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INDOOR TRACK & FIELD ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
MEN
Utah Valley's Jason Lynch and McKay Burnett have been named Western Athletic Conference Track and Field Athletes of the week, respectively, for Feb. 1-7.
Lynch, a senior from Sandy, Utah (Hilcrest HS) claimed the indoor school records in the 3,000m and the 5,000m run with times of 8:30.67 and 14:44.72. Behind these record-breaking performances from Lynch, the Utah Valley track and field team fared well at the Mountain States Games hosted by Idaho State in Pocatello this weekend.
Burnett, a junior from Riverton, Utah (Riverton HS) earned second place in the men's weight throw, tying his season-high mark of 16.99m. He also threw a season best in the shot put with a mark of 14.36.
Other track nominees: Grand Canyon's Josh Ralston had a time of 48.22 (48.36 after conversion), which ranks second-best in the WAC. Ralston also 22.11 in the 200m (22.18 converted) which was the sixth best mark in the WAC this year and was a part of the 4x400 relay team to a win in their section with a time of 3:14.88, which after conversion is just behind their WAC-leading time from two weeks ago. Seattle U's Shaddye Melu finished in first place in the 400 meter with a time of 48.65, then tied his indoor personal record in the 200 meter with a time of 22.42.
Other field nominees: Grand Canyon's Marcus Flannigan ran a 21.89 in the 200m (21.96 after altitude conversion), which now ranks 3rd-best in the WAC this year. Flannigan also came back and had 7.33-meter long jump which was three inches short of his conference leading mark but still better than anyone else in the WAC this season.
WOMEN
Utah Valley's Savannah Berry and Grand Canyon's Sasha-Gaye Marston have been named Western Athletic Conference Track & Field Athletes of the week, respectively, for Feb 1-7.
Berry, a sophomore from Bakersfield, California (Highland HS) won the 5,000m run and set a new school record with a time of 17:44.57. She is currently in first place in the WAC in the 5k.
Marston, a junior from Clarendon, Jamaica (Edwin Allen) finished in second place overall with a throw of 17.78 meters that now ranks first overall in the WAC. Marston's throw came on her third attempt of the day. Her previous best came from the NAU Team Challenge on Jan. 16 where she recorded a mark of 16.45 meters.
Other track nominees: Grand Canyon's Emily Wilkinson continued her tear on the GCU indoor record books, this time breaking Rebekah Young's 3,000-meter school record of 10:21.05 that she had set just two weeks ago at the Cherry and Silver Invitational, also at the University of New Mexico. Racing at altitude, Wilkinson finished in third place with a time of 10:12.40, one that converts to 9:57.31 at sea level. Wilkinson is now first in the WAC standings in the 3,000 meters. Seattle U's Olivia Stein finished in second place out of 20, and first among Seattle U runners, in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 10:11.26, setting a new personal indoor record.
Other field nominees: Seattle U's Mandie Maddux broke three indoor personal records in all three events she competed in (shot put, long jump, 60 meter hurdles), including an indoor school record in the shot put. Even more impressive, all three events she competed in started within 15 minutes of each other. Maddux threw 11.91 meters (39'-1â€) in the shot put (the new indoor school record), went a new distance of 5.04 meters (16'-6.5â€) in the long jump, and set a new time of 9.33 in the 60 meter hurdles. The indoor school record in shot put had previously been tied by Maddux last season, was then broken by Maddux in the first meet of this season, and now, was broken once again by Maddux herself. Utah Valley's Jordan Sieferman threw a 14.05m in the weight throw.
REGIONAL RANKINGS
The USTFCAA regional rankings have been posted and two WAC teams rank in the top 15. The Utah Valley men are 9th in the Mountain Region and the Grand Canyon men are 11th in the West Region.
GRAND CANYON'S PIERRE-LOUIS RICOU RANKED NATIONALLY
The junior from Mornac, France is getting national attention. Ricou is ranked 11th in the country in the heptathlon after dominating at the Mountain T's Invitational, winning six of the seven events in the competition.
UTAH VALLEY'S NICK TAYLOR MAKING STRIDES
The senior set a new school record in the 200m dash with a time of 21.14 seconds as the Utah Valley University track and field team competed in the Bronco Invitational in the Ford Idaho Center on Saturday. Taylor surpassed the four-year standing record of 21.18 seconds, earning a victory in the 200m. Earlier in the day, Taylor also snagged the first-place victory in the 60m dash with a time of 6.78 seconds to pace the Wolverines. Taylor is currently tied for 13th in the nation in the 200m, according to tfrrs.org. He is also ranked 33rd in the 60m.
WAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2016 WAC Indoor Track and Field Championships are held in Nampa, Idaho from Feb. 25-27. The Utah Valley men and Grand Canyon women will be looking to repeat titles from last year.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2016 Indoor Track and Field National Championships will be hosted by Samford and take place in Birmingham, Ala. from March 11-12.
March 11-12, 2016
Host: Samford
Location: Birmingham, Ala.
Facility: Birmingham Crossplex