Montana State University
BOZEMAN RUNNING COMPANY INVITATIONAL
Bobcats' Progress Continues at the BRC Invite
2/10/2012 10:09:00 PM | Track & Field
More qualifiers and lifetimes bests highlight home meet
Overall, Montana State amassed 35 medals, including 11 first place finishes (seven for the men, four for the women).
With just final week after the BRC Invite, more Bobcats finally punched their ticket to the Big Sky Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships, taking place Feb. 24-25, in Flagstaff, Ariz.
The Bobcat Women opened the night with a win in the long jump, when Carley McCutchen picked up her second individual win this season with a distance of 5.38m (17-08.00).
Amanda Murphy continued her win streak with another first place finish in the weight throw and notched another over-60 throw with a distance of 18.41m (60-05.00). Murphy also won the shot put with a PR distance of 15.06m (49-05.00).
The shot put was a big night for MSU not only with Murphy's win and PR but freshman Kristi VandeBergh finally earned her Big Sky mark finishing with a throw of 13.53m (44-04.75), also a lifetime best for her. Loni Havlovick came in third in 13.39m (43-11.25).
“I'm stoked, said Murphy, a senior this season. “I haven't felt a rush like that in a long time. It was only an inch better than my previous best but I hadn't done that since a few years back.”
Rebekka Chambers won the pole vault with her own lifetime best height of 3.82m (12-06.25), over a foot of improvement from the 2011 season.
In the women's running events, Katie Niemeir crossed the line in second place in the 55 hurdles with a time of 8.16, marking a season best for the junior. Chelsea Bourque came in third with a time of 8.51, also a season best finish.
ReBecca Sorenson missed the Big Sky mark in the mile but clocked in with a second place finish in 5:14.43, marking a lifetime best for the senior.
Lierin Flanagan, who had not yet qualified for the Big Sky meet, finally earned her mark in the 800 with a time of 2:15.04, also denoting a lifetime best for the Kenai, Alaska native.
In the 400, Chantel Jaeger, who has made quite an impact in her rookie season in the sprints, placed third with a Big Sky qualifying time of 55.60, one of the many lifetime bests for MSU throughout the night.
The men's competition opened with the pole vault, which Montana State earned second and third place finishes. Multis standout Jeff Mohl got the second with a height of 4.70m (15-05.00) while Asa Staven came in third with the same height.
Trevor Gilreath came in first in the shot put with a lifetime best hurl of 17.21m (56-05.75) more than five feet ahead of second place. While he didn't place in the weight throw, he notched another PR on the night with 16.63m (54-06.75).
MSU got a similar finish in the long jump with a second place finish for Matt Nicholas in 6.75m (22-01.75) and a third place stop by Jake Mushaben in 6.72m (22-00.75). Mushaben's finish marks a lifetime best, as well.
Kyler Felton picked up his second win in three weeks in the triple jump with a jump of 13.07m (42-10.75). Kevin Close came in third in 12.33m (40.05.50).
In the men's 55 hurdles, Montana State swept the first two spots, with a Slater Powell victory with a time of 7.59 seconds, a lifetime best for the Corvallis, Mont. native. Powell was followed up by Staven, with his second medal of the night, placing second in 7.65.
Chris Wilson picked up his third consecutive win in the short sprint with a time of 6.37 in the 55 dash. The Great Falls native hasn't lost a race yet this year and kept the streak alive in the 200 with a Big Sky qualifying time of 21.69, just .24 seconds off the MSU program record.
“I am really excited about my races tonight,” said Wilson. “I'm looking forward to competing at the Conference meet.”
The men's mile also produced another two-three finish with Jacob Kirk taking silver and Jake Turner taking bronze. Kirk clocked in with a season best time of 4:11.45 (unadjusted) while Turner also had an unadjusted top time of 4:12.51.
Grant Grosvenor picked up a win in the 800 with a time of 1:52.25, crossing the line in a season-best time. Forrest Jarvi, also a strong force in the 800 came in second in 1:53.89. Jarvi's time marks a lifetime best.
“We had a lot of improved performances tonight both individually and collectively,” said head coach Dale Kennedy. “ We keep gaining momentum and we're down to one more week before we take this show to the Big Sky Meet and we're really getting to where we need to be.”
Montana State closes out their home indoor schedule next Friday, Feb. 17, when they host the Bobcat Open. The meet is slated for a 4:30 p.m. start and will be their final chance to make any qualifying marks before the conference meet on Feb. 24.
