Three Olivet College track and field athletes tabbed All-MIAA

OLIVET, Mich. – A trio of Olivet College student-athletes, sophomore Cassie Ciaravino (Lapeer/East), junior Sara Wegener (Lansing/Lansing Catholic) and freshman Damien Johnson (Battle Creek/B.C. Central) have been tabbed to the 2013 All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Track and Field teams. The individual event winners at the MIAA Field Day are automatic selections to the all-conference teams, with the remaining selections voted by the coaches based on an athlete's performance at both the Field Day and MIAA Jamboree.

At the Field Day, Ciaravino finished second in the 100-meter hurdles (:15.47), seventh in the long jump (15'10-1/4") and ran on both the 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays. At the jamboree, she was first in the 100-meter hurdles (:16.02), second in the long jump (17'6"), fifth in the high jump (5'1/4"), and ran a leg of both the 4x100 (:52.22) and 4x400-meter (relays.

Wegener was an automatic selection to the All-MIAA team after winning the shot put at the Field Day with a school-record mark of 40 feet, 1/2 inch. She was the only MIAA athlete to finish in the top eight of all four throwing events at the Jamboree and Field Day. Besides winning the shot put at the Field Day, Wegener placed second in the hammer throw (136'1"), fourth in the discus (115'1") and eighth in the javelin (97'11"). At the Jamboree, she was second in both the shot put (36'7-1/2") and discus (109'6"), third in the hammer (130'10") and sixth in the javelin (96').

"I am proud that Cassie and Sara earned All-MIAA honors," said Head Olivet Women's Track and Field Coach Karen Lutzke. "Cassie is a tremendous athlete who keeps adding to her events she excels in every year. Sara has made a lot of progress over the last few years, improving her marks in each event. This season, she had an exceptional year. These two ladies did whatever it took to contribute to their team."

At the Field Day, Johnson finished in second-place in the 100-meter dash (:11.05) and third in the 200-meter dash (:22.75). He also ran the anchor leg of the second-place 4x100-meter relay, which broke the school record with a time of 42.58 seconds. At the Jamboree, Johnson won the 200-meter dash (:23.08) and placed second in the 100-meter dash (:11.40), and ran the last leg of the winning 4x100-meter relay (:43.17).

"Damien did a great job competing this spring," said Head Olivet Men's Track and Field Coach Jeff Kavalunas. "As a freshman to be able to step in and compete for the top spot in the MIAA in the 100, 200 and anchor a strong 4x100 relay is a great accomplishment. It was also a great start to strong track and field career at Olivet."