Four norse qualify for national outdoor track championships
May 18, 2009
Decorah, Iowa – Four Luther College women’s track and field athletes have qualified for the NCAA Division III National Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Marietta College, located in Marietta, Ohio, will host the three-day championships May 21-23.
Janet Dobyns and Katie Dolan will compete in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Dani Meirick will compete in the 800 meter run, and Lauren Boleen will compete in the javelin.
Dobyns, a 2005 graduate of Iowa City West High School, and Dolan, a 2006 graduate of Wayzata High School (MN), both earned qualifying marks at the Gregory Invitational hosted by North Central College in Naperville, Ill., May 15. Dobyns posted a qualifying time of 10:48.78. Dolan posted a time of 10:49.56. Nineteen athletes will compete in the 3,000 steeplechase final that will be held on Friday, May 22 at 5:35 p.m.
Meirick, a 2008 graduate of Pella Community High School, qualified in the 800 with a school record time of 2:13.30. She posted this time at the NCAA Qualifier hosted by the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse on May 14. Meirick broke the nine-year record of 2:13.60 set by Morgen Ellerbusch in 2000. The 800 meter field of 19 will be trimmed to nine finalists on Friday, May 22 at 4:55 p.m. The finals will be run on Saturday, May 23 at 3:00 p.m.
Boleen, a 2007 graduate of Monticello High School (MN) qualified in the javelin with a throw of 137-00 feet at the Iowa Conference Championships and matched that distance at the NCAA Qualifier hosted by La Crosse. The javelin final be held Thursday, May 21 at 1:00 p.m. Boleen was crowned the conference champion in this event for the first time of her career.
Dobyns will be the only athlete of the four who will be making a second appearance at the outdoor national championships. Dobyns qualified for the 5,000 meter run and the 3,000 steeplechase in 2007.
To earn All-American honors, an athlete must place in the top eight of their respective event at the national championships
The complete schedule for the national championships plus results can be found on the Marietta College web site at http://pioneers.marietta.edu/track/09championships.
