Indiana University Athletics
IU Athletics May in Review
6/1/2006 12:00:00 AM | General
June 1, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The month of May provided several incredible experiences for IU Athletics. To pay tribute to the outstanding efforts given by the Hoosiers, IUHOOSIERS.com hits rewind to highlight what IU had to offer this past month.
Baseball
• Indiana concluded the campaign with 11 Big Ten victories - the most for an IU team since the 2003 club won 16 Big Ten ballgames. Additionally, junior second baseman Keith Haas, senior center fielder Reggie Watson and sophomore right-hander Doug Fleenor each earned a spot on the 2006 All-Big Ten Baseball Team. Additionally, senior southpaw Clint Crosier was Indiana's honoree for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. Haas garnered a berth on the second team, while Watson and Fleenor netted spots on the third team.
• With a doubleheader sweep of Illinois (May 16), IU collected its second conference doubleheader sweep of the season - a feat that had not been accomplished since 2003. Indiana also won its first Big Ten series since taking three out of four against Michigan State in 2005 (May 7-9) at Sembower.
• The Hoosiers excelled off the field as well. Senior Clint Crosier earned a spot on the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America second team, while Crosier and senior Ryan Parker garnered College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA)/ESPN The Magazine first team Academic All-District V honors. Crosie was one of two pitchers selected to the first team, while Parker, who carded his third straight all-district award, was the lone utility/DH representative.
Men's Golf
• The Hoosiers men's golf team turned in a standout May. After guiding Indiana to its third straight NCAA appearance - the first time IU collected three consecutive postseason berths since advancing to six straight from 1972-77 - head coach Mike Mayer claimed his first Big Ten Coach of the Year and Midwest Regional Coach of the Year honors.
• Along with Mayer, freshman Jorge Campillo closed out the most successful first-year campaign in school history. Campillo ended the season with a 72.67 average, shattering former two-time All-American and current PGA Tour member Jeff Overton's freshman mark of 74.45. His average also ranks eight overall in IU lore. The Caceres, Spain native became the second IU stalwart to ever capture Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors (Jody Roudebush, 1991), winning the award by a unanimous vote. He also was the first freshman since Overton (2002) to be selected to the All-Big Ten team and capped off the month with a spot on the Midwest All-Region squad.
• As a team, Indiana just missed out on a chance to advance to the NCAA Championships. Despite a phenomenal rally on the final day at the NCAA East Regional, the 2005-06 campaign came to an end on May 20. Needing a low number in the third and last round, the Hoosiers shot a 1-under 287 (one of six squads in the 27-team field to shoot under par) to tie for 11th place at 891 (299-305-287) with Georgia State (298-298-295) and Georgia Southern (295-307-289). IU finished seven strokes behind UNLV (287-293-304), who claimed the 10th and final spot to advance to the NCAA Championships. The Hoosiers entered the day in 17th place and actually tied UNLV during the round but could not keep its intense pace up the rest of the way.
• Making appearances in 62 percent of the team's lineup slots (40-of-65), Mayer's freshman class finished the year with a 73.89 average and ranked second in Golfstat's Freshman Class Impact Ranking. Add in 13 more appearances by sophomore Santiago Quirarte and underclassmen held 82 percent of the team's spots in the lineup this season. Despite the youth movement, the Hoosiers ranked in the Golfstat's and Golfweek's top 50.
Rowing
• Indiana senior Laura Lazaridis continues to bring home more accolades. After becoming IU's first All-American last season, the Granger, Ind., native garnered first team All-Central Region honors as announced the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association on May 23.
• Senior Elisabeth Benoit earned her second Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) National Scholar Athlete award as announced by the association on May 22.
• The first novice 8 crew of freshman Madison Spruell (cox), freshman Ashley Johnson (stroke), junior Kourtney Beckham, freshman Jenn Maslanka, freshman Jessica Keller, sophomore Kiri Crane, freshman Jamie Spoto, freshman Brittany Billingsley and freshman Kelsey Kapral (bow) tied a school record for the highest regional finish with a sixth-place effort at the Aramark Central/South Region Sprints in Oak Ridge, Tenn., on May 14. Additionally, the Hoosiers placed 16th out of 21 teams at the event and took ninth out of 11 teams in the Central region. The Big Ten also proved its dominance at the competition as five conference teams finished in the top 10 with Ohio State claiming the event crown and Wisconsin posting a runner-up finish.
Softball
• Closing the book on what became one of the best seasons in Indiana history, the 2006 Hoosiers went above and beyond expectations. Becoming the first team to make the Big Ten Tournament since 1996, the Hoosiers did not stop there, as they also became the first team to make the NCAA Tournament since 1996.
• On the season, Indiana set five all-time team records, while four individuals combined to set 24 hitting and pitching marks. Finishing the season 30-25-1, the team reached 30 wins for only the second time since 1996, the last coming in 2004 (32-31).
• The Hoosiers combined to receive three Big Ten Pitcher/Player of the Week honors for the first time since 1996, while senior pitcher Mariangee Bogado became the first IU softball student-athlete to be named USA Softball's National Collegiate Player of the Week for the period ending on May 7. Senior right fielder Lauren Hines joined Bogado in the conference spotlight, earning second team All-Big Ten as a pitcher and a spot on the Big Ten All-Tournament team as a utility player, while Hines took first team All-Big Ten laurels in the outfield.
• Both Bogado and Hines also grabbed honors from the regional committee, earning first team All-Mideast Region accolades for their efforts in leading IU to one of the nations' best turnarounds. Bogado became the first Hoosier hurler to earn the first team distinction since Jill Jensen (1987-90), Christy Brown (1988-91) and Teresa Raine (1987-90) received the honor in 1990. Hines notched the first team honor as a fielder for the first time since Monica Armendarez (1995-98) did it in 1998. This recognition is the Hoosiers' first selection to the All-Mideast Region since Stormy Hanson (200-03) collected second team accolades in 2003.
