By Andrew Browning ([email protected])

On Feb. 29 the men’s and women’s track and field teams compete at the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference meet at DePauw University at 6 p.m. and March 1 the men’s team will run at the Hoosier State Indoor Relays at Anderson University at 3 p.m. Men’s Head Coach Chuck Koeppen said that even though the MIC meet is the only meet in which an official score is kept, the indoor season allows the team to get an idea of the individuals that will provide the toughest competition down the road.“I think you get a pretty good picture (at the indoor meets),” Koeppen said. “It shows you what teams are going to be like at State and what the teams are going to be like in dual meets.”Logan Rosenberg, varsity runner and junior, also said that the indoor season helps him evaluate opponents’ talent.“Most of the best kids run (indoor) so you can see just how good many people are going to be for outdoor,” Rosenberg said. “It’s a good indicator.”Because the team has had only three weeks of official practice to prepare for the MIC meet tonight, Koeppen and Rosenberg both said that conditioning over the winter has been essential.“It’s absolutely a must if you want to be successful, especially at indoor, and it carries over into the outdoor season,” Koeppen said. “It’s more important than most kids realize, and the ones who stand out during the season are the ones who pay their dues during the offseason.”Rosenberg and Koeppen both said that their main concern at indoor is that all the athletes avoid injuries.“(The main concern is) just to stay healthy and not push too hard and really just get ready for outdoor,” Rosenberg said. “Indoor is really just for fun.”Although Koeppen and Rosenberg said that the atmosphere is more laidback during the indoor meets, they have still set some goals for the short indoor season.“(My goal) is under 4:18 in the mile and under 1:57 in the half-mile and to win the DMR (distance medley relay) at the Hoosier Indoor,” Rosenberg said.“There’s no team scores at the Hoosier Indoor, but we won the DMR last year and I’d like to win it again this year,” Koeppen said. “At MIC you’ve got Ben Davis and Lawrence North who are both lights-out tough. If we could slide into third there I’d be pleased, but they’ve got some animals and that would still mean beating Warren Central who is the defending State champ. So the conference is so tough just finishing in the top half would be an accomplishment.”So although it may be tough for the Hounds to come out on top of the MIC at this point in the season, Rosenberg said that he hopes early success at the indoor meets will point to big things to come. He said he has already set his high sights for the outdoor season.“I’d like to break the school record which is 4:12.47 in the 1600 and win State in the 4×800, 800, or 1600,” Rosenberg said.As far as team success goes, Koeppen and Rosenberg said that despite the team’s youth, it has the chance for a successful season.“I’d say we’re a young team with a lot of talent and potential,” Rosenberg said.“We should be good,” Koeppen said. “We’re in the toughest conference in the state, and we could win a lot of conferences, but this one we might not. We should be a pretty good little team, but at this point it’s pretty early to say.”According to Koeppen, one hurdle the men’s team must overcome this season is the retirement of assistant coaches Karl Knerr and Steve Norris.“This is a really great group to work with,” Koeppen said. “We’ve got a great staff, but it’s been kind of a patchwork staff with the retirement of Steve Norris and Carl Knerr who were longtime friends. But we’ve got some other great coaches and we’ll continue to move ahead.”