Thursday, November 18, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
HLG Finishes Strong at Conference Championships
2010 NAIA XC National Qualifiers Philiph and Breanna
RESULTS
On Saturday, November 6, the men's and women's cross country teams at Hannibal-LaGrange University took to the course in St. Louis, MO for the American Midwest Conference Championships. Under ideal racing conditions, both teams ran to 4th place finishes in their respective races.
For the women, freshman Breanna Newton led the way with a 6th-place finish (19:21), which placed her on the AMC All-Conference team. In addition, Breanna became the first HLG female cross country athlete to qualify for the NAIA Cross Country National Championships! Breanna's effort was not the only high point for the Lady Trojans as the injury plagued team put together their most complete effort of the season. Freshman Amber Zinkula battled through a hip injury to finish in 14th place (20:56) and just three spots out of earning a bid to the national meet. Fellow freshman Mandi Riddle was close behind, placing 16th with a time of 21:04. Sophomore Sarah Erickson saved her best race for last as the Bowling Green, MO native set a new personal best with a time of 21:12, good for 18th place. Sophomore Lisbeth Wilder also set a new personal best, finishing the 5K in 22:30 (25th place). Senior Carissa Eichmeyer finished her XC career with a 29th place finish in a season-best time of 23:10. Freshman Kayle Anders (31st - 23:27) and senior Janelle McGinniss (34th - 24:45) both battled through nagging injuries to set personal best times as well.
COACH COMMENTS: I was very pleased at how hard the ladies ran today. There is not one of them who hasn't had to deal with some sort of injury this season; it's just been that kind of year. However, they have kept their heads high, stayed positive, trusted the Lord, and done their best to take care of themselves and the end result was a great day. I am so proud of how Breanna came out and competed today. She has been pretty much just cross training since the Graceland meet and neither of us were sure what to expect today. She wanted to go out and honor the Lord with her effort today and did that and so much more. She earned a trip to compete at the NAIA National meet in Washington state and we will work to get her back up to speed so he can excel there.
I was also just so proud of all of the girls, regardless of times and places. Amber and Mandi stayed strong throughout and will both be a force to be reckoned with next year. I was most pleased with Sarah and how she ran such a consistent meet. She has been running with increased confidence and it showed today. She can go even faster and I expect to see that during the track season. I want to give props to Liz for showing up strong today and filling in our 5th spot, setting a PR by 35 seocnds in the process! She has made great strides as a first-year runner and her heart and desire to compete is huge! Kayle was another one I was excited about today. She has been sidelined by injuries almost all season but came out with little training to set a new PR. Another freshman, she is going to be very solid for us in the future. Bryanna was in the same boat injury wise but gave a gutsy performance and also set a new personal best time.
Finally I want to give notice to our two seniors. Carissa has been steady all year and gave it all she had today. Her family are such great supporters of our program and they will all be missed next year. Now she can resume her race walking and look to repeat as a double national qualifier this year. Janelle almost had to pack it in due to chronic injuries but she has stayed dedicated to her rehab and was able to come out and set a new personal best time today. She is graduating next month and I know she can walk away with great satisfaction based on her effort today. Both of these ladies have stepped up as leaders and will be greatly missed.
In the men's event, which included teams from the American Midwest Conference, Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference, and and Independent institution, junior Philiph Tonui ran a fantastic race, placing 4th in a time of 24:58 on the 8K course. With that effort, Philiph will make a return trip to the NAIA XC National meet. After Philiph, a trio of Trojans came in together as senior Jason Cline (24th - 27:48), junior Brett Jones (25th 28:08), and freshman Tyler Malone (27th - 28:14) all ran very strong races. Sophomore Ben Griffin battled through sickness to place 38th overall (29:46) while junior Deon Russell re-aggravated a hamstring injury but toughed it out to place 39th (29:55). Sophomore Nathan Uding (41st - 30:48) rounded out the effort for the Trojans.
COACH COMMENT: This has been a great group of guys to work with and I am happy the top part of the group was able to go out and have a strong race. Philiph is a rock star on our campus and he came out and gave a rock star effort today. He is so humble and goes about his business every day but he is a great competitor and really ran a smart race. We had a game plan going in that he executed extremely well. As a result, he is making a return trip to Vancouver, where I think he will have a great showing. I am so proud of Jason and how he has dedicated himself during his senior year to developing his potential. He and Brett both pushed each other so well today and had great races as a result. Tyler has come on over the past few weeks and has shown great promise as a freshman. Deon's injury was a real bummer for us but he showed great heart in pushing through. Overall this team really worked hard this year and set a new standard for future men's teams.
