2019-20 Shocker Men XC and Track & Field

[1972Shocker]

Ben Flowers Earns All-Midwest Region Honors

The Wichita State men's cross country teams competed at the Midwest Regional on Friday, and Ben Flowers capped off his breakout season with a 17th-place finish individually. The junior earned All-Region honors with a time of 31:18.7 in his first 10K of the season.

https://goshockers.com/news/2019/11/15/cross-country-koskei-flowers-earn-all-region-honors.aspx

[1972Shocker]

Shocker Track and Field Opens New Year

The KU-KSU-WSU Triangular is Saturday, and kicks off at 10:30 a.m. in the Heskett Center on the WSU Campus. The meet features all three Division I teams in Kansas, and will score the top two athletes from each team in each event. Team scores will encapsulate all athletes (men and women combined).

This has become a nice early season indoor meet that rotates between the 3 Kansas D-1 programs.

The Triangular begins at 10:30 a.m. with field events, and the running events start at 2 p.m.

This would be a fun event to attend. However, the meet is up against the Shockers men's home basketball game vs Houston on Satruday at 3:00 pm.

I guess you could stop by for some of the field events prior to the game if you're looking to fill some time prior to the game. Admission: $5, kids under 3 and WSU students get in for FREE

Fans can follow live updates on Twitter @GoShockersTFX and a love stream of Saturday's races can be found here.

Coach Rainbolt On the Triangular
"This is the sixth go around of this meet. I'm really appreciative of the other coaches that want to keep this thing going. I really like this meet. I like team track and field. You've got three NCAA Division I schools in a state, and it's a meaningful team competition. We care a lot about that, and I think the athletes care a lot about it as well."

[shoxlax]

Shocker Track and Field Opens New Year

The KU-KSU-WSU Triangular is Saturday, and kicks off at 10:30 a.m. in the Heskett Center on the WSU Campus. The meet features all three Division I teams in Kansas, and will score the top two athletes from each team in each event. Team scores will encapsulate all athletes (men and women combined).

This has become a nice early season indoor meet that rotates between the 3 Kansas D-1 programs.

The Triangular begins at 10:30 a.m. with field events, and the running events start at 2 p.m.

This would be a fun event to attend. However, the meet is up against the Shockers men's home basketball game vs Houston on Satruday at 3:00 pm.

I guess you could stop by for some of the field events prior to the game if you're looking to fill some time prior to the game. Admission: $5, kids under 3 and WSU students get in for FREE

Fans can follow live updates on Twitter @GoShockersTFX and a love stream of Saturday's races can be found here.

Coach Rainbolt On the Triangular
"This is the sixth go around of this meet. I'm really appreciative of the other coaches that want to keep this thing going. I really like this meet. I like team track and field. You've got three NCAA Division I schools in a state, and it's a meaningful team competition. We care a lot about that, and I think the athletes care a lot about it as well."

I think I’m going to check some of this out Friday and Saturday before the game.

[1972Shocker]

I think I’m going to check some of this out Friday and Saturday before the game.

The Shocker Prelude on Friday will not be nearly as high level of competition as Saturday's Triangular. Shocker athletes participating will be those not competing on Saturday. Other teams participating in the Prelude include Emporia State, Friends, Butler CC and Hutch CC. So you will be watching our less experienced and less accomplished athletes.

If you go Friday before the game you will be watching primarily the field events. Unfortunately, the running events pretty much coincide with the basketball game starting at 2:00 and finishing up around 4:30.

Here is Friday's schedule of events: https://goshockers.com/documents/201...e.pdf?id=13515

[pogo]

With the new Y on campus I was wondering about the future use of the Heskett Center. Is there a need to renovate those areas that Indoor T&F require.

[1972Shocker]

Shockers Finish as Triangular's Runner-Up

Team Results (Combined Men and Women)
1. Kansas State – 254.5 points
2. Wichita State – 221 points
3. Kansas – 191.5 points

Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt said he thought the Shockers had a good meet.

