Dance team wins two national championships
The St. Thomas dance team earned two national titles in both jazz and hip-hop while competing at the Universal Dance Association National College Dance Team Championships Jan. 18-19 in Orlando, Florida.
The team now holds 8 national titles in its program history.
This marks the first time the Tommies won both jazz and hip-hop in the same year and is the team’s third consecutive championship in jazz.
Alumnus Ben Sathre qualifies for Olympic Trials
St. Thomas graduate Ben Sathre’s time of 1:04:51 in Sunday’s Aramco Houston Half Marathon was his personal best and qualifies him for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials in the marathon.
While at St. Thomas, Sathre was an NCAA champion in cross country as a senior and a national runner-up as a junior.
St. Thomas graduate John Schneider Super Bowl bound
Four years after being named the Seattle Seahawks general manager, St. Thomas alumus John Schneider is headed to Super Bowl XXXXVIII.
Schneider’s team defeated rival San Francisco 49ers 23-17 Jan. 19 at home. His team will take on the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl on Feb. 2.
MIAC athletes of the week
Sophomore Mike Lanz was named MIAC Athlete of the Week in men’s swimming Tuesday. Lanz was a part of two firsts, including a 46.39 time in the 100 free anchor leg to help the Tommies win by a slim .12 seconds over St. Olaf in the 400 free relay. Lanz also won the 100 fly in 50.70 and took third in the 500 free in 4:54.36.
Fifth-year senior Aba Omot had three strong weight throws earning three wins in a season-opening meet in Anderson Fieldhouse last weekend. Omot took first in the 60 dash (7.17), the weight throw (55-11 3-4) and the shot put (49-8 1-2). His two throws rank in the top 21 in Division III so far in 2014.
Senior Haley Zajac took first place in the women’s weight throw in 50-8 3-4, the NCAA’s 21st best throw so far in 2014. The throw was less than 2 feet off her career-best throw and better than any of her 2013 performances. Zajac said she’s excited to see how her team will compete at the conference meet.
“I worked in the off season to ensure a good start in January, and once practice started I made sure to make the most of my time with my coach,” Zajac said. “I have high hopes for myself in my last season here and am excited to see where it goes.”
Baseball gets 3 preseason All-Americans
Three St. Thomas seniors, including pitcher Steve Maher, catcher J.D. Dorgan and outfielder Tim Kuzniar have been named to the 2014 Division III Preseason All-America team by D3baseball.com.
All three seniors had strong campaigns last season for a St. Thomas team that finished 34-7 while being ranked in the top 10 nationally throughout the season. Kuzniar said he was honored to be selected to the team.
“They only name 30 kids to the three teams, and we happened to be three of them,” Kuzniar said. “This year’s group of guys have played every game together since 2011 when we went to the World Series. We all know what it’s going to take to win this year and get back to the World Series.”
Maher went 4-2 with a 2.53 ERA in 46 ⅓ innings pitched, including 29 strikeouts and 16 walks. Kuzniar batted .387 and drove in 44 runs, including 96 total bases and a .696 slugging percentage. Dorgan hit .365 with 50 hits, 40 RBI’s and 7 home runs and had a strong year behind the plate.
Kyle Jonas can be reached at jona7984@stthomas.edu.