Friday, January 20
Bozeman, MT
4:30 PM (Field) 5:30 PM (Track)
Montana State University
vs
MSU DUAL MEET INVITE
Gage Pickering, Chris Wilson and Nick Melone all had strong nights in the sprints
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Back on Track
1/20/2012 11:12:00 PM | Track & Field
Track and Field has successful night at 2012 opener
Montana State opened the 2012 season at the MSU Dual Meet Invitational on Friday. The Bobcats hosted Big Sky Conference members Idaho State and Montana. MSU Men swept both Montana and Idaho State. The Bobcats defeated the Griz, 91-55, and bounced the Bengals, 89.5-58.5. In the women's competition, The Bobcats went 1-1, getting edged out by the Griz, 75-73 and defeating ISU, 85-60. (Results | Scores)
The Montana State men finished the night with 20 medals, including 10 first place finishes. Overall, the Bobcat men and women picked up several qualifiers for the Big Sky Conference Indoor Championships.
The first event of the night gave Montana State their first medal of the season, as well as a few lifetime bests. Eddie Stevenson came in third place behind a one-two finish for Idaho State, with a hurl of 15.69m (51-07.75), marking a PR for the Bridger, Mont. native. Derek Marsh, who came in fourth, also produced a lifetime best at 15.67m (51-05.00).
In the shot put, Trevor Gilreath ran away with the lead with a distance of 16.49m (54-01.25), which is a BSC qualifying throw. Will Rockett, who came in sixth, did grab a lifetime best throw of 14.51m (47-07.25).
Jeff Mohl, coming off a Big Sky Field Athlete of the Week award, tied for first in the pole vault with an automatic qualifying height of 4.70m (15-05.00). Ryan Kropp came in third at 4.60m (15-01.00).
In the Men's 55 hurdles, Asa Staven earned a Big Sky Conference qualifier in the preliminaries and went on to win the event with a time of 7.67 seconds. Mohl, picked up his second silver of the day with a time of 7.81, which will also give him a Big Sky ticket.
The dynamic duo of Staven and Mohl teamed up, yet again, in the high jump for two more medals for the Cats. Staven placed first with a height of 2.06m (6-09.00) and Mohl came in third, tying his PR at 2.01m (6-07.00).
The 55 also proved to be successful for MSU when Chris Wilson and Nick Melone combined for first and third places, respectively. Wilson finished with a qualifying time of 6.40, while Melone just missed the mark at 6.56 seconds.
Following the sprints, the mile also showed the depth of the Bobcats. Dan Jackson earned his Big Sky mark with a time of 4:13.81. Jacob Kirk, right on Jackson's heels, came in second in 4:14.37 with a qualifying time, as well.
In the men's 400, Melone grabbed his second medal of the night with a BSC qualifier of 49.02 seconds.
Grant Grosvenor and Forrest Jarvi were a one-two punch in the 800, finishing first and second, respectively. Grosvenor clocked in at 1:55.62 while Jarvi was just behind him at 1:56.63.
Jake Turner, after an impressive debut in cross country this fall, received his first collegiate win in the 3,000 with a time of 8:39.53. His time also earns him an automatic shot at the Big Sky meet. Seth Grossman, one of the leaders of Bobcat Cross Country, came in third with a time of 8:51.15.
Matt Nicholas took first in the long jump with a distance of 6.73m (22-01.00).
Gage Pickering earned his first win of the season in the 200 with a time of 22.31, narrowly missing the conference meet cutoff.
“As I've said before, Staven and Mohl are really all over the place,” said head coach Dale Kennedy. “Chris Wilson had the fastest auto-timed 55 in program history tonight and we hope we'll be able to see a lot more from him.”
The men closed out the track events with a silver medal in the 4x400 relay. Melone, Grosvenor, Aaron Johnston and Michael Nguyen combined for a time of 3:19.01.
For the Bobcat Women, they grabbed 17 medals, with seven first place performances.
Chelsea Bourque pushed her way across the finish line ahead of the competition in the 55 with a time of 7.42, which was a lifetime best by just one-hundredth of a second. Chantel Jaeger, in her collegiate debut, came in second place with a time of 7.43. Bourque also advanced to the finals of the 55 hurdles but placed seventh overall.
