Track teams prepare for last home meet with SIUE Twilight

TONY AMMANN
SPORTS EDITOR

The SIUE track teams will compete in their second home meet of the season this weekend at Ralph Korte Stadium.

Teams will compete both Friday and Saturday in the SIUE Twilight Invitational. The heptathlon, a seven-event competition for women only, will begin at noon Friday. The all-male decathlon begins at 12:30 p.m. Friday.

The decathlon will begin at 11 a.m. Saturday and the heptathlon at 11:30 a.m. All field events take place Saturday at 3:30 p.m., and the run events begin at 5 p.m.

SIUE head coach Darryl Frerker thinks both the men's and women's teams have the chance to set a lot of personal records this weekend.

"The wind usually dies down toward the evening, and that's part of the reason for having the twilight meet," Frerker said. "It's shaping up that there will be good weather and that's usually backed up with great competition."

Western Illinois University, Illinois State University and Bradley University will represent the competition from the Division I level this weekend.

Other teams invited to the race include Central Methodist College, Lindenwood College, Lewis University and the University of Missouri-Rolla.

The Lady Cougars placed second last weekend at the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championships with eight members named All-Conference for their performances Saturday.

Ann Miklovic, Chenoa Glenn, Jessica Conley, Tamekia Howard, Crystal Anderson, Kathy Ostrander, Mekelle Beck and April Jungewaelter earned All-GLVC honors for SIUE.

Frerker thinks Beck has a good shot at qualifying for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Championships after her toss of 125 feet, 10 inches in the javelin throw last weekend.

"With a similar throw, she's going to get herself to nationals," Frerker said.

Glenn remains the only member of the men's or women's teams to have qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 400-meter run. She placed second last week in the event with a time of 1:04.56.

Glenn, Miklovic, Conley and Howard teamed together to win the 4 x 400-meter relay with a time of 4:03.37. Anderson was the other first-place finisher among the All-GLVC members, winning the pole vault with a height of 8 feet, 6 inches.

Miklovic also earned All-Conference honors for winning the 800-meter event with a time of 2:15.

Ostrander placed second in the discus throw with a distance of 128 feet, 7 inches and Jungewaelter placed second behind Beck in the javelin with a distance of 120 feet, 9 inches.

Jason Olszowka, Eli Potter and George Murphy were named All-GLVC for the men's team Saturday as well. The Cougars finished fourth as a team in the meet.

Murphy won the javelin event with a throw of 158 feet, 8 inches. Potter finished second in both the hammer throw and javelin, while Olszowka took second in the 1,500-meter run.

Potter had a toss of 134 feet, 5 inches in the hammer throw and 140 feet, 5 inches in the javelin. Olszowka's time in the 1,500-meters was 3:56.83.

SIUE will compete in the Washington University Last Chance meet Friday, May 5, in St. Louis. It will be the team's last meet before the NCAA Championships scheduled to take place May 10 through 13 in Raleigh, N.C.