USM marathon runner qualifies for nationals

Congratulations to USM track runner Cameron Avilez, who qualified for the 2012 NAIA Outdoor National Championships in the marathon. Stay tuned for more information.

NEWS

USM Track Team competes at KCACA Conference Championships

The University of Saint Mary Men and Women Track Teams competed in the KCAC Conference on May 3 and 4.

USM finished the meet with 10 All-Conference athletes. Top performers on the men's' side included the 4x4 team of Cameron Callahan, Aaron Potter, Jeremy Johnson, and David Harley finishing third and setting a team record.

Other noteworthy performances were the All-Conference fifth place finishes of Callahan in the 400 and Potter in the 800. Johnson also pulled out a seventh place finish in the pole vault and Cameron Avliez finished sixth in 10,000 making them both All-Conference as well.
Other competitors included Nick Haines, who placed seventh in the 1,500, and Ricardo Cortez who placed 14th in the 10,000.

On the women's' side, Karoline Banasik and Leslie Rangle turned in memorable performances. Banasik placed All-Conference twice with a third place finish in the 800 and fifth place in the high jump. Rangle made the finals for both the 100 and 200. Despite suffering an injury in the 100 finals, she still managed an All-Conference sixth-place finish.

Haines and Banasik were both selected for the KCAC Champion of Character award. The All-KCAC Champion of Character Award recognizes student-athletes who have demonstrated the five core Champion of Character values of Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Sportsmanship, and Servant Leadership both on and off the field. Winners must be a full-time student in good standing and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

The Saint Mary Cross Country and Track teams ended their first year with six Champions of Character award, 17 All-Conference athletes in the Cross Country season and Indoor and Outdoor Track seasons, one Conference Champion, and two national qualifiers.

USM's Track & Field athletes participated in the Emporia State Saturday, April 7
Among the highlights for USM Spires student-athletes:

Among the highlights for USM Spires student-athletes:
• Cameron Avilez set a person record in the 5K, with a time of 15:43, and is currently ranked fourth in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.
• Cameron Callahan, Aaron Potter, Jeremy Johnson, and David Harley ran for a season best in the 4x400 relay with a time of 3:27.
• Karoline Banasik posted a personal best of 2:24.7 in the 800 meter, and is ranked fourth in the KCAC.

USM's Track & Field athletes participated in the Emporia State Spring Open this past Saturday.
Among the highlights for USM Spires student-athletes:

• Nick Haines took first in the 1,500-meter with a time of 4:03 
• David Harley took third place in the 400-meter with a time of 51.9 
• Aaron Potter took fourth place in the 1,500 
• Karoline Banasik took first place in the 800-meter with a time of 2:25
• Kathleen Hermesch took second place in the 800-meter with a time of 2:26

In other program news last week, the Leavenworth Times ran a nice profile of USM Assistant Track Coach Errol Logue. Errol is mainstay in track & field and cross country in the area, and is helping to build the Saint Mary program. Click the link for more.

Check out how the USM Track and Field team has performed at the last few track meets.

At the Baker University Invitational held March 25, the men's team placed ninth out of 12 teams and saw some great individual performances.

• Nick Haines 3rd in the 5,000m
• Cameron Avliez 3rd in the 10,000m
• Aaron Potter  800m 1:56.4 4th place, personal record
• 4x400m (Callahan, Potter,Johnson, Harley) relay 4th place 
• Jeremy Johnson, personal record in Pole Vault

Click here for the complete results.

USM also competed at the Emporia State Invitational March 15. See how the Spires performed here.

The USM Men's and Women's Track and Field Team recently competed at Johnson County Community College and the KCAC Track and Field Indoor Championships and did extremely well! See the complete results from both meets below:

Jan. 13 JCCC link
http://www.jccc.edu/files/pdf/athletics/results/2012/burgess-invitational-12.htm

Jan. 27 JCCC link
http://www.jccc.edu/files/pdf/athletics/results/2012/cavalier-night-relays-12.htm

Feb.10-11 KCAC link
http://www.directathletics.com/results/track/23368.html

Feb. 14, 2012

USM participated in the inaugural KCAC Indoor Track & Field Championship this weekend. The Saint Mary Women's Track & Field Team finished sixth of nine teams, and the men finished seventh of nine.

Among the key highlights for USM: Spire Aaron Potter won the 1,000 meter race, Leslie Rangle finished second in the 60 meter and third in the 200 meter, and Kathleen Hermesch and Karoline Banasik finished second and third, respectively, in the 800 meter. 

Read the full results.

Feb. 1, 2012

Tony Wattier wins first college race

The University of Saint Mary competed at the Johnson County Community College (JCCC) Invitational Jan. 28-29. Both the men's and women's teams did well, including Tony Wattier. Wattier won his first collegiate career race in the 3,000 meters.

He ran 1:11:57, 1 minute and 3 seconds under the NAIA National Qualifier for the Outdoor Track and Field Championship in May.

To put in context, this cross country season Cameron was averaging 5:29 per mile for a 5-mile race and now he is running 5:29 per mile for 13.1 miles. Cameron has broken through many barriers to become one of the best distance runners in the country.

“ I am so happy for Cameron. He is now one of the top 20 marathoner in the NAIA. Cameron worked hard and did the small things to reach a elite level. I cant not express enough how proud and happy I am of Cameron. This is our 1st year as track program and his already put the University of Saint Mary on national running scene.”

The University of Saint Mary will expand the ranks of its Spires student-athletes starting in the Fall 2011 semester with the addition of track & field and cross country teams.

USM Athletic Director Rob Miller projects that the addition of cross country and track & field will bring about 25 to 30 new student-athletes to the Saint Mary campus.

As with all USM sports, the cross country and track & field teams will compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.

Currently, the new programs are under development, and the university hopes to hire coaches by December of 2010 so they can begin recruiting during the Spring 2011 semester. Cross country would begin in Fall 2011. Track & field is a spring sport, and will get underway the following semester.

“We’ve heard a lot of interest in these programs from prospective and current students,” Coach Miller said. “This helps our athletic program grow, gives us the opportunity to expand our recruiting, and allows us to better serve and meet the demands of our student-athletes.”

For facilities, USM has an indoor track at Ryan Sports Center that could be used for indoor practices. The university will likely rent a facility from a neighboring public school for outdoor practices and meets.

USM currently offers eight varsity sports—football, baseball, softball, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, and volleyball—along with a cheerleading team.