Mid-American Conference

MAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week
Baldvin Magnusson, Eastern Michigan, 3000m
Sophomore – Akureyri, Iceland/Hull University
Eastern Michigan sophomore harrier Baldvin Magnusson ranks first in the Mid-American Conference after shattering his personal-best 3,000-meter mark at the Meyo Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8. The Akureyri, Iceland, native was the runner-up in the Jack Shay 3K race with a MAC Auto Qualifying time of 8:03.28. For perspective, Magnusson's previous personal best came at the GVSU Big Meet exactly one year ago, where he finished in 22nd place with a time of 8:28.09.
 
MAC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week
Varvara Lissichkina, Akron, 800m
Senior – Karaganda, Kazakhstan/Karaganda Secondary School #85
University of Akron senior Varvara Lissichkina earned the victory in the women's 800 meters in a time of 2:10.45 at the Akron Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8. She owns the No. 1 time in the conference this season and No. 59 mark in the NCAA.
 
MAC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week
Logan Targgart, Central Michigan, Weight Throw
Senior – Coldwater, Michigan/Coldwater
Central Michigan senior Logan Targgart tied the CMU men's program record in winning the weight throw at the Notre Dame Meyo Invitational. Targgart tied the program mark set in 2012 with a toss measuring 71 feet, 11 inches. It ranks as the top throw in the MAC and is the sixth best nationally this season.
 
MAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week
Lucy Bryan, Akron, Pole Vault
Senior – Bristol, England/Clifton
University of Akron senior Lucy Bryan registered a school- and Mid-American Conference-record mark of 14-9.50 (4.51m) to triumph in the women's pole vault to highlight the Zips' performances on the final day of the 16th Annual Akron Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Stile Athletics Field House. Bryan cleared her opening three bars of 13-5.75 (4.11m), 13-9.75 (4.21m) and 14-3.25 (4.35m) on her initial runs at the height. She then cleared 14-9.50 (4.51m) on her third and final attempt at the bar. Bryan then attempted to clear 15-0 (4.57m) but was unsuccessful besting the height. 

Other Nominees
Remy Amarteifio, NIU, 60m Hurdle
Senior – Evanston, Illinois/Evanston Township
In the 60-meter hurdles at the Meyo Invitational, NIU senior Remy Amarteifio advanced \ through two rounds of competition to qualify for the final, where she ran a time of 8.54 seconds, the second-fastest time in the MAC this season, to finish sixth.
 
Olivia Bechtel, Miami, 200m
Senior -Bay Village, Ohio/Bay
Olivia Bechtel kept her 2020 season rolling last weekend at Notre Dame's Meyo Invitational. The senior added a new personal record to her resume with a strong run in the 200, putting up a time of 24.25 and finishing third in a very competitive field. This improves her already MAC-leading mark, giving her the conference lead in both the 200 and 400.
 
Brenna Cavanaugh, Eastern Michigan, Long Jump
Sophomore – Bentleyville, PA/Bentworth
Eastern Michigan sophomore Brenna Cavanaugh set a personal-best in the long jump at the Meyo Invitational hosted by the University of Notre Dame on Friday, Feb. 7, finishing 19th overall with a mark of 5.57 meters. She also qualified for the 60-meter hurdles semifinal, where she placed 10th with a career-best time of 8.70 seconds. The Bentleyville, Pa., native won her first event with the Eagles earlier this season at the SVSU Doug Hansen Open on Jan. 17, capturing the long jump title with a then-personal-best leap of 5.53 meters.
 
Christian Champen, Kent State, Pole Vault
Senior -Clayton, Ohio/Northmont
Christian Champen won the pole vault competition at the Akron Invitational with a season-best height of 17'-1.5", which ranks 33rd nationally. Champen has now won all four pole vault competitions he has entered this season.
 
Erin Dowd, Western Michigan, 400m
Senior – Brighton, Michigan/Brighton
WMU senior Erin Dowd continued her strong indoor season at the Akron Invitational on Saturday. Dowd ran an indoor personal-best time of 54.57 seconds to take second in the 400-meter dash. The time is also the second fastest in the Mid-American Conference. Dowd has competed at three meets during the indoor season and has finished in the top two in all of her individual performances. Dowd also helped the Broncos run a time of 3:48.52 to take third in the 4x400-meter relay.
 
Janay Hall, Eastern Michigan, 800m
Sophomore – Fayetteville, North Carolina/South View
Eastern Michigan sophomore Janay Hall ranks second in the Mid-American Conference in the 800-meter run following her performance at the Meyo Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8. The Fayetteville, N.C., native finished in fourth place with a personal-best and MAC Auto Qualifying time of 2:10.92.
 
Asia Hoyte, Buffalo, Weight Throw
Junior – Rochester, New York/Pittsford Mendon
Asia Hoyte threw a personal-best mark of 17.79m/58-04.50 in the weight throw at the Akron Invite. Her second-place finish moves her MAC ranking to 11th.
 
Demetrius Jackson, Akron, 200m
R-Freshman – Beachwood, Ohio
University of Akron redshirt freshman Demetrius Jackson garnered a career-best time of 47.29, the fifth-fastest time in Akron indoor program history, to place second in the men's 400 meters at the Akron Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8. His time was the best by a collegian in the race. He later ran the opening leg of the men's 4x400 relay team that bested the field in a time of 3:13.56.
 
