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Track & Field
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Utah Track And Field Prepares For Indoor Season
1/11/2000 12:00 AM | Track & Field
Jan. 11, 2000
SALT LAKE CITY - The Utah track and field team begins the indoor season Sat., Jan. 15, in Pocatello, Idaho, at the Snake River Open hosted by Idaho State. The Utes will participate in the day long meet with events beginning at 10:00 a.m. (MST) at Holt Arena. Head Coach Mike Jones says that this meet will be a good indicator of how his athletes may perform this season.
"It's really too early to tell who the standouts will be," says Jones, "but this meet should tell us a lot about what our athletes will be able to do this season."
Utah's contingent of throwers will travel to Fresno, Calif., to participate in the Fresno State Weight Pentathlon. The meet will feature throwers only and begins at 10:00 a.m. (MST) at Warmerdam Field on the Fresno State Campus.
Utah has a strong group of throwers, led by Mindy Romig, Chantel Goldsberry, Audrey Kiser and Alisha Worthley.
"We have strengths in every throwing category from these women, from the javelin to the discus, to the hammer and weight throw," says Jones.
Elisha Kekacs holds two top rankings on Utah's all-time top performances list in the 100 and 400-meter hurdles, and returns for her final season. "Elisha is strong in the hurdles and will be helped with the addition of Alexandra Nash and a strong core of quarter-milers in Kim Eldredge, Tracy Hamblin and Autumn Spence," says Jones. "They should help us out quite a bit."
Although Utah does not officially field a complete men's track team, members of the cross country team compete throughout the indoor and outdoor track seasons giving them two more opportunities to qualifying for the NCAA national championships. The men will usually compete in the 3,000 meters or the mile distances. Cross country All-American Chris Merkley will try to qualify in the 3,000 meters and cross country national championship qualifier Travis Hildebrand will try to qualify in the 5,000 meters.
"The men's team will basically participate in the 3,000 meters and the mile distances," says Jones. "I think that Chris and Travis have a good shot at qualifying in their respective distances. They'll each run in the event in which they are strongest."
The women's distance runners will also compete in either the 3,000 meters or the mile with the exception of senior Johanna Nielsen. Nielsen, who placed 71st at the cross country national championships this year, will try to qualify in both the 3,000 and the 5,000 meters.
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