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BAY CITY, Mich. - Saginaw Valley State University senior Tony Filipek (Caro, Mich./Kingston) and University of Findlay sophomore Derrick Vicars (Genoa, Ohio) were named the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) men's outdoor track and field "Athletes of the Week," respectively.
GLIAC Men's Track Athlete of the Week:
Tony Filipek- Saginaw Valley State
Senior, Mid-Distance
Caro, Mich./Kingston
Saginaw Valley State University senior sprinter Tony Filipek posted a first-place finish in the 800-meter run at the MSU Spartan Invitational on Saturday (Apr. 3). Filipek crossed the line with a time of 1:50.48, besting Michigan State’s Shane Knoll by over two seconds. It was the first event of the spring for the Cardinals and Filipek, who earned All-American status after a fourth place finish in the 800 at the NCAA Division II Indoor National Meet.
GLIAC Men's Field Athlete of the Week:
Derrick Vicars - Findlay
Sophomore, Throws
Genoa, Ohio
Sophomore Derrick Vicars captured the gold in the discus with a school record breaking and NCAA provisional qualifying heave of 52.46 at the Oliver Nikoloff Invitational in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 3. He also took third in the shot put (16.72) and fourth in the hammer throw (54.57), another provisional qualifying mark.
-----GLIAC Men's Outdoor Track & Field Weekly Notes-----
Ashland Eagles
The Eagles competed at University of Cincinnati’s Nickoloff Invitational this past weekend (Apr. 3). The AU men finished second in a field of 16 teams with 135 points. The host Bearcats won the team title with 146 points and Miami (OH) was third (110). Ryan Loughney was first in the hammer and Kurt Roberts was the gold medalist in the shot put. The men’s 4X4 relay (Cory Lamar, Edwin Smith, Nick Bellanco, Joe Horn) took first place in 3:17.44. Horn also brought home a pair of bronze medals, finishing third in the 200 (21.46) and 400 (49.46). Cyrus Granger was second in the 400 hurdles (54.97). After three weeks of the outdoor track and field season, Loughney has the best mark in the nation in hammer throw and Mike Jeffery is second in the country in that event. Ashland competes this weekend at the Northeast Ohio Championships at Akron.
Ferris State Bulldogs
The Ferris State University men’s outdoor track and field team took part in the Grand Rapids Open on Saturday (April 3) at Houseman Field in Grand Rapids, Mich.The non-scoring event was hosted by Aquinas College and included competitors from schools such as FSU, Aquinas, Grand Valley State, Calvin, Hope, Cornerstone and Detroit. The meet was shortened and some events did not take place due to rain and weather conditions. The Bulldog men were led by sophomore J.J. Vandenburg’s first-place finish in the shot put (42-6). Ferris junior Justin Price came in second overall in the 400 meters (50.80). Senior Mike Mangieri was second overall in the 1,500 meters (4:05.37) while sophomore Tyler Crossman placed fifth in the same event (4:12.34) and freshman Ryan Chute was sixth (4:12.73). Junior Alex Best finished seventh in the 5,000 meters (15:38.78). Ferris State will host the annual Bulldog Invitational on Saturday, April 10, at FSU’s Top Taggart Field in Big Rapids. The meet is slated to get underway at 11 a.m. (EDT).
Findlay Oilers
The University of Findlay men’s outdoor track and field teams completed the Oliver Nikoloff Invitational on Saturday, April 3 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The men’s team took fourth place with 79 points On the men’s side, Curtis Smithey won the 400-meter dash with a time of 48.74, Cody Crockett was victorious in the javelin after a school record breaking and NCAA provisional qualifying toss of 59.28 and Derrick Vicars captured the gold in the discus with a school record breaking and NCAA provisional qualifying heave of 52.46. Smithey also teamed with Greg Schaible, Simon Bernard and Shawnathan Fort to finish second in the 4x400-meter relay at 3:17.44, a provisional time, while Vicars took third in the shot put (16.72) and fourth in the hammer throw (54.57), another provisional qualifying mark. Nathaniel Kurtz added a third place finish in the hammer throw as he recorded a provisional qualifying toss of 55.70 while Cory Vales was fourth in the high jump at 1.98 meters. The Oilers 4x100-meter relay team of Smithey, Jesse Ramirez, Corey Clarke and Schaible added a fifth place finish at 43.14.
