May 5, 2003
Change Of Plans: The men's and women's track and field teams will not be competing at the Illinois Twilight Meet, as it was cancelled ... both squads will be in action at the Billy Hayes Invitational on Sunday, May 11 in Bloomington, Ind. ... the Indiana-hosted meet was originally schedule for May 10.
Indiana Dual Meet Recap (Men): The Indiana Hoosiers topped the Purdue Boilermakers, 105-98, on May 3 ... Indiana increased its all-time outdoor dual meet series lead to 3-0 over Purdue ... sunny skies and warm temperatures brought out the season's largest crowd, estimated at more than 500 ... Brian Smith placed second in the javelin, with a launch of 63.34 meters (207 feet, 10 inches) ... all of Smith's javelin throws have qualified him for the NCAA Regional Championships ... Jamar Green hit an NCAA qualifying mark in the long jump, reaching a season-best distance of 7.54m (24-9) ... Pooh Williams won the pole vault competition for the third time in four weeks ... Williams reached a height of 5.10m (16-8 3/4) ... Nedzad Mulabegovic and Chris Hecht finished one-two in the shot put ... Mulabegovic also captured the discus title at 53.76m (176-4) ... teammate Keith McBride placed second in the discus at 52.96m (173-9) ... Derek Watkins and Shaun Guice captured the top two spots in the high jump, both reaching a height of 2.12m (6-11 1/2) ... David Rae won the 3,000-meter steeplechase for the third time in four tries ... Rae's personal time of 9:12.53 was just .53 seconds off the NCAA regional qualifying mark ... Prentice Stovall led a Boilermaker sweep of the top four positions in the 110 hurdles ... a quartet of Boilermakers, led by Jacques Reeves, accomplished the same feat in the 100 ... Reeves also led a three-way sweep in the 200.
Indiana Dual Meet Recap (Women): Indiana's nationally ranked women's team spoiled Purdue's home finale at Rankin, with a 110 - 86 victory over the Boilermakers ... Indiana leads the all-time outdoor dual-meet series with Purdue, 3-1 ... Simona Kovacic and her teammates stole the top three spots in the pole vault ... Kovacic's winning leap was measured at 3.81m (12-6) ... Courtney Magnuson established a new personal best in the hammer throw, with a winning launch of 53.27m (174-9) ... Tiffany Britten's second-place effort in the shot put (14.62m, 47-11 3/4) landed one centimeter short of tying Stacy Hartman's 18-year-old school record ... Carrie Long won the high jump title, matching her season-best leap of 1.70m (5-7) ... Amber Ferner and Kara Lahey's steeplechase times qualified them for an appearance at the NCAA regionals ... Krissy Liphardt recorded a season best in the 100 hurdles of 14.13 seconds ... Liphardt later won her first 400 hurdle title of the outdoor season, finishing at 1:00.67 ... Meghan McNeilly posted a career record in the 800, coming across the finish line in 2:11.54 ... the Purdue women completed their afternoon with a win in the 4x400 relay.
Rankin Record Breakers: Several Rankin Track and Field records were broken during the Purdue-Indiana dual meet ... Indiana's Irina Khanrun's javelin throw of 54.44m (178-07) knocked off the previous record held by Minnesota's Linda Lindqvist (52.46m) ... Hoosier hammer thrower Adam Judge's first-place launch of 67.55m (221-07) was over two meters farther than the previous best held by Purdue's Chris Brown (65.06) ... Nedzad Mulabegovic broke his own track and school records in the shot put, registering a winning push of 19.49m (63-11 1/2) ... the Indiana 4x100-meter relay squad of Rose Richmond, Richelle Boone, Ara Towns and Danielle Carruthers recorded a time of 44.65 seconds to topple the old record set by Illinois in 1999 (44.88) ... Jacques Reeves and Prentice Stovall both broke a 31-year-old track record in the 100 ... Reeves screamed across the finish line in 10.40 seconds ... Stovall followed right behind, clocking in at 10.45 ... the old record of 10.49 seconds was established by Purdue's Larry Burton in May 1972.
Two For The Show: Two more Boilermakers were added Saturday to the growing list of NCAA regional qualifiers ... Courtney Magnuson qualified for an appearance in the hammer throw, after recording a career-best launch of 53.27m (174-9) ... Kara Lahey made it an extra special 21st birthday, recording a season-best time of 10:47.54 in the steeplechase ... twenty-seven Purdue track and field stars now are eligible to compete at the NCAA Regional Championships, which takes place May 30 and 31 in Columbus, Ohio.
Throwing (is) Up: The Purdue throwing crew stepped up its efforts against archrival Indiana ... Scott Hecht recorded NCAA regional qualifying marks in three events: discus, hammer and shot put ... Hecht's discus toss of 52.00m (170-7) was a season best ... all six of Hecht's hammer throws this season have surpassed the NCAA regional standard ... Igor Kirin's hammer launch of 62.32m (204-5) also was a season best, beating his previous record by over six feet ... Nedzad Mulabegovic won both the discus and shot put championships ... the Croatian's winning shot put toss of 19.49m (63-11 1/2) shattered his own school, season and career records ... Mulabegovic's first discus launch of the season qualified him for the NCAA regionals ... John Paul Smolenski recorded his best hammer throw of the season at 61.44m (201-7).
