Oilers Will Be Well Represented at National Championship
The University of Findlay men's and women's outdoor track and field teams will be well represented at the 2012 NCAA Division II National Championship, which is scheduled to take place on May 24-26 in Pueblo, Colo.
The men's team, who is ranked tenth in the nation, will send ten individuals to the event while the women's squad, ranked 22nd nationally, will send two.
On the men's side, senior Derrick Vicars will lead the way as he was selected to compete in three events.
Vicars, an outdoor national champion in the discus during the 2010 season, will look for his second title in the event as he heads into the meet ranked fifth with a mark of 55.35 meters.
The Genoa, Ohio native will also compete in the shot put (19.43m) and hammer throw (66.04m), where he is ranked second and fourth, respectively, in the nation.
Vicars, who was named both the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Indoor and Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year during the 2011-12 campaign, won a conference title in the shot put during both seasons as a senior and is a six-time NCAA Division II All-American.
Senior John Guagenti will also compete in multiple events for the Oilers at the outdoor championship as he is slated to run in the 400-meter dash and 4x400-meter relay.
Guagenti, who earned both the GLIAC Indoor and Outdoor Running Athlete of the Year awards during the 2011-12 campaign, enters the meet ranked third in the 400 at 46.39.
He will also team with senior Curtis Smithey and freshmen Michael Travis and Dillon Webster in the relay event as they earned the fifth-seed with a time of 3:10.74.
During his career, Guagenti has been named All-American seven times.
Smithey is no stranger to the national stage as he has earned All-American honors seven times during his tenure with the Oilers while Webster was a part of the Oilers All-American 4x400-meter relay team during the indoor season.
Junior Darren Bass, sophomore Taylor Miller and seniors Cory Vales and Cody Crockett also earned the right to compete in their respective events at the national championship.
Bass will enter the meet ranked sixth in the shot put at 17.63 meters while Miller will also compete in the event and is ranked tenth at 17.41 meters.
Vales, a two-time All-American, is ranked 12th in the high jump at 2.13 meters while Crockett is also sitting in the 12th position in the javelin at 63.26 meters.
Freshman Glen Forsythe rounds out the Oilers competitors at the national championship as he will compete in the triple jump and will be seeded 16th at 15.08 meters.
On the women's side, junior Jessica Rowland leads the way as she is prepared to compete in three events at the championship.
Rowland is ranked second in the hammer throw at 61.49 meters, 11th in the discus with a mark of 48.84 meters and 14th in the shot put at 14.61 meters.
The Germantown, Ohio native earned All-American honors during the indoor season in the weight throw and will be looking to make an impact at the outdoor championship as well.
Additionally, senior Raven Clay will compete in the 100-meter hurdles at the meet where she is ranked second with a time of 13.29.
Clay, who was named the GLIAC Running Athlete of the Year during the outdoor season, won a national championship in the 60-meter hurdles during the indoor season and has been named All-American eight times during her career with the Oilers.
The Detroit, Mich., native has earned multiple league and regional honors during her tenure at Findlay and will be looking to close her career on a high note at the championship event.
An eight-time league champion, Clay was tabbed the 2009 GLIAC Freshman of the Year in both the indoor and outdoor competitions and has been selected as the GLIAC Running Athlete of the Year three times.
For a complete list of national qualifiers, please click on the links below: