Women's Track: 2010-11 Season Outlook
December 02, 2010 01:47 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. - In 2009-10, the West Virginia University track and field team made strides toward becoming one of the top programs in the country.
Listed at No. 5 on the Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award list, an award given to the top programs in terms of finishes in track and field, cross country and academics, the Mountaineers were on fire.
Eight All-Americans, a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships, 16th-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, fourth-place showings at the BIG EAST Indoor and Outdoor Championships and five conference champions were just a few of the notable achievements by this program.
West Virginia is looking even better for the 2010-11 campaign, and with six of eight All-Americans returning, the Mountaineers are preparing for what could be the best season in the program’s history.
Coach Sean Cleary returns for his fourth season as coach of the Mountaineers and is looking for his team to reach its high expectations this year.
Among the top returners is senior Chelsea Carrier, one of WVU’s best multi-event student-athletes in school history. Carrier earned her first All-America honors last season as she finished fourth in the pentathlon and sixth in the 60-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Last season, she was named the Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year after earning two BIG EAST Champion honors and breaking the school record in the pentathlon at the Sykes-Sabock Challenge on Feb. 5.
The Buckhannon, W.Va., native won the event with 4,136 points to break the school record previously set by All-American Pat Itanyi in 1997 (4,111).
Marie-Louise Asselin and Keri Bland return as powerhouse distance runners this season, and with 15 All-America honors between the two, look to achieve even more this season.
Also on the list of returning All-Americans are seniors Kaylyn Christopher, Jessica O’Connell and April Rotilio. Christopher and O’Connell return as mid- and long-distance runners that are BIG EAST, regional and national qualifiers, while Rotilio returns to aid the distance medley relay team, as well as compete in the 400-meter dash.
In field events, WVU has vital experience in Terina Miller who qualified for the BIG EAST Championships in the hammer throw last season, and Sydney Cummings and Katelyn Williams who look to lead in jumps.
The Mountaineers are set to begin the indoor season on Saturday, Dec. 4, as they play host to the annual WVU Holiday Classic at the Shell Building. From there, WVU will compete in meets at Penn State, as well as at Geneva and Kent, Ohio, before the BIG EAST Championships on Feb. 19-20, in Akron, Ohio, and the NCAA Championships in College Station, Texas, on March 11-12.
The outdoor season will start on March 19 with the Wake Forest Open followed by the Stanford Invitational on March 25-26 and the Raleigh Relays on April 1-2.
With a fully-loaded roster in the outdoor season, WVU travels to the BIG EAST Championships on May 6-8 at Villanova. NCAA Regionals will be on May 26-28 in Bloomington, Ind., while the season wraps up in Des Moines, Iowa, on June 8-11, at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
With a veteran coaching staff and an experienced group of runners and field athletes, look for the WVU track and field team to make history this season.
Listed at No. 5 on the Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award list, an award given to the top programs in terms of finishes in track and field, cross country and academics, the Mountaineers were on fire.
Eight All-Americans, a 10th-place finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships, 16th-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, fourth-place showings at the BIG EAST Indoor and Outdoor Championships and five conference champions were just a few of the notable achievements by this program.
West Virginia is looking even better for the 2010-11 campaign, and with six of eight All-Americans returning, the Mountaineers are preparing for what could be the best season in the program’s history.
Coach Sean Cleary returns for his fourth season as coach of the Mountaineers and is looking for his team to reach its high expectations this year.
Among the top returners is senior Chelsea Carrier, one of WVU’s best multi-event student-athletes in school history. Carrier earned her first All-America honors last season as she finished fourth in the pentathlon and sixth in the 60-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Last season, she was named the Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year after earning two BIG EAST Champion honors and breaking the school record in the pentathlon at the Sykes-Sabock Challenge on Feb. 5.
The Buckhannon, W.Va., native won the event with 4,136 points to break the school record previously set by All-American Pat Itanyi in 1997 (4,111).
Marie-Louise Asselin and Keri Bland return as powerhouse distance runners this season, and with 15 All-America honors between the two, look to achieve even more this season.
Also on the list of returning All-Americans are seniors Kaylyn Christopher, Jessica O’Connell and April Rotilio. Christopher and O’Connell return as mid- and long-distance runners that are BIG EAST, regional and national qualifiers, while Rotilio returns to aid the distance medley relay team, as well as compete in the 400-meter dash.
In field events, WVU has vital experience in Terina Miller who qualified for the BIG EAST Championships in the hammer throw last season, and Sydney Cummings and Katelyn Williams who look to lead in jumps.
The Mountaineers are set to begin the indoor season on Saturday, Dec. 4, as they play host to the annual WVU Holiday Classic at the Shell Building. From there, WVU will compete in meets at Penn State, as well as at Geneva and Kent, Ohio, before the BIG EAST Championships on Feb. 19-20, in Akron, Ohio, and the NCAA Championships in College Station, Texas, on March 11-12.
The outdoor season will start on March 19 with the Wake Forest Open followed by the Stanford Invitational on March 25-26 and the Raleigh Relays on April 1-2.
With a fully-loaded roster in the outdoor season, WVU travels to the BIG EAST Championships on May 6-8 at Villanova. NCAA Regionals will be on May 26-28 in Bloomington, Ind., while the season wraps up in Des Moines, Iowa, on June 8-11, at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
With a veteran coaching staff and an experienced group of runners and field athletes, look for the WVU track and field team to make history this season.
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