ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Mens
Mattias Jons, a junior from Malmoe, Sweden, won the 35-pound weight throw and set a Boise State school record in his first intercollegiate competition at the Bandanna Invite. Jons posted a Bronco-record throw of 18.57m (60-11 1/4), passing the old mark set three years ago of 17.62 (57-10) by Matt Ingerbitsen.
Womens
Shana Robinson, a senior from Tulsa, Okla., won the 200 meters at the Arkansas Invite with a NCAA provisional time of 23.99, breaking her own school record. She also placed third in the 60 meters (7.47) at a meet which included No. 1 LSU, No. 6 Arkansas and No. 24 Mississippi State.
Additional nominees included:
Mens
Jeff LaPoint, Louisiana Tech; Hannes Hopley, SMU and Ben Orozco, Tulsa.
Womens
Miruna Mataoanu, Boise State; Bridgett Ladouceur, Louisiana Tech; Jamila Carter, Nevada; Eva Charfreitagova, SMU.
BOISE TO HOST 2003 WAC CHAMPIONSHIP - The 2004 Western Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship is going to be held at the Idaho Sports Center in Boise, Idaho. This years championship will be held Thursday, February 26 through Saturday, Februay 28.
2003 WAC Championship - The Nevada women and the SMU men took home the 2003 Western Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field crowns, earning 127.5 and 147 points, respectively. Individual honors went to Allison Beckford of Rice and Ray Ardill of Boise State, and Dalibor Balgac of SMU, who all received the WACs Outstanding Performance award. Taking home Freshman of the Year honors, were Olatunde Okusanya and Gerardo Cerrarsco of UTEP. Coach of the Year honores went to the two team champions, Curt Kraft of Nevada and Dave Wollman of SMU. The High Point Awards were handed out to Rices Beckford and Ryan Harlan.
Finishing in second place for the men was Rice with 139 points, followed by defending champion, UTEP (116.5), Boise State (92), Fresno State (80.5), Louisiana Tech (44) and Tulsa (39). For the women, Rice earned runner-up honors with 120 points, while UTEP (93), SMU (80), Louisiana Tech (71), Tulsa (62), Fresno State (53), Boise State (43.5) and Hawaii (10) round out the womens side.
FRALEY NAMED 2003 USA TRACK AND FIELD COACH OF THE YEAR - Fresno State Director of Track and Field Bob Fraley has been named USA Track & Field's 2003 Nike Coach of the Year. Fraley, now in his 22nd season at Fresno State, played a pivotal role in rejuvenating the pole vault in the United States when in 1989 he created the Pole Vault Summit, now held in Reno, Nevada. Featuring competitions and an exchange of knowledge about pole vaulting, the event attracts more than 2,000 male and female athletes, from teenagers to Olympic gold medalists. His work has reaped dividends: in the last three years alone, Team USA men's pole vaulters have won the gold and silver medals at both the 2000 Olympic Games and 2001 IAAF World Indoor Championships, as well as the bronze medal at the 2001 World Outdoor Championships. In 2003, his contributions reached a new level when he donated his salary to the school's track program in order to prevent it from being cut due to budgetary reasons.