Colorado University Athletics
Clark Defends Pac-12 Steeplechase Title
May 15, 2016 | Track and Field
SEATTLE – For the second straight year, University of Colorado sophomore Erin Clark is the Pac-12 Conference 3,000-meter steeplechase champion.
Clark successfully defended her 2015 title on Saturday, winning her second consecutive title with a meet and track record of 9 minutes, 48.72 seconds, which is also a personal best. Clark easily cruised to victory with the runner-up, Oregon's Frida Berge, finishing in 9:56.79. Currently, Clark's time is third on the NCAA list.
“We were very excited about Erin defending her steeple title,” head coach Mark Wetmore said. “The Oregon woman stayed with her for quite a long part of the race, maybe six of the seven and a half laps, but Erin took the lead immediately and kept the pressure on and one by one, people went out the back. There were a couple collisions in the back, which commonly happen in the steeple, but Erin was clear of them and ran a U.S. Olympic Trials qualifying mark.”
The Buffs have been dominant in the event, winning all five titles since joining the conference. CU has won the event at eight straight conference meets dating back to the Big 12 era. Overall, four Buffs have won nine steeplechase titles in the last 10 years. Jenny (Barringer) Simpson won a pair of titles (2007 and 09), Emma Coburn captured three crowns (2010, 11 and 13) and Shalaya Kipp was a two-time winner (2012 and 14).
Clark wasn't the only Buff who scored for the Buffs in the steeplechase. Sophomore Val Constien, who placed seventh a year ago, recorded a PR of 10:05.65, despite a mishap in the water barrier, to place fourth, putting her fifth on CU's all-time performers list.
“A woman in front of Val made a mistake in the water jump and Val had to jump half around and half over her, and Val survived it better than some of the others. In a way, it worked to her advantage,” Wetmore said.
The men were also impressive in the steeplechase. Connor Winter, the 2015 champion, came up just shy of another title, finishing second with a PR of 8:40.77. Washington's Aaron Nelson crossed the finish just over one second in front of Winter, setting a track record of 8:39.58.
“Connor was the defending champion, but the guy who beat him won the conference meet in 2014, so it was a battle of the past two champions,” Wetmore said. “Connor went out early to keep the pace honest and again, similar to Erin, tried to pull the race away from some of the lesser guys. Congratulations to the Aaron Nelson - Washington is in the team race and he picked up good points for them; but Connor got a great second place time.”
Colorado also picked up big points from Adam Peterman. The sophomore earned a PR of 8:43.19 to take third overall, improving from eighth place a year ago.
“It was a really brilliant run for Adam, moving up through the pack to get third with a huge PR for us,” Wetmore said.
The women's team picked up a points in the 10k with Mackenzie Caldwell and Carrie Verdon placing third and fifth, respectively. This was Caldwell's first 10k of the season, and she made it count, recording a huge PR for a 33:52.08 performance. That time puts her ninth on CU's all-time performers and would qualify her for the preliminary championships. Verdon finished the race with a season best time of 33:56.19.
“Both Mackenzie and Carrie were very patient,” Wetmore said. “There were times when they were probably 10th and 12th, but they kept moving up and letting attrition happen. They ran negative splits, which means they accelerated the whole way. We would have been happy with 34:30, but they both ran in the 33:50s.”
Colorado also earned three points in the men's 10k with John Dressel placing seventh and Ammar Moussa taking eighth. Running the first 10k of his collegiate career, Dressel had a strong performance, finishing in 29:20.97, while Moussa also had a solid performance, clocking in at 29:29.92.
“John is a freshman running the 10,000 and the 10,000 is quite a beast,” Wetmore said. “Keeping your focus and knowing what edge you can run on in the 10k takes a lot of experience and calmness. We are happy with his debut. We thought maybe both of those guys would be a little higher, but still its points for the team. Ammar fought and fought – he wasn't going to go pointless today. He wants to help the team and he gave it his all.”
The men's team also recorded points from senior Brady Rutt, who placed sixth in the hammer throw with a mark of 190-11.
“Brady threw pretty well today,” Wetmore said. “He was within a couple meters of his personal best on a not so perfect day. It was quite rainy and windy today. The circle was imperfect. It was a really good performance for him with these conditions.”
