Hasselquist, Phillippi Named to

USTFCCCA All-Academic Team

July 14, 2008

Falcon track & field athletes Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) and Jason Phillippi (Sr., Maplewood, Minn. Tartan HS) have both been named to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic team.

Hasselquist, a health & human performance major, earned NCAA All-American honors in the indoor and outdoor shot put events. She placed sixth at the indoor meet and fifth at the outdoor championships. She also helped lead the Falcons to the NCAA Div. III National team Championship.

Phillippi, also a health & human performance major, earned NCAA All-American honors in the outdoor season. He placed seventh in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

The USTFCCCA honors Div. III individuals for their academic and athletic achievements during the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons.

To qualify for the USTFCCCA team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.25 and have met the NCAA Div. III indoor or outdoor automatic or provisional qualifying standard in their respective event.

June 25, 2008

Falcon women's track & field athlete Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) has been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America second team.

The team is selected and also sponsored by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Hasselquist culminated her collegiate career helping the Falcons win the NCAA outdoor track & field National Championship in May at UW-Oshkosh. She competed in the shot put and discus events and earned All-American honors with a fifth place finish in the shot.

She has earned All-American honors four times in the shot put; at the 2006 indoor championships; the 2007 outdoor championships; the 2008 indoor championships and the 2008 outdoor championships. She has won two WIAC individual titles; the outdoor shot put (43-9 1/2) in 2007 and the outdoor discus (154-6) in 2008. She has been a national indoor meet qualifier six times and a national outdoor meet qualifier six times.

Hasselquist holds the school record in the 20 pound indoor weight throw (53-9 1/4, 2007) and the outdoor discus (154-6, 2008).

After the 2008 WIAC indoor season, she earned the conference's Judy Kruckman Scholar-Athlete award. Hasselquist was presented the award at the end of the WIAC Championships at UW-Superior.

Hasselquist is the team captain this year and was the team's captain in the 2006-07 season. She was voted the team's Most Valuable Performer in 2005-06 and won the team's Hardcore Award in 2006-07.

Hasselquists' academic honors are just as impressive. She carries a 3.715 cumulative grade point average. She is majoring in health & human performance with an emphasis in exercise and sports science. She is working on minors in business administration and coaching. She has been named to the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll in 2005, 2006 and 2007 and has been named to the UWRF's Dean List seven times. Hasselquist earned a Jenny Gondeck Memorial Scholarship in 2006-07 and the Don and Jo Page and JoAnn Barnes Scholarships in 2007-08.  

Hasselquist has taken an active role in several campus committees and events. She is a member of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association and the head football student equipment manager for three seasons. She served as the vice chair of the UWRF Recreation Committee from 2005-07. She is the chair of the Facilities and Fees Budget Committee. She was a student representative of the Leadership Development and Service Committee. She has been the track & field representative to the Student Athletic Advisory committee since 2005. Hasselquist was nominated for the WIAC NCAA Women of the Year award in 2008. She was also a Chancellor's Award nominee in 2008.

To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. Since the program’s inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.

June 5, 2008

Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) and Becca Jordahl (Jr., Pocatello, Idaho Century HS) have been named to ESPN The Magazine/College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) All-District Five Academic track & field/cross country teams.

Hasselquist was named to the first team and Jordahl to the second.

Hasselquist, one of 10 student-athletes named to the first team, helped lead the Falcons to the NCAA outdoor National Championship in May. She earned NCAA All-America honors in the shot put with a fifth place finish. She had a throw of 45-7 ¼. She also earned All-America honors with a sixth place finish at the NCAA indoor championships in March. She had a throw of 44-6 ¾. Hasselquist is a four-time NCAA All-American earning the honor at the 2007 outdoor and 2006 indoor championships. She was named the WIAC’s indoor track & field Scholar-Athlete in 2008 and is the University’s nominee to the conference for the NCAA Women of the Year award. She holds the school record in the indoor weight throw (53-9 ¼) set in 2007 and outdoor discus (154-6) set in 2008. She has won two WIAC individual titles; the 2007 outdoor shot put, with a throw of 43-9 ½, and the 2008 outdoor discus, with a throw of 154-6. Hasselquist is a six-time indoor and six time outdoor national meet qualifier and has been the team’s captain the past two seasons. She was named the team’s MVP in 2006 and the Hardcore award winner in 2007.

Hasselquist has been named to UWRF Dean's List seven times and to WIAC Scholastic Honor in 2005, 2006 and 2007. She was also a Chancellor's Award nominee in 2008. She has been the team’s representative to the UWRF Student Athlete Advisory Committee, a UWRF Student Senate student-athlete representative, the head student football equipment manager for football, and members of the UWRF Facilities & Fees, Budget and Recreation committees. She served as the chair of the Facilities and Fees committee. Hasselquist has been a student representative on the assistant director of Hunt/Knowles and assistant football coach/lecturer Search and Screen committees. In 2008 she was a member of the UWRF Leadership Development and Service committee. Hasselquist has compiled a 3.71 cumulative grade point average and is majoring in health & human performance with minors in business administration and coaching.

Hasselquist is now eligible for the CoSIDA national All-America team.

Jordahl also played a key role in helping the Falcons to the NCAA outdoor National Championship. She won the 5,000-meter run and placed third in the 10,000-meter run to earn 16 team points. She became just the third Falcon to become a NCAA individual track & field champion. She finished the 5,000 in 16:52.49 and that set a school record. She finished the 10,000 in 35:48.01 and finished just three seconds out of first place. She is a three-time NCAA All-American in track & field. She also earned the honor with a second place finish in the 5,000-meter race at the NCAA indoor National Meet. She finished in 17:02.71. Jordahl was named the team’s track Most Valuable Performer after the season.

Last fall she earned NCAA cross country All-American honors with a fourth place finish in the National Meet. She ran the 6,000-meter course in 21:27. In 2007 she also earned All-American honors with a 19th place finish at the National Meet. Jordahl holds the school cross country record of 21:05.27 set last fall. She also holds six track & field records; the indoor mile (5:05.24), the indoor 3,000 (9:56.46), the indoor 5,000 (16:49.27), the outdoor 3,000 (10:00.18), the outdoor 5,000 (16:552.49) and the outdoor 10,000 (35:43.63). She set all the records this season. Jordahl ran cross country and track for the first time in her career this season. After the cross country season she was named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Midwest Region Athlete of the Year. She ran six cross country races last year finishing first in four, second in one and fourth in the other. She won the NCAA Midwest Region title in 21:05.21.

At this year’s WIAC indoor Championships Jordahl won the 5,000 (17:12.88) and the 3,000 (9:56.46). At the WIAC outdoor Championships she won the 10,000 (36.43.43) and the 5,000 (17.01.58). She was named the conference’s Track Athlete of the Meet.

Jordahl has a 3.49 cumulative grade point average and is majoring in exercise science with a minor in health education.

The District Five team is comprised of all NCAA Division II, Division III and NAIA student-athletes from Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota and is voted on by members of the CoSIDA.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!

Falcon Women Win NCAA National Championship; Jordahl Wins 5,000; Four Earn All-American Honors

May 24, 2008

The Falcon women's track & field team won the NCAA National Outdoor Championship on Saturday!

Technically the Falcons tied with Illinois Wesleyan for the national title with each team scoring 35 team points. The meet was held at UW-Oshkosh.

The Falcons put together several strong performances on Saturday. That, and some excellent results from Thursday, helped UWRF to the team's first outdoor track & field National Championship. The National Championship is the fourth at UWRF. The 1983 men's hockey team won the NAIA National title while the 1988 and 1994 men's hockey teams won the NCAA National Championships.

On Saturday the Falcons had four outstanding performances that helped UWRF to the National title.

One came from Becca Jordahl who won the 5,000-meter run and became the third Falcon to become a NCAA individual champion. She finished the race in 16:52.49 to break the school record which she held (17:01.58). Her performance earned her NCAA All-American honors. On Thursday Jordahl, a junior, placed third in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 35:48.01. She also earned All-American honors in the 5,000-meter run at the 2008 NCAA indoor championships. Jill Crandall won the high jump national title last year and in 1996 Jen Pontius won the discus national championship.

Vicki Cooper and Krista Hasselquist both garnered some key points for the Falcons in the shot put. They both earned All-America honors. Copper finished third and Hasselquist fifth to earn the Falcons 10 important team points.

Copper, a senior, had a best throw of 46-3 ¼ which established a school record. Cooper has earned All-America status four times now, including the honor in the discus on Thursday. She also was an All-American in the shot in the indoor season in 2008 and the 2007 outdoor season in the shot. Hasselquist had the school record set in 2007 of 46-1 ¼.

