Andy Karcher
DELAWARE, Ohio — The Wittenberg men's and women's outdoor track and field teams had a mixed bag of results at the 2007 North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet. On two outstanding day weather-wise (after a spring filled with the opposite), the Tiger men put together a fine fourth-place team finish but the short-handed Tiger women managed seventh place.
The highlight of the meet was turned in by senior Andy Karcher (Oceola, Ohio/Bucyrus Wynford), who capped his strong collegiate career on a high note with a first-place finish in the hammer throw. His mark was within two meters of the NCAA provisional qualifying standard and a mere two feet of the school record he already holds.
Sophomore Erik Larkin (Cincinnati, Ohio/Country Day) was the top point scorer for either team as he contributed a second-place finish in the high jump, third in the triple jump and sixth in the long jump. With their top-three finishes in individual events, Karcher and Larkin gained All-NCAC status, which was also earned by freshman Curt Weidner (Cleves, Ohio/Harrison) in the 110-meter hurdles and junior Manoach Lamarre (Miami, Fla./Bellen Jesuit) in the 100 meters.
On the women's side, sophomore Katie Shoemaker (Arcanum, Ohio/Franklin-Monroe) placed second in the 400 to earn All-NCAC honors and record the Tigers' best individual finish. The Tigers' top point-scorer for a third straight year was juniorNicole Bailey (Cincinnati, Ohio/Summit Country Day), who placed third for All-NCAC honors in the 100 meters and fourth in the triple jump and 200 meters.
Rounding out Wittenberg's top individual performances, junior Allison Walker (Columbus, Ohio/Academy) placed second for All-NCAC honors in the hammer with a school-record throw of 134-11. She also scored a sixth place finish in the shot put.