April 14, 2011
• Live Results
MADISON, Wis. -- If the first night of competition is any indication, the Wisconsin men’s track and field team should enjoy a productive West Coast swing this weekend.
The Badgers opened their trip to the greater Los Angeles area by going 3-for-3 on the opening night of the 53rd-annual Mt. SAC Relays -- with all three competitors that took to the track laying down personal-best times.
Sophomore Elliot Krause made the biggest statement by racing to a career-best mark of 28 minutes, 43.34 seconds to grab seventh place in the Invitational Elite section of the 10,000 meters.
The performance has Krause pacing the Big Ten Conference so far this season and also ranked second among athletes in the NCAA West Region. Nationally, Krause’s time stacks up at No. 5.
Only Liberty’s Sam Chelanga (28:15.64) and Florida State’s Ciaran O’Lionaird (28:32.30) have posted faster times than those recorded Thursday. Alfred Kipchumba of Portland won the race in 28:38.34, with Southern Illinois’ Jeff Schirmer the second-fastest Division I athlete at 28:42.71 – just steps ahead of Krause.
The run, which shaved nearly 30 seconds off Krause’s previous best in the event, also vaulted him to the No. 7 spot on UW’s all-time list in the 10K.
Sophomore Drew Shields also shot up the national performance lists with his personal-best performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Shields scored a third-place finish in the Olympic Development section with his time of 8:49.12 – a mark good enough for the No. 2 spot in the Big Ten this season.
Shields trails only Illinois’ Kyle Engnell – who finished second Thursday in 8:48.45 – among conference competitors.
Redshirt freshman Alex Brill moved into the No. 3 spot in the Big Ten by finishing 11th overall in the race in a personal-best 8:55.47.
The Olympic Development race proved to be the second-fastest involving collegians this year, as the Invitational Elite section saw Iowa State’s Hillary Bor record an NCAA-leading time of 8:40.43. That left Shields’ time as the seventh-fastest in the nation so far this season.
The Mt. SAC Relays continue with a full slate of events Friday and Saturday from Walnut, Calif., while the Badgers also will send athletes to compete Saturday in nearby Norwalk, Calif., at the Beach Invitational.
