Huskers Prepare for Big 12 Championships

With the championship stretch of Nebraska's indoor schedule quickly approaching, the Huskers will compete in Lincoln for the final time Friday at the Prairie Wolf Invitational, hosted by Nebraska Wesleyan at the Devaney Center Indoor Track.

Competition is scheduled to begin Friday with running events at 1 p.m., while field events follow at 2 p.m. Most action will be held at the Devaney Center, with the only exceptions being the men's and women's unseeded weight throws, shot puts and pole vaults. Each of those unseeded competitions will be contested at Knight Fieldhouse on the Nebraska Wesleyan campus. Admission at the gate will be $6 for adults and $2 for seniors and children six and older. Kids six and younger will be admitted for free.

Friday will serve as a Husker dress rehearsal for next week's Big 12 Indoor Championships, held in Ames, Iowa, while some athletes will have their final chances to secure roster spots on this year's conference meet teams.

Results and a recap from the Prairie Wolf Invitational can be found following the conclusion of the day's events on Huskers.com, and live results also will be available during the meet. For a complete schedule of the weekend's events, see page 2 of this week's Husker track & field notes.

The declared entries for the meet can be found by clicking here.

> Abolins Hopes to Open Senior Season
Two-time defending NCAA long jump champion Arturs Abolins hopes to finally open his senior season during this weekend's Prairie Wolf Invitational.

Through the early weeks of 2007, Abolins has been nursing an injured calf muscle that was strained in January prior to the Huskers opening their season. This weekend's meet will provide him with both his first and final opportunity for actual competition before the championship stretch of the 2007 indoor campaign.

A Riga, Latvia, native, Abolins became the first Husker to win a national title in the men's long jump as a junior last season, when he swept the event at the NCAA indoor and outdoor meets. The sweep marked only the 10th time in NCAA history an athlete claimed both national titles in the same season. He also earned his second career Big 12 crown in the event at the indoor conference meet.

Abolins will still have three opportunities to earn a qualification for next month's NCAA meet. In addition to this week's meet and next week's Big 12 Championships, the six-time national meet qualifier also can appear at an NCAA Qualifier meet March 2-3. He easily surpassed the provisional qualification during each of his six indoor meets in 2006, never jumping a distance under 25 feet. The national provisional standard for 2007 is 24-7 1/4.

> NU Concludes First Road Meets of 2007
Nebraska won two events and posted seven NCAA qualifying performances during its first road weekend of the season at the Iowa State Classic in Ames, Iowa, and the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark.

Peter van der Westhuizen posted the fastest time in the indoor mile for the Husker men in more than 20 years while winning the event at Iowa State in 4:01.79, while the NU men’s 4x400-meter relay notched the program’s first NCAA provisional qualification since 2004 during a third-place finish (3:08.17).

Epley Bullock tied for second in the women's high jump by clearing 5-11 1/4 at ISU's Lied Recreation Center, which will host the 2007 Big 12 Indoor Championships in two weeks, while Jeni Steiner added her first NCAA qualification of the year in the women's shot put with an eighth-place finish (49-11).

In Arkansas, Brysun Stately came within a foot of meeting the Nebraska women’s record in the pole vault, as she reached a career-best height of 13-8 1/2, a mark that ranks among the top-five nationally.

Seth Burney added the Huskers’ lone victory in Arkansas, winning the men’s College Division pole vault with a lifetime-best 17-4 1/2 clearance. Gable Baldwin matched Burney’s team-leading height while placing sixth in the men’s Championship Division.

> Young 4x400 Hits the Mark
One of the youngest and most exciting groups on this year's Husker squad is the men's 4x400-meter relay. At times this season, NU has lined up with as many as three freshmen among the four members of its relay squad.

The relay, comprised of senior Nate Probasco and freshmen Daniel Christensen, Scott Wims and Lukas Hulett, became the first Nebraska 4x400-meter relay to earn an NCAA qualifying mark since 2004 with a time of 3:08.17 at the Iowa State Classic.

