DENVER ? This week, seven WAC schools are in action, with four teams competing in the Stanford Invitational. Fresno State, Hawai?i, Idaho and Nevada will make the trip to Palo Alto, Calif., to compete in the prestigious Stanford Invitational, Apr. 4-5. Louisiana Tech will participate in the Texas Relays in Austin, Apr. 3. Boise State will host the All Idaho Collegiate Cup in Boise, Apr. 4-5, while Utah State will travel to Provo, Utah, to take part in the BYU Invitational, Apr. 4.
New Mexico State will return to action next weekend at the UTEP Springtime Invitational in El Paso, Texas, Apr. 12.
MEN’S ATHLETES OF THE WEEK (Mar. 17-23) ? Louisiana Tech’s Mike Coleman and Fresno State’s Gary Lee have been named the Western Athletic Conference Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week for the week of Mar. 24-30. This is the second career WAC Outdoor Athlete of the Week honor for Coleman, earning the honor once as a sophomore, and the first career honor for Lee. This is the first season that honors for both “Track” and “Field” athletes will be awarded each week.
Coleman, a junior from Ruston, La., (Ruston), clocked an NCAA regional qualifying time of 20.97 in the 200-meter dash at the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational in Starkville, Miss., good for a first-place finish.
Lee, a freshman from San Diego, Calif. (Hoover), earned an NCAA regional qualifying mark in the long jump, leaping 25’ 4” (7.72m) to finish first at the Cal-Nevada Championships in Fresno, Calif. Lee also ran the first leg in the second-place 4x100-meter relay team, posting a season-best time of 41.25.
Other Track nominees included: Erick Garcia of Fresno State earned second-place in both the 5,000-meter run (14:58.36) and the 3,000-meter steeplechase (9:23.10) at the Cal-Nevada Championships, good for personal-bests in both events.
Other Field nominees included: Larry Jones of Louisiana Tech won the discus for the second-straight week, throwing 167’ 0” (50.90m) at the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational in Starkville, Miss.
WOMEN’S ATHLETES OF THE WEEK (Mar. 17-23) ? Fresno State’s Tiera Hilliard and Louisiana Tech’s Nadia Alexander have been named the Western Athletic Conference Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week for the week of Mar. 24-30. This is the first career WAC Outdoor Athlete of the Week honor for both Hilliard and Alexander. This is the first season that honors for both “Track” and “Field” athletes will be awarded each week.
Hilliard, a freshman from Lakewood, Calif., (Mayfair), captured the 400-meter dash title over 33 competitors at the Cal-Nevada Championships in Fresno, Calif., clocking a personal-best time of 54.64, just .03 seconds shy of an NCAA regional qualifying time. Hilliard also anchored both the Bulldog 4x100 and 4x400-meter relay teams, earning third in both events.
Alexander, a senior from Kingston, Jamaica, (St. Hugh’s), won the shot put at the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational in Starkville, Miss., with an NCAA regional qualifying throw of 51’ 3.5” (15.63m). Alexander’s shot put is the best in the WAC this season by over three feet.
Other Track nominees included: Monique Wright of Louisiana Tech earned a second-place finish in the 400-meter dash with a time of 56.72 at the Bulldog Invitational in Starkville, Miss.
Other Field nominees included: Brooke Pighin of Fresno State won the javelin at the Cal-Nevada Championships with a three-foot personal best and NCAA regional qualifying mark of 157’ 4” (47.91m) ... Inger Appanaitis of Nevada recorded an NCAA regional qualifying mark in the hammer throw (55.62m), finishing fourth at the Cal-Nevada Championships in Fresno, Calif., placing her fourth all-time in Wolf Pack history.