Hasselquist, a senior, had a season-best throw of 45-7 ¼ to earn All-American honors. For Hasselquist it was the fourth time she earned All-American honors. She was an All-American in the shot at the 2007 outdoor meet and at the 2006 and 2008 indoor meets.

Kim Altenhofen also competed in the shot and had a best throw of 41-10 ¾. Despite her outstanding effort, Altenhofe, a junior, did not place.

UWRF got another important four team points from Shannon Zweifel who placed fifth in the 400-meter hurdles. She also earned All-American recognition for her finish. She ran the race in 1:01.85 and just missed breaking her school record in the event (1:01.6). This is the third time that the senior has earned All-American recognition. She earned the honors at the 2006 and 2007 outdoor meets in the 400 hurdles.

Cooper and Becky Ponick competed in the javelin. Ponick, a freshman, had a throw of 125-8 and Copper had a 123-9 effort. Despite the solid efforts, neither were able to place.

The Falcon men's and women's teams garnered seven All-American honors in the three day event. Cooper (discus) and Jordahl (10,000) earned the honors on Thursday; Jason Phillippi (steeplechase) won the award on Friday and then the four Falcons picked up the honors on Saturday.

The Falcon women picked up their 35 points in five events; discus (five points); 10,000-meters (six); shot put (10), 400 hurdles (four) and 5,000 (10).

Martha Brennan is the team's head coach and she is assisted by Brenda Thiel (throws), Steve Stocker (sprints), Keven Syverson (middle and long distance), Scott Sekelsky (long distance) and Torrion Amie (jumps). Thiel was named the USTFCCCA Midwest Region Assistant Coach of the Year on Wednesday.

Falcon Schedule

Phillippi Earns All-America Honors at
NCAA Track & Field Championships

May 23, 2008

Jason Phillippi earned All-American honors at the second day of the NCAA National Track & Field Championships held at UW-Oshkosh on Friday.

Falcons Brittany Smith and Bruce Baillargeon also competed in the second, and final, day of the multi events.

Phillippi placed seventh in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:11.08. The Falcon senior was the top WIAC runner to cross the finish line. He earned the Falcon men's team two points. Phillippi earned All-American honors for the first time in his career at UWRF.

Smith finished 12th in the heptathlon. After Thursday's four events, she was in 16th place with 2,572 points. She moved up four spots on Friday and finished with 4,318 points. She jumped 17-0 and finished seventh in the long jump. She finished 11th with a throw of 93-feet in the javelin. In the final event of the competition, Smith placed sixth in the 800 in 2:30.13.

Baillargeon finished 15th in the decathlon with 5,165 points. After Thursday's five events he was in 15th place with 2,987 points. On Friday he finished 13th with a time of 16.7 in the 110 hurdles, he had a throw of 101-3 in the discus and finished 12th, he was not able to score points in the pole vault, he threw the javelin 138-6 and placed 12th and in the 1500 he finished 14th in 4:58.74.

Several Falcon women will compete on Saturday in the final day of the championships. At noon, Vicki Cooper, Krista Hasselquist and Kim Altenhofen will all compete in the shot. Cooper and Becky Ponick will compete at 2:30 p.m., in the javelin. Shannon Zweifel will run in the finals of the 400 hurdles at 3:15 p.m., and Becca Jordahl will run in the 5,000 at 3:55 p.m.

Falcon Schedule

Jordahl, Cooper Earn All-America Honors at
NCAA Track & Field Championships

May 22, 2008

Becca Jordahl and Vicki Cooper earned All-America honors at the first day of the NCAA National Track & Field Championships being held at UW-Oshkosh on Thursday.

Jordahl placed third in the 10,000-meter run. She finished in 35:48.01 and was just three seconds out of first place. She entered the race with the fourth best time in the country. It was the second All-America honor for Jordahl. She earned the recognition in the 5,000-meter run at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March. Jordahl will come back on Saturday to run the 5,000 at 3:55 p.m. She enters the race with the fifth fastest time in the nation - 17:01.58 - set at the WIAC Meet.

Cooper placed fourth in the discus with a throw of 153-9. She entered the meet with the 17th best throw in the nation - 146-6. On Saturday she will compete in two more events. At noon Cooper will compete in the shot put event and will throw the javelin at 2:30 p.m. Her best throw this year in the shot put is 44-11 3/4 and that is the 11th best in the country. Her best javelin throw this year is 133-8, which is the school record, and it is the 14th best effort in the nation. Cooper is a now a three-time All-American; she previously earned the honor at the 2008 indoor championships in the shot and at the 2007 outdoor championships in the shot.

Krista Hasselquist also competed in the discus on Thursday and had a best throw of 143-11, but did not place. She will also compete in the shot on Saturday and Hasselquist has the nation's 12th best throw in the event - 44-8.

The Falcon women scored 11 team points with Jordahl's third place and Cooper's fourth place finishes. They are tied for second place in the team standings, just three points behind first place McMurray University. UWRF is tied with UW-La Crosse and Roanoke University for second place.

Shannon Zweifel ran the 400-meter hurdle trials and qualified for Saturday's finals which will be held at 3:15 p.m. She had a season-best time of 1:02.09 on Thursday. It was the ninth best time in the preliminaries.

Brittany Smith competed in the first day of the heptathlon and finished with 2,572 points. She is in 16th place. She finished 10th in the 100 hurdles in 15.46, she had a leap of 4-8 ¾ in the high jump and placed 17th, she had a throw of 28-1 ½ and placed 18th in the shot and she finished fifth in the 200 with a time of 25.98. She will compete in the long jump, javelin and 800-meter run on Friday. Action starts at 2 p.m.

Bruce Baillargeon competed in the first day of the decathlon and finished with 2,987 points and is in 15th place. He finished 11th in the 100 in 11.88, he leaped 19-3 ¼ in the long jump and placed 14th, he threw the shot 35-10 and placed 13th, he jumped 5-4 ½ in the high jump and placed 17th and had a time of 52.02 in the 400 and placed 12th. On Friday he will compete in the 110 hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500-meter run. Action continues at 1 p.m.

On Friday Jason Phillippi will run in the finals of the 3000-meter steeplechase. That race is scheduled to start at 7:20 p.m.

Falcon Schedule

Thiel Named USTFCCCA Midwest Region
Assistant Coach of the Year

May 21, 2008

Brenda Thiel has been named the Midwest Region Women's Assistant Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Thiel coaches the Falcon women and men throwers - a group that has set UWRF records, won WIAC titles, earned All-American recognition and earned several spots in this year's elite NCAA National Meet field.

Four of Thiel's throwers will compete in this week's NCAA National Meet at UW-Oshkosh. Vicki Cooper will compete in the shot put, discus and javelin events. Krista Hasselquist will throw the shot and discus, Kim Altenhofen will compete in the shot and Becky Ponick will also compete in the javelin. Thiel has coached 12 Falcons to spots in NCAA indoor and outdoor National Meets during her tenure at UWRF.

She has coached Falcons who have won six WIAC championships and set three indoor and four outdoor school records. She has also coached five Falcons to NCAA All-American recognition.

Thiel, in her fourth year with the Falcons, competed in track & field at the University of Minnesota from 1997-2001. She placed in the top eight in every season at Big Ten Conference meets. She competed in the weight, hammer and discus events. Her best finish was second place in the hammer in 2001.

A Watertown, Wis., native, Thiel graduated from Minnesota with a degree in forest products marketing. She is currently working for EMPI as a refunds specialist in the finance department.

Nine Falcons to Compete in NCAA Championships

May 19, 2008

Nine members of the Falcon track & field teams will compete in nine events at the NCAA Championships set for Thursday through Saturday at UW-Oshkosh.

Ten females and two males will represent UWRF at this year's meet. In 2007 the Falcon women placed ninth which is the best finish ever by UWRF. Four women and one male earned All-American honors last year and three women are back for the 2008 meet.

Jason Phillippi (Sr., Maplewood, Minn. Tartan HS) and Bruce Baillargeon (Sr., Somerset, Wis.) will represent the men's team.

Phillippi will compete in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He enters the meet with the nation's fifth best time, 9:10.68. He ran that time at the La Crosse Last Chance Meet. The steeplechase will be held at 7:20 p.m., on Friday. This will be his first appearance at the NCAA Meet.

Baillargeon will compete in the two-day, 10-event decathlon. He scored a season best 6,287 points in last week's UWRF Multi Qualifier. He has the 14th best point total in the nation. The first event, the 100-meter dash, will be held at noon on Thursday. On Friday the competition starts at noon with the 110-meter hurdles. This will be his first appearance at the NCAA Meet.

