MIAA Indoor Conference Championship

Day 1: UNO had 3 girls compete in the pentathalon. Sami finished 6th to put our team on the board for points. Ckayln and Jessica also showed huge improvements on the season- they both set personal records in 3 out of the 5 events.

Day 2: Lianne finished 6th in the weight throw with a huge personal record of over 5 feet (51'3.75")! Nkeiruka also won the triple jump (43'8"), setting the MIAA conference and stadium record. Many got through the prelims on Day 2 to qualify for the finals on Day 3: Anja (800), Maja (200), Jody-Ann (60 Hurdles), and I (400).

Day 3: Nkeiruka won the long jump with a personal best (19'5.25"), and Kathie-Lee also took 4th in that event (18'7"). Kathie-Lee also won the high jump (5'8.75"). Heather won the shot put (48'9"), which is an automatic qualifying mark for nationals. Anja got 6th in the mile and turned around an hour later and won the 800. Jody-Ann got 4th in the hurdles, Maja got 3rd in the 200, and the mile relay took 4th.

Our team took 4th place- amazing despite all that happened. The funny part of the trip was that we drove down to Warrensburg in a blizzard and drove back to Omaha in a thunderstorm- thank you Midwest weather. There is a last chance qualifier meet at Iowa State this weekend. Coach hasn't announced who is going. Nationals is next weekend in New Mexico.

Nebraska Tune-Up

Our team had some great performances at Lincoln. Nkeiruka long jumped 19'3.5", which places her 2nd in long jump in the nation, and she also holds the furthest triple jump mark in the nation. Jody-Ann ran 8.77 in the 60 hurdles, which is a Personal Record and ties her for 10th in the nation thus far. Nicole PR'd in the 1000 by 5 seconds, which is HUGE in any race. The best part was when we loaded the bus, she began to tell us her story from the previous day of how there was a sale on cookies at Bag-N'-Save the day before...she bought 1 dozen M&M cookies, and ate them all in one sitting- the day before she competed! We all laughed...I totally wish I could eat like that and run faster every week :)

I wasn't feeling the greatest for the 400. I ran 57.13. I had a couple hours of rest and was able to come back and run one of the greatest races of my career. Because of injuries and schedules, our relay has not been able to run this season yet. We (Maja, Celeste, Anja, Me) ran 3:49, which places us 6th in the nation after running it only once. I anchored a 55.75, and it felt very good. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jakptVyGa6A

We have conference next weekend in Warrensburg, Missouri. UNO is the two-time defending MIAA Indoor Conference Champions, and we hope to do it again this year.

Tyson Invitational

Alarm clocks went off at 4:00 a.m. Thursday morning to start one of the most interesting weekends we have had yet. 6 of us qualified for the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas. This is a premier Division I track meet on one of the best tracks in the world. We saw some of the top performances in the world this weekend. Arkansas got 24 inches of snow in one day, and the airport was closed the previous day we traveled.  When we boarded our first flight in Omaha, our flight from Minneapolis to Arkansas was still on as scheduled. When we landed in Minneapolis, we found out they had canceled our flight to Fayetteville. After a frantic hour of coach on the phone with the travel agent, we were headed to Detroit in hopes that the Arkansas airport would be open in a couple hours. 7 hours after our scheduled arrival, we landed in Arkansas to find out we were missing Kathie-Lee's bag. Kathie-Lee hopped in the van, and I said, "Where'd they send your bag?" She said, "China". We all laughed, thinking there was no way they sent her bag to China. Come to find out, a red UNO track bag landed in Shanghai, China. We went to dinner Thursday night. I had packed all of my food because of my food allergies, but decided to get some fish at the restaurant, thinking if I told them to not put anything on it, I would be fine. A small piece of fish altered the way the rest of my weekend would go.

Competition started on Friday. I was the first event with the 400. Because of my reaction to whatever the fish had touched, I lost a lot of fluids the morning of my race and was feeling a little weak. I ran 57.31. I felt pretty relaxed in the race, but I just didn't have the strength. I broke out in hives after my race, and I also got them Saturday morning. Coach was pleased with my performance because of the circumstances. Maja ran a 7.67 in the 60, and Anja ran 2:10 in the 800. We were all tired and exhausted from the 15 hours of traveling the day before.

