University of Arizona Athletics

Fast Forward: Arizona will head to Southern California April 20-21 for the Mt. SAC Relays. The previously scheduled Arizona Elite Classic, April 20-21, has been cancelled for this season.

Rewind: Junior Brianna Glenn dominated the 100m at the Texas Relays for the second straight season, this year capturing the Invitational 100m title in 11.21w. Her time set a Myers Stadium record and is a PB for her, although wind-aided. Freshman Amy Linnen and senior Andrea Dutoit finished 2-3, 1-2 collegiality, in the pole vault, both clearing 13-5 1/4 (4.10m), the NCAA auto standard. The men’s 4x400m relay team of Matt Lea, Keith Varga, Jules Doumbya and Mike Kenyon finished fourth in the invitational 4x400m, running 3:07.74, the seventh-best time in school history.

Breeze: Junior Brianna Glenn returns as one of the most versatile athletes in NCAA Division I track and field. Last year, she earned three All-America honors in the indoor 60m and long jump and outdoor 100m. She also reeled off school records in the indoor 60m, 200m and long jump and the outdoor 100m, long jump and was a member of the 4x100m relay team. Glenn broke her own school 100m record several times throughout the season, finally running a PR of 11.33 in the semifinals of the NCAA Championships in Durham, N.C. Earlier in the year, she ran 11.24w to win the Texas Relays 100m title. During the summer, Glenn continued her improvements, hitting the sand with a long jump record of 21-10 (6.65m) at a Pre-Olympic Trial meet in Flagstaff, Ariz. At the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials, Glenn finished 11th in the finals of the long jump and was 12th in the semis of the 100m in Sacramento. Her long jump record was the eighth best mark in the U.S. last year, the best mark of any collegiate athlete, and it is No. 5 in Pac-10 history. She also earned All-Pac-10 first team and GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-District VIII second team honors. This year she has continued her elite performances during the indoor season. She ran the No. 2 collegiate time this season in the 60m, 7.26, at the Iowa State Last Chance meet. At the 2001 NCAA Indoor Championships, Glenn finished third in the 60m (7.35) and fourth in the long jump (21-1 1/4, 6.43m), earning All-America finished in both. She began the 2001 outdoor season with an NCAA provisional time of 11.41 at the Willie Williams Classic. She won three events at the Jim Click Shootout, bring home the 100m (11.48), 200m (23.59) and long jump (21-0, 6.40m) titles. Glenn again dominated the 100m field at the Texas Relays, winning the Invitational 100m in 11.21w. Her time is the fastest time run by a U.S. woman this year.

Chaplin Chatter: Four-time All-American Tara Chaplin has been one of the top female distance runners in the nation over the past three seasons. The junior has shown again this year that she will continue to hold that position, finishing second in the 5,000m at the NCAA Indoor Championships and then running her No. 2 outdoor 5,000m time early in the season. At the Stanford Invitational, March 30, Chaplin ran 16:12.53, just off her outdoor PR of 16:11.73, which she ran at Stanford last May. Chaplin, a Montpelier, Vt., native won the 2000 Pac-10 Cross Country Championship and was the 1999 Pac-10 5,000m winner as a freshman.

Running Rori: Senior Rori Kelly broke out with a career-best time of 13.62 in the 100m high hurdles at the end of the 2000 season. That time quickly fell as she ran 13.49, the No. 4 time in school history, to win the Jim Click Shootout title in the event. Her time is also an NCAA provisional qualifier. Kelly also tried her hand in the 400m low hurdles, running 66.79, at the Jim Click Shootout.

