Panthers Bring Home Hardware To Close Out MVC Meet

Panthers Bring Home Hardware To Close Out MVC Meet

6/1/2015 11:00:00 AM | Women's Track and Field, Track and Field

By: Jordie Lindley

NORMAL, Ill. – The University of Northern Iowa track and field program took home four individual titles and several all-conference honors today, closing out a successful MVC Outdoor Championship meet. The men finished in third place overall, while the women placed fifth.

"This was the most fun I have ever had at a conference championship," said head coach Dan Steele. "The Panthers stepped up all over the place and not only scored points but put up some of the best marks in the country."

Brandon Carnes continued to prove he is one of the best athletes to compete at UNI and in the Missouri Valley, capturing the 100 and 200 meter dash titles for the second year in a row. He now holds eight MVC individual titles as just a sophomore between the indoor and outdoor seasons.

Carnes started the day in the 100-meter dash, running a time 10.10 to rank him seventh in the NCAA West Region. He then blew away the competition in the 200-meter dash, grabbing a time of 20.31 to put him fourth in the West Region.

Because of his top performances, Carnes was named the Men's Co-Most Valuable Athlete and the Men's Most Outstanding Track Athlete. The Most Valuable Athlete award goes to the meet's top point scorer at the meet and the Most Outstanding Track Athlete award is given to the highest NCAA mark achiever.

Senior Alex Wilson captured UNI's first MVC title of the day, winning the 1,500 meters. After winning the indoor mile this season, Wilson led the field the entire race, sprinting to the finish line for the win with a time of 4:45.79.

She then captured her second individual win of the day, picking up the first-place spot in the women's 800 meters. Wilson gained momentum in the final lap of the race to pick up the win and come away with a time of 2:11.16.

In the women's 400-meter dash, Darian Samuelson grabbed her second all-conference honor, placing third overall. Samuelson, who also finished third overall in the indoor 400, finished with a time of 55.00.

The Panthers had two team point scorers in the men's 110-meter high hurdles, grabbing second- and fifth-place finishes. Jon Rus earned all-conference after his second-place finish and PR time of 14.02 while Jayvon Matthews notched four team points with his fifth-place finish and time of 14.44.

The men's 4x100 meter relay team earned all-conference with a season-best time of 40.76. The team of Cam Brown, Brett McCalla, Jordan Guske and an incredible anchor leg from Carnes earned all-conference after a second-place finish.

In the women's triple jump, Tatiana Rice opened the competition with a huge personal-best mark. The junior bested her opening jump with another personal-best of 38-8.25 to finish ninth overall and rank herself third all-time at UNI.

On the men's side, Shawn Koch earned all-conference for the second consecutive year in the triple jump. The Medinah, Ill., native placed second overall with a mark of 52-1.75 to rank him ninth in the NCAA West Region.

All three of UNI's women discus competitors scored team points for the Panthers, with Jamie Lindstrom finishing fourth, Chloe Schmidt placing seventh and freshman Sarah Pate rounding out the top-eight. Lindstrom scored a huge PR of 160-1.00 to rank her third all-time at UNI while Schmidt's personal-best of 159-1.00 ranks her fourth and Pate's mark of 157-7.00 puts her at No. 5 all-time.

The men's discus competitors followed suit, earning three scoring spots. Brad Walski earned his first All-MVC honors with a third-place finish and a mark of 171-1.00 while Jake Humpal placed sixth and Justin Baker in eighth.

The Panthers wrapped up the championship meet with both the men's and women's 4x400 meter relay teams earning All-MVC. The team of Darian Samuelson, Maddie Beeler, Holly Salzbrenner and Brette Correy finished third with a time of 3:47.18. The men's team of Derek Jacobus, Jordan Guske, Brett McCalla and Marshall Hill also finished third with a time of 3:15.77.