Only three NCAA teams own better times this season than Nebraska's relay: Baylor, LSU, Kentucky and Texas A&M. The mark ranks as the fifth-fastest performance in school history, as well as the No. 4-rated time on an oversized (over 200 meters) track.

The squad, which has also featured junior Andrew Pearson and freshmen Tim Grier and Nicholas Makukutu this season, is attempting to become the first Husker 4x400-meter relay to reach the NCAA Championships since the 2004 group of Pearson and former Huskers Mark Harrison, Danny Hill and Dmitrijs Milkevics earned ninth place at the NCAA indoor meet.

Nebraska currently appears in good standing to push its relay to the NCAA Championships, but it will have at least one more opportunity to post a faster time at the Big 12 indoor meet. Also look for the Huskers to eventually settle on a final team and running order. NU has fielded 12 different team combinations (members or running order) in 12 opportunities this season.

Nebraska's 2007 NCAA Indoor Qualifiers
Women
Provisional
Name - Event - Mark (NCAA rank)
Epley Bullock - High Jump - 5-11 1/2 (13th)
Kim Shubert - Pentathlon - 3,716 (37th)
Brysun Stately - Pole Vault - 13-8 1/2 (t4th)
Jeni Steiner - Shot Put - 49-11 (34th)
Zarinah Suluki-Drakes - Triple Jump - 41-10 3/4 (t21st)
Casie Witte - High Jump - 5-10 (t18th); Pentathlon - 3,791 (26th)

Men
Automatic
Name Event Mark (NCAA Rank)
Dusty Jonas - High Jump - 7-4 1/4 (4th)

Provisional
Name - Event - Mark (NCAA Rank)
Gable Baldwin - Pole Vault - 17-4 1/2 (t10th)
Seth Burney - Pole Vault - 17-4 1/2 (t10th)
Lukas Hulett - 400m - 47.03 (17th)
Nate Probasco - 200m - 21.12 (t7th)
Daniel Roper - Long Jump - 24-7 1/4 (24th); Triple Jump - 50-8 (t24th)
Ben Schutter - Heptathlon - 5,474 (9th)
Peter van der Westhuizen - Mile - 4:01.79 (17th)
Issar Yazhbin - Weight Throw - 64-8 1/2 (21st)
4x400m Relay (Probasco, Christensen, Wims, Hulett) - 3:08.17 (5th)

> Husker Continues Record Quest
Peter van der Westhuizen continued his early-season success last weekend with another standout distance performance during his win in the men's mile at the Iowa State Classic.

The Husker junior clocked a personal-best time of 4:01.79 to earn victory while continuing his ascent up the program's all-time event chart. Only two Nebraska athletes have posted faster times in the mile than van der Westhuizen: Greg Carlberg (3:59.6) in 1971 and Jean Verster (4:00.64) in 1986.

A South Africa native, van der Westhuizen has his sights set on breaking the elusive four-minute mark this season. Carlberg turned in NU's only sub-four-minute indoor mile back in 1971 with a time of 3:59.6 on an oversized track in Houston, Texas.

Van der Westhuizen will have at least one more opportunity to reach his goal in two weeks at the Big 12 indoor meet at Iowa State's Lied Recreation Center, the same facility that helped him earn his personal-best time last weekend. The 2005 Big 12 runner-up in the indoor mile, van der Westhuizen currently sits at the top of the conference in one event, and it is not the mile. His mark of 2:23.41 that he ran in the 1,000 meter at the Conference Challenge leads the Big 12 this season.

> Double the Fun
Four Huskers have experienced quick starts to the indoor season by earning NCAA qualifications in multiple events.

