Magnificent seven: Badgers head to national meet
June 09, 2009 | Men's Track & Field
Nearly three months of competition and 15 meets have led the Wisconsin men's track and field team to the end of the 2009 outdoor season, which culminates this week with the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark.
The Badgers will send a contingent of seven athletes competing in six different events to the four-day competition. The meet will be televised live from 6-9 p.m. Friday by CBS College Sports and from Noon to 2 p.m. Saturday on CBS, while a live video stream also will be available free at www.ncaa.com.
2009 NCAA Outdoor Championships
Dates: Wednesday-Saturday, June 10-13
Location: Fayetteville, Ark.
Host: University of Arkansas
Facility: John McDonnell Field (9-lane, 400-meter Mondo track)
Scoring: Team scores (10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1)
Tickets: (800) 982-4647
TV: CBS College Sports (Friday, 6-9 p.m.)
CBS (Saturday, Noon-2 p.m.)
Live Results | code=ncaa&media=129515"> --> Live Video | Heat Sheets | Meet Notes
Of the seven athletes that will represent UW at the championships, four are first-time qualifiers: sophomore Zach Beth (800 meters), junior Nate Larkin (110-meter hurdles) and sophomores Mickey DeFilippo (pole vault) and Robert Dehn (javelin).
The Badgers also have returning qualifiers in juniors Jack Bolas and Craig Miller (1,500 meters) and junior Ryan Gasper (3,000-meter steeplechase).
Dehn was the Badgers' top performer at the NCAA Mideast Regional, as he unleashed a school-record throw of 231 feet, 10 inches to win the regional title and an automatic berth in his first NCAA championship meet.
Bolas, a three-time All-American, and Miller, who has collected five All-America awards, finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 1,500 at last year's NCAA meet.
Miller, who also took second in the mile at this year's NCAA indoor meet, finished runner-up at the Mideast Regional two weeks ago to automatically qualify for the outdoor championships, while Bolas earned an at-large berth after finishing seventh.
Both have won multiple All-America awards, and Miller will be racing for the sixth of his career. If he's successful, Miller would become the eighth athlete in UW history to rack up that many All-America citations. Only two Badgers ' Chris Solinsky (11) and Matt Tegenkamp (7) ' have won more than six.
Gasper, in his first NCAA appearance, finished 23rd in the steeplechase at last year's meet and enters this year's championships off a fifth-place regional finish.
Beth enters his first NCAA outdoor meet off a personal-best and Big Ten Conference-leading run of 1:48.63 to finish second at the Mideast Regional. He also qualified for the NCAA indoor championships in the 800 meters this year.
Larkin also qualified for the NCAA indoor meet in the 60-meter hurdles and finished sixth in the 110 hurdles at the Mideast Regional in a personal-best 14.00. He earned an at-large berth in the championships.
DeFilippo took third at the Mideast Regional in the pole vault and also was third in the Big Ten in the event with a personal-best clearance of 17-1 3/4. He has cleared 16-6 3/4 or better in each of his nine competitions this season.
As a team, the Badgers enter the championships ranked fifth in the standings for the inaugural John McDonnell Program of the Year Award, which is presented to the nation's top cross country/track and field program based on finishes at the NCAA championships in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track.
Up Next
With the collegiate season coming to a close this week, a select number of Badgers will turn their attention to the USA Outdoor Championships, June 25-28 in Eugene, Ore.
Badgers' Event Schedule
800 Meters (Zach Beth)
Semifinals: 7:25 p.m. Thursday
Final: 12:28 p.m. Saturday
1500 Meters (Jack Bolas, Craig Miller)
Semifinals: 8:10 p.m. Thursday
Final: 1:21 p.m. Saturday
3000-Meter Steeplechase (Ryan Gasper)
Semifinals: 8:15 p.m. Wednesday
Final: 6:40 p.m. Friday
110-Meter Hurdles (Nate Larkin)
First round: 5:50 p.m. Thursday
Semifinals: 7:05 p.m. Friday
Final: 12:59 p.m. Saturday
Pole Vault (Mickey DeFilippo)
Qualifying: 4:30 p.m. Wednesday
Finals: 3:45 p.m. Friday
Javelin (Robert Dehn)
Qualifying: 8 p.m. Wednesday
Finals: 7:30 p.m. Friday
