Andre Townsend Named AMC T&F Athlete of the Week

Andre Townsend (Junior-Chicago, IL)

Congrats to HLG men's track & field standout Andre Townsend for being named the American Midwest Conference's track & field Athlete of the Week!

The junior from Chicago, IL earned this distinction after a strong showing at last weekend's SIU Saluki Open where Andre won the 60m Hurdles in a time of 7.97 seconds. In addition, Andre placed 5th in the 400m dash with a time of 50.45 seconds. Both marks set new HLG records as well.

You can see the conference press release HERE.

Andre and the rest of the Trojans will be back in action this weekend at The Illinois College Snowbird Open in Jacksonville, IL.

Townsend Leads Strong Effort at SIU

RESULTS

17 members of the Hannibal-LaGrange track & field team travelled to Carbondale, IL to compete in the Saluki Open, hosted by Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. With around 20 teams competing, most of whom were NCAA Division 1 programs, the Trojans more than held their own, setting four new school records along the way. Here are some of the highlights.

* Andre Townsend was the meet champion in the 60m hurdles, with a winning time of 7.97, a new personal best and school record. Andre was also first in the preliminary rounds with a time of 8.09. He followed that performance with a 5^th place finish in the 400m dash. His time of 50.45 is also new school record.

* John Anderson made the finals of the 60m hurdles, where he placed 12^th with a personal-best time of 9.11.

* After a small layoff following cross country season and a half marathon, Philiph Tonui returned to action to place 7^th in the 3,000m race, finishing with a solid time of 8:59.12.

* Easton Padden placed 5^th in the pole vault, with a mark of 4.34m (14’2.75”).

* Sara Wilson made her 400m debut and put forth a solid effort, setting a new school record with her time of 1:01.74.

* Holland McCoy set a new personal best in the pole vault. Her vault of 2.84m (9’3.75’) was good for 14^th place.

* Cara Grinde finished 7^th in the pole vault with a mark of 3.14m (10’3.5”).

* The Women’s 4x400m relay team of Mandi Riddle, Caitlin McCoy, Holland McCoy, Cailey Wilkinson placed 13^th and shattered the old school record by nearly 10 seconds with their finishing time of 4:29.81.

COACH COMMENTS: I was really pleased at how the group competed this weekend. With this being the first meet after the Christmas break, we knew that there would be some rust to shake off. However, I thought the team showed great enthusiasm and energy and represented our university very well amidst the likes of some very strong upper-level programs. I think that you will see rapid improvement over the next couple of meets and it will be exciting to see.

Next Saturday the entire team will travel to Jacksonville, IL to compete in the Snowbird Invitational, hosted by Illinois College.

NEW SCHOOL RECORDS
Women’s 4x400m relay: Mandi Riddle, Caitlin McCoy, Holland McCoy, Cailey Wilkinson (4:29.81)

Women’s 400m: Sarah Wilson (1:01.74)

Men’s 60m Hurdles: Andre Townsend (7.97)

Men’s 400m: Andre Townsend (50.45)

Small Group Makes Big Noise at Mizzou

RESULTS

A small contingent of men from the Hannibal-LaGrange University track & field team got the 2011 portion of the indoor season underway early, as they traveled to Columbia to compete in the Mizzou Invitational.

In a meet that included the likes of Mizzou, SLU, Lincoln, and SIU-Edwardsville, there were some promising results. Freshman Easton Padden set a new school record in the pole vault, clearing the bar at 4.45m (14'7.5"), which was good for 6th place. Easton skipped over the 4.60m height to take a shot at the next height (4.75m), which would have been an automatic qualifying height for the NAIA Indoor national meet. Easton fell just short but such promising results this early in the season is a great sign of good things to come.

Junior standout Andre Townsend had an up-and-down day. In a talented 60m hurdle field, Andre placed 3rd in the preliminary round with a fast time of 8.08. In the finals, he had a strong collision with the fourth hurdle and faded back to 5th place with a time of 8.34. Later on, Andre would compete in the 200m dash where he would place 6th with a school record time of 23.43. The Trojans also got a strong effort in the 200 from freshman Cole Peck, who placed 12th in the event with a time of 23.76, barely half an hour after placing 18th in the 600 yard dash (1:18.97). Sophomore John Anderson finished 18th in the 200m race with a time of 24.55.

The entire HLG team will resume practice next week and will prepare for the SIU Saluki Invitational in Carbondale, IL next Friday and Saturday.