Casie Witte became Nebraska's first athlete to double-up this season, reaching NCAA provisional standards during consecutive weeks in the women's high jump and pentathlon at the adidas Classic and Husker Invite. Daniel Roper earned both of his qualifications in the men's long and triple jump at the Husker Invite, while Nate Probasco claimed his 200-meter dash qualifier the same weekend. Probasco added his second provisional mark at the Iowa State Classic as a member of the Huskers' 4x400-meter relay. Lukas Hulett, who opened his NU career by meeting the NCAA provisional standard in the men's 400 meters at the Holiday Inn Invite, joined Probasco on the 1,600-meter relay.

Only one Nebraska athlete has qualified for the NCAA indoor meet in multiple events during each of the last two seasons?former Huskers Sara Jane Baker (women's high jump and pentathlon) in 2006 and Priscilla Lopes (women's 60-meter dash and hurdles) in 2005. The last Husker men to earn two NCAA bids at the same meet were Dmitrijs Milkevics and Aaron Nasers in 2004, who each competed in the 800-meter run and 4x400-meter relay.

> Freshmen Driving NCAA Qualifying Efforts
Nebraska's highly-touted newcomers have already started to show off their talents in 2007. Of the 17 Huskers who have earned provisional qualifications to March's NCAA meet, five are freshmen.

Lukas Hulett, a former high school All-American from Bellevue, Neb., became the first Husker to add his name to the list when he clocked a blistering time of 47.03 while winning the men's 400-meter dash at the Holiday Inn Invite. The Nebraska prep record-holder's time is the third-fastest indoor mark all-time at NU.

Seth Burney and Epley Bullock joined Hulett with outstanding performances during the Conference Challenge. Burney became NU's 12th men's athlete all-time to break the 17-foot barrier in the pole vault with a clearance of 17-0 3/4, while Bullock tied a host of other female athletes at No. 10 on the Husker indoor high jump chart with a leap of 5-11 1/2.

Daniel Christensen (redshirt) and Scott Wims combined with Hulett and senior Nate Probasco to earn NU an NCAA qualification in the men's 4x400-meter relay last week. The squad's time was the fifth-fastest in program history, regardless of track specifications.

> Eades Making Steady Progress
Nebraska faced a stern challenge during the off-season in trying to replace former Husker great Priscilla Lopes, who turned to the professional ranks following a storied career featuring a national title in the women's 60-meter hurdles and five Big 12 championships.

Enter freshman Nikita Eades, previously a standout in the Colorado prep ranks for Littleton High School. While no one can replace Lopes, Eades has quietly pushed herself into consideration for conference honors in her first season. She claimed three straight victories in the hurdles to open her career while lowering her personal-best time during each of the first four weeks this season to her current low mark of 8.46.

Eades currently ranks fourth in the Big 12 with the time and trails the conference leader by only 0.08 seconds. The clocking also moved her into a tie for fifth place on Nebraska's all-time indoor event chart. Additionally, Eades needs to lower her time only 0.03 seconds to meet the NCAA provisional-qualifying standard.

> Yazhbin Continues Strong Comeback
One of the more welcome sights for Nebraska in the early going this season has been the exceptional weight throw performances from Issar Yazhbin, who sat out the 2006 season with a groin injury.

To tell if Yazhbin has completed a successful recovery, one must only look at his early 2007 results. He recorded personal-best spins during each of his first three meets of the season, including a high mark of 64-8 1/2 to claim victory during the adidas Classic. Yazhbin also earned his first career NCAA provisional qualification this year.

While neither of his last two performances have gone for personal-best distances, both were still well beyond his previous best mark of 61-5 that he brought into the 2007 season. Additionally, Yazhbin has continued to extend his own Israeli national record in the event, which he first set as a junior in 2005.

> Men Ranked 15th in Trackwire 25
The Nebraska men's team continued its stay in the Trackwire 25 this week, but fell from ninth into a tie for 15th with a projected NCAA point total of 13.

The Trackwire 25 attempts to predict team scores for the NCAA Championships based on individual athlete rankings for each event?nicknamed the "Dandy Dozen"?that are updated weekly by track and field statistician Gary Verigin.

