Dec. 2, 2014
RENO, Nev. -
Nevada's indoor track and field team is ready to kick off the 2014-2015 season. After a year of solid performances during the 2013-2014 indoor and outdoor seasons, the Silver & Blue is ready for big performances. Six student-athletes who set Nevada All-Time Top-Times during either the indoor and outdoor seasons last year will return for another season with the Pack.
The indoor season starts nationally in December and runs until the NCAA National Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. on March 3rd, 2015. Last season the Pack finished 10th at the Mountain West Indoor Championships. Nevada saw strong performances from distance and mid distance runners as the distance medley relay team finished in first place to bring home gold medals from the conference championship. Three of the four runners from that team will return for this season. Current junior Emily Myers was the highest finishing individual student-athlete for Nevada finishing third overall in the 5,000-meter with a time of 18:26. Leah Carter also returns for the Pack after scoring points at the 2014 conference championship. As a freshman, Carter finished in sixth place in the high jump with the 10th best mark in school history of 5'7.25".
Nevada finished ninth at the 2014 Mountain West Outdoor Championships led by Raffaela Wiesbeck and Leah Carter who both finished in medal positions. Wiesbeck was the highest finisher for Nevada in second place of the javelin throw, but will not be returning to Nevada this season. Carter returns to the Pack as a sophomore after clearing 5'8" in the high jump at the outdoor championships and finishing in third place overall.
Carter will be joined by three other Wolf Pack athletes who set Nevada Top-Ten times during the last outdoor season: Emily Myers, Demerey Kirsch, and Caitlin Devitt-Payne. Myers ran the third best 10,000 meter time in school history with a converted 36:07, as well as the best 5,000-meter time in school history of 16:43. Kirsch currently holds the second best 3,000-meter steeplechase time in school history at 10:28, and Devitt-Payne ran the eighth fastest 1,500-meter time of 4:32 at the Mt. SAC Relays.
The veteran leaders for Nevada will be joined by a talented cast of newcomers, and will have the opportunity to produce big results in the Mountain West for the 2014-2015 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. Head Coach Shantel Twiggs and assistant coaches Kirk Elias and Scott Williamson have added 17 freshmen to the program. The new group features local talent from Nevada and California schools, as well as athletes from across the West Coast and areas outside of the United States.
Freshman Alaina Anderson, Sophia Blair, Helen Mino-Faukner, and Marissa Suan have already had a chance to compete for Nevada during the 2014 cross country season. Alaina Anderson had standout performances for the cross country team, and ran the third fastest freshman 6K time in school history of 22:01. Marissa Suan recorded the sixth fastest 6K time among all freshmen at Nevada, and Mino-Faukner ran the 12th fastest freshman 6K time in school history. With strong performances already in the books for this group of new Silver and Blue runners, the 2014-2015 indoor and outdoor track and field seasons can be a turning point for the program.
