THIS WEEK IN THE WAC
Chicago State at Gulden Invitational Lewisburg, Pa.
Grand Canyon at Lobo Collegiate Open Albuquerque, N.M.
Bakersfield at Lumberjack Team Challenge Flagstaff, Ariz.
New Mexico State at University of New Mexico Open Albuquerque, N.M.
TEAM NOTES
BAKERSFIELD ROADRUNNERS
Bakersfield is set to open their 2015 season this Saturday at the Lumberjack Team Challenge in Flagstaff, Arizona.
CHICAGO STATE COUGARS
Junior Kory Jackson (Blue Island, Ill./Eisenhower) started 2015 strong with a 3rd place finish in the Men's Long Jump in Lexington, KY. His mark of 7.07 (23' 2.5") places him on top of the current WAC performance list. Senior DeShaunte Lewis (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Poly) breaks his own school record in the 3K distance run, lowering his mark by 2 seconds with a 8:50.53 to finish 17th overall in the event. On the women's side, Senior Oslyn Collins lowers her own school record in the Women's 800m with a time of 2:24.01 at the Kentucky Invitational. Collins' performance earned her a top 25 finish in the event and in the top 10 in conference rankings. Cougar Men and Women Track head to Bucknell this weekend (Jan.24) to compete in the Gulden Invitational.
GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES
The Grand Canyon University men's and women's track and field teams kicked off their 2015 indoor campaign in style Friday, turning in several strong performances at the NAU Friday Night Duals inside the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, Ariz. The meet was scored as head-to-head duals, with the Antelope men and women sweeping all of their opponents Friday. Included in that list are Pac-12 powerhouses Arizona and Arizona State, as well as Big Sky preseason favorites Northern Arizona. On the men's side, Josh Ralston posted the second quickest time in Canyon history and placed second in the 400-meter dash after clocking a conference-best time of 47.79 seconds. Isaac Allanarem and Mykeal Ham came in fifth and sixth, respectively, with their times of 49.93 seconds and 50.07 seconds. Aaron Thurber raced to the fastest time in the conference in the 60-meter dash (6.77 seconds) on his way to placing second. Niels Theijs was fourth after crossing the line in a time of 6.87 seconds, while Marcus Flannigan was sixth (6.95 seconds). Defending WAC 200-meter champion Lance Parker picked up right where he left off in 2014, placing first in the 200-meter dash with his WAC-best time of 21.73 seconds. The Lopes will be back in action next Saturday (Jan. 24) when they travel to Albuquerque for the Lobo Collegiate Open
MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY KANGAROOS
The ‘Roos opened their track and field season at the Hoosier Open hosted by the University of Indiana where Courtney Frerichs won the 5000m run and beat the school record by 31 seconds also setting a new WAC record.
The Kangaroos took on the Missouri Invitational on Friday (January 15), coming home with two field champions, senior Joshua Harden and junior Blake Hocking. The track and field team set personal records all across the board. The senior from O'Fallon, Mo., Dahlia Dyson, racked up third and fourth place finishes in the women's shot put with a toss of 12.99 (a personal record this season) and a throw of 16.21 in the weight throw. Yasmin Musaddiq also set a new personal best this season as she earned 14th in the shot put while placing 11th place in the weight throw. On the run, Kansas citian Veronica Rollins took great strides in the 800m dash placing second with her 2:19.8 split. Janelle Johnson trailed behind in eighth place with a 2:25.97 finish. The next time the Kansas City track and field team will compete will be on Saturday, Jan. 24th, at the Jim Emmerich Invitational hosted by SDSU in Brookings, South Dakota.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES
The New Mexico State track and field team opened their 2015 indoor season this weekend with at the Texas Tech Open. During the second day of the competition, the Aggies saw senior Diana Hawk to a first place finish in the one-mile as she recorded a time of 5:12.19. Senior Megan McNally finished seventh in the 300 meter run at 10:54.15 The women's distance medley put up a good fight as they placed third against the competition with a time of 12:54.51 on the first day of the Open. Senior Marissa Gonzales qualified for the finals in the pole vault with a mark of 3.50m (11 feet, 5 3/4 inches) as did freshman LaShya Cole in the long jump with a mark of 5.17m (16-11 1/2) in her debut meet. Sophomore Dominique Jackson performed well for NM State with a sixth place finish in the 200-meter dash at a time of 25.86 and was 22nd out of 47 other runners in the 55-meter dash recording a time of 7.44. In field competition, sophomore Akuadasuo Ezenyilimba finished second in the weight throw, marking 15.28m (50-1).Cole finished sixth the triple jump with a mark of 11.02m (36-2) with freshman Jocelyn Jordan in seventh at 10.91m (35-9 1/2). Freshman Kayli Farmer completed her first competition for the Aggies and finished tied for tenth in the high jump at 1.56m (5-1 1/4). The Aggies head to the Lobo Collegiate Classic in Albuquerque, N.M. to compete on Jan. 24-25.