After beginning the season ranked ninth, the Huskers have moved up and down between the No. 9 spot and their season-low position of 16th. One of four Big 12 teams included in the list, the Huskers join conference opponents Texas (third) and Baylor (fifth) in the top 10. Oklahoma (18th) is also listed in the top-25.

The Husker women, who began the year ranked 14th in their respective poll, went unranked for the fourth straight projection this week. Texas A&M (10th), Texas (tie-11th), Texas Tech (tie-11th) and Kansas (tie-21st) represent the Big 12 in the latest release.

Nebraska athletes among this week's "Dandy Dozen" include:
Women
Brysun Stately, Pole Vault?5th
Epley Bullock, High Jump?11th

Men
Arturs Abolins, Long Jump?4th
Dusty Jonas, High Jump?4th
Nebraska, 4x400-Meter Relay?7th
Gable Baldwin, Pole Vault?8th
Ben Schutter, Heptathlon?12th

> Huskers Keep Top-10 Coaches Rank
The Nebraska men's team again appeared among the nation's top-10 teams in this week's release of the USTFCCCA Coaches poll.

The Husker men's squad, which boasts five returning All-Americans and finished the 2006 indoor season tied for 12th at the NCAA indoor meet, was rated 10th this week following a seventh-place mention a week ago.

The NU women, also with five All-Americans, opened the year at No. 19 before falling out of the rankings two weeks ago. The complete poll can be found on page 3 of this week's Husker track & field notes.

> 73 Huskers Named to Big 12 Honor Roll
Seventy-three members of the Nebraska men's and women's track and field team were named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Fall Honor Roll, the conference office announced earlier this month. Among the group were 13 Huskers who posted perfect 4.0 grade-point averages during the past semester.

Athletes must earn a 3.0 grade-point average to qualify for the award.

Nebraska placed 39 Husker women on the honor roll, including five student-athletes with 4.0 GPA's in senior Justine Roach, junior Kim Shubert, sophomore Joslyn Dalton and freshmen Sarah Lyons and Bridget Meduna. Three former NCAA champions-seniors Ashley Selig, Dace Ruskule and Pricsilla Lopes-also appeared on the list. Selig and Sara Jane Baker, senior Ashlee Dickinson and senior Jeni Steiner each earned their ninth career academic nods.

Thirty-four members of the NU men's squad were recognized, including eight student-athletes with perfect GPA's: seniors Cassidy Kramer, Lee Martin, Aaron Plas, Nate Probasco and Issar Yazhbin; junior Ben Schutter; and freshmen D.J. Kohlhaase and Bryce Somer. Yazhbin's selection marked the sixth consecutive semester that he registered a 4.0 GPA. Former NCAA champion Dmitrijs Milkevics also earned academic recognition for the Huskers.

Overall, a total of 270 Nebraska student-athletes earned recognition on the Big 12 Fall Honor Roll, with 33 having a 4.0 semester GPA.

For a complete listing of Nebraska's academic honorees, visit Huskers.com.

> Three Men Added to Roster at Semester
The Husker men's squad added three freshmen athletes to its 2007 roster this week following the start of second semester classes?Dax Danns (Lemon Grove, Calif.), Erwin Schmidt (Benoni, South Africa) and Cylend Simmons (Mesa, Ariz).

Danns, a sprints prospect out of Helix High School, arrives at Nebraska boasting solid personal-best times of 10.60 in the 100-meter dash, 21.21 in the 200 and 48.44 in the 400. A native of Guyana, both of Danns' 100 and 200 marks rank as national junior records. He finished fourth place in both events as a junior at the 2005 California state meet. Danns currently leads the Husker men's team with a time of 6.79 in the 60 meters.

Simmons will join Nebraska's hurdles crew following an outstanding prep career at Mesa Westwood High School. He set the all-time Arizona state record of 37.01 while winning the 300-meter hurdles at the Arizona Meet of Champions last spring. Simmons was named the Gatorade Boy's Athlete of the Year for Arizona in 2006 and also owns a personal-best time of 14.26 in the 110-meter hurdles.

