2004 Women's
Track and Field Outlook
The University of Southern Indiana women’s track and field team
heads into the 2004 indoor and outdoor seasons on the heals of a ninth place
finish in the 2003 NCAA II Outdoor National Championships. The Screaming Eagles
came away with four All-America performances as they recorded their best finish
at the NCAA II Championships in team-history.
Leading the Eagles into 2004 is sophomore distance runner Heather Cooksey
(Brownsburg, Indiana) and sophomore high jumper Abby Boberg (Bicknell,
Indiana).
Cooksey earned two All-America honors as a freshman last season after finishing
second in both the 3,000 and 5,000 meters at the NCAA II Outdoor Championships.
Last season’s GLVC “Freshman of the Year” in cross country as well as indoor and
outdoor track, Cooksey set four school records and two GLVC meet records, while
winning three conference titles.
Boberg also made an immediate impact for the Eagles as a freshman in 2003,
earning All-America honors in the high jump during the indoor season and
qualifying for nationals in the high jump during the outdoor season.
In 2004, Boberg and Cooksey will be surrounded by one of USI’s finest groups of
competitors in the program’s history.
Jumpers
A year ago, the Eagles dominated the GLVC in the high jump, landing Boberg and
former USI jumper Ashleigh Griechen in the top two spots during the outdoor
season.
Boberg will be the conference favorite to repeat in both the indoor and outdoor
season, but she will have competition from new teammate Molly Gilland
(Osgood, Indiana). Gilland, a freshman from Jac-Cen-Del High School, earned
second-team All-State honors as a senior in 2003 after finishing fourth in the
high jump at the IHSAA Track and Field Championships with a mark of five feet,
six inches.
In addition to the high jump, USI could be strong in the long jump and triple
jump in 2004.
Freshman long jumper Candace Perry (Anderson, Indiana) is expected to
have an immediate impact for the Eagles in 2004. Perry, who did not compete
during her first year at USI, finished third at the 2001 IHSAA Track and Field
Championships in the long jump with a mark of 18 feet, 7 ½ inches.
Red-shirt freshman triple jumper Erin Kutcosky (West Frankfort, Illinois)
placed sixth at the 2002 Illinois Class A State meet with a jump of 36 feet, six
inches. Kutcosky also is expected to compete in the open 400 meters as well as
USI’s 4x400-meter relay team.
Sprinters
In addition to Kutcosky, USI will lean heavily on freshmen Natalie Clark
(Newburgh, Indiana) and Lauren Johnson (Carmel, Indiana) to carry its
sprinting load. Clark is expected to anchor USI’s 4x400-meter relay team and
could compete for a GLVC championship in the open 400 meters. She also will run
the 100 and 200 meters.
Clark helped Castle High School’s 4x400-meter relay team to a ninth-place finish
at the 2003 IHSAA Championships and has a top 400-meter time of 57 seconds.
Johnson helped Carmel High School to a pair of second place finishes in the
4x800-meter relay and the 4x400-meter relay at the 2003 IHSAA Championships.
In addition to Clark and Johnson, USI’s 4x400-meter relay team also will include
sophomore Sunny Hipple (Corydon, Indiana). Hipple earned All-GLVC honors
during the indoor season after helping USI’s distance medley relay team to the
GLVC Indoor championship and a meet record.
Middle Distance
Not only is Cooksey one of the nation’s premier distance runners, she also holds
the GLVC record in the indoor mile. Cooksey won the GLVC championship and
qualified for nationals in the indoor mile last season. She will run the mile,
once again, in 2004 as she prepares herself for the 3,000 and 5,000 meters
during the outdoor season.
In addition to Cooksey, Hipple will see action in the middle distance races,
particularly in the 800 meters. Last season, Hipple ran the 800-meter leg for
USI’s distance medley relay team. In addition to the 400 and 800 meters, Hipple
competed in the 600 meters and the 1,000 meters during the indoor season.
Freshman Lindsey Miller (New Castle, Indiana), who won North Central
Conference and sectional titles in the 800 meters, will compete in the 800
meters, the mile, and on USI’s distance medley relay team. She finished 17th in
the 800 meters at the IHSAA Championships with a time of 2:21.23.
Distance
USI’s strongest group of competitors should be its distance team.
Along with Cooksey, junior Casey Schneider (New Salisbury, Indiana) and
freshman Missy Burgin (Sellersburg, Indiana) should be a force,
particularly during the outdoor season.
Schneider, who battled through injury last season and illness during the fall
cross country campaign, is healthy and in great shape entering the 2004 indoor
season. She will be striving for an NCAA qualifying time in the indoor 5,000
meters.
A two-time GLVC champion, Schneider holds the school record in the 10,000 meters
and is looking to get back to nationals for the first time since 2001 when she
qualified for the outdoor championships in the 10,000 meters. She earned
All-Conference and All-Region for the second straight season in cross country
this past fall.
In the fall, Burgin became USI’s second straight GLVC “Freshman of the Year”
performer after finishing ninth at the GLVC Cross Country Championship. Burgin
is expected to compete in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters during the indoor and
outdoor seasons.
Sophomore Laura Helhowski (Hebron, Indiana) also is expected to make an
impact for the Eagles in 2004. Helhowski finished 11th at the GLVC Cross Country
Championships this past fall after red-shirting during the track and field
season last year. She is expected to compete in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters
during the indoor season and the 10,000 meters during the outdoor season.