Grand Kenyon: Arizona senior Mike Kenyon made a name for himself last season in his first year as a Wildcat after transferring from Cal State-Sacramento. He ran the second-fastest time in school outdoor history, 45.78. That time also qualified him for the NCAA Outdoor Championships. This year, however, he is writing his name permanently into the school record books. After running 47.16 on Feb. 10 in Cannon IV Classic in Indianapolis to set the school record, Kenyon ran 46.56 in Flagstaff on Feb. 16, a strong NCAA provisional qualifier. The following week, he won the 400m title at the MPSF Championships in Flagstaff. Kenyon advanced to the NCAA Indoor Championships where he finished fourth in his heat and 11th overall, earning All-America honors. He also ran a very fast leg on the 4x400m relay, helping it finish fourth in school record time, 3:06.50. Kenyon opened his outdoor season with a NCAA provisional time of 46.15 to win the event at the Willie Williams Classic. Kenyon then ran 45.97, another provisional time, to easily win the 400m at the Jim Click Shootout.

Smart Vault: One would have to ask, how smart can a person be if they propel themselves into the air on a fiberglass pole, risking life and limb to clear a bar? When talking about Arizona senior Andrea Dutoit, the answer is very smart. Dutoit, who was formerly Andrea Neary before marrying former Wildcat pole vaulter Jeff Dutoit during the summer of 2000, was an indoor and outdoor All-American last year, and earned Academic All-America honors with a 4.0 grade point average in physiological sciences. She was an Academic All-Pac-10 selection and was named the 2000 Raytheon Female Athlete of the Year for her work in the classroom and athletically. She cleared 13-1 1/2 (4.00m) twice in 2000 -- at the Jim Click Shootout and the NCAA Championships. She also qualified for and competed at the Olympic Trials, although she did not clear a height. In her first competition of the 2001 indoor season, Dutoit shattered the school record, clearing 13-5 1/4 (4.10m) at the Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nev. That mark is the No. 3 performance overall, No. 2 indoors, in Pacific-10 Conference history. She then tied the school record with a win in the vault at the UA-ASU-NAU dual meet in Flagstaff Feb. 16. She came through at the NCAA Indoor Championships, finishing tied for second with UCLA’s Tracy O’Hara at 13-9 1/4 (4.20m), a new school record. It took a collegiate record, 14-9 1/2 (4.51m) by Georgia’s Thorey Elisdottir, to beat Dutoit. She began her outdoor meet with another auto qualifier and school record, 13-5 1/4 (4.10m) at the Willie Williams Classic on March 16. She reached that height again at the Texas Relays, finishing third, second collegiately.

Banken’s Back: Arizona senior Christian Banken was held back the past two years from the potential he showed in the javelin as a freshman in 1998. That year, the Norwegian threw 226-2, the fifth-best throw in school history, and qualified for the NCAA Championships. However, knee injuries slowed him the past two seasons and he did not throw as well. This year he is fully healthy and it has shown early in the season. At the Willie Williams Classic, he uncorked a collegiate PB of 228-6 (69.64m), a strong NCAA provisional qualifier. His throw is also fifth-best in school history.

Fab Frosh: The Wildcats already had a slew of talented women’s pole vaulters before Amy Linnen came to Tucson as a freshman this year. As a senior at Mt. Siani (N.Y.) High School, Linnen was the No. 1 prep vaulter and she has continued her progress this year. She opened her season with 12-7 1/2 (3.85m) and 12-8 (3.86m) performances and then broke the 13-foot mark with a 13-1 3/4 (4.01m) Feb. 16 in Flagstaff. The following weekend in Flagstaff, she finished second at the MPSF Championships with a vault of 13-2 1/2 (4.03m). At the NCAA Indoor Championships, she really took off, finishing fifth at 13-9 1/4 (4.20m). That mark ties her for third best collegiality this year and ties her with senior Andrea Dutoit for the school indoor record. Linnen missed the first four weeks of the outdoor season with a laceration on her hand, but came back in impressive fashion, finishing second at the Texas Relays with a clearance at 13-5 1/4 (4.10m), the NCAA auto standard.

