|
Fighting Scots’ track success earns
regional recognition for Haynes
Release Date: March 14, 2006
 MONMOUTH,
Ill. — The Monmouth College indoor track and field teams again
dominated the Midwest Conference Championships, the teams remain
nationally-ranked and the program was once more represented at the
national meet.
What’s new this year, though, is that Monmouth’s annual successes
have been recognized by an outside source. Coach Roger Haynes was
honored by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches
Association (USTFCCCA) as its Division III Men’s Indoor Track and
Field Coach of the Year for the Midwest Region.
“It’s a recognition of the success we’ve had,” said Haynes, who has
guided Monmouth to 38 MWC men’s and women’s team titles since taking
over the men’s program in 1984 and the women’s team in 2000. “I
think it’s a recognition of what we’ve done over a number of years
and the talented kids we’ve had in our program who have succeeded at
the conference and national levels.”
He added, “It’s a recognition from some coaches who I’ve known for
years, and it’s nice to be mentioned in the same sentence as them.”
In a brief release from the USTFCCCA, the men’s overwhelming win at
the MWC meet, where they scored a school-record 277 points, was
cited as one of Haynes’ significant accomplishments, as well as
having three athletes qualify for the national meet.
That trio – middle distance runner Kel Bond and pole vaulters Peter
Sprecher and Jonny Henkins – were not able to place in the top eight
in their events at the meet, which was held in Northfield, Minn.,
last weekend. Haynes said he was still pleased that they had
qualified and expects it won’t be their last national meet.
“It was a good experience for all of them,” he said. “It’s a
starting point, and it will prepare them better for outdoor
nationals. Old habits emerge under pressure, and I think that was
the main factor. We talk about how repeating the performance that
got you there will make you an All-American, and that would have
been the case for all three of them.”
Both Sprecher and Henkins had cleared 16’0 during the season, but
Henkins missed the opening height at the national meet and Sprecher
cleared 15’1-3/4 to place 11th. Clearing 16’0 would have been good
for eighth place.
In the 800-meter run, Bond had the 10th-fastest qualifying time
(1:55.54). Had he run his season-best of 1:53.80 in both the
preliminary race and the final, he would have placed fifth.
As a result, Monmouth did not score at the national meet, but they
have earned a high score in a national rankings system that counts
the top two performances by a team in every event. In the March 5
rankings, Monmouth’s men were fourth in the nation and less than a
point behind third-place Nebraska Wesleyan. The top two spots are
held by UW-Oshkosh and UW-Whitewater.
“It’s something we look at,” said Haynes of the rankings. “It
measures the depth of your program by looking at your performances
across the board. It shows us that although some teams scored a lot
of points at nationals, we’d be very close to them in a dual meet
setting.”
Monmouth’s women, who also scored a school-record point total while
winning the MWC meet, are ranked 21st in the nation.
Men's Indoor Track
| Women's Indoor
Track
|