Boise State Broncos
Boise State opened its outdoor season, with the Broncos captured six individual titles at the Northwest Nazarene University Open in Nampa, Mar. 15 ... Jarrod Stevens earned an NCAA regional qualifying standard in the men’s hammer throw with a toss of 212’ 10” (64.88m) ... junior Katie Chivers won the first race of her collegiate career, capturing the women’s 100-meter dash (12.94), and also finishing second in the 200-meter dash (27.35) ... the Broncos finished one-two-three in the women’s 400-meter dash as Nataucha Lowry placed first (58.18), Nerisha Phillip second (59.91) and Nesha Simeon third (1:01.31) ... Boise State also sent a select number of athletes to the USC Trojan Invitational in Los Angeles, Calif., Mar. 22, where sophomore Zacharias Arnos won the men’s triple jump and posted an NCAA qualifying standard with a leap of 50’ 3.25” (15.32m) ... freshman Brian Pierre took second place in the men’s 3,000-meter run (8:35.50) ... this week, the Broncos return to action at the All Idaho Collegiate Cup, Apr. 4-5, in Boise.
Fresno State Bulldogs
Fresno State entered the last day of the Cal-Nevada Championships with 51 final-round bids, finishing strong with the men second out of 20 teams and the women third out of 19 teams ... on the men’s side, freshman Gary Lee won the long jump (24’ 2.5”), while senior Brian Vazquez recorded a 198’ 5” in the hammer throw to take second ... sophomore Frank Sanders won the 800-meter run (1:50.55) and finished third in the 1,500-meter run with a personal-best time of 3:51.65 ... freshman Dondre McDonald took the silver medal in the 100-meter dash (10.74), while junior Darryl Miller took second in the 400-meter dash with a season-best 48.53 ... on the women’s side, freshman Brooke Pighin placed first with a personal-best javelin of 157’ 2”, while Rosario Sanchez won the shot put with a throw of 48’ 1.75” ... freshman Tiera Hilliard won the 400-meter dash (54.54), while Roxanne Sellick finished second in the 1,500-meter run (4:43.26) and third in the 800-meter run (2:13.32) ... the Bulldogs return to action this week when travel to Palo Alto, Calif., to take part in the Stanford Invitational, Apr. 5.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine
Hawai?i hosted the Spring Break Open at Cooke Field, Mar. 29, where the Rainbow Wahine fielded five athletes in the pole vault competition and four each in the long jump, discus and hammer throw events ... junior Jessica Custance captured the pole vault title after clearing 12’ 8’25” (3.87m), while sophomore Alana Faagai won the discus with a throw of 139’ 4” (42.49m) ... junior Ava Cavaco finished first in the hammer throw with a launch of 155’ 3” (47.32m) ... senior Annett Wichmann competed in three events, winning all three, including the long jump (18’ 3.25” / 5.57m), javelin (150’ 1” / 45.75m) and the 100-meter hurdles (14.78) ... Wichmann is currently ranked sixth in the heptathlon and tied for 23rd in the high jump in the USTFCCA’s Outdoor Preseason rankings ... up next, the Rainbow Wahine will make the trip to Palo Alto, Calif., to compete in the Stanford Invitational, Apr. 4-5 ... last season a record 316 athletes achieved NCAA regional qualifying standards at the meet.
Idaho Vandals
Idaho will open its 2008 outdoor season this weekend when the Vandals compete in both the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif., and the Sam Adams Classic in Spokane, Wash., Apr. 4-5 ... the Vandals look to continue their success from last year’s outdoor season, when seven women and six men represented Idaho at the NCAA West Regionals ... the Vandals return 11 athletes who competed in the 2007 Regional meet ... on the women’s side, senior Melinda Owen and juniors K.C. Dahlgren, Allix Lee-Painter, Heather Bergland, Christie Gordon and Mykael Bothum look to lead the Vandals ... leading the charge for the men are senior Bastien Tardy, juniors Diego Moreno-Guzman, David Holmon and Jake Boling and sophomore James Rogan ... junior Matt Wauters and senior Russ Winger will also look to continue their dominance in the throwing events this outdoor season ... the Vandals look forward to their first outdoor competition when they send athletes to both the Stanford Invitational and the Sam Adams Classic.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
Louisiana Tech put in a strong performance at the Bulldog Invitational in Starkville, Miss., hosted by Mississippi State ... the Bulldogs were led by junior Michael Coleman, who finished first and earned an NCAA regional qualifying time in the 200-meter dash (20.97) ... freshman Larry Jones finished first in the discus for the second-straight week after hitting a mark of 167’ 0”, while sophomore Clyde Smith finished second in both the discus (152’ 2”) and the shot put (50’ 4.5”) ... junior Josh Harvey placed second in the 100-meter dash (10.70), while sophomore Cory Denstel took third in the 3,000-meter run (8:56.12) ... on the women’s side, senior Nadia Alexander finished first and earned an NCAA regional qualifying mark in the shot put (51’ 3.5”) ... junior Phelecia Reynolds took first in the discus (150’ 8”) and third in the shot put (43’ 9.75”) ... freshman Monique Wright finished second in the 400-meter dash (56.72), while sophomore Antoinette Cobb took second in the 100-meter dash (14.28) ... Louisiana Tech returns to action this weekend at the Texas Relays in Austin, Texas, Apr. 3.
