THIS WEEK IN THE WAC
Friday January 17
Chicago State at Kentucky Invitational Lexington, Ky.
Kansas City at Holiday Inn Classic Lincoln, Neb.
Grand Canyon at Lumberjack Team Challenge Flagstaff, Ariz.
Texas-Pan American at Texas A&M 12-Team Challenge College Station, Texas
Idaho at WSU Cougar Indoor Pullman, Wash.
Saturday, January 18
New Mexico State at Lobo Invitational Albuquerque, N.M.
Idaho at WSU Cougar Indoor Pullman, Wash.
Seattle U at UW Indoor Preview Seattle, Wash.
Utah Valley at Snake River Open Pocatello, Idaho
LAST WEEK
Chicago State at Bob Eubanks Open No Team Scores
Kansas City at Bill Easton Classic No Team Scores
Utah Valley at BYU Invitational No Team Scores
MEN’S ATHLETES OF THE WEEK, JAN. 6-12
Utah Valley’s Cole Eisenhour and Michael McPherson have been named the Western Athletic Conference men’s track and field Athletes of the Week, respectively, for Jan. 6-12.
Eisenhour, a sophomore from Roy, Utah (Roy HS), broke the school record in the 60-meter hurdles for the second consecutive meet of the season on Saturday at the BYU Invitational. Eisenhour’s record-breaking time of 8.15 seconds was also fast enough to win the race and was seven one-hundredths of a second faster than his previous record that he set at Boise State last month. The Wolverine sophomore also competed in the 300-meter dash and placed third in the event with a time of 36.17 seconds.
McPherson, a junior from Parker, Colo. (Chaparral Parker HS), set three new school records over the weekend at the BYU Invitational as he placed second in the men’s heptathlon with 5,432 points. McPherson’s total was good enough to set a new school record in the event as he shattered his previous record of 5180, set last season at Boise State, by more than 250 points. He also set a Utah Valley records in the long jump, an event he qualified for the NCAA Championship in last year, with a leap of 24-03.25 (7.40m), and in the 1000-meters, which he won with a time of 2:45.74. Out of the seven events in the heptathlon, McPherson won four of them (60-meters 6.86, 60-meter hurdles 8.36, long jump 24-03.25 and 1000-meters 2:45.74). The Wolverine junior took second in the event as he finished just 57 points back of first-place Chase Dalton of BYU.
Other Track Nominees: DeShaunte Lewis, Chicago State.
Other Field Nominees: Kris Leverette, Kansas City.
WOMEN’S ATHLETES OF THE WEEK, JAN. 6-12
Utah Valley’s Brooke Hodson-Davies and Lauren Hicks have been named the Western Athletic Conference women’s track and field Athletes of the Week, respectively, for Jan. 6-12.
Hodson-Davies, a senior from Orem, Utah (Timpanogos HS), opened her indoor season with a bang on Saturday by winning the 3000-meter run at the BYU Invitational. With a time of 10:14.15, Hodson-Davies won the race by nearly a second ahead of her next closest finisher, BYU’s Makenna Smith (10:15.03). Hodson-Davies competed for the Wolverines in the 3000m steeplechase at the NCAA’s during the outdoor season last year and was UVU’s top finisher at the NCAA Cross Country Mountain Region Championships this fall fall.
Hicks, a freshman from Gilbert, Ariz. (Gilbert HS), broke the UVU school record in the triple jump with a leap of 37-07.50 (11.47m) on Saturday at the BYU Invitational. Her jump broke the previous school record by three inches and was good enough for second place at the meet. Hicks also took fifth in the long jump at the Invite (15-10.25) and 12th in the 60m dash (8.47).
TEAM RECAPS
Bakersfield Roadrunners
The Bakersfield women will compete in three indoor meets, including the WAC Championships during the 2014 Indoor Track season ... this will be the ‘Runners first season in the WAC .... sophomore Jamara Scott placed second in the triple jump and sixth in the long jump at the 2013 Great West Outdoor Championships ... junior Alyssa Page was third in the 400-meters at the 2013 Great West Outdoor Championships .... Marcia Mansur-Wentworth is in her second season at CSU Bakersfield ... Mansur-Wentworth joined the Roadrunner staff in 2013 as the director of track and field, adding cross country responsibilities in the Summer of 2013 ... Bakersfield begins the season on Jan. 24-25 at the Northern Arizona Invitational in Flagstaff, Ariz.
Chicago State Cougars
The Chicago State began the season last week at the Bob Eubanks open in Allendale, Mich. ... for the men, junior DeShaunte Lewis set a school record in the 3000-meter run with a time of 8:52.91 ... Lewis’ performance was good for third place ... sophomore Kory Jackson bested 13 other competitors to win the long jump with a 6.84-meter performance ... freshman Zhate Jackson picked up a third place finish in the 400 meters (1:01.02). ... freshman DeJania Evans used a 1.51-meter jump to finish seventh in the high jump ... senior Jaya Emerson’s 11.07-meter throw in the shot put her in eighth place ... this week, Chicago State travels to Lexington, Ky. for the Kentucky Invitational on Friday and Saturday.