"Kansas State also had a very good meet, and we fell just a bit short," Rainbolt said. "I was really proud of our athletes and I thought they competed extremely well in a team competition that gave us a strong sense of what we need to do to get ready for American Athletic Conference Championship competition six weeks from now."

Highlights for the Shocker Men:

Jed Helker, a sophomore, took the men's 1,000 meters' title with a time of 2:29.12. He earned a runner-up finish in the Mile earlier in the day, finishing 2nd to Shocker junior Adam Moore, to secure two top-two performances.

Joseph Holthusen and Antonio Norman, both sophomores, took the top two spots in the 60-meter hurdles. Holthusen won the race in 8.02 seconds and Norman was second in 8.17 seconds.

Senior Mason Buckmaster matched his high jump personal best, clearing 2.15m/7-0.50 to equal his mark from last year's outdoor conference championships.

"I thought it was a great start for our two hurdlers – Joseph Holthusen and Antonio Norman," Rainbolt said. "I was particularly happy for Mason Buckmaster for jumping 2.15m/7-0.50.

They don't run the 1,000m race in the AAC Championships but Adam's mile time of 4:11.44 and Jed's mile time of 4:13.57 would have finished 1-2 in last year's AAC Indoor Championships.

Antonio Norman, a transfer from D-II Lindenwood Universtiy, is a new addition to this year's roster. Joseph's and Antonio's times in the 60m hurdles would have been good for 4th and 8th place in last year's AAC Indoors Championship.

Mason's high jump would have won last year's AAC Indoor Championship.

Not mentioned in the goShockers.com write-up but pretty exciting for me was redshirt freshman Josh Cable finishing 2nd in the 800m run with a time of 1:56.63 which would have earned 8th place points in last year's AAC Indoor Championships. What makes this a notable achievement IMHO is that Josh was the young man who was badly burned and injured (including smoke inhalation the injured his lungs) in a house fire is senior year in high school in Rochester, IL. Just terrific to see this young man competing at a high level. Has to be a Roundhouse article in their somewhere for Paul Suellentrop.

[1972Shocker]

Sophomores Joseph Holthusen and Antonio Norman also ran the 60m hurdles on Friday in the Shocker Prelude and were even more impressive than in the WSU-KSU-KU Triangular on Saturday.

Holthusen took the win with a time of 8.00, but Norman was right behind him at 8.03. Both athletes ran a personal best on their way to the 1-2 finish. Could it be the Shocks have new dynamic duo in the hurdles to perhaps do a redux of Lawson Montgomery and Todd McKown hurdle duo back in 2011 and 2012.

Rainbolt said he was impressed with the duo's race.

"I was really happy," Rainbolt said. "Personal records for both guys in the season opener. I just feel like those guys are going to benefit so much from having each other to push one another, so I thought it was fabulous."

Also at the Shocker Prelude on Friday Cory Martens set a new personal best in the shot put with a throw that went 18.22m/59-9.50. Martens is on the Shocker roster, but used all four years of his eligibility indoors. He will be back with the Shockers for the outdoor season. That beat Cory's mark in last year's AAC Indoor by 6 feet. Hopefully,that bodes well for Corry's outdoor season where he still has a season of eligibility remaining.

[1972Shocker]

AAC Men's Field Athlete of the Week

Mason Buckmaster * Sr. * Wichita State
Buckmaster finished as the runner-up in the high jump at the KU-KSU-WSU Triangular by clearing 2.15m (7-0.5). Buckmaster ranks second in the conference and 21st in the NCAA in the high jump this season.

[1972Shocker]

Jayhawk Classic and Prairie Wolf Results

The Prairie Wolf Invitational in Lincoln, Nebraska, saw a school-record performance.

JD Prinsloo, a first-semester student from South Africa, set the Wichita State 600 meters' school-record time. He finished his first race in a Shocker uniform in 1:20.94. Prinsloo beat out the previous record by just under a full second. Don't know much about Prinsloo. He is not even listed on the Shocker roster at this point. The 600m run is not run a whole lot. It is not an event run in the AAC or NCAA Indoor Championships. Still setting a school record anytime on your first time out is impressive perhaps even more so if he is a freshman. However, I do not know what class he is in.