Nevada Wolf Pack
Nevada finished seventh at the Cal-Nevada Championships in Fresno, Calif., Mar. 28-29 ... the Wolf Pack was led by sophomore Constance McAlman, who earned two top-five finishes ... McAlman placed third in the discus (45.27m) and also finished third in the shot put (13.69m) ... both of McAlman’s marks place her eighth all-time in Nevada history ... McAlman also recorded a top-10 finish, placing sixth in the hammer throw (53.83m) ... senior Inger Appanaitis placed fourth in the hammer throw (55.62m), good for fifth-best in Wolf Pack history, while sophomore Emily Jacobsen finished sixth in the shot put (12.91m) ... freshman Kereiona Johnson took fifth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.44), while senior Amanda Boice tied for sixth in the high jump (1.65m) ... senior Amanda Gramly finished sixth in the 5,000-meter run, clocking a time of 17:44.69 ... the Wolf Pack return to action this week at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif., Apr. 4-5.
New Mexico State Aggies
New Mexico State competed in the Springtime Invitational in El Paso, Texas, Apr. 29 ... the Aggies were led by sophomore Jordan Veney and freshman Devin Brooks, who both earned school records ... Veney shattered the Aggie record in the discus by almost 10 feet, recording a personal-best mark of 168’ 8” ... Brooks earned the 100-meter hurdles school record with a time of 14.36 ... the Aggies placed three runners in the top-five in the 3,000-meter run, with sophomore Ingrid Flores leading the way in second place with a time of 10:40.61 ... in the 1,500-meter run, sophomore Brittany Hurtado brought home the bronze medal with a time of 5:00.39 ... junior thrower Randi Grimes finished fourth in the hammer throw with a launch of 167’ 2”, while Veney finished fifth in the shot put with a mark of 42’ 2” ... up next, the Aggies take this weekend off before returning to action, Apr. 11, when they head back to El Paso, Texas to compete in the UTEP Invitational.
Utah State Aggies
Utah State started its 2008 outdoor season at the Willie Williams Classic in Tucson, Ariz., Mar. 21-22, where the Aggies tallied three individual champions ... on the men’s side, sophomore Steve Strickland won the 3,000-meter steeplechase (9:16.50), and junior John Strang took third in the high jump (2.00m) ... senior Dasheek Akwenye placed third in the 400-meter dash with a WAC-best time of 47.24 ... on the women’s side, senior Stacie Lifferth-Dorius posted an NCAA regional qualifying mark and placed first in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (10:46.61), while junior Vanessa Hawkins finished third in the event ... junior Katie Thatcher won the 400-meter hurdles (1:01.30), while freshman Camille Fehlberg took third (1:02.62) ... sophomore Krista Larson placed third in the hammer throw with a distance of 171’ 5” ... this week, the Aggies return to action at the BYU Invitational, Apr. 4, in Provo, Utah.
WAC CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO BOISE ? The 2008 edition of the WAC Championship returns to Bronco Stadium in Boise, Idaho. The meet will be held May 14-17 with the men’s decathlon and women’s heptathlon multi-events on May 14-15, and the preliminaries and finals on May 16-17.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP ? The 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship will be in Des Moines, Iowa, June 11-14, with Drake University hosting the event.
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