Feb. 15, 2007

DAYTON, Ohio - School records seem to be dropping like the temperature for the Dayton Flyers women's track and field team.

Breaking individual records in sports can build a team's confidence and improve individual performance. But pardon the coaches and players if they decline to count any of them, for the time being at least.

The focus is on the upcoming Atlantic 10 Indoor Championships on Saturday at Rhode Island for the Flyers track and field team. Head Coach Kandice Erwin believes it's another opportunity to showcase the squad's vast improvement.

"We're really excited about where we are headed," Erwin said. "We set goals in the beginning of the year and we were predicted to finish seventh. That's where we finished last year and our goal is to better that."

Thus it's all business this weekend for the Flyers. The team realizes that dust has settled on its seventh place performance last year at the A-10 Championships. One of the main reasons for optimism is the record-setting performances in previous meets this season.

The amazing record-breaking run began at the Findlay Oiler Open when sophomore Amy Kremer leapt to a new height in the high jump at 5-08.00, sophomore Stacy Chew ran the 300-meters in 42.61 and freshman Katie DeVault posted a new pole vault record of 10-11.75.

Kremer also set the UD pentathlon record with 3,408 points at the Ball State University Pentathlon meet. In the beginning of February, sophomore Lisa Aubry and senior Liz Forster posted new school records in the 500-meter dash at the New Balance Games.

In addition to the school records, numerous Flyers are breaking their own personal marks with each and every competition. Last week at the All-Ohio Championship, nine Flyers recorded personal bests in events like the 400-meters and shot put.

So what's been the big reason for the influx of records broken?

Erwin pointed to a number of factors from larger recruiting classes to exceeding expectations in practice and the weight room.

The talent of the freshmen and sophomores have added a new dimension to the team. Coupled with the recruiting classes in the past couple of years are a little bit stronger and larger than in years past, it makes a huge impact.

The upperclassmen have stepped up as well. Erwin said a lot their success stems from the work in the weight room with strength coach Mark Thobe.

What has gone unnoticed is with a larger team, the upperclassmen do not have to participate in as many events. The pressure is not on them to carry the team and having to double and triple up in events.

"We can look at them and see what kind of potential they have," Erwin said. "In that case, we're not surprised at what they are doing. In the other case, yes, because they haven't done it in previous years. Changing our training and adjusting to new coaching and staff, we are surprised they have responded so quickly to it."

Probably the most important tactic that has helped the Flyers is each individual on the team creates a strategic plan to reach certain goals for each event.

"Each week, the kids have a goal sheet they have to fill out," Erwin said. "It basically has what their personal goal for that meet will be and how they are going to reach that goal. After the meet, they have to sit down and look at post-performance comments to ask if they reached their goal, if they didn't what they could do to reach it training-wise."

Since implementing the personal goal plan, the Flyers have won the Ohio Northern University Friday Night Series and finished in the Top 10 in two separate events this season.

While Dayton appears in top form, the Flyers enter the A-10 Championships a little banged up. Four of their top distance runners will be out as well as their top thrower, Sarah Allen, all with injuries.

Even still, Erwin is not compromising her own goals she wants broken.

"Our goal is top Five," said Erwin. "We think it's a very realistic goal. We're really hoping for big things and representing Dayton well."