Off to a darn good start to the outdoor season with the March 16-17 meet in Arizona.
Would enjoy hearing others thoughts.
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Off to a darn good start to the outdoor season with the March 16-17 meet in Arizona.
Would enjoy hearing others thoughts.
I was a little stunned to see that in the first outdoor meet of the season, two Bison lead the nation in their categories - Otterdahl in the Men's Shot Put, Olin in the Women's Javelin. There is a lot of outdoor track and field left this season and there will be some great performances by others in the nation as the season progresses and some tightening up in these event, yet these two still standout. Both are throwers. (This isn't to say that there aren't other Bison worthy of a mention; but two Bison at the top of their events - this is a first in Bison history as far as I know).
To put this in perspective ...
In last years (2017) NCAA Div I National Meet in June here is what we had in the Men's Shot Put and the Women's Javelin:
M Shot Put
1st Place - 21.3 meters (69' 10.75")
10th Place - 18.94 meters (62' 2.25")
Alex Renner NDSU (8th) 19.26 meters (63' 2.25")
Payton Otterdahl in 2018 19.79 meters (64' 11.25")
would have been 4th in 2017 National Meet
W Javelin
1st Place - 58.76 meters (192' 9")
10th Place - 51.90 meters (170' 3")
Alyssa Olin NDSU (12th) 51.34 meters (168' 5")
Alyssa in 2018 - 58.36 meters (191' 6")
would have been 3rd in 2017 National Meet
Great job folks. Keep up the good work.
I always follow
It would be awesome if we had easy access to rewatch the events on our own YouTube channel. Hint hint
Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
Stanford Invitational and SF Distance Carnival 3/30 and 3/31 ...
Nice to see former ND distance great Jake Leingang running again. I read he has been recovering from an injury.
Ran a 14:37 5000m, well below his personal best, but he is out there in his final year of eligibility.
Otterdahl ... animal ! In tfrrs.org the 7th through 22nd best throws in the country are 180 feet something in the discus. So he is right in the mix. Best throw in the U.S. (college men) is 205 feet (62.5 meters). The Otter threw 184' 10". Prior NDSU school record (by him) was 182' 9". Second all time (NDSU) is 177' 8" by Steffan Stroh in 2016.
I remain (greatly) impressed by what our throwers are doing ... both men and women.
The Otter threw 19.97 meters in the shot (65' 6.25") on Saturday, upping his school record from 64' 11.25" set a week or so ago - now 3rd best in college men. Top 5 in college men this year (per tfrrs.org) is 20.32m (66' 8"), 20.13m, 19.97m, 19.80m, and 19.78m (64' 10.75"), whereas 10th best is 19.0m (62' 4"). I won't mention all of the impressive throws by the M and W this year, except to say they are having another outstanding year. In football we hear Kleiman, players, etc say often that NDSU has a "next man up" philosophy ... seems like the throwers are doing this too. Every week, it seems there is another person doing something pretty amazing ... last week it was Olin (W, javelin), this week it was Wolfe (W, javelin) for example.
Another person I have been impressed with (not the only one, however) is Alexis Woods. Perhaps unnoticed ... Morgan Milbraith ended her career running a 400m faster than Roesler ever ran it, and Roesler has Oregon's all-time record in the number of times being an All-American (on the strength of 4x400m, and the 800m). Roesler's best 400m is 53.25. Milbraith ran 53.22 at NDSU last year. Then along came Alexis last year, and she ran a 52.99 - somewhat out of the blue it felt like to me. She is a senior this year. I hope she has a great year to finish her time at NDSU.
(In fairness to Roesler, she rarely ran the open 400m at Oregon, and she had a split in the 4x400m of something like 51.7).
This is a gross misfortune ... meet in Lincoln, NE (Husker Invite) is cancelled this coming Saturday.
Friday high temps (travel day) are expected to be 29.
Saturday morning lows are expected at 11, and high for the day at 37.
Agreed ... not a good idea to do Athletics in this kind of weather. Too big a chance for pulled muscles, etc.
The forecast for the next weekend - the Lyle Hokansen Classic in Fargo for 4/13 adn 4/14, is similar, except it isn't as cold for lows.
Friday 4/13, el prognostico is 34 for a high
Saturday 4/14, the prediction is 23 in the morning and a high of 38.
Normal temperatures for these dates is 53-54 for highs.
This meet should probably also be cancelled, unless the forecast changes as we get into next week.
A little frustrating ... aargh!
Bison athletes continue to shine at the Pacific meet. Track and field has been outstanding for years!
This is great for the team and all of NDSU student athletes.
Steffan Stroh improved his school record in the hammer yesterday.
His 218' 3" is 8 inches further than his previous best. He finished 5th in that event.
A guy competing for Velaasa (a track & field apparel company) threw an astonishing 249' 5" to win the event. That would have been good enough for 4th place at the 2016 Olympic Games.