Vicki Cooper (Sr., DeForest, Wis.) will be busy competing in three events. She has qualified in the shot put, discus and javelin events. On Thursday she will compete in the discus. She enters the meet with the 17th best throw in the nation - 146-6. She had that effort at the La Crosse Last Chance Meet. The trials and finals will begin Thursday at 6 p.m. At noon on Saturday she will compete in the trials and finals of the spot put. Her best throw this year is 44-11 3/4 that is the 11th best in the country. She had that throw at the WIAC Meet. At 2:30 p.m., on Saturday Cooper will compete in the trials and finals of the javelin. Her best throw this year is 133-8, which is the school record. She had that throw at the Minnesota Open and it is the 14th best throw in the nation. Cooper is a two-time All-American; she earned the honor at the 2008 indoor championships in the shot put and at the 2007 outdoor championships in the shot put. She has competed in three NCAA Meets (2008 indoor, 2007 outdoor, 2006 outdoor).

Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) and Becca Jordahl (Jr., Pocatello, Idaho) will both compete in two events.

Hasselquist will compete in the discus on Thursday and the shot put on Saturday. She has the nation's fifth best throw in the discus - 154-6. She threw that at the WIAC Meet and that is a school record. Hasselquist has the nation's 12 th best throw in the shot - 44-8.   She has earned All-American honors three times - at the 2008 indoor, 2007 outdoor and 2007 indoor meets. Hasselquist is a veteran of NCAA Meets having qualified for the meet five other times (2008 indoor, 2007 outdoor, 2007 indoor, 2006 outdoor, 2006 indoor).

Jordahl will compete in the 5,000 and 10,000-meter events. She will compete in the 10,000 on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. She enters the national meet with the fourth best time in the country - 35:43.63. She set that at the Stanford Invitational. Jordahl will come back on Saturday to run the 5,000 at 3:55 p.m. She enters the meet with the fifth fastest time in the nation - 17:01.58 - set at the WIAC Meet. Both times are school records. Jordahl, who earned NCAA cross country All-American honors last fall, competed in the indoor championships in March. She placed second in the 5,000 to earn All-American recognition.

Shannon Zweifel (Sr., Whitewater, Wis.) will compete in her specialty, the 400-meter hurdles. She will compete in the trials at 5 p.m., on Thursday. The finals will be on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. She has the 17 th fastest time in the nation - 1:03.13 - set at the Minnesota Open. Zweifel holds the school record in the event, 1:01.6, set in 2006. She has competed in two NCAA Meets (2007 outdoor, 2006 outdoor) and earned All-American honors both times in the 400 hurdles.

Brittany Smith (Sr., Preston, Minn. Fillmore Central HS) will compete in the two-day, seven-event heptathlon. She scored a season-high 4,365 points - which is the 18 th best score in the nation - at the UWRF Multi Qualifier. The event starts with the 100 hurdles on Thursday at 1 p.m. Friday she will start with the long jump competition at 2 p.m. Smith competed in the 2006 outdoor championships in the 400 hurdles.

Kim Altenhofen (Jr., Marathon, Wis.) will be competing in her first NCAA Meet. She joins Cooper and Hasselquist in the shot put event. She has the 15 th best throw in the nation entering the meet - 44-0 3/4 - set at the WIAC Championships.

Becky Ponick (Fr., Stanley, Wis. Stanley-Boyd HS) will also be competing in her first NCAA Meet. She will compete in the javelin on Saturday. She had a season-best throw of 133-6 at the Wisconsin Twilight Meet. Her effort is the 15 th best in the country.

Falcon Schedule

Falcons Compete in Second Day of
UWRF Multi Last Chance Meet

May 16, 2008

Several Falcons competed in the second, and final, day of the UWRF Multi Last Chance meet at Ramer Field on Friday.

In the decathlon, Bruce Baillargeon scored 3,161 points on the first day and finished with 6,287. His total was a NCAA meet provisional qualifying total. He had a time of 16.41 in the 110 hurdles, he threw the discus 106-11, he had a jump of 14-3 ¼ in the pole vault, he threw the javelin 167-11 and had a time of 4:52.91 in the 1,500-meters. He finished first in the event.

Alex Wahlberg scored 3,381 points on Thursday and finished the event with 5,999 points. He finished just one point out of a provisional qualifying total. He had a time of 16.93 in the hurdles, he threw the discus 78-3 ½, he pole vaulted 12-11 ½, he threw the javelin 147-10 and had a time of 5:06.72 in the 1500. He finished third overall.

Joe Weinrich had another strong performance starting the day with 2,819 points and he finished third with 5,101 points. He ran the hurdles in 18.25, he threw the discus 118-3, he had a leap of 11-11 ¾ in the pole vault, he threw the javelin 118-7 and had a time of 5:54.36 in the 1,500.

Four Falcons competed in the second day of the heptathlon.

Brittany Smith started with 2,655 points and finished second with 4,365 points. Her total was a NCAA meet provisional qualifying total. She leaped 17-2 ¼ in the long jump, she threw the javelin 93-3 and she finished in 2:34.51 in the 800-meters. She placed second.

Becky Ponick scored 2,235 points on Thursday and scored 3,721 after Friday's action. She placed third overall. She had a leap of 15-8 ¾ in the long jump, she threw the javelin 119-4 and had a time of 2:57.94 in the 800.

Megan Rasmussen finished with 2,845 points. She had 1,635 points after Thursday's action. She had a leap of 15-9 ½ in the long jump, she threw the javelin 71-2 ½ and finished in 2:58.32 in the 800.

Denise Nelson scored 1,389 points on Thursday and competed in just two of the three events on Friday. She had a leap of 11-4 ¾ in the long jump and threw the javelin 104-8.

Several Falcons will compete in the NCAA National Championships that will be held May 22-24 at UW-Oshkosh. The full field will be known on Monday.

Results
Falcon Schedule

Falcons Compete in UWRF Multi, La Crosse Last Chance Meets

May 16, 2008

Several Falcons competed in both the UWRF Multi and La Crosse Last Chance meets on Thursday.

In the decathlon at UWRF, Alex Wahlberg finished with 3,381 points after the first day. He had a time of 11.6 in the 100, a long jump of 20-5, a shot of 38-5 ½, a 6-1 ¼ jump in the high jump and he finished in 51.2 in the 400. Bruce Baillargeon had a time of 11.75 in the 100, a 19-8 ¼ effort in the long jump, a 36-7 shot, a 5-8 ½ effort in the high jump and he ran a 51.63 in the 400. He has 3,161 points. Joe Weinrich finished with 2,819 points. He had a time of 12.27 in the 100, a leap of 18-5 ¼ in the long jump, a shot of 38-3 ½, a leap of 5-10 ¼ in the high jump and he ran a 57.53 in the 400. John Weisbrod scored 2,124 points. He had a time of 12.65 in the 100, a leap of 17-5 ½ in the long jump, a shot of 28-7 ½, a leap of 5-0 ¼ in the high jump and he ran the 400 in 1:02.58.

Five Falcons competed in the heptathlon. Brittany Smith scored 2,655 points. She had a time of 15.13 in the 100 hurdles, a leap of 4-10 ¼ in the high jump, a shot of 30-3 and a time of 26.52 in the 200. Becky Ponick finished with 2,235 points. She had a time of 16.86 in the 100 hurdles, a leap of 4-3 ¼ in the high jump, a shot throw of 34-9 ¾ and a time of 27.82 in the 200. Megan Rasmussen scored 1,635 points with a time of 17.68 in the hurdles, a shot of 30-0 and a time of 27.88 in the 200. She did not score points in the high jump. Colleen Kopel scored 1,875 points. She had a time of 16.13 in the hurdles, had a high jump of 4-11 ½, a shot of 33-7 and she did not score points in the 200. Denise Nelson scored 1,389 points with a 22.14 in the hurdles, a high jump of 4-2, a 31-10 ¼ throw in the shot and a time of 32.01 in the 200.

Both events will conclude on Friday at the Ramer Track with action starting at noon.

Several Falcons also competed at La Crosse.

For the men, Nick Zeien had a NCAA meet provisional qualifying time of 1:52.31 in the 800. Michael Woodward jumped 43-7 ¼ in the triple jump and Charlie Sowa threw the javelin 176-6. Derren Izdepski threw the hammer 152-7. In the 400, Dan Rodewald ran a 49.6 and Lucas Mueller finished in 50.18. Scott Degner ran a 3:59.26 in the 1,500 and Addison Griffin had a time of 11.31 in the 100.

