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| Gabrielle Ethier competes in the hurdles |
The UW-Platteville track and field teams not only battled some of the nation's elite teams, but also a cold wind that whipped through the Nike/Impact Sports UW-Platteville Invitational Sunday.
"It's pretty tough, I have to say," said Ben Zizis, who won the 110 high hurdles in 15.43. "You have to be a little more technical. Usually, we try and stay relaxed, but with a wind like this, you have to stay more intense."
Zizis was one of four Pioneers to win events in the high-powered meet that included UW-Oshkosh, Wartburg, the UW-La Crosse women, the UW-Stevens Point men, Dubuque and Loras.
The Pioneers swept the 1,500-meter races. Tyler Sigl won a very competitive men's race, taking first in 3:53.39, while Marcia Taddy whipped all challenges in the women's race, finishing in 4:34.39, 14 seconds ahead of her next competitor. Both marks are NCAA III provisional qualifying times.
Liz Baker added a first in the 100-meter dash, winning in 13.15.
"It was awesome since I never run that race," Baker said. "I went into it not really expecting much, but I decided to prove something. It felt good."
Although winning is always nice, Pioneer Coach Jim Nickasch said, the main goal was "not to hurt ourselves. It's cold weather, and we just want to get some decent performances in. We want to put ourselves in the (conference) honor roll."
To qualify for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference meet, an individual or relay team must have one of the top 24 marks during the course of the season. Sunday's meet, postponed a day because of wet and snow weather, helped many Pioneers reach their marks.
"We're doing OK," Nickasch said. "It's hard for the kids to warm up inside, then come out and run. It was a goofy week of practice, too. It rained like crazy, and it was hard to get workouts in, but we're doing OK. We're actually doing pretty well."
Placing second for the women were Alison Ross in the 400 hurdles, Jessica Scott in the 800, and the 4x400 relay team, while placing third were Sara Novotny in the 400 hurdles and Taylor Fry in the 100 hurdles.
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| Arthur Butler completes his jump |
Finishing runner-up for the men were Matt Bischoff with a school record time of 21.89 in the 200, Mitch Spees with a provisional qualifying time of 54.18 in the 400 hurdles, and Corey Digman in the discus and shot put. Bischoff added a third in the 100 dash as did the 4x400 relay team, and Cody Helgeson in the high jump.
The Pioneers were competing for just the second time ever on their new outdoor track, one that continues to draw rave reviews.
"It's definitely the best," Zizis said, "without a doubt. It's fast, and it doesn't bust your legs."
UWP also enjoyed being at home for the weekend. They've already competed in St. Louis and Waverly, Iowa and next week go to Augustana in Rock Island, Ill.
"It's a lot better," Zizis said. "We got to sleep in. Usually we're to bed about 9-9:30 the night before because we have to get up at 4 or 5 in the morning. It's nice because we have to sleep in our own bed. It's definitely an advantage. We don't have to be on the bus, so our legs are fresher."
So much better that maybe the cold didn't seem quite as bad as it would have somewhere else.
"It's not good, but you have to do what you have to do," Baker said. "Everyone was running in the same conditions."
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