Forecast for Drake Relays weekend (4/27 and 4/28) is clear and sunny - highs about 65-70. Looks like minimal wind too. This is about as good a weather as one gets at Drake - it often is cool with occasional rain and clouds. Should be a good weekend for the Bison T & F athletes.
Agreed, what a great toss.
The NDSU throwers are doing great, almost unbelievably so. Olin threw 188' in the W Javelin, just shy of her PB of 191', so she is consistent - a good thing. If she has a good NCAA, she has a shot at being a champion, as does Otter in the the SP. Fun to watch.
While Heikkila (only a sophomore) was running an excellent 1500m over at Mt. Sac (3:48), the Bryan Clay meet (NDSU was here too) had a real barnburner in the 1500m ... Josh Kerr ran a 3:35, an all-time college best, and 18 of the 21 best times this year in the 1500m came in that one race, with 12 under 3:40.
Men's and Women's T & F teams are doing great again this year. I love it when they are interviewed and mention that the "big" schools know that NDSU is at the meet. Keep it going. Go Bison.
T & F is hard to follow in the sense that there are so many events. With all the success of the throwers it has been easy to overlook other events.
Women's pole vault, Bison have one at #32 and on the men's side a steeplechaser and two decathletes in Top 45. Impressive.
From a gobison post - the national rankings as of 4/25.
Top Bison Women in the NCAA Rankings
2. Alyssa Olin, javelin
11. Maddy Nilles, hammer
16. Kari Wolfe, javelin
30. Courtney Pasiowitz, shot put
32. Lauren Gietzen, pole vault
40. Bailey Retzlaff, shot put
47. Shelby Gunnells, hammer
53. Amy Herrington, hammer
54. Amanda Anderson, discus
Top Bison Men in the NCAA Rankings
5. Payton Otterdahl, shot put
9. Payton Otterdahl, discus
22. Austin Schmidt, javelin
22. Steffan Stroh, hammer
33. Ryan Enerson, decathlon
42. Brant Gilbertson, steeple
43. Matt Neururer, decathlon
47. Steffan Stroh, shot put
48. Alex Talley, shot put
Good luck today at Drake Relays Bison finish strong. At least we finally got some decent weather in DesMoines.
Bison women made yesterday's shot put competition look like a team practice.
3 NDSU women finished in the top 5, 4 in the top 7, and 5 in the top 13.
Erin Teschuk (former Bison) ran the 2-mile at Drake - not a commonly run event anymore.
The field was stacked with good distance runners.
Erin finished last, running 10:08. While finishing last may not seem impressive, it looks like it is #3 all-time by a Canadian woman based on an all-time chart I found.
The winner, meanwhile, Jenny SImpson, ran a 9:16, which I believe is an American record in the event and in the Top 12 of all-time - so a great race.
Note: Checked this on a more reliable source ... the 9:16 is the 2nd best all-time. Top 2-mile by an American woman is 9:11.
Following the women's hammer throw on the live results page.
Maddy Niles will have a good shot at winning. She is in flight #2. Flight #1 is in progress.
https://results.drakerelays.us/
Maddy cruises into the finals with the best prelims throw of 205' 8"
Joining her in the finals for the Herd......
Amy Herrington: 189' 4". She is the final qualifier (9th).
The last thrower in the prelims, Michaela Hazlewood of Purdue, knocks Bison thrower Shelby Gunnells out of the finals.
Maddy's 1st throw in the finals: 199' 3".........still the leader.
Amy has now fouled twice in the final. Still in 9th.
Payton Otterdahl in flight 2 of the discus......Coming up in a few minutes.
Flight 1 is almost complete.
Maddy fouled on her 2nd. 1 to go. Still in the lead.
Amy gets a mark in her final throw but did not improve her position. She finishes 9th. (189' 4")
Maddy takes the intentional foul as the 2nd place competitor fouled before her.
She wins the hammer. Her winning throw of 205' 8" came in the prelims.
10 points for the Bison.
Otterdahl fouled on his 1st attempt.
Threw 188' 1" on his second to take the lead.
This makes him a lock for the finals.
Men's discuss finals are set..
Otterdahl had the 2nd best qualifying throw. (188' 1").
Best throw in the prelims came from Iowa's Reno Tuufuli. (190' 6")
Bison senior Jacob McBride did not qualify. He finished the prelims with the 13th best distance. (158' 5")
South Dakota's Ben Hammer qualifies 3rd. (186' 10")
Men's Discus: Final Results.
1st: Ben Hammer (South Dakota) 191' 3".
2nd: Reno Tuufuli (Iowa) 190' 6".
3rd: Payton Otterdahl (NDSU) 188' 1".
Steffen Stroh throws the hammer 217' 9" in his first attempt and is the new leader. 6" short of his school record.
Stroh finishes the hammer as the top collegiate.
NDSU Tune-up meet ... near perfect temperatures but lots of wind. Running events generally were not as strong as other meets this year. No standout running performances based on the results I looked at.
