The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championships
Akron primed for Mid-American Conference Track and Field Championship
May 13 | Track & Field
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MAC CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL | LIVE STATS | SCHEDULE OF EVENTS (PDF) | PRELIMINARY ENTRY LISTS (PDF)
AKRON, Ohio - The Akron men's and women's track and field team will join the rest of their Mid-American Conference members this Thursday through Saturday, May 14-16, to compete at the league's Outdoor Championships, hosted by Ball State University.
In all, the championship meet will feature men's teams from Akron, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan and Kent State while all 12 league members will be gunning for the title on the women's side.
The Zips' men squad will be looking to capture its sixth outdoor league championship having won five of the last seven league titles overall.
On the women's side, the Zips are seeking their sixth indoor championship and first since 2009. It will take a team effort to do so as Kent State has captured the past five outdoor titles.
Akron under the leadership of 20th-year head coach Dennis Mitchell figures to be in the running for team titles on both the men's and women's sides again this year. The Zips' men's squad is the highest-rated team in the conference checking in at No. 26 in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division I National Team Computer Rankings released on Monday, May 11. The Zips' women's team also headlines all league schools rating 41st in the latest poll.
"I like the teams we are bringing to the meet this year," Mitchell commented. "On paper we look strong, however, Mid-American Conference meets are not won on paper. We know that the meet will be as usual rough and tough and filled with lots of challenges, surprises and drama. We will have three days of 42+ individual events at stake, and everyone of these events will be important."
The men have four student-athletes seeking to repeat as conference champions this season as senior Kyle Cochrun (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) took the 5,000-meter title in 2014, while junior Shawn Barber (Kingwood, Texas), sophomore Clayton Murphy (New Paris, Ohio) and sophomore Dan Zupan (Berea, Ohio) won top-honors in the pole vault, 1,500 meters and 3,000-meter steeplechase, respectively.
In the women's field, six Zips posted runner-up finishes a year ago. Senior Alexis Cooks (Colorado Springs, Colo.), senior Jess Delic (Cresson, Pa.), redshirt sophomore Weronika Gaudyn (Kracow, Poland), redshirt sophomore Caroline Hasse (Potsdam, Germany), sophomore Daniella Johnson (Gahanna, Ohio) and senior Skyler Willis (Cincinnati, Ohio) finished second in the discus, javelin, triple jump, pole vault, long jump and 100-meter hurdles, respectively.
Additionally, Barber won the pole vault in 2013, while Cooks captured discus titles as a freshman and sophomore in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
The Zips men have five athletes leading their respective events heading into the conference meet, including Barber in the pole vault (19-4.75), redshirt junior Brent Gray (Cincinnati, Ohio) in the 400 meters (46.68), freshman Jordan Latimer (Huber Heights, Ohio) in the long jump (25-2), senior Bryce Lemon (New Brighton, Pa.) in the javelin (208-4), Murphy in the 800-meters (1:47.81) and 1,500 meters (3:40.69), and the 4x100 relay team (40.13) of redshirt junior Julius Ruby (Trotwood, Ohio), senior D.J. Williamson (Warren, Ohio), sophomore Anthony Young (Medina, Ohio) and redshirt junior Bryce Cheek (Lewis Center, Ohio).
On the women's side, five Akron student-athletes enter the meet as the top seed – including senior Rachel Christian (Columbus, Ohio) in the 100 meters (11.55), Delic in the javelin (155-6), senior Claudia Garcia Jou (Barcelona, Spain) in the high jump (6-2), Hasse in the pole vault (13-9.25) and redshirt sophomore Ana Martin-Sacristan (Valencia, Spain) in the long jump (20-1).
Akron currently has six student-athletes ranked in the top-25 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS), including Barber, who owns the top mark nationally in the men's pole vault (19-4.75).
Also rated among the top-25 are Garcia Jou (third in the high jump/6-2), Cooks (11th in hammer/209-9, 17th in discus/181-5 and 23rd in shot put/53-7.25), Murphy (16th in the 1,500 meters/3:40.69 and 23rd in the 800 meters/1:47.81), Latimer (18th in the long jump/25-2) and Hasse (22nd in the pole vault/13-9.25).
The MAC meet begins at 10 a.m. at University Track in the Briner Sports Complex in Muncie, Ind., on Thursday, May 14, with the start of the women's hammer, followed by the commencement of the women's heptathlon and men's decathlon at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., respectively. The running events will begin at 6:45 p.m. with the men's 10,000 meters followed by the women's race at 7:30 p.m.
The second day opens with the men's hammer at 10 a.m. before the conclusion of the multi-events with the 110-meter hurdles in the men's decathlon and the long jump as part of the women's heptathlon at 11 and 11:30 a.m., respectively. The preliminary round of the women's 1,500 meters opens running events at 1 p.m., before the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase closes out the day's action at 5:20 p.m.
The final day of the championship kicks off with the women's triple jump at 10:30 a.m. The first running event is slated to begin at 1 p.m. with the men's 4x100 relay. For a complete schedule of events, log on to MAC-Sports.com. Live results will be available throughout the meet and posted here.
Scoring in the meet will be on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis for individual events and relays for the women. Men's scoring will be 10-8-6-4-2-1 for individual events and 10-8-6-4-2 for relays.
