Olympian DeDee Nathan Phil McMullen

June 22, 2001
(EUGENE, OR) Invaders’ Olympian DeDee Nathan won the heptathlon on Friday in front of a spirited crowd of 6,843 at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Nathan started day two in third place. Her winning jump of 6.33 in the first event, the long jump, moved her into first place. Teammate Phil McMullen also posted big gains in the decathlon on day two in route to his second place PR finish. Both Nathan and McMullen will represent the U.S. at the World Championships in Edmonton, Canada in August.

In addition to her 6.33 in the long jump, Nathan scored third in the javelin (43.41) and sixth in the 800 (2:19.77) with a total of 6174 points. Nathan won the Olympic Trials in 2000 and World Indoor Championships in 1999 as a member of the Invaders.

On day two, McMullen placed ninth in the 110HH (14.72), first in the discus throw (48.89), second in the pole vault with a huge PR (5.20), fourth in the javelin (55.23), and second in the 1500 with a 4:17.04. McMullen finished a mere 21 points out of first place with 8220 points.

McMullen said "Everything went really well and I’m excited to make the team for Edmonton. I PRed in the vault and had a PR for my total score. This is really exciting. I was solid throughout the competition and I’m very pleased." McMullen’s previous decathlon PR was 8097.

"Phil put together a great decathlon. He had trained hard and competed with heart," added coach Aron McGuire.

Tara Loper finished 12th in the hammer throw with a toss of 59.13. "Tara moved up five places [from her pre-meet seeding] and had her second farthest throw of the season," said coach Matt Gaston. Gaston added, "I was very happy with her performance."

Hope Sanders missed a trip to the finals by one place in the 800. Le’gretta Smith failed to advance out of the 400 hurdles to the finals.

Invaders' Athletic Profiles:
http://www.indianainvaders.com/athletes/

USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships:
http://www.eugenechamps.com/

For additional information on the Indiana Invaders, please contact Greg Harger at 317 289-4018 or online at: (email)