Breanna and Philip will now move on to the NAIA XC National Championships, which will take place November 20 in Vancouver, Washington. A number of cross country runners will keep in training as they prepare for the Midland Lutheran Half-Marathon on December 3 in Fremont, NE. The rest of the team will take a short break from training before preparing for the upcoming indoor track & field season, where both the men's and women's teams will be gunning for a conference championship.
Stay tuned to the runHLG blog for updates on the XC national championship experience.
Stay tuned to the runHLG blog for updates from nationals.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Zinkula and Tonui earn AMC Runner of the Week Awards
Amber Zinkula & Philiph Tonui race to AMC Runner of the Week awards!
Coming on the heels of record setting performances at last Saturday's Illinois College Invitational, both freshman Amber Zinkula and junior Philiph Tonui were named the American Midwest Conference's Runner of the Week!
You can see the press release for Amber HERE.
You can see the press release for Philiph HERE
Saturday, October 16, 2010
HLG Shines at IC Invite
RESULTS
On a beautiful fall Saturday in nearby Jacksonville, Illinois, the HLG cross country team took advantage of great racing conditions to put forth their most complete effort of the season. The men walked away with a 4th place team finish while the women's team, despite resting over half of the squad, took home a sixth-place finish.
THE MEN
It was a record setting day for the men's team as all six Trojans set new personal best times. The team was bolstered by the effort of junior Philiph Tonui, who shattered his own school record in the 8K en route to a first-place finish. Philiph, who was the winner of last year's meet as well, completed the course in a blistering time of 24:45. His effort proved to be just the beginning as the rest of the men ran with great heart and desire and finished with great results. Senior Jason Cline crossed the line in a time of 27:22, which was good for 21st place overall. Not far behind was sophomore Ben Griffin (27:49-29th), junior Brett Jones (27:51-31st), and freshman Tyler Malone (27:58-35th). Not to be outdone, junior Nathan Uding capped off the team's effort with a new personal best finish of 28:49, which placed him 49th overall.
COACH COMMENTS: What a tremendous effort by our men today. Philiph got out early and led from wire to wire. My hat goes off to the guy riding the lead bike. Philiph actually passed him once or twice so he got his workout in as well! It was great to see him put a complete race together, especially when he was not seriously challenged. He ran a fantastic time and that puts him in a position to go out and finish the season strong. Jason, Ben, Brett, and Tyler pushed each other the entire race and to see them all come in within 36 seconds of one another is a testament to their hard work and decision to just go for it today. Nathan also came out and gave a very solid effort, dropping 3 1/2 minutes off his time from last week! I think all of these guys gained a lot of confidence today and are starting to realize just what they are capable of doing when they push the limit and push one another. I'm very, very proud of them all today and thank God for such a great group of guys to work with.
THE WOMEN
With over half of the women's team resting this weekend, it was up to a group of five Lady Trojans to carry the load this week and they responded very well to the longer (6 kilometer) race. Freshman Amber Zinkula continued her rapid ascent as the newcomer to cross country set a new school record for the 6K distance, finishing 19th overall with a time of 25:02. Freshman Mandi Riddle (25:50-35th) and sophomore Sarah Erickson (37th-26:18) were the next to finish for HLG while sophomore Liz Wilder (44th-27:03) and senior Carissa Eichmeyer (53rd-27:55) rounded out the strong effort for the Lady Trojans.
COACH COMMENTS: I was really proud of how the ladies stepped up today and competed. Moving up to the 6K distance is challenging mentally but we focused on running consistently all week and threw some extra things in to help prepare for the longer race. With so many young runners, it is great to see them come out and make the adjustments necessary to keep improving each week. Amber came out and gave a strong performance and I believe that she is going to improve dramatically before the season is over. Sarah came out and gave a consistent performance, as did Liz and Carissa, who are both really coming along in their training. Mandi struggled early in the race but toughed it out and she will continue to be a major contributor for us as we head towards the end of the season. By resting the rest of the group, we should be close to full strength when we head to Graceland next weekend.
HLG will make take a trip to Lamoni, Iowa next weekend to compete in the Graceland Invitational in what will be the team's final race before the AMC Championship meet on November 6.
Full results will be posted when they become available online.
On a beautiful fall Saturday in nearby Jacksonville, Illinois, the HLG cross country team took advantage of great racing conditions to put forth their most complete effort of the season. The men walked away with a 4th place team finish while the women's team, despite resting over half of the squad, took home a sixth-place finish.
