May 27, 2009

Illinois NCAA Mideast Regional Championships Preview (PDF)

2009 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
Friday, May 29 - Saturday, May 30
Cardinal Park // Louisville, Ky.

The Meet
The Illinois women's track and field team will aim to advance a large contingency to nationals, traveling 17 athletes this weekend to the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships in Louisville, Ky. on Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30 at Louisville's Cardinal Park stadium. The top five individuals and top three relays in each event at each of the four regional meets throughout the country will receive an automatic berth to the NCAA Outdoor Championships from June 10-13.

The Illini will open competition at 12:30 p.m. CT on Friday with the 4x100m relay prelims, and also have entries in trials of the 100m hurdles, 400m and 400m hurdles. Two events featuring Illinois athletes will be final on Friday, with the long jump beginning at 4 p.m. and the 5,000m featuring Angela Bizzarri scheduled to start at 5:40 p.m. Saturday action for the Orange and Blue begins at 1:30 p.m. with two-time All-American Aja Evans competing in the shot put and all remaining event finals. The women's 4x400m relay will close out the meet at 6:05 p.m.

The NCAA Mideast Regional Championships will feature some of the best women's teams in the country as ranked by the U.S. Track and Field & Cross Country Coaches Association, highlighted by No. 4 LSU, No. 9 Tennessee and No. 10 Michigan. Big Ten foes Indiana, Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue and Wisconsin will also participate in the Mideast Regional along with the Illini.

Live results will be available throughout the meet at www.deltatiming.com and also linked on www.fightingillini.com

Illinois Schedule & Entries at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
(All times are Central)

Friday, May 29
12:30 p.m.............4x100m Relay Prelims (Aja Evans, Ashley Kelly, Omoye Ugiagbe, Tamika Robinson
1:40 p.m.............100m Hurdles Prelims (Nikkita Holder, Jessica Penney)
3 p.m.............400m Prelims (Melissa Bates, Ryisha Boyd, Omoye Ugiagbe)
4 p.m.............Long Jump (Jessica Penney, Alecia Beckford-Stewart)
4:20 p.m.............400m Hurdles Prelims (Deserea Brown, Latoya Griffith)
5:40 p.m.............5,000m (Angela Bizzarri, Kristin Sutherland)

Saturday, May 30
1:30 p.m.............Shot Put (Aja Evans)
3 p.m.............4x100m Relay Final
3:45 p.m.............100m Hurdles Final
4 p.m.............Triple Jump (Alexandria Smith)
5:15 p.m.............3,000m Steeplechase (Chantelle Groenewoud)
6:05 p.m.............4x400m Relay (Deserea Brown, Omoye Ugiagbe, Ryisha Boyd, Melisa Bates)

Big Ten Outdoor Championships Recap
Illinois had a strong showing at the 2009 Big Ten Outdoor Championships hosted by Ohio State from May 15-17, winning a total of four event titles and finishing fourth in the team standings with 100 points. Junior Aja Evans started the championship surge for the Illini, winning her second consecutive shot put title and easily defeating the field with a mark of 54-4 3/4. Six-time All-American Angela Bizzarri won her first career Big Ten title, taking the 5,000m and setting a championships meet record with a time of 15:54.86. Sophomore Melissa Bates was a surprise winner by taking the 400 meters with a personal-best time of 53.39, while senior Deserea Brown rounded out the title winners by taking the 400m hurdles - an event that Illinois is traditionally successful in - with a time of 57.31.

Last Year at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships
Illinois had two event champions and finished fifth in the team standings at the 2008 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Angela Bizzarri won the 5,000m and set a John McDonnell Field facility record with a time of 16:24.38, while Danelle Woods won the 3,000m steeplechase with a performance of 10:32.83. The Illini had two other athletes automatically advance to nationals, as Chantelle Groenewoud finished runner-up to Woods in the steeplechase and LaNeisha Waller finished fifth in the 100m hurdles. Briana Cunningham (400m hurdles) and Aja Evans (shot put) each finished sixth in their respective event at regionals but were chosen as at-large selections to the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Championships field.

