Five Falcons Head to NCAA Championships
6/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
June 8, 2009
Five members of the Air Force track and Field team head to Fayetteville, Ark., this weekend for the 2009 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The four-day meet runs June 10-13 at the John McDonnell Field on the University of Arkansas campus and will feature 544 athletes from across the country.
THE FALCONS' CAST
The Academy will be represented by a program-best five athletes (six events) at the national championships. Junior Sara Neubauer will represent the women's team in the shot put and discus throw, while junior Nick Frawley (pole vault) and seniors Daniel Castle (1500-meter run), Kellen Curry (110-meter hurdles) and Sean Houseworth (10,000-meter run) will represent the men's team. Below is a complete list of the Air Force competitors.
MEN'S TEAM
Daniel Castle (1500-Meter Run)
Kellen Curry (110-Meter Hurdles)
Nick Frawley (Pole Vault)
Sean Houseworth (10,000-Meter Run)
WOMEN'S TEAM
Sara Neubauer (Shot Put, Discus Throw)
SCHEDULING 101
Action for the Air Force contingent begins on Wednesday, June 10, with the qualifying flights of the shot put and pole vault. Thursday is the busiest day for the Falcons, with the qualifying round of the discus throw and final round of the shot put, as well as the first round of the 110-meter hurdles, the semifinals of the 1500-meter run and the finals of the 10,000-meter run. The pole vault final and the semifinal round of the 110-meter hurdles will take place on Friday, while the finals of the discus throw, 110-meter hurdles and 1500-meter run will conclude the championships on Saturday.
THE VETERAN VAULTER
It will be the first national championship appearance for all but one member of the Air Force contingent. Nick Frawley will be making his third appearance at the outdoor meet in as many years. It is also the fifth straight national championship appearance for the junior (2007 outdoor, 2008 indoor and outdoor, 2009 indoor and outdoor).
HISTORY 101
Air Force had accounted 33 outdoor All-America certificates. Jim Murphy was the Falcons' first All-American, taking first in the 5000-meter run at the 1964 championships. The men have tallied eight All-American, most recently Nick Frawley in 2008. The women have accounted for 25 All-Americans, including 21 that came during the Falcons' time at the NCAA Division II level.
LAST YEAR AT THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
Then-sophomore Nick Frawley was the national runner-up in the pole vault at the 2008 championship meet. With a clearance of 17'2¾" in the event finals, Frawley became the Falcons' 21st outdoor NCAA All-American. The second-place mark is the best finish for the men's program since Jim Murphy won the 5000-meter title in 1964.
FALCONS SET PROGRAM RECORD WITH NINE ALL-REGION HONOREES
Nine Falcons earned all-region honors in 10 events at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships, accounting for the most top-eight athletes ever at the regional meet. Air Force earned all-region distinction from seven men and two women, including junior Sara Neubauer, who collected awards in the shot put and discus throw. With the nine selections, the Falcons bested their total of the past three years combined (six all-region selections from 2006-08).
CAUTION, FALLING RECORDS
Junior Sara Neubauer tossed an Academy record-setting throw of 54'0" during her final `fair' attempt of the shot put at the Midwest Regional Championships on May 29. Neubauer, who first upped the standard to 53'2¾" one throw earlier, has rewritten her Academy standard by nearly four feet during three of her last four throws, dating back to the conference championships.
TAKE TWO
With a runner-up finish in the shot put and a third-place finish in the discus throw, Sara Neubauer became the second Air Force athlete to earn multiple spots in the national championship meet. Senior Sean Houseworth, who earned an automatic berth during an Academy-record setting 10,000-meter performance in March, placed fifth in the 5000-meter run at the regional meet to gain entrance to the finals in that event as well. (Due to the schedule of events at the national meet, Houseworth will focus his attention on the 10K and not compete in the 5000).
HIGH-FLYIN' FRAWLEY
Junior Nick Frawley cleared a career-best 17'7" to place third in the pole vault at the regional championships. That mark, cleared on his first attempt at that height, is the fourth-best clearance in Academy history during the outdoor season. Frawley is already the indoor record holder at 18'1".
FALCONS SHINE IN STEEPLECHASE
Air Force accounted for three of the top-10 times in the 3000-meter steeplechase at the Midwest Regional meet. Senior Matt Williams improved his personal-best time of 8:54.36 (the third-best time in Academy history) to finish sixth, while sophomore Justin Tyner and junior Zachary Nordahl placed eighth (9:05.06) and 10th (9:08.05), respectively.