For the women, Shannan Zweifel had a national meet qualifying time in the 400 hurdles finishing in 1:03.14. In the discus Vicki Cooper threw 146-6 and and Krista Hasselquist threw 141-8. Both are meet provisional qualifying distances. Three Falcons had meet provisional qualifying efforts in the shot. Hasselquist had a throw of 44-1, Copper 43-8 and Kim Altenhofen 42-9 ½.

Jenny Aronson leaped 17-8 ¾ in the long jump and Shannon Amans had a throw of 124-6 in the hammer. Natasha Arnold finished the 400 in 1:00.32 and Samantha Nyre had a time of 15.83 in the 100 hurdles.

Falcon Schedule

Falcons Compete at Open Meets; Set Three Records

May 12, 2008

Several Falcons competed in three last chance meets last weekend and three school records were set in the process.

At the Dr. Keeler Invitational hosted by North Central College, Jason Phillippi set a school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:10.68, He broke his own school record st last year of 9:14.33. His time was a NCAA Meet provisional qualifying time. Nick Zeien ran a 1:52.58 in the 800. His time was also a provisional qualifying time.

At the University of Minnesota Open, Vicki Cooper set a school reocrd i the javelin with a throw of 133-8. She broke Gail Specht's record of 127-8 1/2 set in 1976. The throw was a provisional qualifying effort. Becca Jordahl also set a record at the met. She finished the 3,000-meter run in 10:00.18 breaking Sandy Cryer's record of 10:29.24 set in 1982. Krista Hasselquist threw the shot 42-11 which is also a provisional qualifying distance. Cooper and Hasselquist also had provisional qualifying throws in the discus. Cooper threw 139-5 and Hasselquist 139-feet. Shannon Zweifel ran the 400 hurldes in 1:03.13 which is also a provisional qualifying time.

At the University of Wisconsin Twilight Meet, Ponick threw the javelin 133-7 which is a provisional qualifying effort and was just an inch short of Cooper's record.

Several Falcons will compete in a decathlon and heptathlon qualfying event on Thursday and Friday at the Ramer Track. Action both days starts at 3 p.m.

Falcon Schedule

Jordahl, Cooper Named WIAC
Athletes of the Meet at Conference Championships

May 6, 2008

Falcons Becca Jordahl (Jr., Pocatello, Idaho) and Vicki Cooper (Sr., DeForest, Wis.) were named the WIAC track & field championships Athletes of the Meet on Saturday at the conference championships in Eau Claire.

Cooper, who was named the Field Athlete of the Meet, scored points in all four events she competed in at the WIAC meet and accounted for 22 of the team's 118 total points. She won the shot put with a throw of 44-11 3/4. That was her best throw of the season and is a NCAA Meet provisional qualifying mark . She placed third in the discus with a throw of 145-5, which was also her best throw of the year and also a NCAA Meet provisional qualifying distance. She placed fifth in the javelin with a throw of 103-2 1/2 and placed seventh in the hammer throw with a throw of 148-6.

Jordahl, who was named the Track Athlete of the Meet, scored 20 team points with two first place finishes. On Friday she won the 10,000-meter run with a time of 36:53.43. The time is a NCAA Meet provisional qualifying mark. Earlier this year at the Stanford Invitational she ran a 35:43.63 that automatically qualified her for the NCAA Meet, which will be held May 22-24 at UW-Oshkosh. On Saturday at the WIAC Meet she won the 5,000-meter run in 17:01.58. She beat the second place finisher by a minute. Her time was a NCAA Meet provisional qualifying time.

Several members of the women's and men's teams will be competing in last chance meets before the NCAA Meet. UWRF will host a heptathlon and decathlon qualifying meet on May 15-16. Action starts at 3 p.m., both days. The Falcons will also compete in the La Crosse Last Chance Meet on May 16. The meet will start at 4 p.m.

Meet Results - PDF File

Falcon Schedule

Jordahl, Cooper, Hasselquist, Sowa
Win Titles at WIAC Meet

May 3, 2008

Becca Jordahl, Vicki Cooper, Krista Hasselquist and Charlie Sowa all won individual championships at the WIAC Meet held Saturday at UW-Eau Claire.

Jordahl and Cooper both earned honors after the meet. Jordahl was named the Track Athlete of the Meet and Cooper was named the Field Athlete of the Meet.

On Friday Jordahl won the 10,000-meter run and she came back on Saturday to win the 5,000-meter run. She finished in 17:01.58 which sets a UWRF record. The old record was 17.41.24 set by Sandy Cryer in 1982. She earned All-WIAC first team honors with her finish.

Cooper won the shot put title with a throw of 44-11 3/4 and was named to the All-WIAC first team. She also finished third in the discus with a throw of 145-5. On Friday she placed seventh in the hammer throw.

Krista Hasselquist won the discus title, and All-WIAC first team recognition, with a throw of 154-6. That broke her old record of 148-10 set last year. Hasselquist also placed third in the shot with a throw of 41-11 1/2.

The Falcons took the top three spots in the shot. Kim Altenhofen placed second with a throw of 44-0 3/4 and she earned All-WIAC second team honors.

Brittany Smith placed second in the heptathlon with 4,223 points. She finished just two points out of a tie for first place. Becky Ponick placed sixth with 3,868 points. Smith earned second team All-WIAC recognition.

Jessica Reed placed fifth in the 100 hurdles in 15.29. Smith placed sixth with a time of 15.43. Shannon Zweifel placed third in the 400 hurdles in 1:04.65.

Sowa led the men by winning the javelin competition with a throw of 164-10. He earned All-WIAC first team honors. Bruce Baillargeon placed sixth in the event with a throw of 145-6 3/4.

Alex Wahlberg placed second in the decathlon, and earned second team All-WIAC recognition, with 5,926 points and Baillargeon was sixth with 5,787.

Jason Phillippi placed fifth in the 1500 in 4:01.37 and Nick Zeien placed fourth in the 800 in 1:56.95. Chad Ernst placed seventh in the 10,000 in 31:43.44. Michael Woodward finished eighth in the long jump with a leap of 21-4 1/4.

The Falcon women placed fourth in the final team standings. La Crosse won the team title with 192 points followed by Eau Claire 158.5, Oshkosh 140.5, River Falls 118, Stevens Point 77, Stout 51, Platteville 50, Whitewater 46 and Superior 24.

The men placed seventh with 53 points. La Crosse won the team title with 191.5 points followed by Stevens Point 137.5, Oshkosh 134.5, Whitewater 129, Platteville 87, Eau Claire 67.5, River Falls 53, Stout 42 and Superior 16.

Several Falcons will compete in last chance meets in the coming weeks.

Meet Results - PDF File

Falcon Schedule

Jordahl, Ponick Win Titles at WIAC Meet

May 2, 2008

Becca Jordahl and Becky Ponick each won individual titles at the first day of the WIAC Meet held at UW-Eau Claire on Friday.

Jordahl won the 10,000-meter run in 36:53.43. Ponick won the javelin with a throw of 113-1. Both earned All-WIAC first team honors.

Maria Michaud placed fifth in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 38.35.56 to pick up some important points for the Falcons. Jenny Aronson placed fourth in the long jump with a leap of 17-6 1/4. In the hammer throw, Vicki Cooper placed seventh with a toss of 148-6. Cooper also placed fifth in the javelin with a throw of 103-2.

Jason Phillippi had a great race in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He placed second with a time of 9:26.14. He earned second team All-WIAC honors.

Several Falcons qualified for finals during the first day of competition.

For the men, Nick Zeien had the top time in the 800 finishing in 1:53.85. Dan Rodewald qualified for the finals in the 400 with a time of 49.8. He placed ninth.

For the women, Brittany Smith and Jessida Reed both qualified for the finals in the 100 hurdles. Smith finshed second overall with a time of 15.26 and Reed was fifth overall in 15.5. Shannon Zweifel qualified for the finals in the 400 hurdles. She finished second in the preliminaries with a time of 1:03.95. Her time was a NCAA meet provisional qualifying time.

Smith is in third place after the first day of the women's heptathlon. She has scored 2,567 points. Ponick is in seventh place withi 2,298 points.

Alex Wahlberg is in third place after the first day of the men's decathlon. He has scored 3,157 points.

The Falcon women are in fourth place at the end of the first day of competition. Oshkosh leads with 67.5 followed by La Crosse 67, Eau Claire 50.5, River Falls 35, Stout 16, Superior 12, Stevens Point 11, Platteville 10 and Whitewater 3.

