her many talents and her race today was a way of giving back thanks to Him for those gifts."

VanderVliet's finish in the shot put was satisfying after she struggled through the discus competition on Thursday, fouling on two throws and failing to make it out of the prelims.

"I was happy with my performance in the shot put," said VanderVliet who plans to compete at the Canadian Track and Field Championships August 4 and 5 in Ottawa. "I know I can throw farther though and that motivates even more for next year. I didn't start track and field until I got to Calvin and I feel like I still have much to learn. I'm excited about next year and hopefully I'll continue to get better."

In the men's competition, Calvin's lone All-America finish came from senior Nate Meckes (Bay City/Lutheran Westland HS) in the shot put as he took second with a throw of 57-9 ½. MIT senior Uzama Orzai defended his national title in the shot put, unleashing a career-best throw of 60-2 ½ to win the event.

"Nate gave it his best effort," but give credit to Uzama, he had an amazing series of throws," said Calvin throwing coach Norm Zylstra. "I know Nate was hoping to win this event but a second place finish is nothing to hang your head about nor does one or two competitions define an entire career. There's no question he's one of the top throwers in NCAA III history and he's been near the top when the level of competition is higher than it has ever been before in our division. He's also gone through much of the year with very little competition at meets but still thrown extremely well. That is not an easy task. It will be strange next year going into competitions wondering who is going to win the shot put or discus because he's pretty much cemented his name at the top in nearly every meet he has been in."

In the 5,000 meters, freshman Jed Christiansen (Greenville, PA) rebounded from a rough outing in the 10,000 meters two nights before by finishing 10th with a time of 15:09. The race was won by Widener junior Macharia Yuot in a time of 14:48.96. The victory completed a rare distance triple crown for Yuot who also won the 10,000 meters and 3,000 meter steeplechase during their three-day meet. Calvin junior Tim Finnegan (Los Alamos, NM) also ran in the 5,000 meters but was forced to retire from the race because of warm muggy conditions.

FINAL CALVIN TRACK AND FIELD NOTES FROM NCAA III CHAMPIONSHIPS

**Nate Meckes closed out his collegiate career as a five-time All-American * three times in the shot put and twice in the discus.

**Megann VanderVliet is now a two-time All-American in the shot put, having finished third at the 2005 NCAA III Championships.

**Lisa Winkle has now earned seven All-America plaques in her Calvin track and field career * five in relay events and two in individual events.

**Sarah Wittingen has now earned All-America honors four times in her Calvin track and field career.

**The Calvin women's track and field team has landed All-America honors (top eight) nine straight years in the 4x400 meter relay.

**Under head coach Jong-il Kim, the Calvin women's track and field team has now posted four consecutive top-10 national finishes.

**In Friday's Calvin Sports Report, it was noted that senior Christine Hendricks was the seventh individual national champion in Calvin women's track and field history when in fact she was the eighth. Lindsay Mulder was the 2001 NCAA III Champion in the long jump with a leap of 20-0 that still stands as an NCAA III record. Mulder's photo was on display at the 2006 Outdoor Track and Field Championships on a giant mural, celebrating 25 years of NCAA III Women's Track and Field Championships. Thanks to 2003 Calvin graduate Justin Pfreunder for pointing out that note! ?

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat May 27 19:46:33 2006