THE MEN
It was a record setting day for the men's team as all six Trojans set new personal best times. The team was bolstered by the effort of junior Philiph Tonui, who shattered his own school record in the 8K en route to a first-place finish. Philiph, who was the winner of last year's meet as well, completed the course in a blistering time of 24:45. His effort proved to be just the beginning as the rest of the men ran with great heart and desire and finished with great results. Senior Jason Cline crossed the line in a time of 27:22, which was good for 21st place overall. Not far behind was sophomore Ben Griffin (27:49-29th), junior Brett Jones (27:51-31st), and freshman Tyler Malone (27:58-35th). Not to be outdone, junior Nathan Uding capped off the team's effort with a new personal best finish of 28:49, which placed him 49th overall.
COACH COMMENTS: What a tremendous effort by our men today. Philiph got out early and led from wire to wire. My hat goes off to the guy riding the lead bike. Philiph actually passed him once or twice so he got his workout in as well! It was great to see him put a complete race together, especially when he was not seriously challenged. He ran a fantastic time and that puts him in a position to go out and finish the season strong. Jason, Ben, Brett, and Tyler pushed each other the entire race and to see them all come in within 36 seconds of one another is a testament to their hard work and decision to just go for it today. Nathan also came out and gave a very solid effort, dropping 3 1/2 minutes off his time from last week! I think all of these guys gained a lot of confidence today and are starting to realize just what they are capable of doing when they push the limit and push one another. I'm very, very proud of them all today and thank God for such a great group of guys to work with.
THE WOMEN
With over half of the women's team resting this weekend, it was up to a group of five Lady Trojans to carry the load this week and they responded very well to the longer (6 kilometer) race. Freshman Amber Zinkula continued her rapid ascent as the newcomer to cross country set a new school record for the 6K distance, finishing 19th overall with a time of 25:02. Freshman Mandi Riddle (25:50-35th) and sophomore Sarah Erickson (37th-26:18) were the next to finish for HLG while sophomore Liz Wilder (44th-27:03) and senior Carissa Eichmeyer (53rd-27:55) rounded out the strong effort for the Lady Trojans.
COACH COMMENTS: I was really proud of how the ladies stepped up today and competed. Moving up to the 6K distance is challenging mentally but we focused on running consistently all week and threw some extra things in to help prepare for the longer race. With so many young runners, it is great to see them come out and make the adjustments necessary to keep improving each week. Amber came out and gave a strong performance and I believe that she is going to improve dramatically before the season is over. Sarah came out and gave a consistent performance, as did Liz and Carissa, who are both really coming along in their training. Mandi struggled early in the race but toughed it out and she will continue to be a major contributor for us as we head towards the end of the season. By resting the rest of the group, we should be close to full strength when we head to Graceland next weekend.
HLG will make take a trip to Lamoni, Iowa next weekend to compete in the Graceland Invitational in what will be the team's final race before the AMC Championship meet on November 6.
Full results will be posted when they become available online.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Trojans Compete at CMU
Breanna Newton racing to an 8th place finish at CMU Invite
On Saturday, the men's & women's cross country teams got back to racing after a three-week layoff by competing in the Gary Stoner Invitational, hosted by Central Methodist University. Both the men and women placed 6th as a team on an unusually warm October day.
The women were led by another strong effort by freshman Breanna Newton, who placed 8th in the very competitive 5K race with a time of 19:35. The next five Lady Trojans, Amber Zinkula (39th), Mandi Riddle (40th), Sarah Erickson (43rd), Jessica Bailey (44th) and Liz Wilder (46th), finished within 38 seconds of one another. Carissa Eichmeyer (47th), Kayle Anders (52nd), and Chelsea Holmstrom (54th) also competed for HLG on the day.
The men were without the services of top-5 runners Tyler Malone and Deon Russell but the 5 men who competed did so with a great deal of heart and effort. Junior Philiph Tonui battled the heat and a shoe problem to place 7th in the 8K race with a time of 26:11. Jason Cline put forth another strong effort and placed 44th with teammate Brett Jones close behind in 46th place. Ben Griffin (48th) and Nathan Uding (52nd) rounded out the effort for the men.
COACH COMMENTS: It was good to get back to racing after the long layoff. With such a young team, we struggled to find our racing form early and that, compounded by the heat and challenging course affected the times. With that said, I think we learned a lot today and will come out next weekend and reap the rewards of this experience. I was proud of the effort and heart shown today. I can tell you that these guys really want to do well and are putting in the work to make it happen. They also show up each weekend we race with great attitudes and represent HLG so well. It is a blessing to get to coach a group that is hungry for success and also seeks to honor Christ by and through what we do as a team.