Illini Athletes to Watch:

Melissa Bates, Sprints (Sophomore // Grand Prairie, Texas)
Currently ranked fifth in the Mideast region and 24th in the NCAA in the 400m ... 2009 Big Ten champion in the 400 meters with a personal-best performance of 53.39 that ranks fourth all-time in Illinois history ... The first Illini to win a 400m conference title since head coach Tonja Buford-Bailey did in 1993 ... Is in her first season ever competing the open 400m ... Also made the 200m final at Big Ten's with a personal-best performance of 24.24 ... Also anchors the 4x400m relay that owns a season-best time of 3:36.78 from the LSU Alumni Gold meet ... Was one of Illinois' top performers at the 2009 Big Ten Indoor Championships, leading the 4x400m relay to a runner-up finish, taking third in the 400m and seventh in the 200m ... Anchored the 4x400m relay that set an indoor school record of 3:35.13 and went on to compete at the 2009 NCAA Indoor Championships.
400m - Personal-Best: 53.39 (5/17/09)

Angela Bizzarri, Distance (Junior // Mason, Ohio)
Ranks first in the Mideast region in the 5,000m and is the reigning NCAA Mideast Regional champion in the event ... Owns the second-best 5,000m time in the nation, running 15:37.39 and resetting her own school record at the Mt. SAC Relays ... 2009 Big Ten champion in the 5,000m with a performance of 15:54.86 that set a new championships record ... Also took second in the 1,500m at the 2009 Big Ten Championships with a school-record time of 4:16.95 ... A six-time All-American between track and field and cross country ... Also owns six Illinois school records ... Finished fourth in the 3,000m at the 2009 NCAA Indoor Championships ... Took sixth at the 2008 NCAA Cross Country Championships, tying the best-ever finish for an Illini at the national meet and earning her third consecutive All-America accolade in cross country ... 2008 NCAA Outdoor Championships runner-up in the 5,000m ... Went on to compete in the 5,000m at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials and make the event finals ... Has earned All-Big Ten honors six times between cross country and track and field.
5,000m - Personal-Best: 15:37.39 (4/17/09)

Deserea Brown, Hurdles / Sprints (Senior // Flossmoor, Ill.)
Number one seed in the Mideast region in the 400m hurdles and ranked eighth in the country ... 2009 Big Ten champion in the 400m hurdles with a season-best time of 57.31 ... Also took third in the Big Ten in the 100m hurdles with a personal-best time of 13.52, a performance that ranks 12th in the region ... Has hit the regional standard in the 400m hurdles eight times this season with three first-place finishes ... Won the 400m hurdles at the prestigious Drake Relays .. Will also lead off the 4x400m relay this weekend that is ranked sixth in the region with a season-best time of 3:36.78 ... Member of the 4x400m relay that set an indoor school record of 3:35.13 and went on to compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships ... 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials participant in the 400m hurdles ... Transferred to Illinois this season from SIU-Edwardsville, where she was a two-time Division II national champion and 16-time All-American.
400m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 56.82 (6/15/08) // Season-Best: 57.31 (5/17/09)

Aja Evans, Throws / Sprints (Junior // Chicago, Ill.)
Ranked third in the region and sixth in the country in the shot put with a season-best throw of 54-9 1/4 from the Illinois Invitational ... 2009 Big Ten outdoor champion in the shot put for the second consecutive year ... Will also lead off the 4x100m relay at regionals this weekend ... Member of 4x100m relay that was third at the 2009 Big Ten Championships ... Two-time NCAA indoor All-American in the shot put, placing fifth at the 2009 championships and ninth in 2008 ... Personal-best shot put performance came from the 2008 Big Ten Outdoor Championships, with a throw of 55-10 1/2 that set a championships meet record, the Illinois school record and a facility record ... Won five shot put titles this season and hit the regional qualifying standard seven times ... Also earned Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week honors twice ... Competed in the shot put at the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Championships ... 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials participant.
Shot Put - Personal-Best: 55-10 1/2; 17.03m (5/17/08) // Season-Best: 54-9 1/4; 16.69m (5/2/09)