T&F Kicks Off Season at Iowa State

RESULTS - MEN

RESULTS - WOMEN

The men's and women's track and field teams at Hannibal-LaGrange University kicked off the indoor season by traveling to Ames, Iowa to compete in the Iowa State Holiday Classic. Competing against numerous NCAA Division I and II programs, including the host institution, a young Trojans team got a chance to put all of their fall training to the test.

The men's team was led by junior Andre Townsend who, in his HLG debut, placed second in the 60 meter hurdles. Andre's time of 7.99 in the finals earned him an automatic qualifying mark for the 2011 NAIA Indoor Track & Field National Championships in March and currently stands as the top time in NAIA for that event. Including Andre's effort, a total of four school records were broken on the men's side, including the 300m sprint, where freshman Bernardo Massuchin set a new standard with a time of 37.30, which was good for 14th place. Freshman Cole Peck started his collegiate career in style by setting a new record mark in the 600 yard race. Cole's time of 1:17.36 placed 7th in the event. In addition, the men's 4x400m relay team of Townsend, Peck, Massuchin, and freshman Stephen McTeer smashed the old school record by completing the event in a time of 3:30.70 and placing third in the event.

On the women's side, sophomore thrower Abbie Herrold made a strong return in her first meet since a serious ankle injury during last year's outdoor season. Abbie set a new school record in the weight throw with a mark of 11.53m. Freshman Sarah Wilson set a new school record in the 600 yard race, placing 5th with a time of 1:33.02. Fellow freshman Mandi Riddle, fresh out of cross country, was not far behind, placing 7th n the same event (1:36.88). In the pole vault, senior Cara Grinde got off to a solid start, placing second with a mark of 3.25m. freshman Cailey Wilkinson placed 4th in the same event, clearing 3.10m in her first collegiate competition.

COACH COMMENTS: Overall I was pretty pleased with the effort today. With so many freshmen, it was great for them to come out and get a taste of competition heading into the holiday break. We have a ton of potential on this team and I look forward to seeing steady improvement as the season goes on. On top of that, we are blessed to have a great group of athletes who have worked hard all fall and just have strong attitudes and work ethic.

A handful of team members will compete in the Missouri Invitational on Friday, January 7 in Columbia, Missouri. The meet begins at 12pm.

HLG Runners Compete in Half-Marathon

RESULTS

The Hannibal-LaGrange College Track & Field team had three men and two women compete in a half marathon on Saturday, December 4. The meet was hosted by Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska. On a cold 30 degree day with 20mph winds, all 5 runners performed well.

Junior Philiph Tonui repeated his runner-up performance from a year ago, with a blistering time of 1:09:51. This effort cut 1:36 off of Philiph’s own school record for the distance and set an automatic qualifying time for the 2011 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships in May. Freshman Tyler Malone had a strong half marathon debut, placing 35^th in the talented-stocked men’s race in a time of 1:19:26. Sophomore Nathan Uding rounded out the effort for the men with a time of 1:26:38, which was good for 47^th place.

On the women’s side, sophomore Sarah Erickson made her debut at the 13.1 mile distance and performed well, placing 24^rd overall with a time of 1:40:12. Sarah’s effort places her 2^nd on the HLG record list for the distance. Fellow sophomore Liz Wilder ran a gutsy race and finished with a time of 1:47:27, which was good for 27^th place.

The Trojans will kick off the indoor track & field season on Friday, when the team travels to Ames, Iowa to compete in the Holiday Classic, hosted by Iowa State University.

Breanna and Philiph Compete at NAIA XC Nationals

Philiph and Breanna competing at NAIA XC National meet

Women's Results: http://naia.cstv.com/sports/w-xc/stats/2010-2011/2010nationalxcchampwomensindivualresults.html

Men's Results: http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-xc/stats/2010-2011/2010naianationalxcchampsindmensresults.html

Philiph finished 37th (out of 326) in a time of 25:53 for the 8K race. Breanna placed 205th (out of 330) in a time of 20:10 in the women's 5K championship race.

It was a great effort for both athletes and they represented HLG really well.

Philiph ran a great race! 37th place with a time of 25:53. Only 7 spots and 11 seconds away from All-American honors. Course was in really bad shape. Gutsy run!

Breanna finished 205th in 20:10. Ran strong race in cold, drizzly conditions. Course was very wet and muddy. Ran a good minute slow.

At the Blazers-Nuggets game. First NBA game for Breanna! Good workout today at the course...ready for a great race on Saturday!

Watching Galen Rupp, Alan Webb, and Dathan Ritzenheim do a workout here at Nike complex!