The women's team received a pair of points from senior Kelsey English, who cleared the high jump in 5-5.25. English tied for sixth with UCLA's Kaelin Davis and Washington State's Lateah Holmes.
Saturday was also the qualifying day for many events on the track. The women's 4x100-meter relay team (Ana Holland, Tashay Brown, Alex Peters and Eileen Gehring), earned a second place finish in the second heat, clocking in at 45.96 to earn an automatic spot in the finals on Sunday. Overall, the time was the third best performance on the afternoon.
The Buffs advanced a trio to the 1,500 finals. On the women's side, Maddie Alm and Dani Jones moved on, while Zach Perrin qualified for the men. Alm finished ninth overall, third in her heat, with a time of 4:19.34, while Jones was third in her heat, eighth overall, and finished in 4:21.24. Perrin was ninth overall on the men's side, finishing in 3:43.88, fifth in his section.
The qualifying kept coming for the Buffs. Jaron Thomas was third overall in the 110-meter hurdles, finishing second in his heat in 14.19. He will be joined in the finals by teammate Isaiah Oliver, who was seventh overall (fourth in Thomas' heat), in 14.41. Thomas also advanced to the 400-hurdle finals a few hours later, finishing second in his heat in 52.62.
“Jaron had a good day, making the finals in both events,” Wetmore said. “He has stayed focus despite the fact he's had some media attention recently – he's a tough guy. I respect what he has done in the last year, coming back from injury and doing a lot of rehab - and now he is closing in on being in the best shape of his life. He's going to score in two events for us tomorrow, which is going to help us a lot.”
Duane McClurkin Jr. also advanced in the sprints for the Buffs, finishing the 400 in 47.57 for seventh overall in the prelims.
Freshman Elissa Mann advanced to the finals in the 800, earning a second place finish in her heat with a time of 2:06.63, which was seventh overall. Junior Nick Harris placed second in his heat to automatically advance to the men's finals, finishing in 1:49.51, which was the second fastest time of the day. The time was also the second fastest ever run at Husky Track with Arizona's Collins Kibet winning Harris' heat in record time (1:48.46).
“I was really happy with the people who advanced to the finals,” Wetmore said. “It was a good day – better than what we were hoping for.”
The championships conclude Sunday. Action starts at 9 a.m. (PT) with the women's hammer throw. The Buffs are currently third in the women's team race with 33 points, while the men are tied with Stanford for sixth (22 points).
PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS
Husky Track (Seattle, Wash.)
Team Scores:
Men (after 8 events):
1. Washington 61; 2. Oregon 57; 3. UCLA 45; 4. USC 27; 5. Arizona State, 26; 6. Colorado 22; 6. Stanford 22; 8. Arizona 19; 8. California 19; 10. Washington State 14.
Women (after 7 events):
1. Oregon 57; 2. UCLA 41; 3. Colorado 33; USC 30; 5. Washington State 28; 6. Washington 23; 7. Arizona 22; 8. Stanford 20; 9. Arizona State 12; 10. Oregon State 4; 11. Calfornia 3.
