Kearns Trying out for Idaho Steelheads

BOISE, Idaho (UWECBlugolds.com) – UW-Eau Claire men’s hockey player John Kearns (Sr.-Park Ridge, Ill./Maine South) recently signed a professional tryout agreement with the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL.

Kearns, a defenseman for the Blugolds the past four years, played in one game against the Ontario Reign (Calif.) for the Steelheads on February 23 and finished with one assist. He will play in two more games this Friday and Saturday, both on the road against the Regin. Following his three-game tryout, the Steelheads will decide if he has earned a spot on the roster and a contract for the rest of the season.

Kearns wrapped up his career with the Blugolds last weekend, playing in all 27 games this season. In his career, he played in 104 games and scored four goals while picking up 21 assists. Two of his goals were game-winners.

The Idaho Steelheads compete in the ECHL (East Coast Hockey League) and are a minor league affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.

Steelheads' Release from Wednesday Night

Men's Indoor Track & Field Drops Slightly in Rankings

The UW-Eau Claire men's indoor track and field team fell three spots to No. 25 in the latest USTFCCCA NCAA Division III top 25 national poll.

The Blugold men, who are ranked sixth regionally, fell only slightly from their No. 22 national ranking a week ago. They were ranked as high as 16th this season.

The women are ranked seventh in the Midwest region as both teams head into the WIAC Championships this weekend.

National Rankings

Regional Rankings

UWEC CC / Track - Indoor Update

The past two weeks have been exciting for the UW-Eau Claire men’s and women’s middle distance / distance runners. Two weeks ago the Blugolds were in Platteville competing at the UW-Platteville Invitational, and Thomas Breitbach (jr.-Muskego) had a breakout race in the 5K winning in a PR and national qualifying time of 14:35. Thomas passed through the 3K mark with the lead pack in 8:50 and then separated from the field running 2:54 and 2:51 for his final 2 K’s. Thomas won by 13 seconds. Michael Borglin (so.-Whitewater) also had a strong day in the 5K finishing 9th overall in a PR time of 15:18. In the men’s 800 Jake Zander (sr.-Chippewa Falls McDone1l) ran an indoor PR of 1:57.17 to finish 6th, and Aaron Easker (so.-Wittenberg-Birnamwood) broke 2 minutes in his indoor 800 debut with a time of 1:58.58.

On the women’s side Ashlyn Mauer (so.-Sheboygan Falls) ran a 37 second PR in the 5K finishing 2nd overall in 18:17. Ashlyn, who ran by herself the majority of the race, did a great job of running near even splits (1K splits: 3:39, 3:40, 3:37, 3:41 & 3:39 for her final 1K). Madison Sawyer (so.-Champlin Park) won the 3K in a PR time of 10:47. In the mile Maria Peloquin (sr.-Prescott) finished 3rd in 5:14 and Jami Riley (fr.-Fairmont, MN) finished 6th in a PR time of 5:22. Shaina Weatherhead (fr.-Robbinsdale Cooper, MN) won the 2nd section of the 800 in a PR time of 2:25.

Here’s a link to the complete Platteville Results:
http://www.uwecblugolds.com/stats/mitr/201011/itr_uwp_021211.htm

This past Saturday the men and women competed at the Eastbay Invitational in Stevens Point. The men’s distance medley relay team of Jake Zander, Patrick Mackin (jr.-GB Notre Dame), Alex Adkinson (so.-Whitewater) and Aaron Easker had a great race finishing 3rd overall in a school record and national qualifying time of 10:02.06. The splits for the relay were: Jake Zander, 1200 – 3:03.8; Patrick Mackin, 400 – 49.0; Alex Adkinson, 800 – 1:57.7 and Aaron Easker, 1600 – 4:11.3. In the 800 freshman Joe Martschinke (Waukesha West) and Bryan Krause (Webster) had indoor PR’s of 1:59. In the 5K Jeremy Kieser (so.-Verona) finished 2nd with a PR time of 15:19 and freshman Eric Knutson (Brookfield Central) ran 15:48, which is his first time under 16 minutes. Matt Scott (fr.-Kiel) finished 5th overall in season’s best of 8:57 in the 3K.

Although many of the middle distance / distance women took the weekend off in preparation for conference there were some very strong performances from the younger runners on the team. In the mile Nicole Blahnik (so.-Antigo), Erica Tiffany (so.-Mounds View) and Shaina Weatherhead all PR’d with times of 5:24, 5:25 and 5:28. In the 3K Victoria Janasz (fr.-Elk River, MN) had a great day finishing 4th overall in a PR time of 10:55.

Here’s a link to the complete Eastbay Results:
http://www.uwecblugolds.com/stats/mitr/201011/itr_eastbay_021911.htm

The WIAC Indoor Conference Meet is this Saturday, February 26th at UW-Stout. Running events start at 1 pm. Here’s a link to meet information:
http://www.wiacsports.com/sports/2011/1/6/MITRACK_0106114848.aspx?path=witrack

Men's Indoor Track & Field Ranked Nationally

For the second week in a row, the UW-Eau Claire men's track and field team appeared in national rankings.

