Colorado University Athletics
Indoor Track Preps For NCAA's
March 09, 2006 | Track and Field
BOULDER - The University of Colorado is sending six distance runners to the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships this Friday and Saturday, March 10-11 in Fayetteville, Ark. Liza Pasciuto will race in the 3k, Stephen Pifer will run in the mile and Christine Bolf, Billy Nelson, Bret Schoolmeester and Brent Vaughn will run in the 5k.
"This meet is just loaded in every event," head coach Mark Wetmore said. "It just gets better and better every year, harder and harder to get to. The performance lists are just eye opening."
Pifer will be the first Buff to compete at the NCAA's. His race is set for a 6:45 (CST) on March 10. Pifer ranks seventh (3:59.55) with his school record mark that he set on Feb. 11 at the Husky Classic. Tom Lancashire of Florida State holds the best time in the field (3:57.72). Leonel Mazano, from the University of Texas, is the highest ranked Big 12 racer (34:58.84).
"I think a reasonable goal for Stephen is to get on the podium," Wetmore said. "For him to contend for the title, the race would need to unfold in a way that it rarely does, which means going hard the whole way. He's a big guy with a long stride and the small venue of the indoor track isn't perfect for him. What's best is if they go out hard immediately from the gun and it almost never does. So he needs to practice those skills, deal with the traffic and try to close hard and see how high up on the podium he can get."
Nelson, Schoolmeester and Vaughn will race at 7:50 p.m. on March 10. They are three of 16 racers in the event. Two other schools are represented by three runners, Wisconsin and Arkansas, the 2005 NCAA Cross Country Champions and runner-up, respectively. Nelson is ranked sixth (13:46.80), Schoolmeester is 11th (13:48.52) and Vaughn is 12th (13:48.67). The top time in the field is 13:30.87, set by Iona's Richard Kiplagat on Feb. 10.
"It's a very deep field," Wetmore explained. "It's really fast and the slowest accepted entry probably would have been the fastest time in the country feive or six years ago. Everyone in there is a podium contender, including all three of our guys. Again it will be tactical, it will be slow, it will be crowded, there will be a lot of traffic and bumping and banging and changes of pace and it's a matter of who deals with that best and will determine who gets the highest in the finish."
Bolf will also race on March 10 with an 8:30 p.m. start. She was an automatic qualifier with the second best time in CU history at 15:46.83. Pasciuto will race on March 11, with the 3k set for 7:50 p.m. Both will have to compete with Mary Culleen of Providence. Cullen holds the best times in both the 5 and the 3k
"Christine's 15:46 that got her in the meet is a great time," said Wetmore. "If she's still that fit and fresh, she'll be on the podium for sure and maybe higher than fourth. Liza will be higher than 10th. I'll be surprised if she's not higher than that."
Last season, the Buffs were represented by three racers and have doubled the number to six this year.
"Last year was unusually low and I was disappointed to only take three last year. We would normally take this many, but this group seems particularly fit and energetic going into this one. Sometimes people are getting to be a little worn out at this point in the year, so it's a group size that I would expect, but maybe they're a little more ready to go than we often are.