Finding Foster: The Arizona women’s team received a bolster over the Christmas holidays when junior Angela Foster enrolled in school. She became the NJCAA national record holder in the hammer at Moorpark College in Southern California last year, but she signed and was intending on competing at Purdue this year. However, because of a coaching change there, she transferred to Arizona and has made an immediate impact. At the Willie Williams Classic, she shattered the school and Drachman Stadium record in the hammer throw with a colossal toss of 207-3 (63.16m). That mark, an NCAA automatic qualifier ranks No. 9 all-time collegiality, No. 7 amongst American collegiates and is No. 2 in Pacific-10 Conference history.

Foster then threw the hammer 197-8 (60.24m) in a meet at UC-San Diego. She finished third in the hammer at the Texas Relays with a toss of 202-7 (61.74m).

Red-Hot Relay: The Arizona men’s 4x400m relay team of Matt Lea, Mike Kenyon, Jules Doumbya and Patrick Nduwimana set a school indoor record (3:07.10) and became the first Wildcat relay team to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships. The team finished second with that time, eight-hundreths of a second behind Arizona State at the MPSF Championships in Flagstaff, Ariz. At the NCAA Indoor Championships, the team was seeded into the slow heat, but it blew away that competition in 3:06.50, a new school indoor record. The team also finished fourth and picked up All-America honors. The time was also the second best in school history, indoor or out. Without the services of Nduwimana, the team of Lea, Keith Varga, Doumbya and Kenyon ran 3:07.74 at the Texas Relays, the 7th-best time in school history.

St. Patrick: As if an NCAA Outdoor Championship, Olympic semifinal appearance and 800m PR of 1:44.06 were not enough, Patrick Nduwimana returned to Arizona for one final year of indoor eligibility. He was forced to sit out the 2000 indoor season with an Achilles’’ tendon injury, which proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Wildcats, as Nduwimana went on to win the 800m title at the 2001 NCAA Indoor Championships in record-setting fashion and anchored the 4x400m relay team to a fourth place finish at the meet. His time, 1:45.33, at the Indoor Championships set an NCAA meet and school indoor record. He also was a part of the 4x400m relay team that ran 3:06.50 to set a school record and finish fourth at the meet. In 2000, Nduwimana won the NCAA Outdoor 800m title in a blazing time of 1:45.08, and he continued his excellent running on the European circuit during the summer. He continually dropped his 800m school record at meets around Europe, finally running 1:44.06 in Brussels, Belgium on Aug. 25. He then travelled to Sydney, Australia, to run in the 2000 Summer Olympics for his native Burundi. He finished second in his qualifying heat and then was fifth in an uncharastically slow time in the semifinals. Nonetheless, Nduwimana finished with the No. 10 time in the world, the top finish for any returning collegiate athlete. His time at the NCAA Championships was also the fastest run on U.S. soil last year.

Impressive Indoors: The Wildcats capped their finest indoor season in school history last week with a fantastic performance at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Arizona’s women took only four athletes to the meet in Fayetteville, Ark., but they brought home a trophy (kind of) with a tie for third place and each athlete earned All-America honors. The only downside to the competition was that since Arizona tied Clemson for third with 30 points, a coin-flip was necessary to determine who took home the trophy and who gets one in the mail later. Unfortunately, Wildcat head coach Dave Murray lost the flip, so the trophy will come later from the NCAA. The Arizona men fared almost as well, finishing 13th with 15 points. Senior Patrick Nduwimana closed his Arizona career with a bang, winning the 800m title in a collegiate all-time best of 1:45.33. The race was Nduwimana’s last as a Wildcat since he concluded his outdoor eligibility in 2000. The men’s 4x400m relay team of junior Matt Lea, senior Mike Kenyon, junior Jules Doumbya, and Nduwimana finished fourth at the meet, setting a school record, 3:06.50, in the process. The pole vault was the major source of points for the Wildcat women as senior Andrea Dutoit tied for second, and freshman Amy Linnen placed fifth. Both athletes cleared huge PBs of 13-9 1/4 (4.20m), as did UCLA’s Tracy O’Hara and Houston’s Rhian Clark, so the placing was decided with the countback. Junior Tara Chaplin achieved her best finish ever at an NCAA event, finishing second in the 5,000m (16:13.58). Junior Brianna Glenn finished third in the 60m (7.35) and fourth in the long jump (21-1 1/4, 6.43m). Kenyon also earned All-America honors by finishing 11th in the 400m (47.12). In all, the Wildcats earned seven individual All-America laurels and a relay All-America honors at the meet, not bad for taking only six athletes and one relay team.