The Falcon men are in eighth place. Oshkosh leads with 30 points followed by Whitewater 26, La Crosse 25, Stevens Point 17.5, Eau Claire 16.5, Platteville 16, Stout 10, River Falls 9 and Superior 6.

The second, and final, day of the WIAC Meet will start at 8:30 a.m., on Saturday.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Sowa, Phillippi Lead Falcons at Macalester

April 23, 2008

Charlie Sowa and Jason Phillippi each placed second in events at the Macalester Twilight Meet held Wednesday night in St. Paul, Minn.

Sowa placed second in the javelin with a throw of 160-9 while Phillippi placed second in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:02.86.

JD Rojas ran a 10:00.98 in the steeplechase and placed third overall. Nick Zeien and Mike Woodward each placed fourth in events. Zeien ran a 1:55.88 in the 800 and Woodward leaped 44-11 in the triple jump.

Dan Rodewald placed sixth in the 400 in 50.08 and ninth in the 200 in 22.59. Bryan Woitas finished the 100 in 11.21 and placed sixth.

The Falcon women's team will compete in the Macalester Invitational on Saturday.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Sowa, Phillippi, and Cooper Take First

April 18, 2008

The Falcon men’s and women’s track & field teams competed in a rainy Phil Esten Challenge Friday afternoon hosted by UW-La Crosse.

Charlie Sowa and Vicki Cooper both took first in the javelin throw and Jason Phillippi took first in the 3000m steeplechase. Nine Falcon men placed in the top eight; four Falcon women took a top eight spot, three of those going to Cooper.

On the track, Shannon Zweifel took third in the 400m hurdles with a time of 65:93. Also running, Natasha Arnold, took eighth place in the 400m dash with a time of 62:33.

Cooper took third place or better in the three events she took part in. She won the javelin throw with a throw of 111-feet. In the hammerthrow, she took second with a throw of 156-feet. Cooper took third in the discus throw with a toss of 132-feet. Kristina Hasselquist was two spots behind Cooper at fifth place with a throw of 125' 7."

Jason Phillippi won the 3000m steeplechase with a time of 9:36:99. Nick Zeien came in fourth with a time of 1:57:33 in the 800m run. Chad Ernst, with a time of 32:03:32, also came in fourth in the 10000m run. Richie Mark took seventh in the 5000m run with a time of 15:58:23. In the 400m hurdles, Bryce Roby came in eighth for the Falcons with a 60.82 time in the 400m hurdle. Mike Zweifel took sixth in hte triple jump with a jump of 40-feet 2-inches. Nick Viganlo took eighth with a 19-foot 7-inch long jump.

In the field, Charlie Soma won the javelin throw for the second meet in a row with a throw of 141-feet 3 1/2-inches. Ambrose Martell placed fourth in the shotput with a throw of 42-feet.

The Falcons will travel to Des Moines, Iowa next to compete in the Drake Relays. The meet will last from April 23 to the 26 with action getting underway at 10 a.m. on Wednesday April 23.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

April 8, 2008

Becca Jordahl (Jr., Pocatello, Idaho Century HS) has been named the WIAC track Athlete of the Week according to league Sports Information Director, Matt Stanek.

Jordahl set a school record at the prestigious Stanford University Invitational on Saturday in Palo Alto, Calif. Jordahl finished the 10,000-meter race in 35:43.63 competing against mostly NCAA Div. I runners. She placed 14th in her heat. She broke the Falcon record of 37:46.24 set by Sandy Cryer in 1982. Her time is currently the best time in the NCAA Div. III and she automatically qualified for the NCAA National Meet.

Jordahl and her teammates will compete at the UW-Eau Claire Open on Saturday with action starting at 10 a.m.

Hasselquist, Izdepski, Jordahl Set Records

April 5, 2008

The Falcon men’s and women’s track & field teams competed in the UWRF Invitational on Saturday afternoon at Ramer Field.

Krista Hasselquist set a school record in the discus with a throw of 148-10. She broke Jen Pontius’ record of 147-7 set in 1996. Her distance was a NCAA Meet provisional distance.

Derren Izdepski also set a school record in the hammer throw. He finished third with a throw of 162-9. The previous record was by Dave Huebner with a throw of 157-8 set in 1995.

Becca Jordahl set a school record at the prestigious Stanford University Invitational on Saturday in Palo Alto, Calif. Jordahl finished the 10,000-meter race in 35:43.63 competing against mostly NCAA Div. I runners. She placed 14th in her heat. She broke the Falcon record of 37:46.24 set by Sandy Cryer in 1982. Her time is currently the best time in the NCAA Div. III and she automatically qualified for the NCAA National Meet.

Jenny Aronson won the 100-meter dash in 13.28 and Jessica Reed won the 100-meter hurdles in 15.68. Maria Michaud won the 5,000-meter run in 19:03.48. Vicki Cooper won the hammer throw of a 150-5 effort and Becky Ponick won the javelin with a throw of 119-9.

Cooper and Hasselquist had NCAA Meet provisional qualifying marks in the shot put. Cooper placed second with a throw of 43-8 ¾ and Hasselquist was third with a throw of 43-0 ¼.

Dan Rodewald won the 200-meter dash in 23.19 and the 400-meter dash in 50.29. Bruce Baillargeon took the top spot in the decathlon with 5,395 points. Andrew Reckard won the 800 in 1:59.84 and Chris Johnson took first in the steeplechase with a time of 10:41.87. Charlie Sowa won the javelin with a throw of 177-feet.

The Falcons will next compete in the Eau Claire Open on Saturday with action starting at 10 a.m.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Three Falcons Compete in First Day of
Falcon Invitational Decathlon

April 4, 2008

Three members of the Falcon men's track & field team competed in the first day of the decathlon at the UW-River Falls Invitational on Friday afternoon at the Ramer Field.

Bruce Baillargeon, Kevin Rengo and John Weisbrod all competed in the first of the two-day event.

Baillargeon finished the first day in first place with 2,738 points. Rengo was in third place with 2,400 points and Weisbrod was in fourth place with 2,229 points.

Baillaregon finished in 12.02 in the 100-meter dash and in 54.21 in the 400-meter dash. He leaped 17-11 in the long jump, threw the shot 33-1 ¼ and leaped 5-4 ½ in the high jump.

Rengo ran a 12.96 in the 100 and had a time of 56.86 in the 400. He had a leap of 18-11 in the long jump, he threw the shot 30-6 ¼ and leaped 5-3 ¼ in the high jump.

Weisbrod ran a 12.42 in the 100 and a 58.68 in the 400. He jumped 16-11 ½ in the high jump, threw the shot 27-feet and had a leap of 4-11 ¾ in the high jump.

The second and final day of the decathlon will be on Saturday. The Invitational open events will also be held on Saturday with action starting at 10 a.m.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Falcons Compete in Final Day of Alabama Relays

March 30, 2008

Several members of the track & field team competed in the fourth and final day of the Alabama Relays in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Sunday afternoon.

Vicki Cooper placed seventh in the javelin with a throw of 124-4 and 12th in the hammer throw with a throw of 129-feet. Krista Hasselquist placed 13th in the hammer throw with a 124-10 effort. Kim Altenhofen placed 22nd in the hammer throw with a toss of 108-8. Colleen Kopel placed 18th in the javelin with a throw of 98-6.

The Falcon 4x100 shuttle relay team of Becky Ponick, Brittany Smith, Jessica Reed and Shannon Zweifel placed sixth with a time of 1:05.27.

The Falcon men ran the 4x1,500-meter relay and placed third with a time of 16:40.2. They just missed the school record of 16:39.43. The team was made up of Jason Phillippi, Scott Degner, Shad Guasmann and Nick Zeien.

UWRF will next host the Falcon Invitational on Friday and Saturday at Ramer Field.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Falcons Compete in Alabama Relays

March 29, 2008

Several members of the Falcon men’s and women’s track & field teams competed in the third day of the Alabama Relays in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday afternoon.

For the men, Nick Zeien ran the 800 in 1:54.69 and Scott Degner finished the 1,500 in 4:05.29. In the 3,000-meter steeplechase, Jason Phillippi finished in 9:52.21 and Shad Gausmann finished in 10:19.45. Derren Izdepski had a throw of 155-feet in the hammer and Charlie Sowa had a throw of 172-8 in the javelin.

Five Falcon women ran in the 100-meter high hurdles. Jessica Reed led UWRF with a time of 15.8. Brittany Smith had a time of 16.21 followed by Shannon Zweifel, 16.66, Becky Ponick, 16.71 and Samantha Nyre, 16.82. Zweifel and Nyre also ran in the 400-meter hurdles event. Zweifel finished in 1:04.44 and Nyre crossed the finish line in 1:10.19. Vicki Cooper and Krista Hasselquist competed in the discus. Cooper finished with a best throw of 140-5 and Hasselquist had a top throw of 132-6.

