Jan. 13, 2007
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue University men's and women's track and field teams kicked off their indoor seasons on Saturday, hosting the 2007 Purdue Invitational Track Meet in Lambert Fieldhouse. The Boilermakers showcased that they were definitely in competitive form, winning 20 events and placing in the top three in 22 others.
Leah Kincaid won the women's long jump with a leap of 6.02m while Boilermaker Lindsey Singleton was second with a jump of 5.31m. Ben Harpenau was victorious in the men's weight throw with a distance of 18.39m. Teammate John Pullum was a close second with a throw of 18.37m. In the men's long jump, Nolan Petties defeated his opponents to land a best jump of 7.22 meters.
In the men's shot put, Tyler Miler threw 15.94m to earn the top spot. Boilermaker Ben Harpenau was second with a distance of 15.84. Boilermakers Annie Beasley and Sarah Grabowski of Purdue were second and third in the high jump with heights of 1.58 and 1.48 meters, respectively, while Sheena James was third in the women's weight throw and won the women's shot put, throwing a distance of 14.73m. Stacey Wannemacher was second in the shot put with her best throw of 14.14. In the men's high jump, Chris Kirkwood proved victorious with a mark of 2.01m. Boilermakers John Porter and Andrew Rademacher were second and third respectively in the men's pole vault with matching clearances of 4.75m.
In the track events, Leah Kincaid made an impressive showing, winning the women's 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.52, nearly four-tenths of a second faster than second place teammate Ranay Harvey, who clocked 8.96. Purdue made this event a shutout as Lindsey Singleton placed third with a time of 9.15. Kincaid also won the 60-meter dash, clocking 7.78, while Singleton was second with 8.15. It was the same shutout for the men's 60-meter hurdles, as Purdue's record holder Ricky Pinkney sped to a 7.91 win, posting an NCAA provisional-qualifying time, while fellow Boilers Keith Hopkins and Brian Kaluf came in second and third respectively with times of 7.99 and 8.07. Pinkney also won the 60-meter dash with a career-best time of 6.90. Nolan Petties was close behind at 7.00, while unattached Christopher Green copped third. Corrie Whisner sped to a first-place showing in the women's 3,000 meter run, clocking a time of 9:45.75 to record the best time for a Boilermaker woman over the past two seasons.
The men's 400 dash proved to be a Purdue sweep as well, with Jh'Rome Tuggle leading the pack to a 49.82 win, while Terrell Thompson and Brian Kaluf ran into second and third place. Boilermaker captain Laura Farley earned first place in the mile run with 5:00.51, while in the men's mile Purdue's Justin Stadt was triumphant with a 4:18.40 run.
In the 400 meters, Lauren Scott ran to victory with a time of 57.76, while Ranay Harvey followed closely behind with a time of 1:01.17. Purdue took home both sides of the 800 as Reese Byerrum won the men's with a time of 1:57.90, and Ashlee Lengacher won the women's in 2:19.89. Purdue's team A sped to earn first places in both the men and women 4x400 meter relay.
Athletes from the University of Illinois-Chicago and Notre Dame also took part in the meet and proved to be competition for the host schools. Notre Dame's Mary Saxer won the pole vault with a distance of 3.80, while teammate Kate Mattoon placed third with 3.50. Jaime Minor was successful in the jumps area, as she placed second in the triple jump with a leap of 10.77 meters, and third in the long jump with a distance of 5.17m. Teammates Christopher Jacques and Eric Quick of Notre Dame placed second and third with distances of 7.03 and 6.62 m in the men's long jump. The Fighting Irish's Cassie Gullickson won the women's high jump with a height of 1.63 meters and also won the women triple jump with a distance of 11.46 meters. Her teammate Jaime Minor was second with a distance of 10.77. Notre Dame's Garet Koxlien was third with a throw of 16.64m in the men's weight throw. Anna Weber was third in the women's shot put with a throw of 13.86.
The University of Illinois-Chicago's Rowsha LaBranche placed first in the 200 meter dash, with a convincing time of 27.41 and third in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:01.39. The Flames also had placings in the men triple jump, with Andy Well and Jeff Simpson placing first and second respectively with distances of 12.33 and 12.17. Scott Pauga was second in the men's high jump, with a distance of 1.96.
People who were not attached to any of the universities also had good standings. Astin Steward, unattached, threw a convincing 19.17 to earn first place in the women's weight throw, more than 2 meters more than second placed Anna Weber of Notre Dame, who threw 16.83 meters. Walter Williams, unattached, sped to victory in the 200 m with a time of 22.89 seconds. Chris Westfield, unattached, vaulted into first place with a leap of 4.90.
Jack Warner, coach for Purdue's team, was pleased with the team's showing, stating that "It was a good overall day. Our athletes looked great in their individual performances, and it was a good way to start off the season."
Purdue will next compete on Jan. 20 at the Indiana Invite Tri-Meet in Bloomington.