2000 In Review: The University of Arizona track and field teams concluded one of the best seasons in school history at the NCAA Championships in Durham, N.C., taking home two national titles and seven All-America honors. After earning five All-America honors at the Indoor Championships in March, the Wildcats finished with 12 All-America honors, two NCAA titles, two top-20 team finishes and a top-10 team finish. The men’s team took only five competitors to the NCAA Championships in Durham, and only three people scored, but they scored big, and the Wildcats placed sixth out of 75 scoring teams with 26 points. Senior Esko Mikkola and junior Patrick Nduwimana won NCAA individual titles in the javelin and 800m, respectively.

Senior Jeff Dutoit finished third in the men’s pole vault and nearly won a national title himself. The women’s team had a very successful season, as well. They finished tied for 19th out of 72 scoring teams at the NCAA Championships with 12 points. Sophomore Brianna Glenn finished fourth in the 100m, senior Carolyn Jackson placed fifth in the 400m, and junior Andrea Neary finished sixth in the pole vault.

Looking Back: Arizona’s distance runners and throwers were the only ones in action March 30-31at the Stanford Invitational and UC-San Diego Invitational, respectively. Junior Tara Chaplin had the most impressive run of Arizona’s weekend at Stanford, clocking a time of 16:12.53 in the 5,000m, an NCAA automatic qualifier and her second-best outdoor time ever. Junior Angela Foster was the top collegiate finisher and third overall in the hammer throw at the UC-San Diego meet, notching a throw of 197-8 (60.24m)... The Wildcat women won the team title at the Jim Click Shootout with 191.50 points over Georgia, Nebraska and Oklahoma. Arizona’s men finished second being the Cornhuskers. Senior Rori Kelly flew to an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 13.49 in the 100m hurdles, winning the event in the No. 4 time in school history. Senior Mike Kenyon won the 400m in an NCAA provisional time of 45.97, while junior Brianna Glenn won the 100m, 200m and long jump titles... At its first home meet of the season, the Willie Williams Classic, March 16-17, the Wildcats recorded several NCAA qualifying marks. Junior Angela Foster provided the biggest performance of the meet, throwing the hammer 207-3 (63.16m), a school and Drachman Stadium record. Seniors Mike Kenyon and Christian Banken provisionally qualified for the NCAAs in the 400m and javelin, respectively, while Brianna Glenn notched a provisional time in the 100m. Katrin Engelen and Nicole Gurnicz also earned provisional times in the first-ever 3,000m steeplechase run by Arizona women... Junior Brianna Glenn turned in two record setting performances at the Iowa State Last Chance meet March 2. She won the 60m in 7.26 seconds, and the long jump with a mark of 21-6 1/4 (6.56m). Both marks are school records and No. 2 in the nation in the events. Several other members of the team opened their outdoor seasons at the Bill Sawyer Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. Highlighting the competition there, junior Angela Foster turned in a school record throw in the hammer (194-6, 59.30m) in her first outdoor competition as a Wildcat.... The Arizona women’s team won the MPSF Championships at the meet, Feb. 23-24, in Flagstaff, Ariz. Brianna Glenn won the 60m and 200m and finished second in the long jump. Tara Chaplin won the 3,000m and 5,000m, as well. The men’s team finished second at the meet, as Mike Kenyon won the 400m and led the 4x400m relay team to a second place finish and