The team is back in action next Saturday at the Illinois College Invitational in Jacksonville, IL. The women's 6K race begins at 11am and is followed by the men's 8K at 11:45am.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Track & Field Releases 2010-2011 Schedule
The Hannibal-LaGrange College Track & Field team has announced their schedule for the 2010-2011 indoor & outdoor season. The team kicks off the year in style, traveling to Ames, Iowa to compete in the Iowa State University Holiday Preview on December 10. That meet follows the Midland Lutheran Half-Marathon where a handful on Trojan distance runners, including 2010 national qualifier Philiph Tonui, will attempt to attain the NAIA National qualifying mark for the marathon.
The cross country team is back in action this Saturday, as they will travel to Fayette, MO to compete in the Gary Stoner Invitational.
Track & Field Schedule
2010-2011
| Date | Event | Location | Time |
| INDOOR SEASON | | | |
| 12/4/10 | Midland Lutheran Half-Marathon | Fremont, NE | TBD |
| 12/10/10 | Iowa State University | Ames, IA | TBD |
| 1/14-15/11 | SIU-Carbondale | Carbondale, IL | TBD |
| 1/15/11 | Missouri Valley College | Marshall, MO | TBD |
| 1/22/11 | Illinois College | Jacksonville, IL | TBD |
| 1/29/11 | Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington, IL | TBD |
| 2/5/10 | Illinois College | Jacksonville, IL | TBD |
| 2/19/11 | AMC Indoor T&F Championships | Columbia, MO | TBD |
| 3/3-5/11 | NAIA Indoor T&F National Championships | Geneva, OH | TBD |
| OUTDOOR SEASON | | | |
| 3/19/11 | Central Methodist University | Fayette, MO | TBD |
| 3/25-26/11 | Missouri Relays | Columbia, MO | TBD |
| 4/1-2/11 | Washington University | St. Louis, MO | TBD |
| 4/10/11 | Central Methodist University | Fayette, MO | TBD |
| 4/16/11 | Millikin University | Decatur, IL | TBD |
| 4/19/11 | Illinois College | Jacksonville, IL | TBD |
| 4/21-23/11 | Kansas Relays | Lawrence, KS | TBD |
| 4/23/11 | SIU-Edwardsville | Edwardsville, IL | TBD |
| 4/29-30/11 | AMC Outdoor T&F Championships | Lebanon, IL | TBD |
| 5/7/11 | Last Chance Qualifier | TBD | TBD |
| 5/26-26/10 | NAIA Outdoor T&F National Championships | Marion, IN | TBD |
The cross country team is back in action this Saturday, as they will travel to Fayette, MO to compete in the Gary Stoner Invitational.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Breanna Named AMC Runner of the Week!
Breanna Newton
On Tuesday, HLG freshman standout Breanna Newton (Rochelle, IL), was named the American Midwest Conference's Women's Runner of the Week for the week of September 20, 2010. Breanna was honored with this award after her school record performance in last weekend's Missouri Southern Stampede, where she completed the 5K course in 18:35.
Breanna and the rest of her HLG teammates will be back in action on October 9 at the Gary Stoner Invitational in Fayette, MO.
Breanna and the rest of her HLG teammates will be back in action on October 9 at the Gary Stoner Invitational in Fayette, MO.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
New School Record Highlights Effort at Southern Stampede
The HLG cross country team made their longest trip of the season over the weekend as they traveled to Joplin, MO to compete in the 22nd annual Southern Stampede. The meet, which was hosted by Missouri Southern State University, featured numerous NAIA and NCAA nationally ranked schools and the competition brought out the best in a number of the HLG runners.
THE WOMEN
RESULTS
The women ran to a 27th place finish at the Stampede and their effort was highlighted by the performance of freshman Breanna Newton, who completed the 5K course in a school record time of 18:35. Breanna's effort earned her a 33rd place finish out of 302 competitors. In addition, she was the 4th place NAIA finisher and top NAIA freshman performer in the talented field. Freshman Mandi Riddle had a strong performance, as the newcomer to cross country continued her rapid improvement by finishing the race in a time of 20:56. Mandi's time was a nearly two-minute improvement from last week's race. Sophomores Jessica Bailey (22:19) and Sarah Erickson (22:40), both trying to overcome early season injuries, finished 3rd and 4th, respectively, for the Lady Trojans, while freshman newcomer Amber Zinkula had a strong showing in her first collegiate meet, crossing the line in 22:42 and earning the 5th place team finish. HLG also got strong efforts from sophomore Liz Wilder (23:04) and Carissa Eichmeyer (23:39).
