Falcons Set The Stage On Day One Of MAC Championships

Friday, February 27

Mt. Pleasant, Mich.

10:00 AM

Bowling Green State University

MAC Indoor Championships

February 27, 2015 | Women's Track and Field

By: by Jason Knavel, Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications

Day One Results (.pdf)

Mount Pleasant, Mich. – The Bowling Green State University indoor track & field team exceeded expectations on the opening day of competition at the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Indoor Track & Field Championships, qualifying a handful of runners to finals and earning points in multiple events in which they weren't expected to.

"As a team, one of our core values is to step up at the big meets," BGSU head coach Lou Snelling said. "We did that today. Now it's a matter of finishing out the meet well tomorrow. If we can do that, then we will be in position to have our best team performance in a number of years."

A year ago, the Falcons tied for eighth place with 38 points. The Falcons have not finished higher than eighth at the MAC Championships since a sixth-place finish in 2001, but is in position to finish strong and make a push to break that streak.

The Falcons were especially strong in the prelim races during the first day. Although BGSU had only three student-athletes seeded in positions that should advance to finals over four prelim races, the Falcons advanced five to Saturday's second day of competition. In the 60 hurdles, junior Demetra Taylor tied her personal best with a time of 8.88 seconds to place eighth and earn the final spot to finals. She entered the meet ranked 13^th in the conference.

The Falcons also earned an extra finalist in the 60, where junior Alicia Arnold did as expected, placing seventh in a time of 7.67 seconds. But freshman Dorresha Green tied her personal best with a time of 7.71 seconds to pick up the final qualifying spot despite being seeded 11^th to start the meet.

The last two to earn bids to the finals were expected. Senior Brittany Sinclair, the second-seed in the 400, placed second in the prelims with a time of 56.93 seconds. Arnold, who competed in three events on the day, finished fifth in the 200 prelims at 24.82 seconds.

But the Falcons also scored 12 points on the day, sitting in seventh place at the midway point of the meet. Senior Brooke Pleger and redshirt sophomore Kayla Velasquez both finished on the medal podium in the weight throw. Pleger was fourth with a distance of 65-feet and Velasquez finished seventh at 57-0.75, throwing a personal best in the process.

The MAC Championships kicked off with the pentathlon in the morning and senior Krystin Reiser took advantage of the early start to earn her first career trip to the medal podium. She hovered around ninth place for much of the five-event gauntlet, but closed with a strong 800 time of 2:29.08 that pushed her into eighth place. Freshman Sydnee Matthew was not far behind, finishing in 11^th place.

The evening concluded with the long jump and Arnold did not disappoint in her third event of the day. Seeded sixth entering the meet, she finished one spot better with a leap of 18-7.75.

After the first day of competition, Eastern Michigan leads with 48.75, followed by Akron with 43.75. The Falcons sit in seventh with 12 points, just ahead of Buffalo (10 points), Central Michigan (8.75 points) and Ohio (eight points). BGSU will look to improve its final team position and team points total for the third consecutive year as the MAC Championships conclude Saturday.

MAC Championships
Eastern Michigan 48.75, Akron 43.75, Kent 31.75, Northern Illinois 25, Ball State 20, Toledo 19,
Bowling Green 12, Buffalo 10, Central Michigan 8.75, Ohio 8, Western Michigan 5, Miami 2
Pentathlon – 8. Krystin Reiser 3,350, 11. Sydnee Matthew 3,015
Weight throw – 4. Brooke Pleger 65-0, 7. Kayla Velasquez 57-0.75, 12. Kori Reiser 54-4
60 hurdles prelims – 8. Demetra Taylor 8.88
400 prelims – 2. Brittany Sinclair 56.93, 15. Taylor Rambo 57.99
60 prelims – 7. Alicia Arnold 7.67, 8. Dorresha Green 7.71
200 prelims – 5. Alicia Arnold 24.82, 13. Cortisha Short 25.55, 15. Brittany Sinclair 25.68
5000 – 12. Becca Rae 17:41.10, 13. Amanda Garlak 17:42.20, 14. Mackenzie McMillin 17:45.01
Long jump – 5. Alicia Arnold 18-7.75, 15. Kyla Paster 17-8.75, 18. Raven Porter 17-4.75