The sprinters in Nebraska also went to experience a 200-meter banked track, which is the kind of track at the AAC Championships' host site (Birmingham Crossplex).

Sprints coach John Wise said he thinks it was a valuable experience to race on the unorthodox track.

"Even though it's early in the season, and we had some up and down results, the sprinters competed hard and it will payoff at conference time," Wise said. " I'm very excited for JD Prinsloo to be in uniform and to break a school record in his first official race as a Shocker. He will be a significant athlete for us going forward."

Adam Gauzy had a pair of top-three finishes in Lincoln, Nebraska. He placed third in the 200 meters with a time of 22.03. He also took second in the 400 meters with a time of 48.71.

The Shockers sent a majority of their athletes to Lawrence for the Jayhawk Classic.

On the men's side, Joseph Holthusen continued his success from a week ago. He won the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.01.

Sean Curran, Britte Magnuson and Mason Buckmaster also earned individual victories in their respective events.

Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt said he thought a lot the Wichita State track and field athletes were flat after a good opening week.

"They still competed hard and managed some strong performances," Rainbolt said. "I do think we will learn some good lessons about what needs to happen in order to continue preparing for the AAC Indoor Championships."

[1972Shocker]

A couple of Shocker newcomers finished at the top of the leader board in the Heptathlon at the WSU Invitational this Thursday and Friday.

Freshman Clay Eckert had an outstanding second day. He used wins in the pole vault and 1,000 meters to finish with a personal-best mark of 4,866 points. Eckert earned the same amount of points as teammate Nate Vann (a Cowley County transfer who is redswhirting this year and who competed unattached), but Vann won on a tiebreaker. The way ties are broken is determined by which athlete won the most events head-to-head.

Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt said he was really proud of Eckert's performance.

"He's going to be a force in the American Athletic Conference," Rainbolt said. "His opponents will be some of his own teammates. We've got some guys dinged up ( I presume Jake Horsch who is out best multi), so today he battled for the win with his redshirting teammate Nate Vann. It was very unique that they tied. It's quite remarkable to land on the same score in this event."

Their scores would have been top 6 in the AAC last year but they are a long way from Ben Johnson's 5,705 he scored in winning last years AAC Men;s Heptathlon. But that score seems pretty promising, especially for the freshman Eckert who is out of Buhler High School the stomping grounds of RoyalShock.

Just by comparison Hunter Veith, the Gold Standard of Shocker multi-eventers, scored 4,949 points as a freshman in his Shocker heptathlon debut at the WSU Invitational in 2014. Hunter capped his indoor career with 6,090 point, 2nd place performance in the NCAA Championships in 2018. I don't know if Clay will be able to show the same kind of progression as Hunter did but he is off to a solid start.

Hopefully, Jake Horsch will be healthy enough to compete this indoor season.

Weston Lewis, a juco transfer out of Colby CC, had a solid high jump performance at 6-9.75 which is 5th best at this point the AAC indoor season.

Redshirt Sophomore Bryce Bearden and true freshman Ethan Feliciano both cleared 16-1.25 tying them for 8th best in the AAC this season.

[1972Shocker]

With 3 weeks remaining before the AAC Indoor T&F Championships I have perused the AAC Performance Charts for this year to try to get a feel for how the Shocker men will fare this year. Last year they finished 2nd behind Houston with 107 points. At this point it is looking like a score in the mid-50's may be more likely this year which would probably slot them in 6th or 7th place out of 8 teams. Perhaps they are sandbagging things a bit at this point. Usually Coach Rainbolt looks at this more intelligently than I can prior to the meet so we'll see what his expectations are then.

[ShockTalk]

With 3 weeks remaining before the AAC Indoor T&F Championships I have perused the AAC Performance Charts for this year to try to get a feel for how the Shocker men will fare this year. Last year they finished 2nd behind Houston 107 points. At this point it is looking like a score in the mid-50's may be more likely this year which would probably slot then in 6th or 7th place out of 8 teams. Perhaps they are sandbagging things a bit at this point. Usually Coach Rainbolt looks at this more intelligently than I can prior to the meet so we'll see what his expectations are then.