The Falcons will compete in the fourth, and final, day of the Alabama Relays on Sunday.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Four Falcons Perform Well in Multi
Events at Alabama Relays

March 28, 2008

Four members of the Falcon men's and women's track & field teams finished day two of the multi events at the Alabama Relays on Friday.

Brittany Smith placed ninth in the women's heptathlon. She finished with 4,175 points. On Friday she leaped 16-10 in the long jump, threw the javelin 78-9 and finished in 2:34.79 in the 800-meter dash. Smith move up one place from where she was after the first day of the competition.

Becky Ponick placed 13th with 3,099 points. She jumped 14-8 ¾ in the long jump, threw the javelin 107-10 and finished in 2:47.35 in the 800.

Alex Wahlberg finished 10th in the decaathlon with 4,626 points. On Friday he finished in 17.59 in the 110 hurdles, threw the discus 92-7, threw the javelin 127-6 and finished in 5:05.74 in the 1,500-meter run. He did not score points in the pole vault. Wahlberg was in 12th place after Thursday's competition.

Joe Weinrich finished in 11th place with 4,527 points. He finished in 17.86 in the 110 hurdles, he threw the discus 102-9, he jumped 10-8 in the pole vault and the javelin 98-9. He did not score points in the 1,500.

Several Falcons will compete on Saturday and Sunday in the Relays.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Four Falcons Compete in Multi Events
at Alabama Relays

March 27, 2008

Four members of the Falcon men's and women's track & field teams competed in the Alabama Relays heptathlon and decathlon events on Thursday.

For the women, Brittany Smith was in 10th place after the first day of competition. She had a time of 15.46 in the 100-meter hurdles, leaped 4-10 ¼ in the high jump, threw the shot 28-11 ¼ and finished in 26.61 in the 200-meter dash. She has 2,578 points.

Becky Ponick was in 13th place. She finished in 17.42 in the 100 hurdles, threw the shot 32-6 ½ and finished in 28.69 in the 200. She did not record a height in the high jump. She has 1,651 points.

Smith and Ponick will compete in the long jump, javelin and 800-meter run on Friday.

For the men, Joe Weinrich is in 11th place after the first day with 2,780 points. He finished in 11.96 in the 100-meter dash, leaped 18-10 1/2in the long jump, threw the shot 39-3 ¼, leaped 5-7 ¾ in the high jump and finished the 400 in 58.67.

Alex Wahlberg scored 2,679 points and is in 12th place. He had a time of 11.7 in the 100, leaped 20-1 in the long jump, leaped 5-10 in the high jump and finished in 51.53 in the 400. He did not score points in the shot put.

Weinrich and Wahlberg will compete in the 110-meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500-meter run on Friday.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Four Falcons Earn NCAA All-American
Honors at Track & Field Championships

March 15, 2008

All four Falcon track & field athletes who attended the NCAA Div. III National meet earned NCAA All-American honors on Saturday.  

The Falcons ran in the NCAA National Meet held over the weekend at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio,  

Becca Jordahl earned the honor in the 5,000-meter run. She placed second with a time of 17:02.71. It is her first track & field All-American award. Jennifer Adams of Keene State won the race in 16:58.71.  

Vicki Cooper and Krista Hasselquist earned the honors in the shot put. Cooper placed fifth with a throw of 44-7 and Hasselquist finished sixth with a 44-6 ¾ effort. Monique Riddick of Montclaire State won the championship with a throw of 46-4 ¾.  

This is the second time that Cooper has earned All-American honors. She earned the award in the shot put at the 2007 NCAA outdoor meet.  

Hasselquist has been a NCAA All-American three times. She earned the award in the 2007 outdoor meet in the shot put and at the 2006 indoor meet in the shot put.  

Zeien placed sixth in the 800-meter finals with a time of 1:55.22 to earn All-American honors. Peter Kosgei of Hamilton won the race in 1:51.97. This is Zeien's first All-American honor. He is the first indoor Falcon All-American since the 1994.  

The Falcon women placed ninth in the final team standings with 15 points. Only one other WIAC team, UW-La Crosse, finished higher. UWL finished fourth with 21 points. Zeien earned the Falcons three team points in the team standings.  

La Crosse won the men's team title and Illinois Wesleyan won the women's team championship.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Zeien Qualifies for 800 Finals at
NCAA Div. III Nationals

March 14, 2008

Nick Zeien has qualified for the finals in the 800-meter dash at the NCAA Div. III track & field championships.

Zeien ran a 1:55.3 in the preliminaries on Friday evening at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio.

He will run in the finals on Saturday at 3:55 p.m. Eight runners will compete in the finals. Zeien's time was the sixth fastest in the two preliminary heats. The top time was turned in by St. Thomas' Brian Sames who finished in 1:53.25.   Last weekend Zeien set a UWRF record in the race. He finished in 1:53.46 at the Stevens Point Last Chance meet.

Also on Saturday Krista Hasselquist and Vicki Cooper will both compete in the shot put and Becca Jordahl will run in the 5,000-meter race.

Hasselquist and Cooper will compete in the shot starting at 2:30 p.m., on Saturday. Jordahl will run in the finals of the 5,000 at 4:35 p.m., on Saturday.

Jordahl has the second best time in the nation entering the meet. She ran a 16:54.47 at the Iowa State Classic on Feb. 15. Her time was a school record. Cooper has the third best throw in the shot entering the meet. She set a school record with a throw of 46-6 1/4 at WIAC Meet on Feb. 29. Hasselquist has the fourth best throw in the shot entering the meet. She threw the shot 46-4 1/4 at the Stout Open on Jan. 26.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Jordahl, Zeien, Cooper, Hasselquist to Compete in
NCAA Div. III Nationals This Weekend

March 10, 2008

Four Falcon track & field athletes will compete in this weekend's NCAA Div. III National Indoor Championships at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio.

Krista Hasselquist and Vicki Cooper will both compete in the shot put, Becca Jordahl will run in the 5,000-meter race and Nick Zeien will run in the 800-meter dash.

Hasselquist and Cooper will compete in the shot starting at 2:30 p.m., on Saturday. Zeien will run in the preliminaries of the men's 800 at 6:45 p.m., on Friday. The 800 finals will be Saturday at 3:55 p.m. Jordahl will run in the finals of the 5,000 at 4:35 p.m., on Saturday.

Jordahl has the second best time in the nation entering the meet. She ran a 16:54.47 at the Iowa State Classic on Feb. 15. Her time was a school record. Cooper has the third best throw in the shot entering the meet. She set a school record with a throw of 46-6 1/4 at WIAC Meet on Feb. 29. Hasselquist has the fourth best throw in the shot entering the meet. She threw the shot 46-4 1/4 at the Stout Open on Jan. 26.

Zeien qualified for the championships at the Stevens Point Last Chance meet on Saturday. He set a school record in the 800 with a time of 1:53.46. His time is the 11th best in the country entering the meet.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Track & Field Teams Compete at UWSP Last Chance Meet

March 8, 2008

The Falcon women’s track & field team took seventh place with a score of 26.5 and the men finished 11th with 14 points at the Last Chance meet held at UW-Stevens Point on Saturday afternoon.

For the men, Nick Zeien set a school record in the 800-meter dash with a time of 1:53.46. He placed second. He broke Keven Syverson's record of 1:55.73 set in 1994. Scott Degner finished 10th in the 800 with a time of 1:59.51. Mike Woodward took third in the triple jump with a distance of 42-11 1/2.

For the women, Shannon Zweifel took first in the 400 meter dash with a time of 1:00.48. Jessica Reed took fourth in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 8.56. Hannah Miller took eighth in the pole vault with a height of 9-10. Kim Altenhofen took third in the shot put with a distance of 42-feet. Krista Hasselquist took fifth in the weight throw with a throw of 51-5 3/4.


UW-Eau Claire would take first in both men and women's competitions with a score of 89.5 for the women and 84.5 for the men.

The NCAA National Championships will be held on Friday and Saturday, starting at 10:30 a.m., in Ada, Ohio. On Monday the entire field for all of the events will be announced.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Hasselquist Named WIAC indoor

Track & Field Scholar-Athlete

March 4, 2008

Falcon women's track & field athlete Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) has been named the WIAC indoor track & field Judy Kruckman Scholar-Athlete.

Hasselquist was presented the award at the end of the WIAC Championships held last weekend at UW-Superior. The Falcons placed fourth in the final team standings.

