Panthers Sit Fourth After Day One Of League Championships

Josh Zill

Milwaukee qualifies first in four preliminaries for Friday

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (May 8, 2008) - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's track and field team scored 26 points on the first day of the 2008 Horizon League Championships Thursday to sit fourth in the team standings with one day to go.

The meet continues Friday, with the Panthers looking to make a second-day charge for a fifth-straight league outdoor championship. Milwaukee qualified four athletes atop their events in preliminaries Thursday, including seven total finals qualifiers in the 100m-400m events.

In the finals Thursday, junior Josh Zill led the way with a second-place finish in the long jump. He earned all-league second-team honors as runner-up with his jump of 22-7 3/4. Defending champ junior Adam Schleis and senior Darren Cole also scored, with Schleis leaping 22-6 1/4 for third and Cole 22-4 1/4 for fourth.

Milwaukee also scored in the 3000m steeplechase, behind a third-place showing from junior Eric Pitt and in the hammer throw. Pitt ran a time of 9:49.03. Meanwhile, senior Larry Ehrhorn threw 163-7 in the hammer for fifth.

Sophomore Tyler Bucholz topped the prelims of both the 100m and 200m, while sophomore Isaiah Adams took first in the prelims of the 400m. In the 100m, Bucholz ran 10.886 to eek out top honors by 0.01 seconds. Senior Lynn Koepke took fourth in 10.98, while Schleis also qualified for the finals with a seventh-place finish in 10.99.

Bucholz crossed the line in 21.41 in the 200m to lead four Panther qualifiers. Koepke took second in 22.06, Adams fourth in 22.32 and freshman Jared Foerch eighth in 22.50. Lastly, in the 400m, Adams led the pack in 49.10, while freshman Cory Yttre qualified seventh in 50.69 and freshman Andrew Manuel eighth in 50.92.

Schleis is in good shape to defend his back-to-back 110m hurdles championships, winning the preliminary heats in 14.79. Senior Justin Bohler was second in 14.85 and Zill gives Milwaukee three runners in the final with a fifth-place showing of 15.03.

The final qualifying event of the day was the 400m hurdles, where junior Patrick Casey ran a time of 54.62 to take second in the prelims. Bohler also qualified for the finals with a time of 56.65 putting him fifth.