MARIETTA, Ohio — A team effort by both genders helped the Marietta College track and field program reach new heights at the 2010 Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Indoor Track and Field Championships Saturday (Feb. 27) afternoon inside the Pioneers' Dyson Baudo Recreation Center. Marietta's women compiled 104 points to finish runner-up, while the Marietta men collected 51 points to take fifth in the competition. [Men's Results] [Women's Results] [Championship Site]
 
For the second straight year, Ohio Northern University swept the competition. The Polar Bear men collected 155 points to win their fifth overall title and the Polar Bear women compiled 122 points for their second title in school history.

Marietta's women entered the final day of competition in fourth place with 20 points and exploded for 84 points over the final 14 events to post their top finish in school history. Head Coach Derek Stanley and his fellow coaches were named the Women's Staff of the Meet for their team's success at the championship. Last year, the Pioneers placed fourth with 91 points. Marietta's men had just eight points and sat in tenth place heading into Saturday but racked up 43 points on the day to also post their best finish in school history. The Pioneer men finished sixth with 46.5 points in 2009.

Marietta's final standing in both the men's and women's championship came down to the 4x400m Relay. In both instances, the Pioneers stepped up and took care of business on the track.

Sophomore Corryn Muench (Cold Spring, Ky., Newport Central Catholic), senior Christi Tims (Olmsted Township, Olmsted Falls), freshman Kristeva Rowe (Toledo, Sylvania Southview) and sophomore Brittany Sims (Columbus, Eastmoor Academy) earned All-OAC honors with a runner-up finish, which broke a second place tie with Baldwin-Wallace. The women combined for a time of 4:05.74.

Just four points separated fifth place Baldwin-Wallace, sixth place Marietta, seventh place Wilmington and eighth place Capital as the teams lined up for the Men's 4x400m Relay. Junior Josh Bibb (Marietta, Marietta), sophomore Chase Oberfield (Heath, Heath), sophomore Ryan Householder (Frazeysburg, Tri-Valley) and senior Cody Thomas (North Olmsted, North Olmsted) earned a fifth place finish with a time of 3:29, which enabled the Pioneers to jump the Yellow Jackets while also holding off the Quakers and the Crusaders.

Earlier in the day, sophomore Kim Keesler (Chagrin Falls, Chagrin Falls) gave the Pioneers their lone individual champion when she took home the Pole Vault title. The NCAA provisional qualifier cleared her first attempt at 3.50m (11-05.75) which enable her to win the tie-breaker after she and her final competitor both unsuccessfully attempted to meet a NCAA automatic qualifying mark.

Marietta's women dominated the Triple Jump as four of its student-athletes combined for 21 points in the event. Sophomore Ashley Bault (Atwater, Waterloo) improved her school record with a second place finish by jumping 11.04m (36-0275). Senior Sidra Dhiraprasiddhi (Hilliard, Darby) followed in third place with a personal record leap of 10.45m (34-03.50). Both Bault, who also took runner-up in the Long Jump, and Dhiraprasiddhi earned All-OAC honors for their performance. Rowe placed fifth with a jump of 10.38m (34-00.75). Senior Sarita Dhiraprasiddhi (Hilliard, Darby) came in sixth and tied a personal record with a jump of 10.33m (33-10.75). Freshman Dana Miller (Frazeyburg, Tri-Valley) also set a personal record in the Triple Jump, leaping 9.80m (32-02.00) but finished 11th.

Sophomore Lauren Asbury (White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., Greenbrier East) ran a personal record 9.12 seconds in the finals of the 55m Hurdles and placed seventh, while classmate Jessica Gebhart (Eaton, Eaton), who set the school record in the event with a time of 9.03 in the prelims, crossed the line in 9.18 seconds and finished eighth.

The women's 4x200m Relay, which featured sophomore Muench, Tims, Asbury and Sims, took third and earned All-OAC honors after running a time of 1:47.77.

Asbury and Keesler took fifth and seventh, respectively, in the 55m Dash. Asbury crossed the line in 7.52 seconds, while Keesler finished in 7.69 seconds. Asbury then lowered her own school record in the finals of the 200m Dash, her seventh race of the weekend. She took eighth with a time of 26.94 seconds.

Tims ran a personal record 1:00.66 en route to a fourth place finish in the 400m Dash. Muench also ran a personal record time of 1:01.17 and took fifth.

Rowe earned All-OAC honors after taking runner-up in the 500m Run. She crossed the line in a school record time of 1:19.55.

Sophomore Danielle Staub (Boxford, Mass., Masconomet Regional) ran to a sixth place finish in the 800m Run after covering the distance in 2:30.14.

Freshman Jacci Weaver (North Lima, South Range) earned All-OAC honors in the Shot Put after taking third with a school record toss of 11.91m (39-01.00).

Junior Stephanie Hammond (Toledo, Central Catholic) finished runner-up in the Weight Throw after tossing a mark of 14.58m (47-10.00) in her final attempt. Weaver took seventh in the exhibition event with a toss of 12.46m (40-10.50).

Senior Derek Carpenter (Belpre, Belpre) threw a personal record 14.82m (48-07.50) to finish fifth in the Shot Put. Senior Chad Byers (New Matamoras, River) also set a new personal record with a toss of 14.04m (46-00.75) and placed seventh.

Freshman Gaston Hayes (Cleveland, Rhodes) earned All-OAC honors in the Weight Throw when he placed third in the exhibition event with a top mark of 15.39m (50-06.00), which was a new personal record.

Junior Anthony Williams (Columbus, Bishop Hartley), Bibb, Oberfield and freshman Willam McCulloch (Nelsonville, York) combined to place fourth in the 4x200m Relay with a time of 1:33.96.

Thomas earned All-OAC honors by taking a runner-up finish in the 800m Run. He crossed the line in 2:00.18.

Sophomore Matt Hickman (St. Mary's, W.Va., St. Mary's) received All-OAC honors with his second place finish in the 55m Dash after running a time of 6.52 seconds. He also captured All-OAC honors with his third place finish in the 200m Dash. Hickman crossed the line in 22.98 seconds.

Freshman Caleb Muller (Columbus, Bexley) finished third in the 5,000m Run and garnered All-OAC honors after crossing the line in 15:27.26.

Marietta's team is back in action March 5-6 when the Pioneers open their outdoor season at the North Florida Open in Jacksonville, Florida.