June 15, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Senior Tyler Neal has been selected as the “Most Valuable Perfomer” for the 2005 Illinois Wesleyan men's track team while junior Melinda Sprague was chosen as the “MVP” for the 2005 IWU women's team.
Neal (Bloomington HS) finished first in the 200 and third in the 100 in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin outdoor meet and qualified for the outdoor national meet with the nation’s seventh-best qualifying time of 21.5 seconds, a school record.
At the CCIW indoor championships, Neal won the long jump (22 feet, 6 1/2 inches) and was fourth in the 200.
Sprague (Ballwin, Mo., Parkway West HS) finished 13th at the NCAA Division III national outdoor meet in the 3000 steeplechase with a time of 11:30.73 and won the event in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin meet with a time of 11:31.91. She also helped the IWU team to a fourth place finish at the indoor CCIW championships with her second place, school record mile run of 5:15.7.
In other men's team awards, Matt Harden earned the “Most Valuable Freshman” honor, senior Clint Warren (Ottawa, Serena HS) won the “Team Player” award and senior Josh Evans (Sycamore HS) was chosen as the “Hardest Worker.”
Harden was a two-time All-American as a freshman as he finished sixth in the 200 outdoor national meet with a time of 21.55 seconds and placed seventh in the 55 meter dash at the indoor nationals in a time of 6.44 seconds. In the national outdoor meet, he also ran a leg of the 4x100 relay team and qualified for the meet in both the 110 hurdles and the 100, events he won at the CCIW outdoor meet.
Warren got fifth in the triple jump at the outdoor CCIW meet with a leap of 43 feet, 11 1/4 inches and was eighth in the long jump (21 feet, 2 3/4 inches). He also got third in the triple jump (44 feet, 4 inches) and eighth in the long jump (20 feet, 11 1/4 inches) at the indoor CCIW meet.
In other women's team awards, Rachel Anderson (Clinton HS) earned the “Most Valuable Freshman” honor, junior Kristy Lehan (DeKalb HS) won the “Team Player” award and freshman Mary Ellen Barron (Naperville, Neuqua Valley HS) was chosen as the “Hardest Worker.”
Anderson was an All-American in the 400 at both the national indoor and outdoor championships. Indoors, she finished second with a time of 56.78, a mere .07 off the championship pace. Outdoors she finished fifth, crossing the finish line in 55.86 seconds. She also qualified for the outdoor 200 and as part of the 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams.
Senior Gena Rawlins (Atlanta, Stanford Olympia HS) finished her career as a 14-time All-American as she placed eighth in the 400 meters at the Division III outdoor meet after placing seventh in the indoor nationals earlier this year.
Freshman Cortney Walrath (Peoria, Central HS) finished 17th in the pole vault at the outdoor nationals at a height of 11 feet, 3/4 inches and holds the school records in the event both indoors and outdoors.
Juniors Nick Kossman (Normal, Community HS), Erich Sauer (Elgin, Larkin HS) and Bryan Timm (Aurora, Marmion Academy HS) were elected to serve as team captains for the 2006 squad while Sprague and Lehan were selected to serve as team captains for the 2006 women's team.
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Head coach Chris Schumacher awarded letters to 18 men and 17 women. The letterwinners are, with hometowns and high schools:
SENIORS – Mike Bragg (Shorewood, Joliet West HS); Jake Clough (Carbondale HS); Chip Corwin (Cadillac, Mich., HS); Josh Evans (Sycamore HS); Zach Gorsage (Washington, Peoria Notre Dame HS); Tim Hachmeister (Elmhurst, IMSA); Tim McDonald(LaGrange, Lyons Township HS); Tyler Neal (Bloomington HS).Clint Warren (Ottawa, Serena HS).
JUNIORS – Nick Kossman (Normal, Community HS); Eric Sauer (Elgin, Larkin HS); Bryan Timm (Aurora, Marmion Academy HS).
SOPHOMORES – Jon Blome (Pekin HS); Nick Burge (Lake Zurich HS); Mike Nicoletti (Lake Zurich HS).
FRESHMEN – Lane Coonrod (Quincy HS); Matt Harden (O’Fallon HS); Segun Olopo (Chicago, Brooks School); Azizuddin Rose (Chicago, DeLaSalle HS).
SENIORS – Valerie Lambrecht (Wheaton, North HS), Gena Rawlins (Atlanta, Stanford Olympia HS).
JUNIORS - Katie Elwood (LaGrange Park, Lyons Township HS); Melissa Harden (O’Fallon, Township HS), Kristy Lehan (DeKalb HS); Dale Marshall (St. Louis, Mo, Visitation Academy), Melinda Sprague (Ballwin, Mo, Parkway West HS).
SOPHOMORES – Tina Broholm (Frankfort, Lincoln Way East HS); Heather Geeser (Pecatonica HS); Krystal Jenkins (Villa Park, Willowbrook HS).
FRESHMEN – Rachel Anderson (Clinton HS); Mary Ellen Barron (Naperville, Neuqua Valley HS); Allison Fisher (Oswego HS); Brooke Halcott (Streator HS); Jenny Nichols (Normal, West HS); Julia Varsamis (Morton Grove, Niles West HS); Cortney Walrath (Peoria, Central HS).