Heather, Maja, and Nkeiruka performed well on Saturday. Heather had a season best throw in the shot put (47'.75"). Nkeiruka had a stellar jump in the triple jump. She went 45'1.75" to break the Division II Triple Jump Record, which also places her 19th in the world so for this season. Maja was the solo runner on the track where she ran her season best time in the 200 (24.45). Great second day for the team.

It's a short training week for the team this week. We head down to Lincoln on Friday where we will run the 4x400 relay for the first time this year, hoping to get a good qualifying time for the national meet.

Frank Sevigne Invitational

On Friday, Kathie-Lee earned the top long jump mark in Division II this season (19'1/4"). Maja qualified for the 60 and 200 finals on Saturday, and I qualified for the 400 finals and 200 consolation finals on saturday.

We returned back to the track on Saturday to have some great performances. Anja ran the 800 for the first time this season, where she posted the top time in Division II and finished as a Frank Sevigne Champion. Heather had a season best throw in the shot put (46'9"). Maja finished the 60 in 7.71 and finished 3rd in the 200 (24.80). Katarina also ran the mile, winning it at 4:51.61.

I personally had a pretty good weekend. On Friday I was heat 10 of 10 in the 400 (57.08), and I turned around and ran the 200 25 minutes after my 400- not a fan of that quick of a turnaround. I knew I qualified for the fast section of the 400, but I did not know I qualified for the consolation final of the 200 until Saturday morning. Coach had me scratch the 200 so I could focus on the 400 and run a good time. I had 2 very fast girls in my heat, so I let them take the pole and tucked in right behind them. I tried to run relaxed, and I ended up finishing well. I ran a 56.75 in the 400 finals- best time of the season.

Short week this week. 6 of us qualified for the Tyson Invitational in Arkansas, and we will be flying down Thursday morning. We'll be running on one of the best tracks in the world (the highest bank). This is a premier professional meet. We have big opportunities- Go Mavericks!

Mavericks Move Up In Weekly Track Rankings

NEW ORLEANS, La. - The UNO track and field team moved up one place to third in the latest national rankings by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association today. The Mavericks had been ranked fourth in each of the last two weeks.

UNO trails only Grand Valley State and Ashland in the rankings. Both schools were ranked 1-2 last week as well.

The Mavericks are one of six teams from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association ranked in the top 25. The others include Lincoln (4), Central Missouri (6), Fort Hays State (8), Missouri Southern (21) and Pittsburg State (23).

UNO returns to action on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 4 and 5 at the Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational in Lincoln

University of Northern Iowa

The University of Northern Iowa track meet began on Friday with the pentathalon. We had 4 girls compete in the pentathalon, which is long jump, high jump, 60 m hurdles, shot put, and 800. It's all in one day, and once the event is over, the girls have 30 minutes until the next event starts. It's a pretty gruelling event. For 3 of the girls, this was their first pentathatlon. The highlights of the day were Kathie-Lee winning the high jump at 5'10", which not only broke the school record, but it also gives her a tie for the leading jump in the nation as of now. Another highlight was Sami winning the 800, the fifth and final event for the day.

The rest of the team headed up to UNI on Saturday morning. After loading the bus at 6:00 a.m. and sitting on a bus (leather seats, wood floors, and 21 inch tv's) for five hours, the UNO Track and Field team put up some big results on Saturday too. Anja broke the school record in the 600 meters (1:34), and Denniel Shaw got first in the long jump (18'8"), qualifying her for the NCAA Indoor National Track and Field Meet. Maja got 2nd in the 60 (7.66), and Heather got 2nd in the shot put (46').

It was definitely a better weekend for me. I ran the 60 and the 200. And oh how I wish some of you guys could see me start the 60. My blocks are by far the worst part of my race, and it usually isn't too noticable in the 400, but in the 60....oh my. I have to work incredibly hard to catch up with everyone, and by that time, the race is over. Ha ha. THE 60 IS SO SHORT! It was a little comical to me because when we finished the race, all the girls were bent over trying to catch their breath as if they just ran a marathon...I turned to my trainer and said, "that was amazing!" I ended up making finals and finishing 4th in the 60...quite unbelievable for a long sprinter. And as far as the 200, I don't even know. They messed up the results and times, so nobody really knows what the true results were, but I had a really good 200 and finished in the top 3.

