May 15, 2003
Largest Ever LHU Contingent Prepares For NCAA Track & Field Championships

 

                       

 

LHU's NCAA participants: (Top; l-r) Chris Cowan (10,000m); Fieldon Daubert (Javelin); Jennifer Farrow (400m); Jocelyn Held (Pole Vault); Anesu Mushonga (4x400m); Bri Palazzi (Triple Jump).  
(Bottom; l-r): Brooke Rangi (Heptathlon); Sandy Ritz (Triple Jump); Nick Slotterback (Javelin); 
Matt Stinson (Decathlon, 4x400m); Keith Veldhuis (Decathlon, 4x400m); Joe Webster (400m, 4x400m).

 

  (Lock Haven, Pa.) -  The largest Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania contingent in the program’s history will step onto the track at the 2003 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships from May 22-24 at Ralph Korte Stadium on the campus of the University of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.  Five women will compete in their respective events, while six men along with one relay will vie for the national title.
            Lady Eagles earning the bid to national competition include Jennifer Farrow (Canton/Athens), Jocelyn Held (Slatington/Northwestern Lehigh), Bri Palazzi (Altoona/Altoona), Sandy Ritz (West Hazleton/Hazleton) and Brooke Rangi (Kawerau, New Zealand/Kawerau College).  
           Senior Jennifer Farrow, a veteran qualifier at the national level, makes her fourth-straight appearance in NCAA outdoor competition after finishing as an All-American in the 400 meter dash the last two seasons.  The fourth-year sprinter has the 10th fastest time among 400 meter competitors, clocking a 55.41 at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championship.  Last season Farrow finished third in the national finals, and just this winter earned NCAA Indoor All-America honors in the 400 meters after placing fourth.
           It is the second trip to nationals for senior pole vaulter Jocelyn Held, who also competed in the same event in 2001. Held cleared a season-best height of 11’10” and earns a spot at the NCAA meet as the 16th seed. 
          The Lady Eagles will have two first-time representatives in the triple jump competition in sophomore Bri Palazzi and senior Sandy Ritz.  Palazzi has the seventh-best mark in the nation after jumping 40’10½” to take runner-up honors at the PSAC championships. Ritz was fourth at the conference meet, also recording a national qualifying distance with her jump of 39’3”. She is seated 16th among national competitors in the event.
          After provisionally qualifying in the heptathlon last season, this year’s bid to the NCAA championships is the first for sophomore multi-event athlete Brooke Rangi.  Rangi put up her best effort of the season at the Penn Relays, where she recorded 4760 points to rank 12th in the nation in the heptathlon. 
2003 NCAA Track & Field Championships
Schedule of Events for LHU Competitors
Thursday, May 22
10:30 a.m. Heptathlon (100m HH, High Jump, Shot Put, 200m)
11 a.m. Decathlon (100m, Long Jump, Shot Put, High Jump, 400m)
4:50 p.m. Men's 400m Prelims
5:05 p.m. Women's 400m Prelims
7:50 p.m. Men's 10,000m Final
Friday, May 23
11 a.m. Decathlon (110mHH, Discus, Pole Vault, Javelin, 1500m)
12 p.m. Heptathlon (Long Jump, Javelin, 800m)
5:30 p.m. Women's Pole Vault
5:30 p.m. Women's Triple Jump
7:35 p.m. Men's 4x400m Relay Prelims
Saturday, May 24
12 p.m. Men's Javelin
5:30 p.m. Men's 400m Finals
5:40 p.m. Women's 400m Finals
7:50 p.m. Men's 4x400m Relay Finals
 

         Bald Eagles preparing for NCAA action include a pair of decathletes in Matt Stinson (Wescosville/Emmaus) and Keith Veldhuis (Thamesford, ONT/Ingersoll DCI), Joe Webster (Folcroft/Monsignor Bonner) in the 400 meters, Chris Cowan (Horseheads, N.Y./Thomas A. Edison) in the 10,000 meter run, two javelin throwers in Nick Slotterback (Lewisburg/Lewisburg) and Fieldon Daubert (Annville/Annville-Cleona), and the 4x400 meter relay consisting of Webster, Stinson, Veldhuis and Anesu Mushonga (Harare, Zimbabwe/Prince Edward). 
          Matt Stinson will travel to Edwardsville, Ill., after posting the nation’s ninth-best score in the decathlon this season with a total of 6923 points.  It is the second trip to nationals for the senior who became the first-ever Bald Eagle multi-event All-American in school history after placing seventh in the 2002 decathlon competition. Stinson will also compete for the title in the 4x400 meter relay.
          Freshman decathlete Keith Veldhuis makes his way to the NCAA championships after winning the PSAC title in the decathlon with 6,653 points. That points total ranks him 14th among nationals competitors. Veldhuis will also compete in the 4x400 meter relay.
          Senior Joe Webster will add a Haven presence in the sprinting events, making his first appearance on the national scene after qualifying in the 400-meter dash with a time of 47.62.  Webster will also lead off for the Bald Eagles in the 4x400 meter relay.
          The men’s 4x400 meter relay shares in PSAC history with Kutztown University as the two quartets become the first ever in the conference to compete at the NCAA championship. The Bald Eagle foursome include three members who have also qualified in one other event -- Webster, Stinson and Veldhuis – along with junior Anesu Mushonga in the anchor leg.
          Distance standout Chris Cowan will return to the NCAA championships to make his second-straight appearance in the 10,000 meter race. Last season the sophomore finished 13th overall.  
         Lock Haven will front a pair of javelin throwers at the national meet, including Nick Slotterback who recorded the second-best throw in the nation of 220’5” for his PSAC title last weekend. Slotterback will be in search of the national title for the second-straight year, finishing third for All-America honors last season.
         The second Haven competitor in the javelin is freshman Fieldon Daubert. Daubert took fifth place at the PSAC championships with a qualifying distance of 207’2”. His mark is currently rated ninth among participants at the national meet.
         The Lock Haven University men’s and women’s track and field teams both finished as the runner-up at last weekend’s PSAC Championships.  The men’s team finished the season ranked fourth in the NCAA Division II Track and Field Power Rankings (221.9 points), only the second PSAC team ever to finish better than sixth in the end of the year rankings. The women’s team was ranked 20th with 171.61 points. 

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