This year’s top track and field athletes in the Summit League came from the upper Midwest schools in the conference.
South Dakota’s Teivaskie Lewin and North Dakota State’s Erin Teschuk were named the 2015 Indoor Track Athletes of the Year, while South Dakota’s Kyle McKelvey and South Dakota State’s Mary Wirth were named the Indoor Field Athletes of the Year, as voted on by the league’s head coaches.
Lewin is the third-consecutive Coyote to be named Men’s Indoor Track Athlete of the Year and was named Track MVP of the Championships at February’s Summit League Indoor Track and Field Championships. The junior was All-Summit League in four events (60-meter hurdles, 200-meter dash, long jump and high jump) at the Indoor Track and Field Championships. Lewin was a league champion in both the 60-meter hurdles and 200-meter dash. He improved his league-record time of 7.90 to 7.81 in the 60-meter hurdles at this year’s NCAA Championships en route to a First Team All-American selection.
Teschuk is the third-straight Bison woman named Track Athlete of the Year. She earned First Team All-American honors in both the mile run and the 3,000-meter run at the NCAA Indoor Championships. The Winnipeg, Manitoba, native ran the 12th-fastest mile in the event’s history with a 4:32.35, which placed her fifth, to go along with her seventh-place finish in the 3,000-meter run. The junior is no stranger to receiving accolades this season, her All-American performances only reaffirmed her three Summit League Athlete of the Week awards and her January Athlete of the Month honor. Teschuk was also named U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Midwest Region Track Athlete of the Year for the 2015 indoor season.
McKelvey was named Summit League Athlete of the Week twice during the 2015 indoor season and is the first Coyote to be named Men’s Summit League Field Athlete of the Year. The junior finished in the top-three in the shot put and weight throw at The Summit League Indoor Track and Field Championships. His shot put toss of 63-00 (19.20m) set a new league championship meet record. The Beresford, S.D., native posted a mark of 58-09.5 (17.92m) in the weight throw, earning him third at championship meet.
Wirth is the first South Dakota State female athlete to be named Summit League Field Athlete of the Year. The senior matched The Summit League Championship meet record in the high jump with a mark of 5-11.25 (1.81m) on her way to being Summit League champion in the event for the second time in her career. The Sioux Falls, S.D., native was named Second Team All-American in the high jump after her performance at the NCAA Championships. Earlier this season, she set the SDSU school record with a height of 6-00 (1.83m), which was the highest mark in The Summit League during the 2015 indoor season.