Filling A Void: Purdue's Jerod Void and Joey Harris returned to the track and field roster for the meet against Indiana ... Harris and Void, both running backs for coach Joe Tiller's gridiron squad, completed the spring football season last weekend ... against the Hoosiers, Harris placed third in the 100 (10.61) and fifth in the 200 (21.65) ... Void took fourth in the 100 (10.66) and second in the 110 hurdles (14.64) ... Jacques Reeves, who has competed in several track meets this season, doubles as a cornerback for Tiller's crew in the fall.
A Senior Salute: Saturday's meet against Indiana was the final home event for the senior class of 2003 ... the latest list of graduates includes Simona Kovacic, Krissy Liphardt, Meghan McKenzie, Megan McNeilly, Amy Spellmeyer, Prentice Stovall, Chris White, Jesse Wilder and Hence "Pooh" Williams ... Kovacic, Liphardt, McNeilly and Williams fittingly ended their Rankin careers with victories.
...And the Winners Are: Purdue University's Union Club hosted the Track and Field teams' annual awards banquet Saturday night ... head coach Lissa Olson and her coaching colleagues presented more than 20 individual awards, recognized the team's academic achievers, showcased a video highlight reel and paid tribute to the senior class.
Award Recipient(s)Red Mackey Krissy Liphardt, Prentice StovallCaptains' Award Krissy Liphardt, Tiffany Britten Jan Eichenauer, Kyle Orender, Pooh Williams
Female Freshman of the Year Amber FernerMale Newcomer of the Year Derek Watkins
Female Team Player of the Year Carrie LongMale Team Player of the Year Keith McBride
Cybil Perry Mental Attitude Award Gina HarveyWes Wood Mental Attitude Award Pooh Williams
Female Comeback Performer of the Year Krissy LiphardtMale Comeback Performer of the Year Kenneth Baxter
Most Improved Female Field Athlete Tiffany BrittenMost Improved Male Field Athlete Scott Hecht
Most Improved Female Track Athlete Gina HarveyMost Improved Male Track Athlete Kenneth Baxter
Dave Rankin Field MVP Shaun GuiceDave Rankin Track MVP Prentice Stovall
Corissa Yasen Field MVP Simona KovacicCorissa Yasen Track MVP Krissy Liphardt
2003 NCAA Regional Qualifiers
Athlete Event Time/Mark Meet (date)Angela Anoliefoh Javelin 43.46m Purdue Invitational (3/29)Kenneth Baxter 200 21.11 Sea Ray Relays (4/12) 4x100 39.50 Texas Relays (4/5)Tiffany Britten Shot Put 14.62m Indiana (5/3)Megan Darraugh Pole Vault 3.66m Boilermaker Invite (4/26)Amber Ferner 3,000 St. 10:47.54 Indiana (5/3)Jamar Green 4x100 39.50 Texas Relays (4/5) 200 21.18 Indiana (5/3) Long Jump 7.54m Indiana (5/3)Shaun Guice High Jump 2.15m Texas Relays (4/5)Scott Hecht Hammer Throw 60.53m Penn Relays (4/25) Shot Put 18.28m Sea Ray Relays (4/12) Discus 52.00m Indiana (5/3)Igor Kirin Hammer Throw 62.32m Indiana (5/3)Simona Kovacic Pole Vault 4.00m Miami Invite (4/12)Kara Lahey 3,000 St. 10:49.45 Indiana (5/3)Jocelyn Lindsay Pole Vault 3.66m Boilermaker Invite (4/26)Krissy Liphardt 400 hurdles 59.71 Mt. SAC Relays (4/18)Carrie Long High Jump 1.70m Indiana (5/3)Courtney Magnuson Hammer Throw 53.27m Indiana (5/3)Keith McBride Hammer Throw 63.49m Penn Relays (4/25) Discus 52.96m Indiana (5/3)Meghan McKenzie Pole Vault 3.66m Boilermaker Invite (4/26)Nedzad Mulabegovic Shot Put 19.49m Indiana (5/3) Discus 53.76m Indiana (5/3)Jacques Reeves 4x100 39.50 Texas Relays (4/5) 100 10.40 Indiana (5/3) 200 20.97 Indiana (5/3)Brian Smith Javelin 63.92m Texas Relays (4/5)J.P. Smolenski Hammer Throw 61.44m Indiana (5/3)Amy Spellmeyer Pole Vault 3.66m Indiana (5/3)Prentice Stovall 4x100 40.60 Purdue Invitational (3/29) 100 10.45 Indiana (5/3) 110 hurdles 14.00 Indy Relays (4/19)Derek Watkins High Jump 2.12m Indiana (5/3)Chris White Shot Put 16.69m Penn Relays (4/25)Hence Williams Pole Vault 5.35m Boilermaker Invite (4/26)Kern Woods Long Jump 7.36m Boilermaker Invite (4/26)Big Ten "Athlete of the Week" Nominations3/30 Scott Hecht, Jr. - Throws3/30 Gina Harvey, So. - Sprints4/7 Prentice Stovall, Sr. - Sprints4/7 Gina Harvey, So. - Sprints4/14 Scott Hecht, Jr. - Throws4/14 Simona Kovacic, Sr. - Pole Vault4/21 Robert Heise, Sr. - Distance4/21 Simona Kovacic, Sr. - Pole Vault4/28 Kern Woods, So. - Jumps/Hurdles4/28 Tiffany Britten, Jr. - Throws5/3 Jacques Reeves, Jr. - Sprints5/3 Tiffany Britten, Jr. - Throws