Montana State University
MONTANA STATE OPEN
Open Season
1/27/2012 10:39:00 PM | Track & Field
Bobcats push to improve at Montana State Open
With every competition becoming more and more valuable, Montana State Track and Field took full advantage of the opportunity to push it to the limit at the Montana State Open on Friday. (Results)
For the men, MSU finished with 20 medals, with seven first places and six new Big Sky qualifying performances.
The Men's 55 Hurdles started the Bobcats off on the right foot with MSU, sweeping the top-four places. Asa Staven earned his first of two gold medals, starting with the 55 hurdles where he clocked in with a season-best time of 7.61. Slater Powell clocked with his first Big Sky qualifier of 2012, crossing the line in 7.63 seconds. Powell was followed up by Powhattan Williamson, who also got his first Big Sky mark at 7.76. Jeff Mohl placed fourth and has already qualified in the event.
In the 55 dash, MSU took second, third and fourth places, narrowly miss the Big Sky cutoff. Nick Melone earned the silver in 6.56, followed by Michael Nguyen with a lifetime best 6.57. Gage Pickering rounded out in fourth in 6.60.
Melone also competed in the 400, placing second with a time of 49.27.
Jake Turner, who won his first collegiate race just a week ago, took his second victory of his career , winning the mile with a time of 4:16.50, which qualifies him for the Big Sky meet. Seth Grossman placed third in 4:21.16.
Also in the distance events, Dan Jackson put out a very strong showing in the 3,000, one of the best of the night, clocking in at 8:14.72, just three seconds of his lifetime best. Jackson took gold, while Carl Nystuen earned the bronze at 8:42.85. Jackson's time is a Big Sky-worthy mark and ranks him at the top of the league. Jackson's time with the altitude adjustment becomes around the 8:03 mark.
Trevor Gilreath notched a lifetime best in the weight throw with a 15.45m, which was good enough for second place. David Phillips, who was competing unattached, placed first with an impressive 19.43m. Gilreath also fared well in the shot put, finishing first at 17.16m (56-03.75)
Ryan Kropp placed second in the pole vault with remarkable improvement from his previous outing. He launched himself to a height of 4.90m (16-00.75), marking both a personal best, as well as a Big Sky qualifier.
The Bobcats swept the long jump when Staven punched his ticket to the conference meet with a distance of 7.14m (23-05.25). Mohl placed second at 6.82m (22-04.50), while Jake Mushaben placed third at 6.57m (21-06.75).
The Bobcat Women finished the night with 21 medals, including nine first place finishes. They also notched their own set of six of Big Sky qualifiers.
One of the most stellar performances of the night came in the women's 400, in which MSU swept the top three. Sonia Antar won her first collegiate race with a time of 56.70, a lifetime best for the Bozeman native. Katie Niemeir took the silver in 56.97, also picking up a PR. Chantel Jaeger crossed the line in 57.09. Most notably, all three women are now qualified for the Big Sky Championships in February.
In the 200, Chantel Jaeger picked up her second medal of the night, after a silver in the 55, taking the top spot in the 200, 25.31. Katie Niemeir came in just behind her in 25.68.
ReBecca Sorenson and Nicole Tester teamed up in the 3,000, for a one-two finish. Sorenson clocked in at 10:38.13, followed by Tester at 10:50.19.
Big Sky Athlete of the Week Amanda Murphy kept up her winning ways notching her first win of the night in the weight throw, with a distance of 18.33m (60-01.75). She also won the shot put to cap off the night with a distance of 13.98m (45-10.50)
In the high jump, Amber Amsbaugh brushed with a new program record but failed to clear the 5-10.00 mark. She finished in first place with a height of 1.72m (5-07.75), which marks a personal best for her, and potentially a top height in the conference.
The Bobcat also cleaned up in the pole vault, taking all three placing spots. Rebekka Chambers took her second win in as many weeks with a PR height of 3.66m (12-00.00). Libby Madison came in at second, also with a lifetime best height of 3.50m (11-05.75). Anna Bales rounded out the podium at 3.35m (10-11.75).
MSU placed first and second in the long jump, with Carley McCutchen leading the way with a leap of 5.46m (17-11.00). McCutchen's jump bested her previous PR by over a foot. Sarah McGree placed second at 5.23m (17-02.00).
Rachelle Allen, in her first year of track and field, earned her Big Sky mark in the triple jump in just her second outing this season. Allen hauled herself to a distance of 11.35m (37-03.00). Adessa Durlgo came in third at 10.55m (34-07.50).
“A lot of great things happened tonight and we fulfilled a lot of goals,” said head coach Dale Kennedy. “Each meet brings more pressure to meet those conference standards and we took a huge step up from last week, came in with greater intensity and rose to the occasion to improve all around.”
Montana State leaves the comfort of home for the Mountain States Games, in Pocatello, Idaho, running Feb. 3-4.