SEATTLE U REDHAWKS
Two school records fell as the Seattle University track and field team opened the 2015 indoor season at the UW Indoor Preview Saturday at the Dempsey Indoor Facility on the campus of the University of Washington. Shaddye Melu improved upon his own school record in the high jump, clearing 2.10 meters (6' 10.75") on his first attempt at the height. Sophie Curatilo maintained the momentum from her exemplary cross country season, breaking the school record in the 3000 meter run by over five seconds with a time of 9:51.28. Besides Melu, the highlight in the field events came in the women's high jump, when Mandie Maddux (Gresham, Ore.) cleared 1.64 meters (5' 4.5"), just 1/100th of a meter, or about a half-inch, off the school record. Maddux finished in sixth place overall in the event. Seattle University returns to Dempsey Indoor in two weeks for the UW Invitational Friday and Saturday, Jan. 30-31.
TEXAS PAN-AMERICAN BRONCS
Senior Trey Taylor won the men's weight throw to lead the University of Texas-Pan American Broncs track and field team on Friday at the Texas A&M 13-Team Invitational at the Gilliam Indoor Track and Field Stadium. Taylor hit a mark of 17.06 meters, which ranks fourth in program history, to take the top spot in the event. He was the only thrower to surpass 17 meters. Taylor then finished in seventh place in the shot put with a throw of 14.56 meters. Freshman Isaac Samuels finished in eighth place in the shot put with 13.99 meters while freshman and Mission High School alum Antonio Salinas finished in 10th with a throw of 13.92 meters. On the women's side, graduate student and Edinburg High School alum Robin Galloso finished in second place in the mile run with a time of 5:07.80, which ranks fourth in program history. Freshman and Los Fresnos High School alum Jennifer Zapata finished a spot behind Galloso in third place with a time of 5:19.05. The Broncs are back in action on Jan. 30 when they travel to Lubbock for the Masked Raider, hosted by Texas Tech.
UTAH VALLEY WOLVERINES
Stetson Sartor, Drake Walker, and Alex Walton swept first through third place in the men's collegiate 60m dash Saturday at the Snake River Open hosted by Idaho State at the Holt Arena.. Sartor crossed the finish line with a time of 6.97 seconds, Walker finished in 7.00 seconds while Walton rounded out the trio with a time of 7.16 seconds. The Wolverines finished in first in the 4x400m relay with a time of 3:18.04 led by Gabe Famodu, Trac Norris, Brandon Smart and Jake Morgan. On the women's side freshman Maria Blad and senior Jessica Beatty finished in first place in the 60m hurdles, each with a time of 8.96 seconds. Lauren Hicks won the triple jump with a mark of 11.56m, and teammate Becca Hutton added a second place finish in the weight throw with a 15.48m throw. Ellery Young and Tarin Strosser both finished in first in the high jump with a jump of 1.50m. Chasity Ducre brought in second place in the long jump with a mark of 5.22m. The Wolverines travel to Pocatello again on Jan. 30-31 to compete in the Mountain States Invitational.
This Week in WAC Indoor Track & Field
WAC Indoor Performance List