Grand Canyon ‘Lopes
Grand Canyon University is competing at the Division I level for the first time in program history ... after stellar indoor seasons in 2013, seniors Shavine Hodges and Brianne Kee return to lead the GCU women’s squad in 2014 ... both Hodges and Kee earned second place finishes at the 2013 Division II Indoor Championships in their respective events of the 60-meter dash and long jump ... the ‘Lopes return a pair of All-Americans on the men’s side, as seniors Kevin Lashley (Long Jump) and Oliver Smith (400-meter dash) both placed in the top eight at the indoor championships last February in Birmingham .... Lashley had a jump of 7.40 meters in the long jump at the indoor championships, which topped any number put up in the same event in the WAC Indoor Championships last year ... the ‘Lopes open the season at the Lumberjack Team Challenge in Flagstaff, Ariz. on Friday.
Idaho Vandals
Idaho will compete in eight meets prior to hosting the WAC Championships this season, including four meets in Moscow … the Vandals will be led by senior Hannah Kiser, who enter the season fresh off an individual title in the WAC Cross Country Championships ... she also placed fifth in the 3,000 meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships last year and holds multiple school records ... the women have a strong distance squad, laying claim to four-straight WAC cross country titles ... the men’s team has a fairly new roster this season, but returns all-WAC performers in Ben Ayesu-Attah, Matt Sullivan and Kyle Rothwell ... freshman Nicholas Boersma won the WAC Cross Country individual title last fall, while junior Cody Helbling was named Cross County Athlete of the Year ... Idaho opens competition on Friday and Saturday at the WSU Cougar Invite in Pullman, Wash.
Kansas City Kangaroos
The Kansas City track and field teams opened the season at the Bill Easton Classic last Friday ... Kris Leverette set a personal best in the men’s weight throw with a distance of 58-10 (17.93m) to place first in the event ... Leverette’s teammate Martin Williams placed third in the weight throw with a distance of 52-2.75 (15.92m) ... on the women’s side, Dahlia Dyson earned a second place finish with a throw of 58-8.75 (17.90m) ... Dyson also placed second in the women’s shot put, throwing the shot 42-4 (12.90m) to edge out teammate Kelsey Benoit (12.88m) ... senior Michelle Momo was a second place finisher in the women’s long jump with a distance of 18-10.75 (5.76m) ... this week, the ‘Roos travel to Nebraska for the Holiday Inn Classic on Friday.
New Mexico State Aggies
The Aggies women’s track program will compete in five meets before the WAC Championships, with four of the five meets taking place in Albuquerque, N.M., which is the home of the 2014 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships ... NM State returns seniors Brianna Cromartie and Alishia Perkins, as well as junior Jenna Banegas, who all qualified for the 2013 USA Indoor Track and Field Championship ... Cromartie was named WAC Athlete of the Year and was also the High Point Award recipient at the 2013 WAC Indoor Track and Field Championships ... senior Zoe Meade will look to defend her 2013 WAC Indoor Championship in the pentathlon ... the Aggies travel to Albuquerque for the Lobo Invitational on Saturday.
Seattle University Redhawks
Seattle U will compete in three meets prior to the WAC Indoor Championships, all of which will take place in Seattle, Wash. ... Trisha Steidl enters her eighth season as head track and field coach at Seattle University ... during the past seven years, every possible school record has been broken except for two (men’s heptathlon, women’s shot put) ... eight individual indoor record holders are among the returnees for the Redhawks this season ... one of this year’s captains is Cali Cull, the 2012 Great West Conference indoor triple jump champion ... the women’s distance runners are coming off a second place finish at the WAC Cross Country Championships which featured four All-WAC performances, including WAC Freshman of the Year Lila Rice ... Seattle U will begin the indoor season on Saturday at the UW Indoor Preview hosted by Washington.
Texas-Pan American Broncs
The Broncs open their first indoor season in the WAC on Friday at the Texas A&M 12-Team Invitational, hosted by Texas A&M ... UTPA will compete three times in Texas leading up to the WAC Indoor Championships, including twice at Texas Tech for the Masked Rider Open and the Red Raider Open ... three returning athletes won championships at the Great West Indoor Conference Championships in 2013; junior Jasmine Davison (weight throw), senior Jesus Alvarez (weight throw) and senior Martin Casse (mile and 800-meter run) ... the Broncs warmed up for the season with the Green and White Alumni Meet on Dec. 6, which served as a preview for several newcomers that Head Coach Xavier Richardson expects to contribute.
Utah Valley Wolverines
The Wolverines track & field teams excelled at the BYU Invitational last weekend as they shattered six school records and earned all four WAC track and field Athlete of the Week honors ... junior Michael McPherson, who broke the school’s long jump record on Friday with a leap of 24-03.25 (7.40m), set a new program record in the men’s heptathlon with 5,432 points, good for second ... sophomore Cole Eisenhour a school record as ran broke the 60-meter hurdles in a time of 8.15 seconds ... freshman Lauren Hicks shattered the school record in the women’s triple jump on the day, as she took second in the event with a leap of 37-07.50 (11.47m) ... the Wolverines will be back in action on Friday at the Snake River Open in Pocatello, Idaho.