May 5, 2003

MOUNT VERNON, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today its Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, May 4. Central College track and field performer Raegan Schultz (Barnum, Iowa/NW Webster HS) was named IIAC Female Athlete of the Week and Simpson College golfer Mike Martin (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf HS) was named IIAC Male Athlete of the Week.

Schultz, a junior, won the Iowa Conference Heptathlon breaking her own school record and automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championships with 4,717 points. She surpassed the automatic qualifying standard by 217 points and defeated her nearest competitor, her twin sister Lindsay, by 187 points. Raegan Schultz recorded the top mark in three of the seven events including the 100-meter hurdles (14.93 seconds), high jump (tied, 1.56 meters), and the 200-meter dash (26.31 seconds). She finished second in the 800-meter run (2:29.78) and third in the shot put (10.79 meters), long jump (5.06 meters) and javelin (34.08 meters).

Martin, a sophomore, shot a 153 (76-77) during the final weekend of the Iowa Conference Golf Championship to finish with a four-round total of 297 and earn Conference Medalist honors. Martin was one of just seven golfers in the 49-golfer field to shoot in the 70s in each of the final two rounds. Martin, who led or was tied for the lead after each round, is the first Simpson golfer to win IIAC Medalist honors since 1970. Since Simpson’s last Conference Medalist, seven of the other nine IIAC schools have had at least one Medalist, the lone exceptions being Coe and Cornell which did not joined the IIAC until the 1997-98 season.

The IIAC also announced its Players of the Week for the Conference’s five sports in competition during the week. Schultz and Martin earned the weekly honors in their respective sports while the following individuals were recognized for their athletic performances.

Baseball: Buena Vista University freshman first baseman Tom Murphy (Ralston, Neb./Ralston HS) hit .588 and slugged 1.176 in five games during the week. Murphy went 10-for-17 with three home runs and a double, scored five runs and drove in nine as Buena Vista went 4-1 during the week including 3-1 in Conference play to earn a spot in the IIAC Tournament. He was also flawless in 39 defensive chances (38 putouts). Murphy went 2-4 with two RBI in a 7-6 win over Northwestern (Iowa). He went 2-for-4 in an 8-5 victory over Luther and 1-for-3 with a home run, RBI and two runs scored in an 8-6 victory over Luther. Against Dubuque, in a losing cause (18-9), he went 3-for-4 with two home runs and five RBI. He concluded the regular season with a 2-for-2 performance with a double and RBI in a 4-3 victory over Dubuque.

Softball: Central College senior pitcher Libby Hysell (Colfax, Iowa/Colfax-Mingo HS) extended her scoreless innings streak to 50.2 straight and pitched her seventh straight shutout during the week. In her two starts, a 1-0 two-hit shutout of Simpson and a 2-0 three-hit shutout of Wartburg that clinched Central’s second straight Conference title, Hysell allowed just five hits and three walks while striking out 13 batters in 14 innings. She also appeared in relief in Central’s 0-0 tie with Simpson and 3-2 loss to Wartburg. In the tie, she pitched two innings and struck out two batters. In the loss to Wartburg, she pitched a third of an inning allowing no runs, two hits and striking out one.

Men’s Track and Field: Central College senior Peter Wagner (Des Moines, Iowa/SE Polk HS) won the Iowa Conference Decathlon and automatically qualified for the NCAA Championships with 6,754 points. He surpassed the automatic qualifying standard by 204 points and won the event by 771 points over teammate Tanner Whipple. Wagner recorded the top mark in three of the 10 events including the long jump (6.81 meters), pole vault (4.43 meters) and the 110-meter hurdles (15.07 seconds). He finished second in six events including the 100-meter dash (11.74 seconds), 400-meter dash (49.97 seconds), 1,500-meter run (4:53.06), high jump (1.91 meters), shot put (11.33 meters) and javelin (45.05 meters). Wagner finished third in discus (30.80 meters).

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