Jan. 21, 2000
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – – The Notre Dame men’s and women’s track and field teams opened their indoor seasons by placing first and second respectively in a quadrangular meet held Friday night at the Meyo Track. The Irish men (174 points) finished ahead of Western Michigan (148), Ball State (122) and Michigan State (74). The Irish women, meanwhile, finished second (165), just four points behind Ball State which won the meet with 169 points. The Western Michigan women placed third with 110 points, while Michigan State finished fourth with 84 points.
On the men’s side, Notre Dame received NCAA qualifying and first-place performances from senior Marshaun West (Sikeston, Mo.) in the long jump (25-4 1/2), senior Phil Mishka (Toledo, Ohio) in the 800 meters (1:49.68) and sophomore Luke Watson (Stillwater, Minn.) in the 3,000 meters (8:09.50). Other event winners for the Irish men included double-event winner senior Chris Cochran (Crystal Lake, Ill.) at 60 (6.78) and 200 (21.26) meters, senior Tim Kober (Gillette, N.J.) in the 600-meter run (1:19.88) and the 4×400-meter relay squad (3:16.78).
The Notre Dame women, despite losing the team title, had several outstanding performances on the night. Freshman multi-event performer Jamie Volkmer (Kearney, Neb.) opened up her Notre Dame career by setting two school records in the triple jump with a leap of 39-3 1/2 and a school record of 11-0 with a first-place finish the pole vault. Classmate freshman Tameisha King (Mableton, Ga.) also set a new school record with her leap of 19-5 in the long jump, while senior All-American Jennifer Engelhardt (Battle Creek, Mich.) continued her excellence in the high jump by clearing an NCAA provisional mark of 5-10. Sophomore Liz Grow (New Braunfels, Texas) dominated the short sprints with wins at both the 60 meters (7.79) and 200 meters (24.74). Other first-place finished from the women’s side came at the mid-distance range with junior Leanne Brady (Trumbull, Conn.) winning the 800 meters (2:14.69) and freshman Ana Morales (San Mateo, Calif.) posting her first collegiate victory in the 600 meters (1:35.58).
The Notre Dame track and field teams will be back in action when they travel to Bloomington, Ind., for a dual-meet with the University of Indiana on Friday, Jan. 28, at 6:00 p.m.