Hoosier athletes past and present to attend USA Indoor Track and Field Championships

The IU track and field team does not have a meet this weekend, but that will not stop Hoosier athletes, coaches and alumni from lacing up their spikes and competing against some of the best in the nation.\nThese athletes will travel to Boston this weekend to compete in the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships.\nThey will have a special opportunity, one that many of the Hoosiers are eagerly anticipating.\n“This is like a dream come true,” IU senior Kiwan Lawson said. \nLawson, a Big Ten indoor champion last year in the long jump, will be part of the IU group going to the meet. \nLawson said he is very excited to be able to jump against an elite group of athletes.\n“It makes you humble to be there,” he said. “There will be some high flyers and hopefully I’ll be one of them.” \nOne of those high flyers will be IU alumnus Aarik Wilson, a 2005 NCAA indoor champion in both the long jump and triple jump, and a combined six-time All-American in indoor and outdoor track and field.\nDespite the impressive resume for Wilson, Lawson comes into the championships with a slight edge, literally. Lawon’s qualifying mark in the long jump bettered his former teammate and mentor by one centimeter. And he’s making sure Wilson doesn’t forget it.\n“I’ll get in his head a little bit,” said Lawson, with a smile on his face. “He’s a talented athlete.” \nLawson will be accompanied on the trip by one of his childhood friends, IU senior Courtney Johnson. The two have known each other since sixth grade and have always supported one another.\nJohnson, who will compete in the 60-meter hurdles, said she committed to IU first and didn’t even know Lawson was coming until the summer before their freshman year.\n“We have each other,” she said. “He is a great motivator and keeps my head in it.” \nLawson won’t be the only unattached athlete from IU competing in the long jump. Lorian Price, who graduated from IU last year but still trains with the team, qualified last weekend when she won the event at the Hoosier Hills Invitational with a jump of 6.11 meters. \nPrice has been trying all season to break the qualifying mark of 6.07 meters, and it finally came together for her last Friday. \n“It was a big burden off my shoulders,” she said. \nAs happy as she was to have qualified for the championships, Price said this is only a step in the road and is looking to do well in Boston to have a chance to compete in the Olympic trials and maybe even the Beijing Olympics this summer. \nAnother athlete with dreams of competing in Beijing is IU graduate student Abbie Stechschulte. \nStechschulte was on a plane from an All-American finish in the heptathalon when her coach at West Virginia, Jeff Huntoon, surprised her. He told her he was leaving the Mountaineers to take a coaching position at IU.\nHuntoon told his standout athlete that there was a spot for her on the Hoosier roster if she wanted it. Stechschulte said it was an easy choice based on her relationship with her coach and she quickly fell in love with IU.\n“I was extremely optimistic coming in,” she said. “The whole team was really nice and welcoming.” \nStechschulte will compete March 8-9 in North Carolina at the USA Indoor Combined Events Championships. \nHuntoon, now an IU assistant coach, was eager to come to Bloomington and help Hoosier athletes achieve their goals and dreams. \n“I’m excited I could keep them going in the right direction,” he said. \nHuntoon will travel to Boston with two other IU coaches who will also be competing in the meet themselves. \nIU student assistant coach Stacey Clausing qualified for the 400-meter dash with her 53.8 second victory two weeks ago at the Meyo Invitational.\nAlso qualifying at the same meet was IU assistant coach Rebecca Walter. Walter will race in the 3000-meter run after qualifying with a time of 9:19. The Michigan graduate said she enjoys both competing and coaching. \n“It helps to both coach and run at the same time,” she said. “We have a great group of kids that keep me on my toes.”