Throwers - that is a different story. An OUTSTANDING day. Nearly unbelievable day.
a) new school record in W Hammer Throw, in Top 10 in NCAA Div I (Maddy Niles)
b) new school record in M Hammer Throw, in Top 20 in NCAA Div I (Steffan Stroh)
c) new school record in M shotput, and now the best in NCAA Div I outdoor by almost 2 feet (Payton Otterdahl).
3rd best if Indoor Throws are taken into account; 7th best throw in US for ALL throwers including professionals (per trackandfieldnews.com, combined indoor/outdoor list).
(Did I miss anyone?)
Jumpers: Lexi Wittmeyer.
Anyone know if she is red-shirting this year. She jumped 5' 10" in high school. Haven't seen her in any results this year.
Where is Alysa Olin? No results for her from Drake either.
Mental aspect of competing in track and field ...
Maggie Ewen - from St. Francis, MN - now an Arizona State Sun-Devil (redshirt senior), who holds the NCAA lead for Hammer, Shot Put, and Discus, and NCAA records for two of them. No other athlete has ever held the collegiate record in two of these (per this article).
http://www.espn.com/espnw/sports/art...hot-put-discus
Quote from the article: "Ewen said her coach has been the 'main factor' in helping her notch record after record. She added that, beyond technical and timing changes, he has sharpened her mental approach -- a mindset for each of her three events."
The mental aspect of competing, very important, something I have mentioned many times in posts over the years. Nice to see it here coming from a coach. I found it interesting. I don't know all that Justin is doing with the NDSU throwers, but it is working. I suspect the mental approach is part of what he and the athletes talk about. We are very fortunate to have him at NDSU on many levels.
Saw that Laura Roesler competed this past weekend ... at the USATF Distance Classic at Occidental College in the San Fernando Valley (just north of LA). She ran a 2:03.46, taking fourth place. Winner ran 2:00.38. This is essentially an early meet for the professional T&F athletes - times should get better as we get into the summer. The two best women's 800m runners in the US were not in this - they have both run under 2 this year. The 800m fields - both men and women - are as good or better than they ever have been in the US. New US record in the W-800m set last year (in a race where Roesler was the rabbit). I hope she does well. She has done exceptionally well over her career, but it also seems to me that she hasn't had a breakout year unless one counts the year she went under 2:00. With her natural speed and endurance, I still think she has a 1:57 or 1:56 in her, if she can have a season with no injuries, no headgames, etc.
West Regional - NCAAs - women on Friday.
Tough day for the women today, everyone significantly off their personal bests. In the discuss, the 12th best throw was 53.18 meters (174' 6"). By contrast, the top personal best of all the Bison competing today was Maddie Nilles 52.97, so for any of the Bison women to have advanced, they would have had to throw a personal best today. It would have been tough to advance, but I would guess they all wish they had a better day. I feel for them. Regardless, congrats to these Bison - overall they had a great season, and the throwing overall keeps getting stronger.
Some of them have the hammer tomorrow. Good luck
Last event of Friday with a Bison - men's steeplechase.
Pretty amazing event - 19 runners in the three heats had personal bests and 2 had season bests.
(In the East Regional, 12 personal bests and 2 season bests)
Brant Gilbertson (running for the Bison) had an off day. 9:18 yesterday. He ran 8:56 earlier this year.
To make it to the finals in Eugene June 6-9, steeplechasers in the West Regional had to run about 8:45 or better - a fast year.
(In the East, had to run about 8:48, also quite fast).
NCAAs in Eugene - the Championship rounds - begin today, Wednesday. 6 June 2018
Good luck to McBride and Otterdahl - they throw in the hammer (McB) and the shot (Ott) today. Of 24 competing, Top 9 advance to the final round where they will get an additional three throws. Both the preliminary and the final rounds are today. So we will know by end of day how they did.
For tomorrow, good luck to the women. Olin (Javelin) and Nilles (Hammer) compete. Once again, both a preliminary and final on the same day. We will know by end of day tomorrow how they will do.
Otterdahl has the discus on Friday.
Top 8 make 1st Team All-American. Places 8-16 make 2nd team AA. Places 16-24 make Honorable Mention.
All are a terrific honor.
Once again, good luck to all the Bison throwers. Exciting.
McBride threw 199' in the Hammer, about 10 feet below his best. He finished 24th out of 24, but not far from the thrower in front of him.
Otterdahl in the shot put will finish in 10th place, a 2nd team All-American. By being 10th after the first three throws, he was out of the running for getting into the final round where he would get another three. The top 9 'advanced' to the final round of three more throws. So Otter will finish 10th. The top 9 may move in place amongst each other, but it won't affect Otter's standing. He threw 64' and change. His NCAA leading throw was 68' 9-1/4". The top 9 have all done 4 throws now, each has 2 more remaining. The best throw so far is 67' 3/4", more than a foot and half less than Otter's best. They have two rounds to go, however, so we'll see how it all plays out.
Nice to have another a couple new Bison All-Amercans.
(Added after the competition was done): the winner in the shot put threw 67feet 7-1/2 inches. He also won the hammer throw. He is a junior.