school indoor record. Patrick Nduwimana won the 800m, and Tom Prindiville captured the 3,000m title... The Wildcats recorded several outstanding times and performances at the NAU-ASU double-dual meet Feb. 16 in Flagstaff. Senior Mike Kenyon set the school indoor record for the second week in a row, clocking at time of 46.56 seconds in the Skydome. The Arizona 4x400m time also ran a very quick time. The team of Matt Lea, Kenyon, Jules Doumbya and Patrick Nduwimana ran 3:09.54, just three-hundreths off the school indoor record. Senior Andrea Dutoit tied her own school record in the pole vault with a clearance of 13-5 1/4 (4.10m), while freshman Amy Linnen finished second in the vault with a PR of 13-1 3/4 (4.01m)... Arizona had several outstanding performances over the competitive weekend of Feb. 9-10 at the Cannon IV Classic and Flagstaff Invitational. Senior Mike Kenyon set a school record in the 400m (47.16), and junior Brianna Glenn broke her own indoor long jump record, hitting the sand at 20-10 3/4 (6.37m). In Flagstaff, junior Richard Legarra notched a big PR in the shot put, with a toss of 57-11 3/4 (17.67m). Others collecting NCAA provisional qualifying marks were senior Patrick Nduwimana (800m, 1:48.65), junior Cara Cline (800m, 2:08.38) and junior Tara Chaplin (3,000m, 9:36.83)... Arizona took home 13 event titles at the Wisconsin Elite Classic in Madison Jan. 27. Junior Brianna Glenn won both the 60m and long jump titles with strong NCAA provisional qualifying marks, 7.38 and 20-8 1/2 (6.31m). Junior Richard Legarra also won two events, taking the shot and 35-lb. weight throw titles with marks of 60-4 1/2 (18.41m) and 55-7 1/2 (16.95m), respectively. Senior Mike Kenyon won the 400m in 48.47, and senior Andrea Dutoit continued her impressive season with a pole vault win at 13-3 3/4 (4.06m)... Arizona only sent five people to the Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nev., but it was a very successful trip all-around. Senior Andrea Dutoit set a school record with a clearance of 13-5 1/4 (4.10m), an NCAA automatic qualifying mark and the No. 3 mark in school history. In her first competition as a Wildcat, freshman Amy Linnen cleared an NCAA provisional qualifying height of 12-7 1/2 (3.85m). Sophomores Phyllis Brown and Sarah Jacobs also cleared indoor PRs of 11-11 3/4 (3.65m) and 11-7 3/4 (3.55m), respectively. On the men’s side, Chris Chappell notched a PR of 16-0 3/4 (4.90m) in his first competition as an Arizona athlete, and fellow freshman Kevin Opalka cleared 15-7 (4.75m).

The Coaches: Director of track and field and cross country Dave Murray (Arizona, ‘65) enters his 34th year as a coach at Arizona, making him the longest tenured coach in the Wildcat athletic department. In his years at Arizona, Murray has coached 146 All-Americans in cross country and track and field and 23 NCAA individual champions. Associate head coach Fred Harvey (14th year, Cal Poly-SLO, ‘82) coaches the Arizona sprinters, hurdles and relay teams. Harvey has coached several world-class athletes, such as Patrick Nduwimana, a 2000 Olympic semifinalist and current Wildcat.

Assistant coach Tom Hays (4th year, Kansas, ‘89) is one of the top pole vault coaches in the nation and will direct the Wildcat jumpers this season. The newest face in the Wildcat track and field offices is assistant coach John Frazier (1st year, UCLA, ‘86). Frazier came to Arizona from Florida and will lead the Wildcat throwers. Assistant coach Dawn Mortensen (4th year, Arizona, ‘96) was a standout sprinter for the Wildcats in the 1990s and now works with the Arizona sprinters and hurdlers.