Latoya Griffith, Hurdles (Freshman // St. Andrews, Barbados)
Eighth seed in the region in the 400m hurdles, also ranked 28th in the country ... Earned a trip to the podium at the 2009 Big Ten Outdoor Championships by placing third in the event with a personal-best time of 58.49 ... Also ran the anchor leg of the 4x400m relay that finished runner-up at the conference championships and was just 0.08 seconds out of first ... Competed for native Barbados in April at the 2009 CARIFTA Games, taking third in the 400m hurdles and second in the 4x400m relay ... Hit the regional qualifying standard in the 400m hurdles six times this season.
400m Hurdles - Personal-Best: 58.49 (5/17/09)

Chantelle Groenewoud, Distance (Sophomore // N. Vancouver, B.C.)
Seeded fourth in the Mideast region in the 3,000m steeplechase and ranked 27th in the country ... 2008 NCAA Championships qualifier in the steeplechase after finishing runner-up in the event at last year's regional championships ... Took fourth at the 2009 Big Ten Outdoor Championships in the 3,000m steeplechase with a personal-best performance of 10:19.30 that ranks second all-time in Illinois history ... One of the top performers on the Illinois cross country team, earning All-Region honors in 2008 and helping the team to a 10th place finish at the NCAA Championships.
3,000m Steeplechase - Personal-Best: 10:19.30 (5/16/09)

4x400m Relay (Deserea Brown, Omoye Ugiagbe, Ryisha Boyd, Melissa Bates)
Seeded sixth in the region and 24th in the country ... Season-best time of 3:36.78 came at the LSU Alumni Gold meet ... Same foursome set the Illinois indoor 4x400m record of 3:35.13 this winter that ranked third in the nation ... 4x400m relay finished runner-up at the 2009 Big Ten Indoor Championships and competed at the NCAA Indoor Championships ... Relay of Brown, Boyd and alternates Ashley Kelly and Latoya Griffith finished runner-up at the 2009 Big Ten Outdoor Championships with a time of 3:38.41 that was just 0.08 seconds out of first.
4x400m Relay Season-Best: 3:36.78 (4/18/09)

2009 Illinois Highlights:

• Records Continue to Fall For Bizzarri - Junior Angela Bizzarri has continued to establish herself as one of the best distance runners in the country with her performances this season. In outdoor track and field, she most notably broke her own school record in the 5,000m with a performance of 15:37.39 at the Mt. SAC Relays to rank second in the NCAA. Two weeks ago at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, she broke the 5,000m championships meet record by winning the event in a time of 15:54.86, also setting the 1,500m school record by finishing second with a time of 4:16.95. In indoor track and field, Bizzarri set school records in the 3,000m (9:11.62) and 5,000m (16:07.50) on her way to finishing fourth in the 3,000m at the NCAA Indoor Championships. This fall, she broke her own cross country 6K school record at the NCAA Championships with a performance of 19:59 to place sixth. Bizzarri currently owns six Illinois school records between track and field and cross country and is a six-time All-American.

• Illinois Wins Four Big Ten Titles - Illinois athletes earned continual trips to the podium at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, as Melissa Bates (400m), Angela Bizzarri (5,000m), Deserea Brown (400m hurdles) and Aja Evans (shot put) all were crowned event champions. In addition to the four winners, the Illini got runner-up finishes from Bizzarri in the 1,500m and the 4x400m relay and third-place finishes from Brown in the 100m hurdles, the 4x100m relay and Jessica Penney in the long jump. Illinois' four titles was the second-most of any team at the championships.

• Orange and Blue Break Out at LSU & Mt. SAC - Illinois' best weekend of competition came from April 16-18 competing as a split squad at the Mt. SAC Relays and LSU Alumni Gold meet. Over the weekend, the Illini posted a combined total of 13 marks that qualified for the NCAA Regional Championships, with eight coming at LSU and five at Mt. SAC. Angela Bizzarri drew the highlights at Mt. SAC, timing 15:37.39 in the 5,000m for the best performance in the country at that point. Senior Deserea Brown also had an impressive weekend at LSU, qualifying for regionals in the 100m hurdles, 400m hurdles and in leading off the 4x400m relay.