May 27, 2009

Illinois NCAA Mideast Regional Championships Preview (PDF)

2009 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
Friday, May 29 - Saturday, May 30
Cardinal Park // Louisville, Ky.

The Meet
The Fighting Illini men's track and field team had 13 athletes qualify for the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships, held this weekend on Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30 in Louisville, Ky. at Cardinal Park stadium. At stake is a berth in the NCAA Outdoor Championships, as the top five individuals and top three relays in each event at each of the four regional meets throughout the country automatically qualify for the national meet.

Illinois will get things started on Friday at 12 p.m. CT with Greg Shroka competing in the high jump, Casey Fonnesbeck in the shot put and prelims of the 4x100m relay, 110m hurdles, 400m, 800m and 400m hurdles. The Orange and Blue will have entries in the pole vault (Andrew Zollner) and hammer throw (Matt McHugh) on Saturday prior to finals of the running events. The last event of the meet, the 4x400m relay, is scheduled for a 6:20 p.m. start.

Some of the top men's track and field teams in the country will be in attendance at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships as ranked by the U.S. Track and Field & Cross Country Coaches Association. No. 4 Arkansas, No. 8 LSU and No. 10 Auburn will all be in attendance as well as Big Ten foes Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue and Wisconsin.

Live results will be available throughout the meet at www.deltatiming.com and also linked on www.fightingillini.com

Illinois Schedule & Entries at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
(All times are Central)

Friday, May 29
12 p.m.............High Jump (Greg Shroka)
12:45 p.m.............4x100m Relay Prelims (Stanley Azie, Roger Jones, Cody Wisslead, Azeez Shogbuyi)
1:30 p.m.............Shot Put (Casey Fonnesbeck)
2 p.m.............110m Hurdles Prelims (Andrew Riley)
3:20 p.m.............400m Prelims (Gakologelwang Masheto)
4 p.m.............800m Prelims (Gary Miller)
4:40 p.m.............400m Hurdles Prelims (Cody Wisslead)

Saturday, May 30
12 p.m.............Pole Vault (Andrew Zollner)
1:30 p.m.............Hammer Throw (Matt McHugh)
3:10 p.m.............4x100m Relay Final
3:55 p.m.............110m Hurdles Final
4:20 p.m.............400m Final
4:30 p.m.............800m Final
4:50 p.m.............400m Hurdles Final
6:20 p.m.............4x400m Relay (Yawusa Kinda, Gary Miller, Dan Jones, Gakologelwang Masheto)

Big Ten Outdoor Championships Recap
Senior Gakologelwang Masheto was one of the top performers at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships hosted by Ohio State, scoring a total of 18 team points for the Illini. Masheto won a gold, silver and bronze medal by taking first in the 400m (46.24), third in the 200m (21.09) and anchoring the 4x400m relay of Yawusa Kinda, Dan Jones and Gary Miller to second. Masheto's win was his sixth career Big Ten title and his second in the outdoor 400m. The 4x100m relay of Andrew Riley, Stanley Azie, Cody Wisslead and Azeez Shogbuyi also finished runner-up (40.63), while Riley and Wisslead turned in fourth-place finishes in the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles, respectively.

Last Year At The NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
Gakologelwang Masheto advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Championships for the second consecutive year, taking fourth in the 400 meters with a time of 46.46. Andrew Zollner also earned a NCAA Championships berth for the second straight year in the pole vault, winning a jump-off to earn the fifth and final automatic bid. Greg Shroka fell just short of making the national cut in the high jump, losing a jump-off and tying for fifth in the event. The 4x400m relay of Yawusa Kinda, Gary Miller, Cody Wisslead and Masheto also earned All-Region honors by taking seventh with a time of 3:08.59.

Illini Athletes To Watch:

• Gakologelwang Masheto, Sprints (Senior // Maun, Botswana)
2009 Season: Ranks eighth in the region and 32nd in the nation in the 400m heading into the championships ... Won his sixth career Big Ten title at the 2009 outdoor championships, winning the 400m with a season-best time of 46.24 ... One of the top performers of the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, also taking third in the 200m (21.09) and anchoring the 4x400m relay to a runner-up finish to score 18 points for the Illini ... Anchored the 4x400m relay to a season-best time of 3:06.83 at the Florida Relays that ranks fifth in the Mideast region this season ... Has run the 400m five times this outdoor season, hitting the regional qualifying standard in each race ... Earned Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week honors three times in 2009 (two indoor and one outdoor) ... Reset his own indoor 400m school record in March with a time of 45.80 that ranked first in the world at the time ... 2009 Big Ten indoor champion in the 400m ... Earned the team Most Valuable Athlete Award. Career: A two-time All-American, placing fourth in the 400m at the 2007 NCAA Outdoor Championships and fifth in the 400m at the 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships ... Four-time NCAA Championships qualifier in the 400m ... Has won six Big Ten titles - the indoor 400m in 2008 and 2009, the outdoor 400m in 2007 and 2009, the outdoor 4x400m relay in 2007 and the indoor 600m in 2007 ... Holds Illinois school records in the indoor 400m, 500m and 600m ... Repsented his native Botswana in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, running the 400m ... Nickname is `Shoes'.
400m - Personal-Best: 45.41 (3/16/07) // Season-Best: 46.24 (5/17/09)

