Michigan
Big Ten Outdoor Championships
Wolverines Ready for Big Ten Outdoor Championships
5/12/2021 6:08:00 PM | Women's Track & Field
THIS WEEK
Fri-Sun., May 14-16 -- at Big Ten Outdoor Championships (Champaign, Ill.)
Championships Central
Friday, May 14 -- at Big Ten Outdoor Championships, Noon CDT
TV: Big Ten Network+ | Live Results | Live Video: Track / Field
Saturday, May 15 -- at Big Ten Outdoor Championships, Noon CDT
TV: Big Ten Network+ | Live Results | Live Video: Track / Field
Sunday, May 16 -- at Big Ten Outdoor Championships, 11 a.m. CDT
TV: Big Ten Network+ | Live Results | Live Video: Track / Field
• Social Media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's track and field team kicks off its outdoor postseason schedule with the Big Ten Championships this Friday through Sunday (May 14-16) at Illinois' Demerjian Park, looking to replicate or improve upon the runner-up team finish it posted during the indoor season.
Behind the strength of four entries ranked No. 1 in their respective events, the Wolverines are expected to challenge for position near the top of the team standings by the end of the weekend. The final Track and Field Rating Index from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) shows Michigan at No. 7 in the conference, but in a close race with the likes of Ohio State, Nebraska, Penn State and Wisconsin.
In-person attendance for spectators is limited, and no public ticket sales will be made available. Per the Big Ten, "venue seating will be limited to team pass lists that provide reserved ticketed seating for spectators."
Those unable to attend can follow the action for free on the Big Ten Network+ streaming service, which will carry dedicated track event and field event streams on all three days of the event. Live results also are available via Primetime Timing.
The official social media channels of Michigan track and field will also provide live updates, primarily on the @umichtrack Twitter account.
Meet Schedule
The Wolverines begin the championships Friday (May 14) at noon CDT in the heptathlon, with their track entries set to begin competing at 6:30 p.m. CDT. In addition to preliminary rounds in running events, the night also will feature the 10,000-meter final at 8:15 p.m. CDT.
Competition resumes Saturday (May 15) with the final session of the heptathlon starting at noon CDT, followed by track races starting at 4:15 p.m. CDT and field events at 4:30 p.m. CDT. Most events on the track are prelims, with the final in the 3,000-meter steeplechase scheduled to conclude the evening by 7:15 p.m. CDT.
Sunday's (May 16) finale is a finals-only affair, with field events beginning for Michigan at 11 a.m. CDT and the track program beginning at 12:55 p.m. CDT. A team champion will be known no later than 4 p.m. CDT, pending any potential delays, with the conclusion of the 4x400 relay.
Wolverines to Watch
Indoor Big Ten champions and All-Americans Ziyah Holman, Aurora Rynda and Alice Hill will be the tip of the spear for the Michigan charge in Champaign. Holman is the conference's top seed and the reigning indoor champion at 400 meters, Rynda leads the league at 800 meters and Hill is the Big Ten leader in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Both Rynda and Holman are members of the top-seeded 4x400 relay.
Alongside them will be an experienced group of past Big Ten scorers and/or 2021 standouts. Multiple time All-American Ericka VanderLende and indoor relay All-Americans Meg Darmofal (1,500 meters), Lucy Petee (800 and 1,500 meters) and Katelynne Hart (5,000 meters) also will compete, as will reigning Big Ten indoor pole vault champion Jessica Mercier and multiple-time high jump medalist Katt Miner.
Joining them as past scorers are Kathryn House (5,000 meters), Theresa Mayanja (heptathlon), Jena Metwalli (1,500 and 5,000 meters), Raquel Powers (10,000 meters), Amanda Schaare (shot put and discus), Annie Taylor (800 meters), and Hannah Waller (long jump and triple jump).
Among those 2021 standouts looking to break into the scoring for the first time are Jessi Larson (10,000 meters), Mia Manson (pole vault), Michaiah Thomas (100-meter hurdles), Samantha Tran (1,500 meters), Ameia Wilson (long jump) and Kayla Windemuller (5,000 meters).
How the Big Ten Outdoor Championships Work
Each of the teams in the conference has the opportunity to enter student-athletes into the 21 events on the Big Ten Indoor Championships meet program. Student-athletes will compete against each other in each of those events, with points awarded to the respective teams of the top-eight finishers.
Event winners will get 10 points for their teams, with the runners-up receiving eight points in the 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scoring. The team that accumulates the most points from its student-athletes will be crowned the team champion.
Notes
• Led by head coaches Jerry Clayton and James Henry, the Michigan women checked in at No. 71 nationally in the latest Track and Field Rating Index (TFRI) from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
• Ziyah Holman is in pursuit of history this weekend. Holman -- undefeated in nine races of 600 meters or less in 2021 -- is within 0.02 seconds from the school record at 52.45, and is looking to become the first Michigan woman to sweep the indoor and outdoor Big Ten titles at 400 meters. Over the course of the postseason, she also will be chasing the 51.35-second qualifying standard for the U.S. Olympic Trials later this summer. No Wolverine has won the outdoor Big Ten 400 crown since Carly Knazze in 2000.
• Aurora Rynda finished 2019 as the fourth-fastest 800-meter runner in the conference, but was disqualified in the Big Ten Championships preliminaries and could not compete for the title. This year, she leads the conference at 2:03.93. She will look to continue a streak of Michigan excellence in the event, which has had a Wolverine winner 12 times since 1999.
• Ziyah Holman and Rynda will look to team up to deliver Michigan's first-ever title in the outdoor 4x400 relay. They teamed up with Hannah Waller and Chika Amene to run 3:36.86 two weekends ago and will look to improve on that with conference glory on the line.
• Two years after earning the bronze medal in her first Big Ten Championships 3,000-meter steeplechase final, Alice Hill enters the 2021 competition as the favorite and one of the fastest in the nation. A win for Hill would give Michigan titles in two of the past three Big Ten steeplechases, dating back to former teammate Claire Borchers' win in 2018. Hill also is just over four seconds shy of the 9:50.00 qualifying standard for the Olympic Trials, should she choose to compete in them.
• Reigning indoor champion Jessica Mercier is looking to become the first woman in school history to sweep the indoor and outdoor pole vault titles. She and teammate Mia Manson have cleared four meters this season -- the first time in school history that has happened -- and they are looking to clear that height and more in the same competition this weekend.
• Michigan will look for significant points from Ericka VanderLende and the distance crew to propel the team effort. VanderLende accounted for 16 points indoors with a pair of runner-up finishes, and she will look to replicate that at the 5,000- and 10,000-meter distances. Those two events could go a long way in deciding the team race, particularly since the Wolverines have not yet contested the 10,000-meter distance this spring. The Wolverines are deep in both events, along with the 1,500 meters, and have the potential to get big points.
• Katt Miner has twice earned medals at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in the high jump, and will look to close out her last conference meet with a medal -- or a win -- outdoors. With only one woman above 1.80 meters this spring, the competition should be the type of wide-open battle in which Miner has thrived indoors for a silver and bronze medal the past two years.
Up Next
Thu-Sat., May 27-29 -- at NCAA East Preliminaries (Jacksonville, Fla.), TBA
Players Mentioned