Hasselquist has been a key component of the Falcon team that has become one of the top programs in the Upper Midwest. The Falcon indoor team has placed fourth the past two years in the WIAC Championships. Last spring the outdoor team placed third in the WIAC Championships. That was the team's top place finish since the 1988 season.

Hasselquist has been a leader of the Falcon throwers throughout her career.

At this year's indoor championships she placed second in the shot put with a toss of 45-6 1/4. She also placed fifth in the weight throw with a 52-1 1/4 effort.

At the 2007 WIAC Outdoor Championships she won the shot put competition with a throw of 43-9 1/2 and she finished seventh in the weight throw with a 131-6 ¾ effort. She holds the school outdoor shot put record of 46-1 1/4 set during the 2007 season.

At the 2007 WIAC Indoor Championships Hasselquist placed second in the weight throw with a toss of 53-9 1/4. That effort established a school record that still stands. She also finished second in the shot with a 42-7 1/2 effort.

Not only has Hasselquist had an impact at the WIAC level, she has also earned honors at the NCAA Div. III level.

At the 2007 indoor NCAA Meet she earned All-American honors in the shot put with a toss of 44-8.

At the 2007 outdoor NCAA Div. III Meet, she placed third in the shot put with a throw of 45-2 1/4 and earned All-American recognition. She helped lead the Falcons to a ninth place team finish in the 2007 outdoor NCAA Meet. That team finish is the highest ever by a Falcon squad.

Hasselquist has automatically qualified in the shot put, and has a provisional mark in the weight throw, for the NCAA Div. III 2008 Indoor Championships that will be held March 14-15 in Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio.

She has been a national indoor meet qualifier eight times and a national outdoor meet qualifier four times.

Hasselquist is the team captain this year and was the team's captain in the 2006-07 season. She was voted the team's Most Valuable Performer in 2005-06 and won the team's Hardcore Award in 2006-07.

Hasselquists' academic honors are just as impressive. She carries a 3.715 cumulative grade point average. She is majoring in health & human performance with an emphasis in exercise and sports science. She is working on minors in business administration and coaching. She has been named to the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll in 2005, 2006 and 2007 and has been named to the UWRF's Dean List seven times. Hasselquist earned a Jenny Gondeck Memorial Scholarship in 2006-07 and the Don and Jo Page and JoAnn Barnes Scholarships in 2007-08.  

Hasselquist has taken an active role in several campus committees and events. She is a member of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association and the head football student equipment manager for three seasons. She served as the vice chair of the UWRF Recreation Committee from 2005-07. She is the chair of the Facilities and Fees Budget Committee. She is currently a student representative of the Leadership Development and Service Committee. She has been the track & field representative to the Student Athletic Advisory committee since 2005.

She is the third Falcon to win the WIAC track & field scholar-athlete award. Laura Gabriel won the award after the 1988 outdoor season and Sarah Peterson was recognized with the award after the 1999 indoor campaign.

The WIAC Scholar-Athlete Award is presented to the most outstanding senior from each conference sport during the year who exhibits the greatest combination of performance and achievement in academics, athletics and leadership. The women's Scholar-Athlete Award was renamed the Judy Kruckman Scholar-Athlete Award effective with the 1998-99 season.

Women Finish Fourth, Men Eighth at WIAC Meet

March 1, 2008

The Falcon track & field teams competed in the second, and final, day of the WIAC Meet at UW-Superior on Saturday with the women finishing fourth and the men eighth in the final team standings.

Becca Jordahl and Jessica Reed led the women on Saturday with a first place finishes. Jordahl won the 3,000-meter run in a school record time of 9:56.46. She broke her own record of 10:10.98 set earlier this year. On Friday she won the 5,000-meter race in 17:12.88. Reed took first in her specialty, the 55-meter hurdles. She won the race in 8.64. Samantha Nyre placed eighth in the 55 hurdles in 8.91. Eryn Lansverk, who set a school record in the 55 dash in the preliminaries on Friday (7.44), placed eighth in the finals with a time of 7.55. The Falcons picked up fifth and eighth place finishes in the weight throw. Krista Hasselquist placed fifth with a throw of 52-1 ¼ and Vicki Cooper was eighth with a toss of 49-8 ½. 

La Crosse won the team title with 192.33 points. They were followed by Eau Claire 137.83, Oshkosh 115.5, River Falls 74, Stevens Point 51, Platteville 46.5, Whitewater 37.5, Stout 35.55 and Superior 12. UWRF’s fourth place finish matched last year’s finish in the WIAC Meet.

The men scored 21 points on Saturday. Nick Zeien and Jason Phillippi each picked up fourth place finishes Zeien ran a time of 1:55.99 in the 800 and Phillippi had a time of 4:15.72 in the mile. Mike Woodward took fifth place in the triple jump with a leap of 45-1 ¾. Alex Wahlberg also picked up points with a sixth place finish in the heptathlon with 4,236 points.

La Crosse also won the men’s team title with 137.5 points. Whitewater was second with 125 followed by Oshkosh 104.5, Platteville 101.5, Stevens Point 100, Eau Claire 68.5, Stout 26, River Falls 23 and Superior 16.

The Falcons will next compete in the UW-Stevens Point last chance meet on Saturday.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Women Second, Men Ninth After Day One at WIAC Meet

Feb. 29, 2008

The Falcon track and field teams ended their first day at the WIAC Championships in Superior with the women in second place and the men in ninth.

For the women, Becca Jordahl took first in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 17:12.88. Maria Michaud placed fifth in the same race in 18:34.34. The Falcons took the top two spots, and three of the top eight, in the shot put. Vicki Cooper took first with a distance of 46-6 1/4 while Krista Hasselquist placed second with a distance of 45-6 ¼. Kim Altenhofen placed fifth with a throw of 42-11 ¾. Jenny Aronson picked up points in the long jump with a sixth place finish with a leap of 16-11 ¼.

Both Jordahl and Cooper earned All-WIAC first team honors for their finishes on Friday. Hasslequist earned All-WIAC second team recognition.

For the men, Chad Ernst placed seventh in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 15:05. The Falcons scored two points with Ernst’s seventh place finish.

The Falcon finish the meet tomorrow starting at 9 a.m., at UW-Superior.

Meet Results

Falcon Schedule

Women Compete at Parent’s Day Open at U of M

Feb. 23, 2008

The Falcons track women went to the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities to compete at the Parent’s Day Open on Saturday.

Becca Jordahl placed 2^nd in the mile run with a time of 5:05:24.  She beat the previous school record of 5:06.59, held by her.  Shannon Zweifel placed 12^th in the 200 meter dash with a time of 27:42.  Natasha Arnold placed 8^th in the 400 meter dash with a time of 62:24.  Leah Korf placed 16^th in the 800 meter dash at 2:21.70.

Christine Peters placed 9^th in the 3000 meter run with a time of 10:44.00.  Vicki Cooper placed 5^th in the shot put with a distance of 13.42 meters.  Krista Hasselquist placed 2^nd in the weight throw with a distance of 16.01 meters while Cooper placed 3^rd with a distance of 15.18 meters.  Hannah Miller placed 13^th in the pole vault with a height of 3.05 meters.

No team scores were kept at the meet.

The Falcons next compete at the WIAC championships in Superior on Friday, Feb. 29^th at 11 a.m.

Snow Shoe Open Results

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 22, 2008

The Falcon men's track & field team competed in the University of Minnesota Snow Shoe Open on Saturday in Minneapolis, Minn..

Dan Rodewald placed fifth in the 200 in 23.35 and he ran a 7.39 in the 60. Mike Woodward placed 10th in the triple jump with a leap of 42-0 3/4 and in the long jump he flew 20-1 1/2.

Lucas Mueller ran a 51.18 in the 400 and Kevin Rengo had a time of 1:30.21 in the 600. In the 60 hurdles Alex Wahlberg finished in 9.46.

Patrick Schwartz was the top Falcon finisher in the shot put with a toss of 43-4 1/2. Derren Izdepski threw the weight 51-0 3/4 and Joe Weinrich finished 10th in the high jump with a leap of 6-0 1/2.

The Falcon women will compete in the University of Minnesota Parents' Day Open on Saturday.

Snow Shoe Open Results

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 16, 2008

The Falcon men's and women's track & field teams competed in two meets on Saturday with some solid results in several events.

The Falcons competed at the Lake Superior Challenge hosted by St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn., and at the UW-Oshkosh Invitational.

At the Superior Challenge, Eryn Laszerk won the 55 dash in 7.47 and placed third in the 200 in 26.75. Vicki Cooper had two second place finishes. She threw the shot 43-11 ¾ and the weight 52-5. Kim Altenhofen placed third in the shot with a toss of 41-4 ½.