The Blugolds are ranked 22nd in the latest USTFCCCA NCAA Division III top 25 national poll.

Complete Week Four National Rankings

Week Four Regional Rankings

UW-Eau Claire CC / Track - Indoor Update

The UW-Eau Claire men’s and women’s track & field teams competed at UW-Stevens Point this past Saturday. It was a good day for the Blugolds with the men finishing 1st of 12 teams and the women finishing 2nd of 13 teams. On the men’s side in the middle distance / distance events Alex Adkinson (so.-Whitewater) won the 800 in 1:57.19 and Bryan Krause (fr.-Webster) set an indoor personal best of 2:00.43 to finish 10th. In the mile Blugold Alum Chris Wirtz set a fast pace through 1K to help Aaron Easker (so.-Wittenberg-Birnamwood), Jake Zander (sr.-Chippewa Falls McDonnel) and Matt Scott (fr.-Kiel) to indoor personal bests. Easker finished 2nd overall in 4:16, Zander finished 3rd in 4:18 and Scott finished 5th in 4:22. Jeremy Kieser (so.-Verona) finished 7th in the 3K in 8:51, which is a 5 second pr, and Michael Borden (so.-Holmen) finished 2nd in the 5K with a time of 16:00.

On the women’s side Maria Peloquin (sr.-Prescott) won the 800 by over 4 seconds with an indoor personal best of 2:18.34. Jami Riley (fr.-Fairmont, MN), Taylor McMillan (so.-Stoughton) and Nikki Rendler (fr.-Lodi) also set indoor PR’s in the 800. Riley finished 2nd in 2:22.51, McMillan was 4th in 2:23.95 and Rendler finished 5th in 2:24.01. Madison Sawyer (so.-Champlin Park, MN) led the way in the mile finishing 3rd in 5:17. Ashlyn Mauer (so.-Sheboygan Falls) and Dana Griepentrog (fr.-Homestead) weren’t far behind finishing in 5th (5:18) and 7th (5:19). In the 3K Kacey Rindy (jr.-Fennimore) finished 2nd by a mere 0.12 seconds in a time of 10:54, and Teresa Coughlin (jr.-Coon Rapids, MN), Charissa Drake (jr.-Parkview), and Katie Thoe (fr.-Menomonie) finished 2nd (19:20), 3rd (19:20) and 4th (19:25) overall in the 5K.

For a complete list of results please go to:
http://www.uwecblugolds.com/stats/mitr/201011/itr_pointer_020511.htm

The next meet for the Blugolds is this Saturday at UW-Platteville followed by UW-Stevens Point next Saturday, February 19th and Indoor Conference on Saturday, February 26th at UW-Stout.

Men's Indoor Track & Field Breaks into National Rankings

For the first time this season, the UW-Eau Claire men's indoor track and field team is in the USTFCCCA NCAA Division III top 25 national poll.

After strong performances in the opening weeks of the season, the Blugolds are ranked 16th in the poll.

View Complete Rankings

UW-Eau Claire CC/Track – Indoor Track Update

The Blugold men’s and women’s track and field team had their second meet of the season and first meet against outside competition this past Saturday against UW-Platteville and UW-Stevens Point at the UW-Platteville Triangular. Both teams had promising early season performances in the middle distance / distance events. On the men’s side in the mile Jake Zander (sr.-Chippewa Falls McDonell) won by over six seconds with a time of 4:25.32. In the 3K the men had 4 runners break the 9 minute barrier including Thomas Breitbach (jr.-Muskego)-8:36.94, 1st; Aaron Easker (so.-Wittenberg-Birnamwood)-8:39.22, 2nd; Michael Borglin (so.-Whitewater)-8:50.05, 6th; and Jeremy Kieser (so.-Verona)-8:56.46, 7th.

For a complete list of men’s results please go to:
http://www.uwecblugolds.com/stats/mitr/201011/mitr_uwp_012211.htm

On the women’s side Nikki Rendler (fr.-Lodi) won the slow section of the 800 finishing 3rd overall with a time of 2:27.98. In the mile Maria Peloquin (sr.-Prescott) finished 3rd with a PR time of 5:14.95 and Jami Riley (fr.-Fairmont, MN) finished 5th in 5:25.81. The women took the top 5 places in the 3K led by Kelly Palmer (sr.-Chaska) )-10:37.03 followed by Ashlyn Mauer (so.-Sheboygan Falls)-10:38.41, 2nd; Dana Griepentrog (fr.-Homestead)-10:45.29, 3rd; Madison Sawyer (so.-Champlin Park, MN)- 10:50.45, 4th and Kacey Rindy (jr.-Fennimore)-11:09.36, 5th.

For a complete list of women’s results please go to:
http://www.uwecblugolds.com/stats/witr/201011/witr_uwp_012211.htm

Our next meet is the Warren Bowlus Open at UW-Stout this Saturday. Many of our middle distance / distance runners are taking this weekend off from racing and will be competing at the Pointer Invitational in Stevens Point next Saturday, February 5th.