MIAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships web site
NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Senior John Hanks (LeRoy, Minn./LeRoy-Ostrander) won the javelin with a personal-best throw of 184 feet, 1 inch as the Carleton College men finished ninth in the team competition at the 2009 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
The University of St. Thomas men successfully defended their team title by earning 182.0 points. Rounding out the top five were Saint John’s University (125.0 points), Hamline University (113.0), Bethel University (102.5) and St. Olaf College (75.0). Carleton hosted the event and finished with 44.0 points. A total of 28 NCAA provisional qualifying standards were recorded at the two-day meet held at Laird Stadium.The Knights may not have had the most entries in the conference meet, but that doesn’t mean the weekend was without highlights.
Day one of the championships started out with Evan Franco (Jr./Austin, Texas/James Bowie) clearing 14-6 3/4 in the pole vault on Friday, the second-best mark in Carleton history.
Senior Nick Cesarek (Eagan, Minn./Eastview) established personal bests in both the 100 and 200-meter dashes. He now ranks sixth all-time at Carleton after running 10.93 in the 100. He was slotted 11th in the MIAC coming into the meet and placed seventh with a time of 11.20 during the finals on Saturday.
John Davis (So./Eden Prairie, Minn.) appears to be healed from his surfing injury and turned in a tremendous steeplechase performance in the first race on day two. Cleary the best technician on the water jump on Saturday, he chopped over 10 seconds off his previous personal best to finish second at 9:29.00, earning All-MIAC distinction.
Shortly thereafter, Hanks grabbed the spotlight on the Laird Stadium infield. He initially broke his personal record with a toss of 181-3 in the preliminary round to lead all competitors. In the finals, three other throwers recorded distances of 180 feet or better, and Hanks sat in second place with one final chance remaining. His performance in the prelims afforded him the opportunity to be the final thrower of the championships.
Competing in front of the home crowd, the senior did not disappoint. On a field where he had terrorized so many quarterbacks over the past four years, Hanks had one final play. He unleashed a tremendous throw that arched past the 180-foot line and landed at 184-1, earning him status as MIAC champion in the event. His final toss of the day landed less than five feet from the NCAA qualifying mark and is the second-best javelin throw (since new rules were enacted in 1985) at Carleton and was only 22 inches shy of Asher Miller's school record.
The magic continued throughout the day. Jack Delehanty (Sr./Madison, Wis./Monona Grove) and Michael Sanders (Jr./Cedar Falls, Iowa) placed fourth and seventh respectively in the 800. Delehanty had a tremendous race and ended the day as Northfield's fastest 800-meter runner when he edged St Olaf's Cullen O'Neill at the tape 1:53.80 to 1:53.81. Jack dropped 2.5 seconds from his previous season best as he ran fourth-best time in Carleton history, bumping Graham Zorn (1:53.94) and Brian Donald (1:54.35) down the list.
Tom Ballinger (Sr./Wenatchee, Wash.) followed with the eighth-fastest 400-meter hurdles race in the country as he finished second with a season best and NCAA provisional qualifying time of 53.16. That gives him a great shot at a berth in the NCAA Championships in Marietta, Ohio in two weeks.
The final event of the day was the 4x400 meter relay. Cesarek, Sanders, Delehanty, and Ballinger were the heart of the team all season and this would be their final appearance together at the Laird Stadium track. The quartet capped the weekend in fine fashion.
Cesarek ran a great leadoff leg putting the Knights in the thick of the race. Sanders followed with a split of 49.3, and Delehanty upped the ante with a 48.8 leg, handing the baton to Ballinger with Carleton in seventh place.
The All-American simply ran his fastest leg in the event, clocking at 47.9 to give the Knights a fifth-place finish. Their combined time 3:16.66 is third-best in Carleton history and bettered the NCAA Provisional qualifying time. In four years, the Knights have improved by 21 seconds in this event.
The amazing race actually saw five schools record NCAA provisional times. Of the 15 schools that have met the NCAA provisional standard this season, six are MIAC schools.
The 2009 MIAC Championships provided a fitting and memorable end for the seniors, who were competing at Laird Stadium for the last time. Ballinger, Cesarek, Delehanty, and Hanks turned in some of the best performances ever at Carleton. Eric Hofmann (Homewood, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor) and Peter Samuels (Concord, N.H.) both established personal records during Friday’s 10,000-meter run. Nick Smith (Houston, Texas/St. Thomas) ran in the 4x800 meter relay.
Select members of the team are slated to compete at the NCAA Qualifier (a last chance meet) on Thursday, May 14. The NCAA Division III Championships take place in Marietta, Ohio, from May 21-23.
