Storm men take home MVP, Coaching Staff of the Year honors, place third at IIACs
STORM LAKE, Iowa - Isaac Frazier earned Field MVP honors, head coach Dave Cleveland and his staff shared the Coaching Staff of the Year award and the Simpson men's track and field team took home two conference titles to place third on the final day of the Iowa Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships at Lamberti Recreation Center.
Simpson came out on top of a three-team race for third, scoring 100 points to edge Loras (99.5) and Dubuque (98.5). The third-place finish matches the program's best since also taking third in 2010 and its 100 points are the most by a Storm team at the indoor championships.
Frazier won the heptathlon, placed second in the 60-meter hurdles and the high jump and came in fourth in the triple jump, accounting for 31 of the team's points. He is the first IIAC Indoor Field MVP in school history.
The Storm's 11th-year head coach, Cleveland becomes just the fourth IIAC Track and Field Coach of the Year in school history and first since Keith Ellingson in 1987. It is Cleveland's second coach of the year honor, adding to his 2008 accolade following the women's indoor championship.
Emmitt Wheatley made a splash in his first IIAC Championship, winning the 200 and taking third in the 60. Combined with a win in the 4x200 on Friday, Simpson closed the weekend with three IIAC titles.
The 4x800-meter relay team of Kyle Hovey, Ian McKenzie, Salem Hildebrandt and Trevor McKee set a new school record while placing third.
Highlights
• Isaac Frazier had himself a day, earning all-conference honors in three events, narrowly missing another and capturing an Iowa Conference title. The junior won the heptathlon with 4,654 points, currently the No. 8 effort in Division III. Frazier pieced together a well-rounded effort, winning the high jump and placing second in both the 60 hurdles and long jump for his first IIAC Championship. He added a surprising second-place finish in the 60 hurdles, running 8.40 after entering the race with the No. 7 qualifying time. He also placed second in the high jump, clearing 6-feet, 6-inches on his third attempt after two misses. He just missed all-conference honors in the triple jump, coming in fourth (43-8 1/2).
• The Storm's youthful sprinters dominated the 200 meters, led by freshman sensation Emmitt Wheatley. Wheatley won the event, crossing the finish line in 22.58 seconds, the No. 3 time in school history. Sophomores Dylan Kalinay and Travis Tupper took third and sixth, respectively. Kalinay ran 22.62 and Tupper placed sixth (22.86). All three runners posted career bests.
• Dylan Kalinay, who had the No. 2 qualifying time in the 60 hurdles, matched last year's performance with a fourth-place finish (8.53).
• The 4x800-meter relay team of Kyle Hovey, Ian McKenzie, Salem Hildebrandt and Trevor McKee took home all-conference honors with a third-place finish, setting a school record by finishing in 7:58.86. The quartet topped the old school record by more than 5 seconds.
• Wheatley added a second all-conference performance in the 60-meter dash, placing third in 7.05. Tupper gave Simpson a team point with an eighth-place finish (7.20).
• Ian McKenzie came in fifth in the Mile, running 4:23.14.
Top Performers
60 meters – 3. Emmitt Wheatley, 7.05; 8. Travis Tupper, 7.20
200 meters – 1. Emmitt Wheatley, 22.58; 3. Dylan Kalinay, 22.62; 6. Travis Tupper, 22.86
400 meters – 12. Jordan Coughenour, 52.35
800 meters – 18. Nick Kibby, 2:12.68
Mile – 5. Ian McKenzie, 4:23.14
3,000 meters – 9. Nick Yaeger, 9:06.42
60 hurdles – 2. Isaac Frazier, 8.40; 4. Dylan Kalinay, 8.53
4x400 relay – 4. Kirk Wicks, Prince Krah, Matt Pearson, Chase Wetterling, 3:25.44
4x800 relay – 3. Kyle Hovey, Ian McKenzie, Salem Hildebrandt, Trevor McKee, 7:58.86 (SR)
Triple jump – 4. Isaac Frazier, 43-8 1/2
High jump – 2. Isaac Frazier, 6-6
Heptathlon – 1. Isaac Frazier, 4,654
Team Standings
1. Central, 148; 2. Wartburg, 127.50; 3. Simpson, 100; 4. Loras, 99; 5. Dubuque, 98.50; 6. Coe, 65; 7. Buena Vista, 55; 8. Luther, 48
