@CanesTrack Opens Indoors At Penn State
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – The University of Miami track and field program will open its 2016 indoor season Saturday at the Nittany Lion Challenge
After training all fall, Miami director of track and field/cross country Amy Deem and her student-athletes are excited for the start of the 2016 season.
“Beginning our indoor season at Penn State gives us an opportunity to put all the hard work from fall training to the test,” Deem said. “The team has prepared extremely well and I, as well as our coaching staff, am excited to see how we handle competition.”
The Nittany Lion Challenge is set to begin at 10:30 a.m. ET with the women’s weight throw, while the mixed mile run will open the running events at 11:45 a.m. ET. The Nittany Lion Challenge will be held at the Ashenfelter Indoor Track on the Penn State campus.
Miami features a talented and deep roster heading into the 2016 season. The women’s team was ranked No. 17 in the USTFCCCA Preseason National Team Computer Rankings, while the men’s team features several talented returners and an influx of newcomers expected to contribute.
“We have a nice mix of young and old and I am looking for our more experienced athletes to step up and lead this team,” Deem said.”
All-American Shakima Wimbley leads the Hurricane women. The junior, who ran the fifth-fastest 200m a year ago (23.08) and the fourth-best 400m time (51.82), will open up the 2016 season in the 200m. Wimbley, who was the ACC Indoor Champion in the 200m and was All-ACC First Team in both the 200m and 400m, represented Miami at the NCAA Indoor Championships. As a sophomore, she earned Second Team Indoor All-America Honors in both the 400m and the 4x400m relay.
Miami will also showcase hurdlers Stefani Kerrison, Ebony Morrison, Jamika Glades and Samantha Gonzalez, while sprinters Anna Runia, Carolyn Brown, Aiyanna Stiverne, Brittny Ellis and Anthonia Moore will compete for the first time this season.
In the field events, the Hurricane women will look to seniors Tiffany Okieme and Dakota Dailey-Harris to lead the way. Okieme finished the indoor season with the fifth-best mark in the weight throw, while Dailey-Harris had the 29th-best high jump in the country a year ago.
Miami brings back 2014 First Team Indoor All-American Alysha Newman in the pole vault. Newman, who redshirted during the 2015 indoor season, was the bronze medalist at the 2014 ACC indoor Championships and earned First Team All-ACC honors. She also placed seventh in the women’s pole vault at the 2014 NCAA Indoor Championships, earning All-America honors.
Sophomore multi-event athlete Amy Taintor will compete in the hurdles, long jump and shot put, while newcomers Taylor Gunn and Zakiya Rashid will make their Miami debuts in the throws.
On the men’s side, sophomore Henri Delauze will lead Miami’s sprinters in the 200m, while freshman Isaiah Taylor will make his Miami debut in the 60 m. The Canes also have seniors Anthony Wolliston, TeQuille Jackson and Joseph Ryan bringing experience in the sprints and hurdles.
The field events should feature several Hurricanes poised for success. Senior John-Patrick Friday and sophomore David Njoku make up a formidable tandem in the jumps. Friday was All-ACC a year ago in the high jump, long jump and triple jump, while Njoku was second team All-ACC in the high jump a year ago.
The Canes also feature a talented trio of throwers led by junior Carlos Mangum, whom was second team All-ACC in the weight throw a year ago and holds Miami’s weight throw school record. Fellow junior Gian Piero Ragonesi and redshirt sophomore Daniel Polinski are also accomplished throwers. Ragonesi was All-ACC Indoor in the shot put as a freshman in 2014, while Polinski is a talented shot putter that placed fifth at the Nittany Lion Challenge a year ago.
Following this weekend’s action in Pennsylvania, the Hurricanes will travel to Lexington, Ky., for the Rod McCravy Memorial Meet on January 22-23.
Miami Entries
Men
60m: Isaiah Taylor
200m: Henri Delauze, Anthony Wolliston, TeQuille Jackson, Joseph Ryan
400m: Ibrahim Dodo
600m: Zack Garland, Tom Gassner
1 Mile: Sean Grossman
3000m: Sean Grossman
60m HH: TeQuille Jackson
4x400m: Henri Delauze, Anthony Wolliston, Joseph Ryan, Zack Garland, Ibrahim Dodo
High Jump: John-Patrick Friday, David Njoku
Long Jump: John-Patrick Friday
Pole Vault: Nick Catchur
Shot Put: Gian Piero Ragonesi, Daniel Polinski
Weight Throw: Carlos Mangum, Gian Piero Ragonesi
Women
60m: Anna Runia, Carolyn Brown
200m: Shakima Wimbley, Aiyanna Stiverne, Brittny Ellis, Ebony Morrison, Anthonia Moore, Anna Runia
600m: Anne Den Otter
1 Mile: Anne Den Otter
60m HH: Ebony Morrison, Stefani Kerrison, Jamika Glades, Samantha Gonzalez, Amy Taintor
4x400m: Shakima Wimbley, Samantha Gonzalez, Anthonia Moore, Amy Taintor, Anna Runia, Aiyanna Stiverne, Brittny Ellis, Jamika Glades, Carolyn Brown, Erin Ford
High Jump: Dakota Dailey-Harris, Kyra Maryland
Long Jump: Amy Taintor
Triple Jump: Alexis Wright, Niara Hill
Pole Vault: Alysha Newman
Shot Put: Zakiya Rashid, Tiffany Okieme, Taylor Gunn, Amy Taintor
Weight Throw: Tiffany Okieme, Taylor Gunn, Zakiya Rashid
For all the latest information on the Miami Hurricanes, follow the official Twitter feed, @MiamiHurricanes, or “Like Us” on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/MiamiHurricanes. Follow @CanesTrack on Twitter for specific news on UM track and field and cross country. The program is also on Instagram.