We have a big week of preparation this week. We head down to Lincoln on Friday and Saturday for the Frank Sevigne Invitational, which is one of the premier meets in the country for indoor track and field. The next couple of weeks are big track meets with big opportunities; I'm trusting it all comes together for the 400.

Nebraska Wesleyan and Iowa State

On Friday, the UNO team traveled down to the University of Nebraska- Lincoln to compete in the Nebraska Wesleyan meet. The highlights were Maja winning the 60 & 200, Heather 3rd in shot put, and UNO going 1-4 in the long jump.

After a late night back to Omaha, the team got up and traveled to Iowa State for a track meet on Saturday. There were two 1st place finishes: Anja in the 1000 and Nkeiruka in the triple jump.

Personally, it was a very difficult weekend. I had a rough week with practices; I ran the 400 and 200 on Friday and turned around and competed in the 600 on Saturday. I wasn't sure how everything was going to go, so before my races I wrote these song lyrics on my arm: "Constant through the trial and the change- one thing remains. Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me." So it's back to the "drawing boards" this week, and I'll take this one day at a time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okTKMaVrSYY

Holiday Inn Invitational

After two days of track and field, the UNO team faired very well. Day One featured most of the distace races, and to lead the way Katarina and Anja went 1-3 with a 4:53 and 5:00 minute mile. Day Two picked up, and we ended up with six Mavericks qualifying for nationals. Nkeiruka and Sami in the triple jump, Heather in the shot put, Kathie-Lee in the high jump, Anja in the mile, and I in the 400.

I had an interesting first weekend. Thursday I came home after practice; I was excited for the first meet, and my adrenaline was pumping, so I decided to log onto the internet to look at the heat sheets for my 400. I found out I was in the fast heat of the 400, running with 2 professional sprinters- one representing Adidas. I spent the next two days stressed and anxious. I had a horrible start, I popped right up out of the blocks, but made up for it by splitting 26 at the 200. I quickly tightened up though and wasn't able to run relaxed the last 150. I ran 57.24, which isn't what I was hoping for, but it gives me a starting place; I can't complain about the first race of the year. After about an hour, I hit the track again for my 200. I ran 25.54 and felt much more relaxed and "in my groove". I placed 4th in both the 400 and the 200, qualifying for Nationals in the 400.

When I was finished with racing, I was surprised to look in the stands and see who had come to watch. My Dad, my Grandma, Kirk Holland, Dani Suponchick, Chelsea Liska, Jenna Miller, Amanda Kneifl, and Meghan Vogt. It was a special day- the first time my Grandma has seen me run.

UNO Track and Field Ranks Fourth in Preseason Rankings

NEW ORLEANS, La. - The UNO indoor track and field team is ranked fourth in the annual pre-season rankings released by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Tuesday.  The ranking come out in advance of the start of UNO's indoor season which begins on Friday, Jan. 14 at the Holiday Inn Invitational hosted by Nebraska.

Pre-Season

Only a couple more days until the 2011 season starts up- we head down to Lincoln for the Holiday Invitational on Friday and Saturday. The team has been training hard since school started in August, so we are all anxious to do something besides practice. I have been nothing but blessed these last couple of months with my teammates. I have two women I train with daily- Celeste Robinson and Anja Puc. If you haven't heard of them before, I am sure you will- they're great :) Anja is a 3 time National Champion, holds national track records in her country, and is a future Olympian. Celeste is a freshman stud from Omaha and is one of the hardest workers I have ever met. It's been great to train with the best these last couple of months, but it has been even more of a blessing to get to know them. God has big things in store for these two and the entire team; I am excited to be there with them.

2011 Track Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWk42LFOQXM

1 Corinthians 15:58
"With all this going for us, my dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort."

I love you all.
XOXOXOXOXO
Kayla