Thursday, March 26
San Diego, Calif.
All Day
Purdue Fort Wayne
at
Aztec Invitational (Day One)
Track and Field Opens Outdoor Slate at Aztec Invitational
3/25/2015 12:28:00 PM | Women's Track and Field
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The IPFW track and field team will head to sunny Southern California for its first weekend of outdoor competition at the 37th Annual Aztec Invitational hosted by San Diego State University March 26-28. The three-day meet will take place at the SDSU Sports Deck with competition kicking off on Thursday, March 26 at 9 a.m. PT.
Meet: Aztec Invitational
When: Thursday-Saturday, March 26-28
Where: San Diego, Calif. | SDSU Sports Deck
This the first time in program history the Mastodons will travel to San Diego to compete in the annual Aztec Invitational on San Diego State's campus.
INDOOR SEASON
The 2014-15 indoor season had many highlights, concluding with two top 10 finishes and a broken record in the 4x400 relay at the Summit League Indoor Championships at the end of February. Overall, it was a solid year for the Mastodons as they re-wrote the record books this year, setting new program marks in every meet they've participated in, with the exception of one.
With a young squad entering the year—21 out of 24 members being underclassmen—head coach Mike Fruchey knew it could be a rebuilding year, but was pleasantly surprised with how his team performed during the indoor portion of the season, making him optimistic for the upcoming outdoor slate.
One of the biggest underclassmen to emerge was freshman Kiawna Cottrell. The first-year athlete turned in one of the most impressive first collegiate seasons in Mastodon history. The Pendleton, Ind. Native competed in the long jump, 60 meter dash, 200 meter dash and 4x400 meter relay throughout her inaugural season, and set records or helped set records in every area at one point or another during the season. Cottrell wrapped up her indoor slate with a sixth-place finish in the 60 meter dash at the Summit League Indoor Championships, and that came after she set new program records in the 60 semifinals and the 200 meter preliminaries. Topping that off, Cottrell was a member of the 4x400 meter relay team that ended the indoor season setting a new program record in the event. Overall, just halfway through her first year in college, Cottrell owns the school record in the 60 meter (7.80), 200 meter (25.80), long jump (17-8.0 / 5.38m) and the 4x400 meter relay (4:05.37). Coach Fruchey and assistant coach Tanisha Johnson are excited for the future as they believe she will only get better from here.
Sophomore standout Brittany Beard had a solid second-year with the program, despite fighting an illness that lingered through the middle part of the indoor slate. The second-year middle distance runner broke her own record in the 800 meter run with a time of 2:14.65 at the Ball State Open on January 20, 2015, resulting in her second-career Summit League Track and Field Athlete of the Week and second in the history of the program. Beard also set a new program mark in the mile with a time of 4:59.07 at the Akron Invitational on February 7, 2015. She wrapped up her year with two top 10 finishes at the Summit League Indoor Championships for the second-consecutive year.
Several others set new person-best throughout the indoor season and topping that list were sophomore Kyley Marano and Rachel Kacer.
As a freshman last year, Marano broke the school record in the high jump and followed that performance this year by besting her own program mark in event with a jump of 1.65 meter (5-5.0). Along with Cottrell, Marano was also a member of the 4x400 meter relay team that set the new school record in the event to close out the Summit League Indoor Championships. Kacer made major improvements from her freshman year, besting her previous personal records in the 3,000 meter and 5,000 meter runs during her sophomore campaign. The second-year distance runner's times in both events were team-bests during the 2014-15 indoor season.
Meet: Aztec Invitational
When: Thursday-Saturday, March 26-28
Where: San Diego, Calif. | SDSU Sports Deck
This the first time in program history the Mastodons will travel to San Diego to compete in the annual Aztec Invitational on San Diego State's campus.
INDOOR SEASON
The 2014-15 indoor season had many highlights, concluding with two top 10 finishes and a broken record in the 4x400 relay at the Summit League Indoor Championships at the end of February. Overall, it was a solid year for the Mastodons as they re-wrote the record books this year, setting new program marks in every meet they've participated in, with the exception of one.
With a young squad entering the year—21 out of 24 members being underclassmen—head coach Mike Fruchey knew it could be a rebuilding year, but was pleasantly surprised with how his team performed during the indoor portion of the season, making him optimistic for the upcoming outdoor slate.
One of the biggest underclassmen to emerge was freshman Kiawna Cottrell. The first-year athlete turned in one of the most impressive first collegiate seasons in Mastodon history. The Pendleton, Ind. Native competed in the long jump, 60 meter dash, 200 meter dash and 4x400 meter relay throughout her inaugural season, and set records or helped set records in every area at one point or another during the season. Cottrell wrapped up her indoor slate with a sixth-place finish in the 60 meter dash at the Summit League Indoor Championships, and that came after she set new program records in the 60 semifinals and the 200 meter preliminaries. Topping that off, Cottrell was a member of the 4x400 meter relay team that ended the indoor season setting a new program record in the event. Overall, just halfway through her first year in college, Cottrell owns the school record in the 60 meter (7.80), 200 meter (25.80), long jump (17-8.0 / 5.38m) and the 4x400 meter relay (4:05.37). Coach Fruchey and assistant coach Tanisha Johnson are excited for the future as they believe she will only get better from here.
Sophomore standout Brittany Beard had a solid second-year with the program, despite fighting an illness that lingered through the middle part of the indoor slate. The second-year middle distance runner broke her own record in the 800 meter run with a time of 2:14.65 at the Ball State Open on January 20, 2015, resulting in her second-career Summit League Track and Field Athlete of the Week and second in the history of the program. Beard also set a new program mark in the mile with a time of 4:59.07 at the Akron Invitational on February 7, 2015. She wrapped up her year with two top 10 finishes at the Summit League Indoor Championships for the second-consecutive year.
Several others set new person-best throughout the indoor season and topping that list were sophomore Kyley Marano and Rachel Kacer.
As a freshman last year, Marano broke the school record in the high jump and followed that performance this year by besting her own program mark in event with a jump of 1.65 meter (5-5.0). Along with Cottrell, Marano was also a member of the 4x400 meter relay team that set the new school record in the event to close out the Summit League Indoor Championships. Kacer made major improvements from her freshman year, besting her previous personal records in the 3,000 meter and 5,000 meter runs during her sophomore campaign. The second-year distance runner's times in both events were team-bests during the 2014-15 indoor season.
~ Feel the Rumble ~
Players Mentioned
Mid-Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints/Jumps
/ Women's Track and Field
Distance
/ Women's Track and Field
Sprints
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