Katie Niemeir, one of the Bobcat Sprints frontrunners, placed second in the 55 hurdles with a Big Sky qualifying time of 8.21.
The women's 800 saw one Bobcat place with Madeline Fuchs placing third with a time of 2:23.74.
The 200 was arguably one of the strongest events of the night for Montana State, with the Bobcats taking the first four places of the race. Jaeger earned her first gold medal with a time of 25.07, followed by Niemeir in 25.78. Newcomer Paige Squire placed third in 26.09. Bourque rounded out the top-four in 26.25.
In Women's Throws action, Amanda Murphy finished over three meters ahead of second place with a distance of 18.55m (60-10.50), and has qualified for the Big Sky Indoor Championships. Also in the weight throw, Amy Ostermiller produced a PR throw of 12.68m (41-07.25).
Murphy continued her winning ways, picking up where she left off from the 2011 outdoor season, with another gold in the shot put at 14.02m (46-00.00). The Charlo, Mont. native got serious support from her teammates, as the Bobcats swept the event. Loni Havlovick came in second at 13.27m (43-06.50) and freshman Kristi VandeBergh was third with 12.69m (41-07.75). Havlovick's distance also marked a personal best. Ostermiller, who came in eighth, also knocked off another best with 10.96m (35-11.50)
Rebekka Chambers came in strong in her first meet of the year in the pole vault, garnering the gold with a height of 3.65m and a shot at the Big Sky meet.
In the triple jump, Rachelle Allen, in her first year of competition, placed second, launching herself 11.09m (36-04.75).
Amber Amsbaugh won the high jump with a height of 1.67m (5-05.75) and was followed up by Carley McCutchen who placed third at 1.62m (5-03.75)
The women closed out the running portion of the invite with a huge win in the 4x400 relay. The quartet of Jaeger, Niemeir, Sonia Antar and Lierin Flanagan crossed the line in 3:49.72, one of their fastest season opening times to date.
“There were a lot of great performances tonight,” said Kennedy. “I think Katie Niemeir really bounced back in the hurdles and we saw a lot of progress from Paige Squire in the sprints and really saw some solid stuff out there.”
The Bobcats return to action on Friday, Jan. 27, when they host their second of four home indoor meets at the Montana State Open. Field events are scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. and the track events at 5:30 p.m. Expected to compete along with MSU are Carroll (Mont.), Mary (N.D.), MSU-Billings, Montana and Rocky Mountain (Mont.)
The Montana State men finished the night with 20 medals, including 10 first place finishes. Overall, the Bobcat men and women picked up several qualifiers for the Big Sky Conference Indoor Championships.
The first event of the night gave Montana State their first medal of the season, as well as a few lifetime bests. Eddie Stevenson came in third place behind a one-two finish for Idaho State, with a hurl of 15.69m (51-07.75), marking a PR for the Bridger, Mont. native. Derek Marsh, who came in fourth, also produced a lifetime best at 15.67m (51-05.00).
In the shot put, Trevor Gilreath ran away with the lead with a distance of 16.49m (54-01.25), which is a BSC qualifying throw. Will Rockett, who came in sixth, did grab a lifetime best throw of 14.51m (47-07.25).
Jeff Mohl, coming off a Big Sky Field Athlete of the Week award, tied for first in the pole vault with an automatic qualifying height of 4.70m (15-05.00). Ryan Kropp came in third at 4.60m (15-01.00).
In the Men's 55 hurdles, Asa Staven earned a Big Sky Conference qualifier in the preliminaries and went on to win the event with a time of 7.67 seconds. Mohl, picked up his second silver of the day with a time of 7.81, which will also give him a Big Sky ticket.
The dynamic duo of Staven and Mohl teamed up, yet again, in the high jump for two more medals for the Cats. Staven placed first with a height of 2.06m (6-09.00) and Mohl came in third, tying his PR at 2.01m (6-07.00).
The 55 also proved to be successful for MSU when Chris Wilson and Nick Melone combined for first and third places, respectively. Wilson finished with a qualifying time of 6.40, while Melone just missed the mark at 6.56 seconds.