FIFY

[1972Shocker]

FIFY

If your going to FIFM you could at least correct my typos and grammar errors. BTW, I'm not finding what you fixed.

To expound on this fall off for the Shocker men in bit more detail the following points form last year's AAC Indoor completed eligibility or have otherwise moved on:
Zack Penrod: 800m - 6 + Mile Run - 10
Nathan Wickoren: Mile Run - 4
Hayden Bugner: Pole Vault - 8
Rayvon Allen: Long Jump - 8 + Triple Jump - 2
Jared Belardo: Long Jump - 6 + Triple Jump - 8
Kayden Griffin - Long Jump - 3 + Triple Jump - 4
Cory Martens - Shot Put - 1 + Weight Throw - 8
Isaiah Evans - Weight Throw - 3
Ben Johnson - Heptathlon - 10

That is 81 of the Shockers 107 points they scored in last year's AAC Indoor and the Shocks will be hard pressed to replaced much of that production.

In addition, So. Jake Horsch who picked up 6 points in the Heptathlon as a freshman last year has not competed this winter as far as I can tell. So Jake's availability looks very iffy at this point. Not sure what the story on Jake is but even if was voluntarily redshirting you would expect to see him competing unattached and I have not see that.

[1972Shocker]

Joseph Holthusen and Antonio Norman etched their names in Shocker history in the 60-meter hurdles at the Gorilla Classic in Pittsburg. Norman and Holthusen both ran 8.01 in the prelims to advance to the final race.

Norman finished fourth in 7.93 seconds and Joseph Holthusen finished fifth in 7.96 seconds. Norman's new PR puts him at No. 4 in Wichita State school history and Holthusen moves to a tie for 6th.

"It is really exciting having these two guys operating at a high-level in the 60-meter hurdles," said Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Steve Rainbolt. "Antonio Norman has been a fabulous addition to our team and he and Joseph are able to push each other in training and competition. Both of them are getting better because of it.

Holthusen is a sophomore out of Bishop Carroll and Norman is a sophomore transfer from D-II Lindenwood University in St. Louis. These marks slot Antonio and Joseph 6th and 7th in the speed heavy AAC this winter. A bit reminiscent of the dynamic duo of Todd McKown and Lawson Montgomery who hurdled for the Shokcers circa 2011. McKown and Montgomery sit at #2 and #3 in the 60H in the Shocker record book.

Norman anchored the Shockers' 4X400-meter relay that finished fourth. The squad of JD Prinsloo, Adam Gauzy, Austin Corley and Norman finished with a time of 3:15.51. That's a Top 10 time in Shocker history and 4th best in the AAC this winter.

Adam Moore put his name in the Wichita State record books in the Mile at the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa. Moore ran a 4:06.71 for 20th in a field full of pros and college elites.

Moore's time of 4:06.71 puts him at No. 8 on the all-time WSU indoor performance list and is the 3rd best time in the AAC this winter. Adam, a junior, is from Staines-upon-Thames, England.

[1972Shocker]

In the final tune up before the AAC Indoor Championships next Friday and Saturday the Shocker men had a couple of nice performances at the Arkansas Qualifier.

Sophomore hurdler Joseph Holthusen continued his outstanding season in the 60-meter hurdles. He ran the race in 7.87 seconds to drop his PR and tie for third all-time in school history.

Holthusen was already one of only seven men to run the race in less than 8.00 seconds, but with Friday's performance, he became the fourth man in Shocker history to run it in under 7.90 seconds. That mark is 4th best in the AAC this season. Joseph is one my favorite Shockers. He is a bit undersized as collegiate hurdlers go but he can get 'em up and put them down,

Hutch Juco transfer Michael Bryan improved on each of his first four throws to earn a new PR in the weight throw. He tossed the weight 18.71m/61-4.75. He beats his previous best by four centimeters. That moves him up to 6th on AAC performance charts this winter.