Wins by Ackerman, Zook highlight MSUB track Sunday

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Sunday, April 2, 2017 Wins by Ackerman, Zook highlight MSUB track Sunday

Beau Ackerman wins the javelin and Sam Zook takes the title in the 100-meters with another school record, headlining MSUB’s track and field meet in Colorado Sunday.

GREELEY, Colo. – Wins by Beau Ackerman and Sam Zook highlighted a productive day for the Montana State University Billings men’s and women’s track and field teams, as the Yellowjackets competed at the Tom Benich Invitational hosted by the University of Northern Colorado on Sunday.

Ackerman unleashed a throw of 180-09 feet in the javelin, taking first place among a field of seven competitors. Zook, the reigning Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week after breaking the school record in the 100-meters and 200-meters last week, achieved the feat again Sunday. The junior zoomed to a personal-best time of 10.46 in the 100, topping his school-record mark of 10.68 that he set a week ago at Montana State University.

Brady Ostermiller made it an all-around solid day for MSUB’s throws squad, as he finished in the top-10 in the shot put among an 18-man field of mixed NCAA Division I & II competition. Ostermiller hurled a personal best mark of 49-0.25 feet to place eighth.

“Our throwers ran up against some really good competition, and that helped them quite a bit,” said MSUB head coach Dave Coppock. “They’re all still getting used to outdoor season, but we are only two meets in and they’re starting to throw pretty well.”

Zook just missed first place in the 200-meters, and broke another of his own school records with a time of 21.48 for second place. Though the University of Colorado’s Duane McClurkin Jr. held off Zook in the 200, he held his own in the 100 and made a late push in the second half of the race to claim the title.

“Sam went by those guys at about 60 meters, and pushed all the way to the finish,” Coppock commented on Zook’s record-breaking run. “This was a hard surface and a fast track, and he was up against some really good competition here. We are pretty confident that he’ll be in the top-20 and hold a provisional qualifying mark among the national competition.”

The success on the men’s side translated to the longer distances as well, as junior Jorey Egeland raced his way to a stellar mark of 9:38.91 in the 3,000-meter steeple chase. He finished in second, and was only bettered by four seconds by the reigning national champion in Jonah Theisen of Black Hills State University. “This was a good opener for Jorey, and his mark in the steeple is going to sit really well in the conference rankings,” Coppock said.

It was a thin women’s meet for the Yellowjackets, who sent a smaller squad with a meet scheduled each week leading up to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships in May. Taylor Stringari led MSUB’s women’s throwers with a toss of 34-3.5 in the shot put. Josey Smiedala ran both the 200meters and 400-meters for the ‘Jackets, and Catrina Schuchard and Ella McKenzie each participated in the 800-meters and 1,500 meters.

In the jumps, Shaniah Schwend, Halie Warren, Brenna Beckett, and Janessa Williams all competed, with Schwend taking 10th in the triple jump with a mark of 10.26 meters.

MSUB’s men wound up in fifth place among the field of seven teams, as the Yellowjackets totaled 58 points. The Yellowjacket women finished with 20 points, and wound up in seventh place.

THE BUZZ: Ackerman and Stringari were picked as the St. Vincent Healthcare Players of the Day for MSUB’s men and women, respectively…Ackerman was well short of the school record in the javelin, which sits at 208-9 feet by Nick Wilson in 2010…so far this year, Zook has shaved nearly a half second off both the 100-meter and 200-meter school records, which were 10.87 and 21.74, respectively, two weeks ago.

NEXT UP: The Yellowjackets head east for the Bauer Invitational in Rapid City, S.D. next weekend. The meet hosted by South Dakota School of Mines is scheduled for Saturday.

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