Horizon League Indoor Track & Field Championships: Day One

Feb. 25, 2006

The 2006 Horizon League Indoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Youngstown State, kicked off Saturday morning at Kent State Field House in Kent, Ohio.

In the first event of the day, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee freshman Jenni Saarinen took the first-ever Horizon League Indoor Pentathlon Championship. Saarninen used a first-place finish in the long jump with a distance of 5.64 m and two second-place finishes in the high jump (1.67m) and the shot put (10.99 m) to defeat Youngstown State Univeristy's Yandeh Joh by a margin of only 23 points (3459 to 3436).

The field events began later in the morning with defending champion Youngstown State taking the first four spots in the women's weight throw, as Bethany Anderson blew out the competition, throwing for 17.80 meters.  YSU's Katy Williams came in second at 16.45m, with Amy Hill in third at 15.26 followed by Lindsay Cobey at 14.85.  University of Illinois at Chicago's Sara O'Mara rounded out the top five with a throw of 14.59.

The pole vault proved the most difficult event of the day for the women, with only four competitors clearing the opening height of 3.10 meters.  UW-Milwaukee's Joy VanLaanen claimed the crown with a height of 3.40 meters, while teammate Stephanie Kay took second at 3.25 meters. 

In the final field event of the day, VanLaanen claimed her second individual event title, winning the pole vault in a tie-breaker over Joh of YSU.  VanLaanen jumped a distance of 5.42 meters for win.

In the only individual running event of the day, UW-Milwaukee sophomore Angie Huebner claimed the 2006 Indoor Championship in the 5,000m race.  Huebner, a First Team All-Horizon League selection in cross country, finished with a time of 17:42.38.  UIC's Laura Macias crossed the line second in 17:49.03, followed by UWM's Anna Christian in third at 18:00.51.

On the men's side, University of Detroit Mercy senior Thomas Grant hit a season-high distance of 7.11 m in the men's long jump to claim the Horizon League championship in the event.  UW-Milwaukee freshman Adam Schleis finished second at 6.82 meters,

YSU senior Jarrod Davis won his first title in the weight throw, marking a distance of 19.01m to set a new Horizon League record and provisionally qualify for the NCAA championship in the event. Drew Weizer (17.21m) and Joe Lahmon (16.62) finished behind Davis to complete the YSU sweep of the top three spots.

In the final field event of the day, UW-Milwaukee's Jeremiah Snyder captured his first title in the pole vault, reaching a height of 4.61 m (15- 01.50).  UIC's Terell Williams finished second, clearing 4.46 m (14-0.750).

Loyola University Chicago claimed its first win of the day as senior Robert Wade ran to victory in the men's 5000m.  Wade crossed the line in 14:44.81, ahead of UIC's Joseph Mbari (14:46.58) and UWM's Nate Weiland (14:58.83).  UW-Milwaukee's Josh Nygren finished fourth with a time of 14:58.87, while YSU's Dave Meally finished fifth at 15:07.04.

The evening concluded for both the men and the women with the finals of the distance medley relays.  Butler and Loyola traded wins as the Bulldogs team of Alex Hains, Mitch Briggs, Andy Rayner and Scott Overall finished in a time of 10:04.58 to win the men's event ahead of Loyola, then the Ramblers team of Anna Hinterschied, Christina James, Pam Staton and Rachel Hansen edged Butler for a victory in the women's race with a 12:07.72 finish.

Women's Scores

1) University of Wisconsin Milwaukee  75       
2) Youngstown State University  54                  
3) University of Illinois at Chicago  20       
4) Loyola University Chicago  19                   
5) Butler University            9      
6) Wright State University     4                   
7) University of Detroit Mercy   2          

Men's Scores

1) University of Wisconsin Milwaukee  49       
2) Youngstown State University  36                  
3) Loyola University Chicago   18       
3) University of Illinois at Chicago  18                  

5) University of Detroit Mercy  16        

6) Butler University          14 

Complete Day One Results