Following the sprints, the mile also showed the depth of the Bobcats. Dan Jackson earned his Big Sky mark with a time of 4:13.81. Jacob Kirk, right on Jackson's heels, came in second in 4:14.37 with a qualifying time, as well.
In the men's 400, Melone grabbed his second medal of the night with a BSC qualifier of 49.02 seconds.
Grant Grosvenor and Forrest Jarvi were a one-two punch in the 800, finishing first and second, respectively. Grosvenor clocked in at 1:55.62 while Jarvi was just behind him at 1:56.63.
Jake Turner, after an impressive debut in cross country this fall, received his first collegiate win in the 3,000 with a time of 8:39.53. His time also earns him an automatic shot at the Big Sky meet. Seth Grossman, one of the leaders of Bobcat Cross Country, came in third with a time of 8:51.15.
Matt Nicholas took first in the long jump with a distance of 6.73m (22-01.00).
Gage Pickering earned his first win of the season in the 200 with a time of 22.31, narrowly missing the conference meet cutoff.
“As I've said before, Staven and Mohl are really all over the place,” said head coach Dale Kennedy. “Chris Wilson had the fastest auto-timed 55 in program history tonight and we hope we'll be able to see a lot more from him.”
The men closed out the track events with a silver medal in the 4x400 relay. Melone, Grosvenor, Aaron Johnston and Michael Nguyen combined for a time of 3:19.01.
For the Bobcat Women, they grabbed 17 medals, with seven first place performances.
Chelsea Bourque pushed her way across the finish line ahead of the competition in the 55 with a time of 7.42, which was a lifetime best by just one-hundredth of a second. Chantel Jaeger, in her collegiate debut, came in second place with a time of 7.43. Bourque also advanced to the finals of the 55 hurdles but placed seventh overall.
Katie Niemeir, one of the Bobcat Sprints frontrunners, placed second in the 55 hurdles with a Big Sky qualifying time of 8.21.
The women's 800 saw one Bobcat place with Madeline Fuchs placing third with a time of 2:23.74.
The 200 was arguably one of the strongest events of the night for Montana State, with the Bobcats taking the first four places of the race. Jaeger earned her first gold medal with a time of 25.07, followed by Niemeir in 25.78. Newcomer Paige Squire placed third in 26.09. Bourque rounded out the top-four in 26.25.
In Women's Throws action, Amanda Murphy finished over three meters ahead of second place with a distance of 18.55m (60-10.50), and has qualified for the Big Sky Indoor Championships. Also in the weight throw, Amy Ostermiller produced a PR throw of 12.68m (41-07.25).
Murphy continued her winning ways, picking up where she left off from the 2011 outdoor season, with another gold in the shot put at 14.02m (46-00.00). The Charlo, Mont. native got serious support from her teammates, as the Bobcats swept the event. Loni Havlovick came in second at 13.27m (43-06.50) and freshman Kristi VandeBergh was third with 12.69m (41-07.75). Havlovick's distance also marked a personal best. Ostermiller, who came in eighth, also knocked off another best with 10.96m (35-11.50)
Rebekka Chambers came in strong in her first meet of the year in the pole vault, garnering the gold with a height of 3.65m and a shot at the Big Sky meet.
In the triple jump, Rachelle Allen, in her first year of competition, placed second, launching herself 11.09m (36-04.75).
Amber Amsbaugh won the high jump with a height of 1.67m (5-05.75) and was followed up by Carley McCutchen who placed third at 1.62m (5-03.75)
The women closed out the running portion of the invite with a huge win in the 4x400 relay. The quartet of Jaeger, Niemeir, Sonia Antar and Lierin Flanagan crossed the line in 3:49.72, one of their fastest season opening times to date.
“There were a lot of great performances tonight,” said Kennedy. “I think Katie Niemeir really bounced back in the hurdles and we saw a lot of progress from Paige Squire in the sprints and really saw some solid stuff out there.”
The Bobcats return to action on Friday, Jan. 27, when they host their second of four home indoor meets at the Montana State Open. Field events are scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. and the track events at 5:30 p.m. Expected to compete along with MSU are Carroll (Mont.), Mary (N.D.), MSU-Billings, Montana and Rocky Mountain (Mont.)
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