Oklahoma State University Athletics
OSU Heads to Big 12 Championships
May 13, 2015 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track, Cowgirl Cross Country & Track
OSU sends 48 athletes to Ames for the three-day meet
The Basics
OSU travels to Ames, Iowa, this week to compete in the 2015 Big 12 Outdoor Championships, scheduled for May 15-17 at the Cyclone Sports
Complex. Nearly 50 OSU athletes are entered to compete, with 22 on the women's squad and 26 for the men. Last year, the Cowboys finished
third and the Cowgirls came in seventh.
Follow the Meet
Results and a full recap from the meet will be posted on okstate.com following the conclusion of each day's competition. Live stats will be provided
on big12sports.com.
Broadcast Information
Days one and two of the Big 12 Outdoor Championships will be streamed live on big12sports.com. Sunday's events will be available on Fox
Sports. More information will be available on big12sports.com.
Meet Format/Schedule
The 2015 Big 12 Outdoor Championships will begin Friday at 11 a.m. with the decathlon and heptathlon, and six finals for field events. The two
running events on Friday will be the women's and men's 10,000-meter finals, tentatively scheduled for 8:15 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Saturday's events begin with the remaining combined events at 10 a.m. and will feature the preliminaries for the sprints and middle-distance races
beginning at 3 p.m. and wrapping up just after 7 p.m.
The final day will kick off with the remaining field events at noon, and the running events starting at 3 p.m. with the men's 4X100-meter final.
The team championship presentation will happen at approximately 7:30 p.m., after the men's 4X400-meter relay. The full schedule of events is
available at big12sports.com.
Last Time Out
The Cowboys were led by Chad Noelle who won section two of the 1,500-meter run by setting a personal best and the top time in the NCAA this
season at the Payton Jordan Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif.
Noelle ran a 3:38.35, a full second better than the previous No. 1 time in 2015 and the third best time in OSU school history.
Kirubel Erassa joined Noelle in the second heat and finished third in 3:39.05, just three-hundredths of a second out of second place.
The Cowgirls had stellar day at Stanford as well, as Ingeborg Loevnes broke her own school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase by eight
seconds and the other middle-distance runners dominated. Loevnes ran a 9:48.89, which is the fifth fastest time in the NCAA this season.
Natalja Piliusina ran her second fastest 800 ever and her fastest since 2013. She finished third with a time of 2:01.93, just three-tenths of a second
behind the No. 1 time in the heat. Her mark is the fourth best in the NCAA.
In the second section of the 800, Kaela Edwards and Savannah Camacho finished first and second, respectively, and Edwards set a personal best
for the second meet in a row. Edwards' 2:02.63 is the sixth best time in the NCAA and the No. 2 time in OSU history.
Caileigh Glenn also set a personal best when she finished second in the fifth section of the 1,500-meter run. Her 4:19.34 broke her previous best
by three seconds and is now the fourth fastest time in OSU history and the third fastest time in the Big 12 this season.
Cowboy standout Itamar Levi won the men's shot put for the fourth time this season throwing a 17.90m at the Arkansas Twilight in Fayetteville,
Ark.
Katie Kehl started the day in Fayetteville with a win for the Cowgirls in the discus throw. Kehl's mark of 45.74m was a whole 20 feet better than the
second place finisher.
Sarah Robinson continued to improve in the 400-meter hurdles, setting a personal best for the third time this season with a 1:02.05. The
sophomore's time replaces her previous personal best as the No. 7 time in school history.
Abbie Hetherington broke her personal best by two seconds in the 800-meter run to claim the Cowgirls' second win of the meet. Her 2:08.68 won
her the event by less than three-tenths of a second over her Cowgirl teammate, Anna Boyert, who also broke her personal best.
In the men's 800 at Arkansas, Lance Gray set a personal best by running a 1:51.38 and finishing seventh in the race, but fifth among NCAA
athletes.
A Look Back
At the 2014 Big 12 Outdoor Championships, the Cowboys finished third and the Cowgirls finished seventh in Lubbock, Texas.
OSU won three individual titles as Chad Noelle won the 1,500-meter run, Nick Miller won his third straight hammer throw title and Viktoriia
Sadokhina won the triple jump to take home the sole win for the Cowgirls.
The Cowboys had 19 All-Big 12 honorees, including Kirubel Erassa who finished second in the 1,500-meter run and third in the 5,000-meter run,
and Shadrick Kipchirchir who finished second in both the 10,000-and 5,000-meter runs.
Eleven Cowgirls earned 13 total All-Big 12 honors. Kate Kujawa finished as the runner-up in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to lead the Cowgirls.
Overall, the Cowboys scored 96 points and the Cowgirls scored 54.
Cowgirls No. 18 Going Into Big 12 Championship
In the last United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association top-25 poll of the regular season, the Cowgirls held onto a
top-20 spot and the Cowboys dropped out heading into conference championships week.
The Cowgirls fell one spot from 17 to 18, staying in the top-25 for the entire outdoor regular season for the first time in school history.
The men's team dropped out from 24th after a weekend of no competition, but Chad Noelle and Kirubel Erassa own the No. 1 and 3 times in the
NCAA, respectively, in the 1,500-meter run.
The Cowgirls own four top-10 times in the NCAA, with three of them in the 800-meter run.
Natalja Piliusina has the No. 5 time, Kaela Edwards has the No. 8 time and Savannah Camacho has the No. 10 time in 800, while Ingeborg
Loevnes' school record-breaking 3,000-meter steeplechase time is fifth in the NCAA.
Ealey, Loevnes No. 1 In School History
Chase Ealey set a new school record in the women's shot put on March 21 at the Tulsa Duels. Just one week later at the 88th Texas Relays,
Ealey threw a 16.84m/55-5.50 in just her first throw in the competition to break her own school record in the event.
Ealey's performance gives her the top spot in three events -- the outdoor and indoor shot put and the javelin.
Earlier in the indoor season, Ealey also set the record for the indoor shot put and qualified for nationals where she received second-team
All-America honors.
Ealey's mark is currently second in the Big 12 and 12th in the NCAA this season.
Joining Ealey this season in the record books is Cowgirl newcomer Ingeborg Loevnes.
The Norwegian middle-distance runner shattered a 10-year-old school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase when she ran a 9:56.30 at the
Stanford Invitational on April 3.
She broke her own record again at the Payton Jordan Invitational when she ran a 9:48.89, the fifth fastest time in the NCAA this season and the
fastest steeplechase time in the Big 12.
OSU Leads Big 12 in Academic Honors
The Oklahoma State track and field program was recognized for its academic excellence as 36 athletes earned All-Big 12 academic honors, the
conference announced Tuesday.
The Cowgirls led the Big 12 with 26 honors and 24 first-team Academic All-Big 12 athletes finishing with a GPA of 3.2 or higher. Seniors Caileigh
Glenn and Paige Wikle, junior Brittney Reid and sophomore Ambra Wesley led the Cowgirls, earning first-team honors with a 4.0 GPA.
OSU had 12 back-to-back recipients and Brian Gohlke's third consecutive honor was one of the 10 academic honors for the Cowboys. Nine
Cowboys earned first-team honors, giving OSU the third most in the conference.
OSU's 36 total team members are the most in the Big 12 and the most in school history since the squads combined for 36 in 2007.
To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher (either cumulative or the two previous semesters) and must have participated in 60
percent of their team's scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student
athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.
OSU will return to the track this weekend in Ames, Iowa, for the 2015 Big 12 Outdoor Championships where the Cowboys finished third last year
and the Cowgirls came in seventh.
Tuesday, July 07
Tuesday, July 07
Friday, June 05
Friday, May 29