Grand Valley State Lakers
GVSU took home seven first place finishes at the Grand Rapids Open on Saturday (April 3). Sophomore Tyler Emmorey hit the provisional mark in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:11.84 and a first place finish. Jeff Nordquist also hit the provisional mark in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a third place finish (9:22.76). Freshman Jon Manby took first in the 1500-meter run with a time of 4:04.72, while Pat Sage took third (4:07.11) and Ryan Toth in fourth (4:07.61). In the 110-meter hurdles, Ryan Brown finished first with a time of 15.20 seconds, followed by Joey Latz in second (15.50). John Dyer took home first in the 800-meter dash with a time of 1:55.56. In the field events, Nate Miller finished first in the high jump with a jump of 6’04.75", while Ryan Rademacher took first in the long jump (22’01"). GVSU took the top-three spots in the discus throw. Donny Stiffler came in first with a throw of 148’07", followed by Mitch Bosch in second (141’07") and Matt Armstrong in third (140’08"). The Lakers will compete at Miami (Ohio) and Ferris State this weekend (April 9-10).
Hillsdale Chargers
The Hillsdale College men's track team was off this past week and will next compete at the Miami Invitational in Oxford, Ohio.
Lake Superior State Lakers
Lake Superior State opened the 2010 outdoor track and field season by winning one event and breaking a school record at last Saturday’s Spartan Invitational hosted by Michigan State. Junior Ben Charbonneau (Sudbury, Ont.) won the javelin throw with a distance of 55.83 meters, beating Michigan State’s Jay Gillespie, who was second with a throw of 50.48 meters. Other standouts for the Laker men were senior Jake Hoover (Capac, Mich.), who was fourth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (9:52.90), freshman Hans Riedel (Eau Claire, Wis.), who was fifth in the discus throw (45.18 meters), and junior Ben Monroe (Webberville, Mich.) and senior Paul Davis (St. Ignace, Mich.), who tied for fifth in the 200-meter dash (:22.60). Riedel’s throw broke LSSU’s 10-year-old school record of 40.40 meters. The Lakers compete April 10 at the Bulldog Invitational in Big Rapids, Mich.
Michigan Tech Huskies
Michigan Tech won four events at the UW-Oshkosh Invite on Friday (April 2). Ken Gilkerson won his second straight 800 of the season in a time of 1:59.56. Brian Stetter also remained undefeated on the season in the 5,000 with a winning time of 15:40.91. Nate Saliga picked up his first win in the 400 (51.82). Saliga and Gilkerson teamed up with Aaron Cedergren and Tylor Rathsack to win the 4x400 in 3:24.40. The team will be off this week before heading to Duluth on April 17th.
Northwood Timberwolves
The Northwood University track and field teams were off this week and will next compete at the Bulldog Open April 10.
Saginaw Valley State Cardinals
The Saginaw Valley State University men’s track and field teams competed in the Spartan Invitational today (Apr. 3). Earning a first place finish in the 800-meter run for the Cardinals was senior Tony Filipek who crossed the line at 1:50.48. Following close behind Filipek was senior Charlie Richards who clocked in at 1:51.95. Also earning a top finish was freshman Tyler Noble who placed fifth in the 5,000-meter run timing in at 15:26.46. Placing third overall in the 3,000-meter steeplechase was sophomore Jon Wetters clocking in at 9:48.80. The Cardinals will be back in action again on Saturday (Apr. 10) when they travel to Big Rapids to compete at Ferris State University.
Tiffin Dragons
Tiffin dominated the men’s events at the Defiance Open, totaling 328 points. For the men, there were 14 champions. Antoine Allen won twice, taking the long jump with 21-6.75 and the triple jump with 45-2.5. Dominic Colvin won three events, leading the 200 in 22.23 and teaming with Deven Keene, Justin Ware, and Jacob Buckwalter in the 4x100 (42.46) and Keene, Bryon Toran, and Ware in the 4x400 (3:21.87). Toran also won the 400 in 50.21. Other leaders included Joe Candito (100 - 2nd), Stephen Miles (800 - 2nd), Dominique O’Neil (1500 - 1st, 4:01.71), Darin King (5000 - 1st, 15:46.42), Ramone Brant (110 hurdles - 1st, 14.67), Andrew Moore (400 hurdles - 1st, 56.10), Jason Bumb (steeplechase - 1st, 9:57.24), Travis LeFlore (high jump - 1st, 6-4), Lee Miller (pole vault - 1st, 14-11), John Pemberton (shot put - 2nd), Ray Robinson (discus - 1st, 146-5), and Nolan Hill (hammer - 2nd).