• Andrew Riley, Hurdles (Freshman // Kingston, Jamaica)
Number one seed in the Mideast region in the 110m hurdles, also ranked ninth in the country in the event ... Owns a personal-best time of 13.61 in the 110m hurdles from the Drake Relays ... That performance shattered the Illinois school record of 13.72 in the event ... Was fourth in the 110m hurdles at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships ... Also led off the 4x100m relay that took second at the Big Ten Championships and competed in the high jump with regional qualifying performances in both ... Has hit the regional qualifying standard in the 110m hurdles six times this season ... Named Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year ... Won the 60m hurdles title at the Big Ten Indoor Championships, setting the Illinois school record with a time of 7.72 ... Went on to earn All-America honors by placing sixth in the 60m hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships ... Named team Overall Outstanding Newcomer ... Didn't arrive on Illinois campus from Jamaica until January.
110m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 13.61 (4/25/09)

• Greg Shroka, Jumps (Junior // Cedar Lake, Ind.)
Ranks 10th in the region in the high jump ... Owns the second-best high jump performance in Illinois history with a personal-best leap of 7-0 1/4 from last season ... Earned All-Region honors in 2008, just missing a berth in the NCAA Outdoor Championships by losing in a jump-off for fifth place ... Took fifth in the high jump at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a season-best leap of 6-11 3/4 ... Also took fifth in the high jump at the Big Ten Indoor Championships ... Has been hampered by injuries this season, but still hit the regional qualifying standard in the high jump twice ... Named team Most Valuable Field Event Athlete.
High Jump - Personal-Best: 7-0 1/4; 2.14m (4/30/08) // Season-Best: 6-11 3/4; 2.13m (5/16/09)

• Cody Wisslead, Hurdles (So., Sciota, Ill.)
Seeded 10th in the 400m hurdles in the Mideast region, also qualifying for regionals in the 110m hurdles and as a member of the 4x100m relay ... Took fourth in the 400m hurdles at the Big Ten Championships with a personal-best performance of 51.48 that ranks ninth all-time at Illinois ... Also ran third leg of 4x100m relay that finished runner-up at the Big Ten Championships with a season-best time of 40.63 ... Timed personal-best 14.20 in the 110m hurdles at the Drake Relays ... Earned All-Region honors last season as a member of the 4x400m relay ... Named team Most Improved Sprinter.
400m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 51.48 (5/17/09)

• 4x400m Relay (Yawusa Kinda, Gary Miller, Dan Jones, Gakologelwang Masheto)
Ranked fifth in the region and 16th in the country ... Season-best time of 3:06.93 came at the Florida Relays, with Hendrik Maartens running the leadoff leg instead of Kinda ... Finished runner-up at the Big Ten Championships with a time of 3:09.68, missing first place by 0.07 seconds ... 4x400m relay hit the regional standard five times and won titles at the Spec Towns Invitational, Morgan State Legacy Meet and Illinois Invite ... Illini 4x400m relay of Kinda, Miller, Cody Wisslead and Masheto earned All-Region honors in 2008 for finishing seventh at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
4x400m Relay Season-Best: 3:06.83 (4/4/09)

2009 Illinois Highlights:

• Orange and Blue Win Three Titles at Big Ten Indoors - Illinois had a strong showing at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in March, winning a total of three individual titles with senior Gakologelwang Masheto, junior Gary Miller and freshman Andrew Riley all bringing home gold medals for the Orange and Blue. Riley started the day by taking the 60m hurdles title in a school-record time of 7.72, and was subsequently named Big Ten Indoor Freshman of the Year. Masheto next won his fifth career conference title by winning his signature event, the 400 meters, with a time of 46.80. Miller turned in the third Illini first-place finish of the meet by winning the 600m in a time of 1:17.64, taking the title by 0.01 seconds.

• Four School Records Fall in 2009 - The Illini men's track and field team have reset a total of four school records so far in 2009, two each in the indoor and outdoor seasons. Freshman Andrew Riley has dominated the short hurdling events, setting new Illinois records in the 60m hurdles (7.72) and 110m hurdles (13.61), both times bettering Sherman Armstrong's previous record set in 2000. In March, senior Gakologelwang Masheto reset his own indoor school 400m record, timing 45.80 to rank first in the world at that time. Sophomore Matt McHugh broke the fourth record of the year at the Illinois Invitational on May 2, resetting the hammer throw record with a performance of 190-4.