Michigan
NCAA Mideast Regional
800 Champion Ellerton Leads Quintet of NCAA Qualifiers
5/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Five Wolverines punched their tickets to the NCAA Outdoor Championships with top-five performances Saturday (May 26) to pace the University of Michigan men's track and field team on the final day of the NCAA Mideast Regional at Audrey J. Walton Stadium. Drawing on the performances of six individual scorers, the Wolverines earned a seventh-place team finish (33 points) against the regional field, tying for their best team performance at the regional meet.
Fifth-year senior Andrew Ellerton (Sudbury, Ontario/Confederation) won his third regional championship in the 800-meter run after missing last season due to injury. Ellerton clocked 1:46.84 to break his own stadium record, which he set in yesterday's prelims (1:47.43). The mark was only 0.01 off the NCAA Mideast Regional record and is the fastest mark in the nation this year. The victory marks the fourth time in the region's five-year history that a Wolverine has taken home the 800-meter regional crown, with Ellerton also earning victory in the event in 2004 and 2005.
Ellerton started the race at a slower pace, coming across the halfway mark in fifth place. After that, he began to make his move and jumped up to third on the backstretch. On the final turn, Ellerton took the lead and gave himself a huge cushion on the final straightaway, finishing almost a full second ahead of runner-up Marcus Mayes of Missouri (1:47.71). Ellerton will make his third trip to the NCAA outdoor meet and will look to earn his fourth All-America honor in the 800-meter run.
Senior Michael Whitehead (East Norristown, Pa./Norristown Area) was just 16 1/4 inches shy of earning his own NCAA regional crown in the triple jump. Whitehead was the runner-up in the event, landing a mark of 51-10 1/2 on his fourth of six attempts. Louisville's Andre Black won the event with a length of 53-3 3/4. Whitehead will return to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in a few weeks, where he will try for a national title after placing NCAA runner-up last season.
The 1,500-meter run was a very tightly contested race. Junior Mike Woods (Ottawa, Ontario/Hillcrest) and sophomore Justin Switzer (Waterford, Mich./Kettering) each earned a trip to the NCAA Championships by placing fourth and fifth, respectively . The two Wolverines were less than a second behind the winner, Kentucky's John Richardson (3:44.44), and finished at nearly the same time, with Woods clocking a time of 3:45.21 and Switzer just 0.01 behind with a time of 3:45.22. Both Michigan runners had tremendous efforts on the final lap of the race, each moving up at least one or two positions over the last 400 meters. Woods will compete at the NCAA Championships for the third consecutive season, while Switzer will be making his first appearance.
Senior Jeff Porter (Somerset, N.J./Franklin) also earned a spot at NCAAs after taking fifth place in the 110-meter hurdles. He crossed the line in 13.78 to clock the second-fastest time of his career. His appearance will be his first at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
In the 100-meter dash, sophomore Adam Harris (Wheaton, Ill./North) recorded a mark of 10.35 to place seventh in the region. He shattered his previous personal best of 10.45, which he recorded yesterday during prelims. Harris had an outstanding weekend after entering the meet ranked 20th on the regional performance list.
Michigan also had a 4x400-meter relay squad compete. The team of sophomore Andre Barnes (West Bloomfield, Mich./West Bloomfield), freshman Matt Wheeler (Atherton, Calif./Menlo-Atheron), senior John D'Arcy (Clayton, Ohio/Northmont) and junior Andrew Wechter (Shelby, Ohio/Shelby) combined for a time of 3:09.62 for a ninth-place event finish, just missing out on a scoring performance. Michigan took third in a very highly contested section of the race. The Wolverines were just a fraction of a second behind Indiana State's winning squad (3:09.49) and second-place Eastern Michigan (3:09.58).
The five Wolverines who have qualified will have two weeks to prepare for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, scheduled for June 6-9 at Sacramento State's Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, Calif.
Final Team Standings (Top 10)
1. LSU 70 2. Auburn 55 3. Louisville 50 4. Tennessee 49 5. Wisconsin 45 6. Mississippi 34 7. MICHIGAN 33 8. Kentucky 31 Arkansas 31 10. Mississippi State 29
Event Winners/U-M Finishes (Day 2)
100-meter Dash 1. Trindon Holliday, LSU 10.07*#! 7. Adam Harris, U-M 10.35 800-meter Run 1. Andrew Ellerton, U-M 1:46.84*! 1,500-meter Run 1. John Richardson, Kentucky 3:44.44* 4. Mike Woods, U-M 3:45.21* 5. Justin Switzer, U-M 3:45.22* 110-meter Hurdles 1. John Yarbrough, Mississippi 13.48*! 5. Jeff Porter, U-M 13.78* 4x400-meter Relay 1. Kentucky 3:04.49* 9. Michigan 3:09.62 (Andre Barnes, Matt Wheeler, John D'Arcy, Andrew Wechter) Triple Jump 1. Andre Black, Louisville 53-3 3/4*! (16.25m) 2. Michael Whitehead, U-M 51-10 1/2* (15.81m) * Qualified for NCAA Championships # NCAA Mideast Regional Record ! Audrey J. Walton Stadium Record
Day 1 Results
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Ron Warhurst
On having five NCAA qualifiers ... "We had a great meet. We qualified the people that we thought would qualify. Justin Switzer and Mike Woods had a great run in the 1,500-meter run. They were fourth and fifth there, and they both advanced to NCAAs. Andrew Ellerton ran 1:46.83 to win the 800-meter run. He broke his own stadium record, and I think he had the fastest time in the country -- we'll have to wait and see the times from the other regions. Jeff Porter was fifth in his race, which was in the toughest region of hurdlers. Michael Whitehead was second in the triple jump, so he'll also advance, which is what he was trying to do."
On how the rest of the team stepped up as well ... "Our mile relay ran 3:09, which was pretty decent, but they won't be able to advance. Adam Harris ran tremendous for us. He ended up seventh and just missed qualifying for the 100-meter dash. He ended up running 10.35, his personal best by a tenth of a second. We had a great weekend here."
Contact: Tim Trunzo (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
