2011 MEN'S TRACK & FIELD SEASON REVIEW

MCC FINISH: 9th Place
AWARDS: NAIA Indoor All American - Jake GunderKline (3k Race Walk), NAIA Indoor All American - Mitchell Brickson (3k Race Walk), NAIA Outdoor All American - Jake GunderKline (5k Race Walk), NAIA Outdoor All American - Jake GunderKline (5k Race Walk), NAIA Outdoor and Indoor National Qualifier - Sam Jones (High Jump), NAIA Indoor National Qualifier - David Horst (3k race walk), NAIA Outdoor National Qualifier - Jordan Smeltzer (Marathon), MCC Champion - Sam Jones (High Jump), All MCC - Sam Jones, NAIA Scholar-Athlete - Josh Delp, NAIA Scholar-Athlete - Sam Jones, NAIA Scholar-Athlete - Jake GunderKline.

LINKS: Photo Gallery | Schedule/ Results | Roster

OVERVIEW/ BY THE NUMBERS:

FOUR AND EIGHT - This season (indoor and outdoor combined), the Maple Leafs racked up four All-American honors and had eight national qualifiers.  The totals accounted for 36% of the All-Americans and 11% of the national qualifiers in GC men's track and field history.

JUMP AND DISTANCE - With the race walk not a team-scored event at many meets, the Maple Leafs greatest strengths came in the jumps and distance events.  On three different occasions, they took at least three of the top four spots in the high jump or distance fields.

RECORDS - Juniors Sam Jones and Jake GunderKline both had their impact on the Goshen College record books.  GunderKline trimmed nearly a minute off his own indoor 3k race walk mark, while also cutting his outdoor 5k standard to under 23 minutes.  Jones, meanwhile set a new indoor high jump record (6' 6 3/4"), while tying Kyle Laker's outdoor record of 6-foot-7.

HIGHLIGHTS:

PARTIAL BANG (1/28) - Even with just a small handful of student-athletes starting the season in late January, the Leafs still managed four national qualifiers and a number of strong performances at two meets.  Read More 

MID-DISTANCE AND JUMP (2/4) - The Maple Leafs distance medley relay team dominated, winning by nearly 30 seconds at the Trine Invitational.  Meanwhile, jumpers accounted for five top 10 finishes.  Read More 

RACE WALK DOMINANCE (2/10) - Goshen competitors took the top three spots at the first Goshen race walk of the season, displaying depth as well as dominance.  Read More

RECORD BREAKERS (2/11) - New school records were set in both the high jump (Sam Jones) and the distance medley relay (Alain Chaponniere, Daniel Zelaya, Brock GunderKline, and Billy Funk) at the IWU Invite.  Read More

ALL AMERICANS (3/2) -  Jake GunderKline and Mitchell Brickson walked their way to the first indoor All-American honors of their careers.  Along with Erin Helmuth, the Leafs set a new program with three indoor All-Americans at a single championship.  Read More

18 TOP 10'S (3/26) - Jordan Smeltzer led a 1-2-3 charge in the 10,000 meters, while Sam Jones and Kyle Mishler finished one and two in the high jump at Defiance's Dick Small Invite.  Read More 

JUMP OFF (4/28) - Junior Sam Jones tied a school record in the high jump (6-foot-7), but needed a number of additional leaps to win a jump-off against two opponents to win the MCC Championship in the event. Read More

MORE ALL-AMERICANS (5/26) - Despite having just four student-athletes competing at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, the Leafs still managed to earn a pair of All American honors, three top 10 finishes, and a team total which ranked in the top 30 of more than 150 institutions.. Read More