Falcons Reach High-Water Mark At MAC Championships

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Ypsilanti, Mich. – The Falcons weren't perfect on the final day of the Mid-American Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships Saturday. But the results were pretty close. Bowling Green finished atop an eight-team log jam to place fourth in the conference, the program's best result since winning the MAC Championship in 1999.

"There's so much parity," BGSU Head Coach Lou Snelling said. "So many teams in the MAC are stepping up and getting better."

That parity was no more evident than in the final standings. The Falcons ended fourth with 44 points, just eight points ahead of 11^th place Toledo. In between were six other teams, all with the goal of placing amongst the elite in the conference. But it was Bowling Green that was able to do enough to break out ahead of the rest.

"It's a track meet," Snelling said. "It's never perfect. That's the beauty and challenge of our sport. But I hope that teaches the student-athletes how to deal with adversity."

The ups-and-downs of competition could be seen early in the day in the weight throw. The Falcons were heavily favored to score big with Elizabeth Iversen (seeded second), Kayla Velasquez (seeded third) and Aliyah Gustafson (seeded seventh), and the trio exceeded those expectations. Gustafson broke her personal best on the way to a runner-up finish, while Iversen and Velasquez followed in third and fourth for a total of 19 points in the event. But even that was not smooth sailing.

"Elizabeth had a disappointing day in the shot put yesterday," Snelling said. "It's not easy to come off of a bad day. And then she fouled on her first throw today. It would have been easy to fold. It didn't have to go well, but she made it go well. Aliyah didn't even compete in the event at the MAC Championships a year ago, but she stepped up in such a big way on the most important day. And Kayla, as a senior, showed up. She's been doing it for us for so long and she did what she's supposed to do. It's nice to see her have success."

Those 19 points, combined with the 17 from day one, gave the Falcons some breathing room. And Bowling Green continued to pick off points throughout the day to stay just ahead of the field.

Dorresha Green ran 7.62 seconds in the finals of the 60 to place fourth. While she entered as the top seed and posted the second-fastest time in the prelims, the fourth-place finish was a welcome sight.

"It didn't have to go that well for Dorresha," Snelling said. "Her fastest time was way back in December. Prior to this weekend, she hadn't raced (since the beginning of February) because of a hamstring injury."

Senior Taylor Rambo also gave the Falcons three points in the 400 by placing sixth with a time of 56.12 seconds. She earned a trip to finals Friday in eighth place but climbed two spots in the finals.

Even in non-scoring situations, Bowling Green excelled. Rachel Durbin entered the meet as the No. 19 seed in the mile but season a season-best time by more than three seconds and finished 11^th in 5:03.64.

Bowling Green will now transition to outdoor season with an opportunity to place in the top half of the league standings in all three racing seasons. The Falcons placed third at the MAC Cross Country Championships in the fall.

"We have a great year going," Snelling said. "As a team, we talked about enjoying this. But March is a key month for us. If we can finish in the top half in all three seasons, that will say a lot."

BGSU will open the outdoor campaign March 24-25 at the Raleigh Relays, hosted by North Carolina State. The MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships take place May 11-13 and will be hosted by Western Michigan University.

Mid-American Conference Championships
Akron 145, Eastern Michigan 139, Kent State 60, Bowling Green 44, Buffalo 39, Northern Illinois 39,
Western Michigan 38, Central Michigan 38, Ball State 37, Miami 37, Toledo 36, Ohio 10

60 – 4. Dorresha Green 7.62
400 – 6. Taylor Rambo 56.12
Mile – 11. Rachel Durbin 5:03.64
3000 – 12. Rachel Walny 10:00.04
1600 relay – 11. Chasatea Brown, Taylor Rambo, Brianna Tidmore, Gabrielle Edwards 3:51.68
Weight throw – 2. Aliyah Gustafson 62-6.75 (19.07m), 3. Elizabeth Iversen 62-4.75 (19.02m), 4. Kayla Velasquez 60-4.75 (18.41m)
Triple jump – 9. Kyla Paster 38-4 (11.69m)

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Chasatea Brown

Rachel Durbin

Gabrielle Edwards

Dorresha Green

Aliyah Gustafson

Elizabeth Iversen

Kyla Paster

Taylor Rambo

Brianna Tidmore

Kayla Velasquez

Rachel Walny

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