Dons Head to Stanford's Cardinal Classic

4/20/2017 7:04:00 PM | Track and Field

Follow USF Athletics on Facebook Follow USF Athletics on Twitter Follow USF Athletics on Instagram

STANFORD, Calif. – The San Francisco track and field team embarks on what should be another excellent weekend at Cobb Track and Angell Field at Stanford's Cardinal Classic.

In its second year with a new name and expanded two-day format, 22 schools will be represented in the field. The venue, Cobb Track and Angell Field, is known as an exceptional venue for fast running. No track in the country contributes more NCAA prelim qualifying marks or collegiate-leading marks in the distance events than Cobb Track and Angell Field.

The Dons have enjoyed immense success at Stanford with eight current records on the books for USF set in the South Bay locale. Four of the eight benchmarks were achieved on March 31 as the Stanford Invitational (Hugh Nicklason – 1,500 m; Weronika Pyzik – 5,000 m; Alex Short and Charlotte Taylor – 10, 000 m).

What 2 Watch 4

There are many races involving the Dons to keep an eye on throughout the weekend. USF's Weronika Pyzik and Tatjana Schulte will go against a loaded field with multiple All-Americans and previous NCAA indoor finalists in the 5,000 meters. Alex Short will toe the line in the 5K, his first outdoor race at the distance after qualifying for the NCAA Indoor Championships.

In the 1,500 meters, Hugh Nicklason is coming off back-to-back school record-setting outings, and Edward Shepherd is debuting in the distance. For the women, Charlotte Taylor is taking to the track for the first time in the 1,500 and Elena Burkard's No. 2 all-time mark was set at Stanford.

Quotable

"We are very much looking forward to competing at the Cardinal Classic this weekend. The competition is phenomenal and we are excited about yet another opportunity for us to not only run a bit faster than the last time here but also take a run at adding more NCAA qualifiers to our list." – USF head coach Helen Lehman-Winters

USF Schedule of Events - #watchUSFly

Friday:
    2 p.m. – Javelin (M) – Katoa Ahau
    6:28 p.m. – 800 m (M) – Cristian Monsalud (Sec. 4)
    6:32 p.m. – 800 m (W) – Emma Stahr
    6:59 p.m. – 200 m (W) – Skylar Fenton (Sec. 1), Asaundra Dalton (Sec. 2), Amy Glaser (Sec. 3)
    7:11 p.m. – 200 m (M) – Chase Midyett (Sec. 1)
    7:28 p.m. – 5,000 m (W) - Magdalena Dias, Daryl Phill, Frederique Latraverse, Kelsey Nielsen, Ashley Moffett (Sec. 2)
    7:47 p.m. – 5,000 m (M) –Ben Alcock, Caleb McClain (Sec. 2)
    8:03 p.m. – 5,000 m (W) – Weronika Pyzik, Tatjana Schulte (Sec. 1)
    8:22 p.m. – 5,000 m (M) – Alex Short (Sec. 1)

Saturday:
    4:59 p.m. – 3,000 m SC (M) – Mohamed Aziz
    5:36 p.m. – 400 m (W) – Amy Glaser (Sec. 2)
    5:44 p.m. – 400 m (M) – Chase Midyett (Sec. 1)
    5:58 p.m. – 100 m (W) – Skylar Fenton (Sec. 1), Asaundra Dalton (Sec. 2)
    6:30 p.m. – 1,500 m (M) – Cristian Monsalud (Sec. 4)
    6:36 p.m. – 1,500 m (W) – Emma Stahr (Sec. 3)
    6:43 p.m. – 1,500 m (M) – Ryan Driscoll (Sec. 3)
    6:49 p.m. – 1,500 m (W) – Charlotte Taylor (Sec. 2)
    6:56 p.m. – 1,500 m (M) – Edward Shepherd (Sec. 2)
    7:02 p.m. – 1,500 m (W) – Elena Burkard, Marie Bouchard (Sec. 1)
    7:09 p.m. – 1,500 m (M) – Hugh Nicklason (Sec. 1)

Media Coverage

The Cardinal Classic will be streamed on FloTrack, with coverage beginning at 6 p.m. on Friday. Live results can be accessed throughout the meet here.

Dons in the Rankings

The USF women are ranked 33rd nationally, and 21st in the West Region in the Week 3 polls. Charlotte Taylor (10K), Weronika Pyzik (5K) and Isabelle Brauer (10K) are earning points for the Dons. On the men's side, the Dons are standing at 20th in the West Region with Hugh Nicklason, Ryan Driscoll and Alex Short each earning points for USF.

NCAA Qualifying

The Dons currently have 11 marks in the top 48 in the West Region, the threshold of qualifiers per event to make it into the NCAA Championship field. USF's Charlotte Taylor rates as the fastest 10K runner in the West with a mark of 32:11.80 set at the Stanford Invitational, with teammate Isabelle Brauer with the No. 5 time in the distance event. On the men's side, Alex Short's 10K race at Stanford ranks fifth after he crossed the line in a USF-record time of 28:46.83. USF's current times within the top 48 are:
        800 m (M): Hugh Nicklason – 1:50.17 (34th)
        1,500 m (M): Hugh Nicklason – 3:43.01 (20th)
        1,500 m (W): Elena Burkard – 4:17.76 (16th); Weronika Pyzik – 4:23.55 (40th); Marie Bouchard – 4:24.50 (48th)
        5,000 m (W): Weronika Pyzik – 15:59.00 (15th)
        10,000 m (M): Alex Short – 28:46.83 (5th)
        10,000 m (W): Charlotte Taylor – 32:11.80 (1st); Isabelle Brauer – 33:44.11 (5th)
        3,000 m SC (M): Ryan Driscoll – 8:56.99 (25th); Mohamed Aziz – 8:57.77 (26th)

On the Horizon

The Dons are slated to compete at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia and the Brutus Hamilton Open in Berkeley the weekend of April 27-29.