Nebraska Wesleyan University will have nine athletes competing at the 2009 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships that will take place May 21-23 at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio.  The championships squad is made up of seven men and two women.

Senior Derek Carson (Lincoln, Neb.) leads the NWU men into the championships.  Carson and senior Matt Glassnap (Beaver Lake, Neb.) are the only Nebraska Wesleyan athletes to qualify in three events.  Carson qualified in the 400 with the ninth best time in the nation of 48.16, the 4x100 meter relay, and the 4x400 meter relay. 

The men’s 4x100 meter relay of senior Dan Bittner (Fremont, Neb.), Carson, junior Andy Coppersmith (Wallace, Neb.), and Glassnap is ranked fourth, with a time of 41.15, heading into the three day competition.  Carson, Coppersmith, Glassnap, and freshman Josh Wall (Grant, Neb.) make up the men’s 4x400 meter relay team that is seeded second in the field with a time of 3:13.32.

Other qualifiers for the NWU men include Glassnap in the 200, junior Dylan Aylward (Lincoln, Neb.) in the javelin, and senior Ryan Petersen (Omaha, Neb.) in the pole vault.

Sophomore Amanda Brichacek (Schuyler, Neb.) and junior Anne Kersenbrock (O’Neill, Neb.) form the championships squad for the NWU women.  Brichacek heads into the championships seeded 12th in the hammer throw with a toss of 51.01 meters (167’4).  Kersenbrock qualified in the long jump with a leap of 5.65 meters (18’6.5).

The Nebraska Wesleyan women have had at least one All-American at 15 of the last 16 outdoor championships, while the men have had at least two All-American each of the last 25 outdoor seasons.  The highest team finish for the NWU women at the outdoor championships is fifth (1997, 1991).  The women have also had six team top-ten finishes in school history.  The highest team finish for the NWU men at the outdoor championships is second (2004) and they have also had 17 team Top 10 finishes.
           
NWU Qualifiers
Men
Dylan Aylward, Jr., Lincoln, Neb. (Southwest) – Javelin
Dan Bittner, Sr., Fremont, Neb. (Cedar Bluffs) – 4x100
Derek Carson, Sr., Lincoln, Neb. (Pius X) – 400m, 4x100, 4x400
Andy Coppersmith, Jr., Wallace, Neb. (Wallace) – 4x100, 4x400
Matt Glasnapp, Sr., Beaver Lake, Neb. (Conestoga) – 200, 4x100, 4x400
Ryan Petersen, Sr., Omaha, Neb. (Creighton Prep) – Pole Vault
Josh Wall, Fr., Grant, Neb. (Perkins County) – 4x400

Women
Amanda Brichacek, So., Schuyler, Neb. (Schuyler) – Hammer Throw
Anne Kersenbrock, Jr., O’Neill, Neb. (St. Mary’s) – Long Jump

NWU Qualifiers Schedule of Events