COACH COMMENTS: The ladies came out today and showed a lot of effort and heart. Obviously Breanna had a great race and was rewarded with the new school record time. What also impressed me was the improvement of some of our newcomers to XC. What many people don't realize is that Mandi, Liz, and Amber are all new to cross country this year and they are all in our top-seven. They continue to show great improvements each week and I expect that to continue. We are still struggling with some injuries that are holding us back from reaching our potential as a team but we are starting to progress and, with three weeks of training before our next meet, we are going to be able to really focus on getting better, faster, and tougher.
THE MEN
RESULTS
The men's team overcame some adversity to bring home a 20th-place finish at the meet. Junior Philiph Tonui had an outstanding day, earning a 19th place finish with a time of 25:02, just one second off of his own school record time. The team lost #2 runner Brett Jones who was unable to complete the race due to the extreme heat but senior Jason Cline stepped up and raced to a time of 28:38, just a few seconds off of his personal best. Freshman Tyler Malone finished 3rd for the Trojans (29:00) with junior Deon Russell (30:01) and sophomore Ben Griffin (30:34) rounding out the scoring effort.
COACH COMMENTS: It was kind of a hard-luck day for the guys today. Brett was having a great race before the heat got to him and Ben's time was adversely affected because he stopped to check on his teammate, which was the right thing to do. With that said, I think that both Philiph and Jason ran fantastic races and were rewarded with great finishing times. Deon has been battling injures and is not in race shape, so I was proud of how he came out and competed. Once he gets healthy he is really going to help us out. To have all of the adversity today and still be just behind some of our conference rivals, I feel pretty good about where we are. We'll use the upcoming break from competition to crank up the intensity with training and get these guys ready to be their best down the home stretch.
The team has a few weeks to prepare for their next competition, which takes place October 9 at Central Methodist University.
THE WOMEN
RESULTS
The women ran to a 27th place finish at the Stampede and their effort was highlighted by the performance of freshman Breanna Newton, who completed the 5K course in a school record time of 18:35. Breanna's effort earned her a 33rd place finish out of 302 competitors. In addition, she was the 4th place NAIA finisher and top NAIA freshman performer in the talented field. Freshman Mandi Riddle had a strong performance, as the newcomer to cross country continued her rapid improvement by finishing the race in a time of 20:56. Mandi's time was a nearly two-minute improvement from last week's race. Sophomores Jessica Bailey (22:19) and Sarah Erickson (22:40), both trying to overcome early season injuries, finished 3rd and 4th, respectively, for the Lady Trojans, while freshman newcomer Amber Zinkula had a strong showing in her first collegiate meet, crossing the line in 22:42 and earning the 5th place team finish. HLG also got strong efforts from sophomore Liz Wilder (23:04) and Carissa Eichmeyer (23:39).
COACH COMMENTS: The ladies came out today and showed a lot of effort and heart. Obviously Breanna had a great race and was rewarded with the new school record time. What also impressed me was the improvement of some of our newcomers to XC. What many people don't realize is that Mandi, Liz, and Amber are all new to cross country this year and they are all in our top-seven. They continue to show great improvements each week and I expect that to continue. We are still struggling with some injuries that are holding us back from reaching our potential as a team but we are starting to progress and, with three weeks of training before our next meet, we are going to be able to really focus on getting better, faster, and tougher.
THE MEN
RESULTS
The men's team overcame some adversity to bring home a 20th-place finish at the meet. Junior Philiph Tonui had an outstanding day, earning a 19th place finish with a time of 25:02, just one second off of his own school record time. The team lost #2 runner Brett Jones who was unable to complete the race due to the extreme heat but senior Jason Cline stepped up and raced to a time of 28:38, just a few seconds off of his personal best. Freshman Tyler Malone finished 3rd for the Trojans (29:00) with junior Deon Russell (30:01) and sophomore Ben Griffin (30:34) rounding out the scoring effort.
COACH COMMENTS: It was kind of a hard-luck day for the guys today. Brett was having a great race before the heat got to him and Ben's time was adversely affected because he stopped to check on his teammate, which was the right thing to do. With that said, I think that both Philiph and Jason ran fantastic races and were rewarded with great finishing times. Deon has been battling injures and is not in race shape, so I was proud of how he came out and competed. Once he gets healthy he is really going to help us out. To have all of the adversity today and still be just behind some of our conference rivals, I feel pretty good about where we are. We'll use the upcoming break from competition to crank up the intensity with training and get these guys ready to be their best down the home stretch.
The team has a few weeks to prepare for their next competition, which takes place October 9 at Central Methodist University.
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