Leah Korf placed sixth in the 600 in 1:44.4 and Christine Peterson finished fifth in the 5,000 in 19:25.05. Shannon Zweifel placed sixth in the 55 hurdles in 9.28. Hannah Miller finished sixth in the pole vault with a jump of 9-10 ¾ and Jenny Aronson placed fifth in the long jump with a leap if 16-7 ¾.

For the men at the Superior Challenge, Richie Mark placed second in the mile in 4:34.59. Andrew Reckard placed third in 1:59.76 and Chris Johnson placed sixth in 2:04.83 in the 800. Shad Gausman placed second in the 3,000 in 9:07.93 and JD Rojas placed fourth in 9:10.08 in the same race.

Addison Griffin placed sixth in the 55 hurdles in 8.75. Mike Woodward placed second in the high jump with a leap of 5-11 ¼ and he placed fourth in the triple jump with a 42-2 effort. In the shot put Ambrose Martell placed fourth with a throw of 43-11 ¾ and Eric Voight placed sixth with a throw of 42-4. Nick Vignalo placed sixth in the long jump with a leap of 20-3.

Some members of the men's team ran at the Oshkosh Invitational. Dan Rodewald won the 400 in 51.57 and Lucas Mueller placed third in 51.68. The Falcon distance medley relay team of Jason Phillippi, Scott Degner, Nick Zeien and Mueller won the race in 10.19.78.

The Falcons will next compete in the University of Minnesota Invitational on Friday and Saturday.

Superior Challenge Results

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 15, 2008

Becca Jordahl and Jason Phillippi both set records in track & field meets held Friday.

Jordahl crushed the school 5,000-meter record at the Iowa State Classic. She finished in 16:49.27 and placed fifth running against mostly NCAA Div. I competition. She had set the 5,000 record earlier this year with a time of 17:21.45. She took about 32 seconds off her previous record.

Phillippi, and several other members of the Falcon men's team, competed at the Whitewater Classic. Phillippi ran the mile in 4:14.62 to break his record set earlier this year of 4:16. He placed second in the race. Scott Degner ran a 4:22.05 in the mile and placed sixth. Dan Rodewald placed seventh in he 200 in 23.26 and 12th in the 400 in 52.02. Nick Zeien placed fifth in the 800 in 1:57.54. and Chad Ernst placed 12th in the 5,000 in 15:08.16.

Most of the Falcon men's and women's teams will compete at the St. Scholastica Invitational on Saturday. Some members will compete in the UW-Oshkosh Invitational.

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 9, 2008

Members of the Falcon track and field team placed first in six events at the Coca-Cola Classic on Saturday at River Falls.

In the women’s events, Krista Hasselquist placed first in both the shot put and the weight throw, throwing 44-11 and 49-11 1/4 meters, respectively. Jessica Reid placed first in the 55 meter hurdles with a final time of 8.84. Natasha Arnold placed second in the 400 meter dash with a time of 62.72. In the 800 meter run, Shannon Zweifel placed second with a time of 2:26.59. Becca Jordahl placed second in the mile run with a time of 5:06.59. Maria Michaud came in second in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 10:51:94.

In the men’s events, Nick Zeien placed first in the 600 meter dash with a time of 1:22:85. Jason Phillippi placed first in the mile run and qualified for the nationals in the provisional category with a time of 4:16. The 4x400 relay team placed first with a time of 3:28:09. JD Rojas placed second in the 500 meter run with a time of 15:54:74. Josh Dietz placed second in the 55 meter hurdles with a final time of 8.28.

The Falcons next compete at the St. Scholastica Invitational starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

Women's Results
Pentathlon Results
Men's Results
Heptathlon Results

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 3, 2008

Three Falcons competed in the first day of the heptathlon on Friday at the Coca Cola Classic at the Knowles Building.

Joe Weinric scored 2,269 points. He ran the 55 in 7.16, went 16-10 in the long jump, threw the shot 38-7 and went 5-10 in the high jump.

Addison Griffin fnished with 2,049 points. He ran 6.87 in the 55, went 17-10 3/4 in the long jump, threw the shot 29-3 3/4 and went 4-11 1/2 in the nigh jump.

John Weisbrod scored 1,825 points. He ran a 7.34 in the 55, went 17-2 in the long jump, threw the shot 16-10 and leaped 5-0 1/2 in the high jump.

The Falcons will compete in day two of the Coca Cola Classic at the Knowles Building on Saturday.

Coca Cola Classic Heptathlon Results

Falcon Schedule

Feb. 3, 2008

The Falcon indoor track & field teams competed in the MSU-Mankato Open on Saturday where Becca Jordahl and Jason Phillippi set school records.

Jordahl set a record in the 5,000-meter run. She won the race in 17:21.45. Her time is a NCAA national meet provisional qualifying time. The previous record was held by Marlene Yaeger. She ran a 17:59.07 in 2006. Jordahl broke the record by about 38 seconds. She also set a Falcon record in the 3,000-meter race last weekend (10.10.98) at the Stout Open.

Phillippi set a record in the 1,000-meter run. He finished third overall in 2:31.71. The previous record was 2:31.82 set by Sean McGurran in 1990.

Maria Michaud had another strong race in the 5,000 finishing third in 18:35.71. Jessica Reed placed fourth in the 60-meter hurldes in 9.32. Vicki Cooper placed fourth in the shot put with a toss of 42-6 3/4 and seventh in the weight throw with a 50-5 1/2 effort. Krista Hasselquist placed third in the shot (45-4 1/2) and eighth in the weight throw (50-2 3/4).

Nick Zeien had another strong race in the 800 where he finished fourth overall in 1:37.36. Chad Ernst placed third in the 5,000 in 15:13.57. Alex Wahlberg scored 3,082 points in the pentathlon to finish fifth.

There were no team scores kept.

The Falcons will next host the Coca Cola Class/Multi two-day event at the Knowles Builing on Friday and Saturday.

MSU-Mankato Open Reseults

Falcon Schedule

Jan. 29, 2008

Thrower Krista Hasselquist (Sr., Osceola, Wis.) had a great weekend at the Stout Open held Saturday in Menomonie and has been named the WIAC Field Athlete of the Week, according to league Sports Information Director, Matt Stanek.

Hasselquist, 6-1, set a school record in the shot put with a toss of 46-4 ¼. She placed first and the throw was a NCAA provisional qualifying distance. She also placed second in the weight throw with a toss of 49-6 ½. That effort was also a NCAA provisional qualifying distance.

Hasselquist is a two-time NCAA All-American (shot put 2006 indoor; shot put 2007 outdoor), and she won the 2007 outdoor WIAC shot put championship with a throw of 43-9 1/2.

The Falcons will compete in the MSU-Mankato Invitational on Saturday.

Jan. 26, 2008

Falcons Krista Hasselquist and Becca Jordahl set school records at the Stout indoor track & field Open held Saturday in Menomonie.

Hasselquist set a shot put record with a toss of 46-4 1/4 while Jordahl set a 3,000-meter record with a time of 10:10.98. The shot put record was 45-2 1/4 and the 3,000 record was 10:27.43.

Maria Michaud took first in the 5000 meter run at 18:56.89. Jessica Reed finished fourth in the 55 meter hurdles in 8.48. Vicki Cooper and Kim Altenhofen finished second (43-11 3/4) and fourth (40-10 1/4) in the shot put. Hasselquist finished 2nd in the weight throw (49-6 1/2). Leah Korf finished fifth in the 800 meter run (2:25.29).

In the men’s competition, Nick Zeien took first in the 800 meter run (1:58.37) and Jason Phillippi finished second in the 3000 meter run (8:49.29). Ambrose Martell and Eric Voight finished fifth (43-9-1/4) and sixth (43-7), respectively, in the shot put. Alex Wahlberg and Michael Woodward finished fifth (5-10 1/2) and sixth (5-10 1/2) in the high jump.

There were no team scores kept.

The Falcons will next compete at the MSU-Mankato Invitational on Friday.

Women's Results

Men's Reseults

Falcon Schedule

Jan. 24, 2008

Falcons Krista Hasselquist and Vicki Copper hit NCAA Div. III provisional qualifying marks in two events on Saturday at the Minnesota Open indoor track & field meet.

Hasselquist threw the weight 52-2 and Cooper 50-2 3/4. Hasselquist had a throw of 42-8 1/4 and Cooper had a throw of 40-1 1/4 in the shot.

The Falcons will compete in the UW-Stout Open on Saturday with action starting at noon.