Schmidt brings outstanding potential from South Africa in the 800-meter run, as he owns a personal-best time of 1:49.75. The mark ranked third among all South African junior athletes for 2006.

> Nine All-Americans Return in 2007
Nebraska returns four women's and five men's athletes for the 2007 season who have combined to earn 19 NCAA All-America honors during their outstanding careers.

Leading the pack is senior Ashley Selig, who has registered five of the awards, including the 2004 NCAA indoor championship in the pentathlon. NU returns a second national champion in senior Dace Ruskule, who won the NCAA outdoor discus title last season, while senior Kayla Wilkinson (javelin) and junior Jenny Green (pole vault) also will compete for further accolades this season. Only Green will compete during the 2007 indoor season.

Nebraska brought in a fifth women's All-American to join the squad during the offseason in sophomore Brysun Stately, who placed sixth in the pole vault at the 2006 NCAA outdoor meet.

Senior Arturs Abolins, a two-time national champion in the long jump, leads the men's squad into the season, while junior Dusty Jonas, a four-time All-American in the high jump, also returns. Two-time All-American Nate Probasco will be the Huskers' leader in the sprints during his senior campaign. Gable Baldwin (pole vault) and Daniel Roper (triple jump), each one-time honorees, also will compete in their finals seasons as Huskers.

> NU Boasts Heralded Freshman Classes
A pair of incoming classes ranked among the nation's top 10 by Track & Field News magazine will aid both Husker men's and women's teams in their championship drives during the 2007 season.

The women's class, ranked No. 4 nationally by Track & Field News, will help fill the holes created by the loss of a 2006 senior class that accounted for three individual NCAA titles and 21 All-America finishes.

The group, which was highlighted with signings by former high school All-Americans Brysun Stately and Epley Bullock, along with international combined events prospects Gy?rgyi Farkas and Megan Wheatley, was NU's first-ever top-five ranked class.

While the Husker men lost 10 All-America finishes with members of its 2006 senior class, this season's group of newcomers earned one of the program's highest rankings ever by the famed track and field publication with a No. 8 rating.

The class featured the signings of former high school All-Americans Seth Burney, Tim Grier, Lukas Hulett, Nicholas Makukutu and Scott Wims.

> Pepin in 27th Season at Husker Helm
Nebraska Head Coach Gary Pepin is in his 27th year guiding the Husker women’s team and 24th year coaching the NU men's squad. Pepin is only one season shy of former Husker coach Frank Sevigne as the longest-tenured track and field coach in school history. Sevigne logged 28 seasons leading the NU men’s program from 1956 through 1983.

Pepin has helped the Husker women combine for 38 of their 40 conference titles, while also notching 20 of the program’s 21 top-five NCAA team finishes, including each of Nebraska’s three indoor national championships.

Pepin has led the men's team to 25 of its 57 indoor and outdoor conference crowns, while also notching two NCAA top-five placings. The Huskers' second-place finish at the 1996 NCAA Indoor Championships ranks as the squad's highest at an NCAA meet.

> Huskers to Host Full Home Schedule
Nebraska will host one of its most extensive series of home meets in recent memory during the 2007 season. In addition to scheduling four home competitions at the Devaney Center Indoor Track, the Huskers have three outdoor meets planned for Ed Weir Stadium.

The indoor schedule stacks up much the same as it has over recent years, with the Huskers hosting four straight home meets to open the season?the Holiday Inn Invitational, the Conference Challenge and the adidas Classic. The always high-profile Frank Sevigne Husker Invitational will conclude the stretch Feb. 2-3.

Outdoors, the Huskers will host three meets for the first time since 2003, all during a three-week period. The Nebraska Open will be held on Sunday, April 29, the same weekend as the Drake and Penn Relays, with the Nebraska Invitational the following week. The Big 12 Outdoor Championships come to Ed Weir Stadium for the first time in the conference’s 11-year existence the weekend of May 11-13.