April 24, 1999
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame’s track and field teams traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, and West Lafayette, Ind., this weekend in preparation for the BIG EAST Outdoor Track and Field Championships next weekend at Villanova University.
At the Drake Relays, senior Nadia Schmiedt provisionally qualified for the NCAA championships with her first-place time of 59.00 in the 400-meter hurdles on Friday. Schmiedt also finished first in her preliminary heat with a time of 1:01.14. Senior Chris Cochran placed fourth in the special 400-meter dash finals with his time of 47.82. Junior Jennifer Engelhardt tied for eighth in the high jump with a leap of 5-7, and freshman Dore DeBartolo placed 12th in the hammer throw with a mark of 159-10 and 20th in the discus with a throw of 129-1. Senior Jay Hofner’s toss of 171-6 in the hammer throw earned him a 19th-place finish.
At the Boilermaker Open on Friday, Notre Dame senior Adrian Irby placed first in the triple jump with a mark of 47-5. Junior Angela Patrizio placed fifth in the triple jump with a leap of 31-1 1/4, while junior Niall Cannon placed sixth in the hammer throw with a toss of 158-11.
On Saturday, the Irish found the going easier as they picked up seven first-place finishes. Freshman phenom Liz Grow picked up two first-place finishes in the 100 and 200 meters on the weekend and also earned herself two spots in the Notre Dame record book. Grow’s time of 11.82 in the 100 meters was the third-fastest in Notre Dame history, and her time of 23.77 in the 200 meters was the fourth-fastest in Notre Dame history. Senior Kelle Saxen picked up a first-place victory in the high jump with a mark of 5-7, and sophomore Heather O’Brien finished first in the 5,000 meters with a time of 18:24.47. Sophomore Carri Lenz sprinted to her second victory of the year in the 400-meter hurdles in a time of 1:03.19, nearly two seconds ahead of her nearest competitor.
On the men’s side, sophomore Travis Davey picked up his first collegiate win in the 100 meters with his time of 10.94. Sophomore Terry Wray ran to victory in the 200 meters with his time of 21.40 and placed second in the 400 meters with a time of 49.26. Freshman Mike Mansour was right behind Wray in the 200 meters as he finished second with a time of 21.40. Sophomore Matt O’Brien placed third in the javelin with a throw of 173-2, while freshman Pat Conway and sophomore Nate Andrulonis placed third and fourth in the 800 meters with times of 1:57.58 and 1:57.82 respectively.