Summer sports updates

Men’s Track and Field

Junior Chris Caine finished 12th with 7,032 points in the decathlon at the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, the best for Kent State.

“We started eight months ago with Chris, and he has since won the MAC title in both the heptathlon and decathlon. For the NCAA Championships, we were holding our breath to see if he would even get in, and he was the last qualifier,” coach Bill Lawson said in a press release.

“We would have loved for him to be in the top eight, but he had a solid track meet and an outstanding year,” Lawson said in the release. “We’re both looking forward to the national championship one year from now, and our goal is that he will be an All-American.”

Caine set personal bests in the long jump (22-6 1/4) and the 400-meter dash (48.77), in addition to tying his personal best with pole vault of 14-1 1/4.

– Frank Schaefer

Women’s Track and Field

Senior Dominika Stokowska placed 23rd in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a time of 1:00.72. Stokowska was the only Kent State athlete who had previously represented the Golden Flashes in the national meet, when she competed in the 400-meter hurdles in 2005.

“I’m disappointed for Dominika because she had the ability to make it past today’s qualifying round,” coach Bill Lawson said in a press release. “She’s been a pleasure to work with this season, had an outstanding career, and I’m proud of her.”

Lawson will be returning in the fall for his second year and first full season with the Golden Flashes.

“I’m really looking forward to being here from the very beginning. I want to continue to work hard all summer in preparing for next year,” Lawson said in the release. “I’ve gotten to know the MAC, and I’m confident we will continue to improve. I’m excited about the group we have returning, especially those that had the chance to attend the national championships. They got tremendous experience and will bring that back with them.”

– Frank Schaefer

Men’s golf

Kent State finished 20th out of 27 teams in a tournament at the Sand Ridge Golf club May 20. The Golden Flashes fell short in the third bid, failing for the first time since 2004 to advance to the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championships.

“It was a very disappointing and a very frustrating week,” head coach Herb Page said in a press release. “We just didn’t play well enough to advance. The inconsistencies that hampered us all season really hurt us this week.”

The Golden Flashes recorded a score of 303 as a team, which gave them a three-day total of 909, 57 strokes over par.

Top-seeded Oklahoma State was the only team to break par, finishing at 7-under 845.

Kent State’s 20th place finish was the worst in 16 regional appearances.

“We had a really good season,” Page said in the release. “It’s unfortunate that we had to end it by playing so poorly.”

– Frank Schaefer

Women’s golf

COLUMBUS – The Kent State women’s golf team finished 21st at the 2006 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships.

The team played May 23 to 26 at Ohio State’s Scarlet Course.

The Golden Flashes were led by sophomore Kira Meixner, who tied for 12th place individually. Meixner shot a 74 in the final round totaling 295. That score broke the school record previously held by Martina Gillen from 2001.

“Kira had a heck of a tournament,” head coach Mike Morrow said in a press release. “She played solid golf throughout the tournament and was in complete control of her game. She drove the ball well, put it on the greens and proved that she belonged among the top women’s players in the country.”

The Flashes shot 306 in the final round. The team came within eight shots of finishing in the top 20.

“It was just an outstanding year for our team,” Morrow said in the release. “Obviously we had higher expectations for the tournament than 21st, but we plugged along and gave it everything we had. We just never got our games together for 18 holes, but the effort was there.”

Duke finished in first place followed by Southern California and Pepperdine, respectively.

– Frank Schaefer

Softball

For the first time in school history, the women’s softball team won the first Mid-American Conference Softball Tournament title.

The Flashes (33-24, 16-5 MAC) went to the NCAA Tournament on May 21 and were eliminated by the Oklahoma Sooners in the Regional Semi Final in the Ann Arbor Regional in Ann Arbor, Mich.

With the honor of the first trip to the tournament since 1990 came honors for four members of the team as they were named to the 2006 All-Mid-American Conference Academic Softball Team.

Junior pitcher Brittney Robinson, sophomores Jamie Fitzpatrick and shortstop Jessica Toocheck, and senior second baseman Ashley Ball were recognized for their athletic and academic performances.

-Jackie Mantey