MAC Championships Await Men's Track & Field
5/9/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
May 9, 2012
Heat Sheets | Schedule of Events | MAC Championships Central | Live Results
OXFORD, Ohio - After a disappointing finish last year, the Miami University men's track and field team has its sights set on redeeming itself at the 2012 Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships this weekend, hosted by Central Michigan in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
The RedHawks finished sixth of six teams at last year's MAC Championships, as they have done each of the last three years. The other five teams joining Miami in Mount Pleasant are Akron, Kent State, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan and the host Chippewas, as six MAC schools don't sponsor men's track. The `Hawks have won 14 MAC outdoor titles in program history but none since 1993 while Miami's fourth-place finish in 2008 is its best since 1994. The meet will be scored using a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale in each event.
The MAC Championships get underway Thursday at 10 a.m. with the men's javelin while half of the decathlon will be contested along with the hammer throw and pole vault. The 10,000m run concludes day one at 7:45 p.m. On Friday, the decathlon resumes at 11 a.m. while several prelims on the track take place throughout the day. Day two finishes with the 3000m steeplechase at 5:55 p.m. The final day has competition set for 11 a.m. with the men's triple jump while finals on the track are run all day. The meet wraps up at 4:45 p.m. with the 4x400m relay followed by the awards ceremony at 5 p.m. A full schedule is available here.
The RedHawks totaled 105 points at last year's MAC Championships, just seven back of both Buffalo and EMU, but the score was a significant improvement from the 66 points Miami tallied in 2010. Akron ran away with last year's title while Kent State was second. Miami returns three of its four Second-Team All-MAC performers from a year ago in junior Jarrod Eick (Hartville, Ohio), sophomore Jahquil Hargrove (Norristown, Pa.) and senior Adam Ruiz (Mascoutah, Ill.). Eick took second in the 1500m, Hargrove was the runner-up in the 400m dash and Ruiz placed second in the shot put. Other top finishes were put in by senior Jordan Goffena (Sidney, Ohio), who was third in the decathlon, and classmate Nathan Hoch (Logan, Ohio), who claimed third in the discus.
Last Friday, Miami competed at the Billy Hayes Invitational, hosted by Indiana University, in a final tune-up before the MAC Championships. Hargrove won the 400m dash in the fourth-best time in school history while senior Matt Rudin (Middleburg Heights, Ohio) was the runner-up in the pole vault with a season-best clearance. In the 800m run, sophomore Kevin Brown (Lewis Center, Ohio), who was fourth in the 800m at last year's MAC meet, took fifth in the eighth-best time in school history while Eick was right behind in sixth, also in a personal-best time that ranks him 10th in school history.
In the latest USTFCCCA regional rankings, which came out Tuesday, Miami is 12th in the Great Lakes Region, one spot ahead of Eastern Michigan. Akron is No. 6 while Kent State is eighth and host CMU is 10th. Buffalo is ranked 10th in the Northeast Region.
Several RedHawks rank in the top 10 in the MAC in their respective event(s) heading into the MAC Championships, including two that have the top time/mark as Hargrove holds the top 400m dash after last Friday while Goffena has the top decathlon score. Below is a list of RedHawks in the top 10 in an event while a complete list can be found here.
200m dash
7. Jahquil Hargrove (21.77)
400m dash
1. Jahquil Hargrove (47.09)
6. Robert Balzano (48.73)
800m run
6. Kevin Brown (1:51.48)
9. Jarrod Eick (1:51.75)
10. Jack Spilman (1:52.05)
1500m run
3. Jarrod Eick (3:46.32)
5000m run
4. Jarrod Eick (14:19.85)
9. Matt Marol (14:39.37)
10. Daniel Garleb (14:43.80)
10,000m run
5. Matt Marol (31:21.48)
6. Dave Wing (31:21.54)
3000m steeplechase
7. Brett Wagner (9:21.66)
110m hurdles
2. Jordan Goffena (14.23)
6. JaShawn Combs (14.54)
7. Sam Chester (14.58)
400m hurdles
6. Skyler Coburn (53.63)
4x100m relay
6. Miami (42.33)
4x400m relay
4. Miami (3:14.65)
High Jump
7. Matt Gambill (2.01m/6-7)
Long Jump
6. John Cantwell (7.09m/23-3.25)
8. Reggie Mitchell (7.03m/23-00.75)
8. Matt Rudin (7.03m/23-00.75)
10. Jordan Goffena (7.01m/23-00)
Triple Jump
7. John Cantwell (14.20m/46-7.25)
Discus
5. Nathan Hoch (52.02m/170-8)
6. Rob Stein (51.99m/170-7)
7. Adam Ruiz (50.75m/166-6)
Hammer Throw
7. Adam Ruiz (57.99m/190-3)
9. Rob Stein (55.32m/181-6)
Javelin
4. Tyler Yee (62.59m/205-4)
8. Matt Rudin (56.34m/184-10)
10. Taylor Celestin (53.77m/176-5)
Shot Put
6. Adam Ruiz (16.91m/55-5.75)
9. Nathan Hoch (16.43m/53-11)
10. Rob Stein (16.41m/53-10.25)
Pole Vault
6. Matt Rudin (5.05m/16-6.75)
Decathlon
1. Jordan Goffena (7,314)
4. Matt Rudin (6,700)
5. Sam Chester (6,512)
The MAC Championships serve as the final meet as a team for Miami though several RedHawks are in contention to earn a spot at the NCAA East Preliminary Rounds, which are May 24-26 in Jacksonville, Fla. Hoch ranks 44th in the East Region in the discus while Stein is right behind in 45th. Hargrove sits 45th in the 400m dash while Rudin is 48th in the pole vault. The top 48 athletes (plus scratches) per event in the region qualify for the East Preliminary Rounds, except the decathlon, which does not have prelims. Goffena ranks 26th nationally in the decathlon with the top 24 making the NCAA Championships. Other `Hawks sitting just outside the top 48 in the East Region that could improve this weekend include Eick in the 1500m (53rd), Goffena in the 110m hurdles (55th), Ruiz in the shot put (53rd) and hammer throw (53rd) and Yee in the javelin (52nd).
Live results for this weekend's MAC Championship will be available on MURedHawks.com.
--MURedHawks.com--