• With an 8-9 record in conference action, including sweeps over three conference foes, IU battled to both accomplishments for the first time since 1997. The feats helped the Hoosiers advance to the league tournament as the No. 6 seed where they made it to the semifinal game for the first time in program history with their first win in the postseason since 1998, a 5-4 triumph over No. 3-seeded Iowa.
• IU's performance at the Big Ten Tournament earned the squad a trip to the NCAA Tournament with a berth in the Austin Regional. The Hoosiers opened the regional with a dominating 3-0 win over Utah, before falling to the tournament's No. 3-seed Texas, 3-0. With a solid effort in the elimination game against Utah, IU fell at the hands of a late-game rally by the Utes, 5-1, to end its tournament run.
Track and Field
• The month opened with the second home meet of the season in the Billy Hayes Invitational on May 6. The Hoosier contingent turned in 14 first-place finishes, 13 personal-best marks and 10 regional qualifying times at the event. John Jefferson highlighted the Hoosier effort at the time with the fastest mark in the Mideast Region this season, winning the men's 1,500m Invitational. The Hoosier seniors were also honored with rings in the final home event of their careers.
• The Hoosier men took third place with 105 points at the 2006 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 14 at Michigan State's Ralph Young Track and Field Complex. David Neville took home both the 200m and 400m titles, while Stephen Haas was crowned champion in the 5,000m. Additionally, the Indiana 4x400m relay team comprised of Ryan Smith, Trey Warfield, Doug Dayhoff and Neville, won the conference title for the first time since 1990.
• For his efforts at the Big Ten Championships, Neville earned Big Ten Athlete of the Championships, Athlete of the Year and Indiana's Sportsmanship Award honoree. Haas took home first team All-Big Ten honors, while Kyle Jenkins and Wil Fleming garnered second team all-conference selections.
• On the women's side, Ara Towns earned the 100m title at the Big Ten Championships. After taking first in the prelims of the 100m, Towns won her first conference title with a regional-qualifying time of 11.61. Towns became the first Hoosier female since Rachelle Boone in 2001 to take home the 100m Big Ten crown.
• The Hoosiers headed South May 26-27 for the 2006 Mideast Regional in Knoxville, Tenn. Wil Fleming became the first Hoosier to punch his ticket to the NCAA Championships. The Bloomington, Ind., native took fourth place in the hammer throw with a toss of 62.71m (205-09). Despite clearing a personal-best 5.06m (16-07.25), Jeff Coover missed the cut for nationals by one place, finishing in sixth.
• After advancing to the finals of the 1,500m, John Jefferson took sixth with a time of 3:48.04, while Eric Redman finished just behind Jefferson with a seventh-place effort of 3:49.73. In the shot put, Ryan Ketchum took ninth with a hurl of 17.22m (56-00).
• Neville punched his ticket to Sacramento, Calif., with a stunning second-place finish in the 400m. The reigning Big Ten Champion in the event crossed the line in 45.84 to earn his second bid of his career to the national meet.
• Jenkins added his name to the list of Hoosiers heading west for the NCAA Championships with a second-place finish in the triple jump. The second team All-Big Ten selection turned in a mark of 15.86m (52-00.50) in his first attempt en route to earning his first appearance in the national meet.
• The Indiana 4x400m relay team comprised of Warfield, Smith, Neville and Dayhoff missed the cut for the NCAAs by one place. The foursome that claimed the Big Ten title this season finished in fourth with a team-best time of 3:04.67. The Indiana men closed the meet in sixth place with 34 points.
• Jessica Gall took eighth in the women's 5,000m with a time of 16:48.16, while teammate Lindsay Hattendorf finished in 12th, crossing the line in 17:01.01. Wendi Robinson rounded out the Hoosier contingent with a 24th-best time of 17:42.66.
• An impressive month of May closed with 14 Hoosiers qualifying for the 2006 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, scheduled for June 7-10 at the Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex on the campus of Sacramento State. This marks the third time in the last four years that the Hoosiers have sent nine or more individuals to the national outdoor championships.
• Ten Indiana men's track and field athletes advanced to the NCAA meet, led by Jefferson (1500m), Haas (10,000m) and Neville (400m). In addition to the veteran trio of All-Americans, seven Hoosiers will make their national championship debut this spring. Ketchum (shot put) and Fleming (hammer) will compete in the field events, and the 4x400m relay quartet of Neville, Dayhoff, Smith and Warfield and alternate John Gunnell ran the seventh-fastest time in the nation (3:04.67) at last week's regional meet. Finally, Jenkins is a national qualifier in the triple jump after a second-place finish (15.86m/52-00.50) at regionals.
• The four women's national qualifiers have significant NCAA experience as well. Towns (100m) was a member of the Hoosiers' All-American 4x100m relay teams of 2002 and 2003, and she also earned All-American honors in the 60m dash at the 2004 NCAA Indoor Meet. For the second straight year, Kelly Siefker qualified for the national meet in the 3000m steeplechase, as she hopes to improve upon her personal best of 10:18.59, the second-best effort in school history. Gall will run the 10,000m at the national meet. Finally, Larra Overton will make her second straight NCAA appearance in the 1,500m.
Women's Tennis
• The 2005-06 Indiana women's tennis season came to a close with a 4-1 loss to No. 25 Georgia in the first round (64 teams) of the NCAA Championship at Vanderbilt's Currey Tennis Center on May 12. The Hoosiers capped the year with an overall record of 17-9 and a national ranking of No. 42 in the Fila/ITA poll. This season marked the 24th time IU has competed in the postseason.