Amber Jones, Ball State, 200m/400m
Senior -   Matteson, Illinois/Rich South
It was another big weekend for senior sprinter Amber Jones, as she became the second Ball State sprinter to earn a MAC automatic qualifying mark into the indoor championships. Jones clocked in with a career-fast time of 55.43 to place fourth in the event in the gold race of the Akron Invitational. Her time is also the fourth-fastest in the league in the event this season. Jones was not done there, however, as she also had a solid run in the gold 200m, placing second in 25.06. Jones closed the day by running leadoff on the team’s 4x400m relay which finished with a season-fast time of 3:49.93. Jones currently ranks fourth in the MAC in 200m with a career-fast time of 24.65 set at the Gladstein Invitational (Jan. 25), while the team’s 4x400m relay is currently sixth in the league.
 
Matt Keim, Akron, Pole Vault
Senior -Bolivar, Ohio/Tuscarawas Valley
University of Akron senior Matt Keim established a career-best and conference-leading clearance of 17-1.50 (5.22m) to earn the victory in the men's pole vault at the Akron Invitational on Saturday, Feb. 8. The mark is No. 33 in the NCAA this season.
 
Meghan LaTuso, Buffalo, 5000m
Senior – Poughquag, New York/Arlingtton
Meghan LaTuso ran a personal-best in the 5,000-meter run by 37 seconds while finishing third in a time of 17:47.48. LaTuso ranks 12th in the MAC.
 
Atalia Lima, Toledo, Pentathlon
Senior – Boa Vista, Brazil/Rui Bloem
Senior Atalia Lima placed second in the pentathlon, scoring 3410 points at the Akron Invitational on Friday. Lima took seventh in the 60-meter hurdles (9.80), first in the high jump (1.66m), second in the shot put (11.20m) and long jump (5.29m), and third in the 800 meters (2:37.16). In the MAC, Lima is ranked third in the pentathlon event.
 
Jeremy Lissade, Buffalo, 60m
Junior – North Bellmore, New York/Mepham
Jeremy Lissade finished third overall in the in the 60-meter dash in a time of 6.87 seconds. His personal-best time moves him to fourth in the MAC. Lissade also placed fourth in the 200-meter dash with a personal-best time of 21.95.
 
Alyssa Matheny, Kent State, High Jump
Junior – Akron, Ohio/Manchester
Alyssa Matheny cleared a MAC-best height of 5’-8” to win the high jump at the Akron Invitational on Saturday.
 
Abby Moore, Ohio, Weight Throw
Junior – Rootstown, Ohio/Rootstown
Junior Abby Moore (Rootstown, Ohio) produced a pair of first place finish last weekend to help the Ohio track & field team place fourth with 93 points at the Marshall Invitational at the Jeff Small Track at the Chris Cline Athletics Complex in Huntington, W. Va. On Friday (Feb. 7), Moore won the weight throw with a toss of 18.65 meters. She followed up that victory by taking first place in the shot put on Saturday (Feb. 8) with a mark of 13.98 meters.
 
IIyanna Ross, Bowling Green, 400m
Sophomore – Columbus, Ohio/Pickerington Central
Iyanna Ross broke the school record in the 400 and anchored the second-fastest 1600 relay team in program history at the Akron Invitational Saturday. Ross ran the 400 in a new personal best 55.39 seconds to break a record that had stood for five years. The 1600 relay team won the Akron Invite and she ran the final leg for the team that finished in 3:46.61, just shy of the school record time of which she was a part of at last year's indoor MAC Championships.
 
Baboucar Sallah-Mohammed, Eastern Michigan, Triple Jump
R-Junior – Arlington, Virginia/Fishburne Military
Eastern Michigan jumper Baboucar Sallah-Mohammed shattered his personal-best in the triple jump at the Meyo Invitational on Friday, Feb. 7, claiming first prize with a MAC Auto Qualifying mark of 15.92 meters. The Arlington, Va., native has won the triple jump at all four meets in which he has represented EMU in that event. Sallah-Mohammed currently ranks second in the MAC in both the triple jump and the long jump. For good measure, he also set a personal best in the long jump this past weekend, placing fourth overall with a leap of 7.46 meters.
 
Petronela Simiuc, Toledo, Mile
Senior – Bacau, Romania/Sports
Senior Petronela Simiuc clocked a time of 4:42.40 to place seventh in the mile at the JDL Camel City Elite meet in Winston-Salem, N.C. on Saturday. Simiuc's time is a mere four seconds from the Toledo record of 4:38.40, which she set at the John Thomas Terrier Classic on Jan. 24. In the mile event, Simiuc is ranked first in the MAC and 18th in the NCAA.

Jazmyn Smith, NIU, Long Jump
Sophomore – Pinecrest, Florida/Gulliver Prep
NIU sophomore Jazmyn Smith set a new school record in the long jump with a mark of 6.02m (19-09.00) to win the event at the Meyo Invitational. Smith's mark, which is the second-best in the MAC this season, was set on her second of six jumps in the competition and was an inch better than second-place Jaden Mattox of Purdue. Smith broke NIU’s previous school record of 5.91m (19-04.75) set by Jehvania Whyte at last season's Mid-American Conference Indoor Championship.
 
Jonathan Surdej, Buffalo, Shot Put
Freshman – Lancaster, New York/Lancaster
Jonathan Surdej threw over 16-meters in the shot put for the second time this season. His mark of 16.25m/53-03.75 was good for seventh place Gold Shot Put at the Akron Invite.
 
Nadia Williams, Central Michigan, 60m
Senior – Mt. Horeb, Michigan/Mt. Horeb
CMU senior Nadia Williams, a two-time All-American long jumper, put her speed on display over the weekend in placing fifth in the 60-meter dash against a strong field in the Notre Dame Meyo Invitational. Williams' 7.56-second clocking ties for the second best this season by a MAC runner in the event.