Track Events
Women's 4x100-meter relay (prelims): (1. UO, 44.38) 3. Colorado (Ana Holland/Tashay Brown/Alex Peters/Eileen Gehring, 45.96
Men's 4x100-meter relay (prelims): (1. ASU, 39.99) 9. Colorado (Patrick Carr/Jaysean Skrine/Austin Mitsch/Duane McClurkin Jr., 41.39
Women's 1,500-meters (prelims): (1. Lilli Burdon, UO, 4:18.33) 7. Maddie Alm, 4:19.34; 8. Dani Jones, 4:21.24; 26. Tayler Tuttle, 4:33.23
Men's 1,500-meters (prelims): (1. Sean McGorty, SU, 3:43.58) 9. Zach Perrin, 3:43.88; 20. Joe Klecker, 3:52.72
Women's 100-meter hurdles (prelims): (1. Nnenya Hailey, UA, 13.24) 15. Maja Wichhart-Donzo, 14.64
Men's 110-meter hurdles (prelims): (1. Devon Allen, UO, 13.32) 3. Jaron Thomas, 14.19; 7. Isaiah Oliver, 14.41; 14. Alex Billing, 15.13; 15. Andrew Ghizzone, 15.34
Women's 400-meters (prelims): (1. Kristyn Williams, SU, 52.70) 10. Eileen Gehring, 55.12; 18. Alex Peters, 56.20
Men's 400-meters (prelims): (1. Ricky Morgan Jr., USC, 46.90) 7. Duane McClurkin Jr., 47.57; 12. Darrin Haynes, 48.91
Women's 100-meters (prelims): (1. Hannah Cunliffe, UO, 11.08) 14. Ana Holland, 11.70
Men's 100-meters (prelims): (1. Reggie Lewis, ASU, 10.36) 18. Patrick Carr, 10.89; 20. Jaysean Skrine, 11.04; 21. Austin Mitsch, 11.60
Women's 800-meters (prelims): (1. Claudia Saunders, SU, 2:04.98) 7. Elissa Mann, 2:06.63; 23. Karina Mann, 2:12.58
Men's 800-meters (prelims): (1. Collins Kibet, UA, 1:48.46) 4. Nick Harris, 1:48.51; 11. Justice Ramos, 1:51.23
Women's 3,000-meter steeplechase (finals): 1. Erin Clark, 9:48.72; 4. Val Constien, 10:05.65; 9. Lucy Cheadle, 10:38.91; 14. Eryn Blakely, 10:50.30
Men's 3,000-meter steeplechase (finals): (1. Aaron Nelson, UW, 8:39.58) 2. Connor Winter, 8:40.77; 3. Adam Peterman, 8:43.19
Women's 400-meter hurdles (prelims): (1. Jaide Stepter, USC, 55.95) 17. Maja Wichhart-Donzo, 1:02.62; 22. Gabby Scott, 1:03.76; 23. Rajon O'Quinn, 1:06.82
Men's 400-meter hurdles (prelims): (1CJ Allen, WSU, 51.01) 6. Jaron Thomas, 52.62; 11. Trenton Stringari, 53.56; 14. Garrett Losty, 54.70; 15. Andrew Ghizzone, 54.86; 17. Isaiah Kaiser, 55.79
Women's 200-meters (prelims): (1. Deajah Stevens, UO, 22.69) 12. Ana Holland, 24.23; 25. Tashay Brown, 25.32
Men's 200-meters (prelims): (1. Marcus Chambers, UO, 21.04) 11. Duane McClurkin Jr., 21.72
Women's 10,000-meter (finals): (1. Katie Knight, UW, 33:20.02) 3. Mackenzie Caldwell, 33:52.08; 5. Carrie Verdon, 33:56.19; 9. Cayla Seligman, 35:06.45
Men's 10,000-meter (finals): (1. Edward Cheserek, UO, 28:58.57) 7. John Dressel, 29:20.97; 8. Ammar Moussa, 29:29.92; 13. Ryan Forsyth, 29:49.96
Field Events
Men's hammer throw: (1. Greg Skipper, UO, 230-9) 6. Brady Rutt, 190-11/58.19; 14. Matthew Denton, 163-6/49.83; 15. Grayson Webber, 161-09/49.30
Women's long jump: (1. Kylie Price, UCLA, 21-00.50) 10. Abrianna Torres, 19-0.75/5.81
Women's shot put: (1. Brittany Mann, UO, 56-6.75) 10. Mariah Walker, 49-00.25/14.94
Women's javelin: (1. Mackenzie Little, SU, 176-2) 11. Elisa Grandemange, 130-3/39.70; 13. Delaney Hall, 123-5/37.61
Women's high jump: (1. Lisaane Hagens, UA, 5-8.75) t6. Kelsey English, 5-5.25/1.66; 12. Abrianna Torres, 5-5.25/1.66; Rajon O'Quinn, NH
Men's long jump: (1. Adoree Jackson, USC, 25-3.50) t10th, Isaiah Oliver, 22-5/6.79
Men's Javelin: (1. Cody Danielson, UO, 238-5) 15. Christian Shaver, 145-10/44.46
Players Mentioned
