Wednesday, May 8
Portland, OR
Montana State University
at
BIG SKY OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2013 Big Sky Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships will take place May 8-11 in Forest Grove, Ore.
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Conference Calling
5/8/2013 2:50:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field, Track & Field
Track and Field gears up for Big Sky Conference Championships
This is what they train for. Four months ago, competition began in Worthington Arena and for many, it comes down to Lincoln Park Stadium in Forest Grove, Ore. For a few it will extend two weeks beyond and potentially even further to the NCAA Championships. But for now, the Montana State Track and Field team's focus is narrow, just zeroing in on May 8-11 when they put the entire season on the line at the Big Sky Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Portland State.
Overall, Montana State has 24 women and 25 men qualified for the conference meet. Each team can have up to 25 athletes compete at the meet. Overall, 468 Big Sky student-athletes will be in attendance in Forest Grove.
MULTIS
The meet kicks off with the decathlon and heptathlon taking place on Wednesday and Thursday. Three will represent Montana State in the sometimes-grueling, two-day affair. Powhattan Williamson enters the meet ranked fourth in the league with a season-high score of 6,291, set at the Mondo Mid-Major Challenge in April. In 2012, Williamson came in ninth in the decathlon, with his career-best score of 6,472.
Williamson is coming off a season of steady improvement beginning with his runner-up finish at the 2013 Indoor Championships in the heptathlon. The Billings, Mont. native will face off with several familiar faces from the indoor meet including Montana's Austin Emry who held the lead for the majority of the heptathlon before no-heighting in the pole vault and eventually finishing third behind Jeff Mohl and Williamson.
Williamson will also compete individually in the 110 hurdles.
In the women's heptathlon, MSU will have two competitors. Sadie McMillan enters the meet ranked tenth with a score of 4,398. Kortnee Barrett will also compete in her final outdoor championship with a 14th seed in the two-day event with her score of 4,199. In 2012, McMillan and Barrett placed sixth and eighth, respectively. McMillan will compete in the 100 hurdles on Friday, as well.
THROWS
Arguably the backbone of Montana State Track and Field this year, assistant coach Mike Carignan has high hopes and expectations of his crew in Oregon this weekend. Led by a veteran crew, the Bobcat throwers will look to accumulate all-conference nods and many points for MSU. In the hammer throw, six 'Cats are slated to compete with David Phillips entering the event seeded second with a program record distance of 211-07.25. Phillips will be joined by Sean Ferriter, Derek Marsh, Zach Sharp, Eddie Stevenson and Calvin Root in the event, as well.
With the exception of Stevenson, that same group will also compete in the discus. Phillips again is the highest seed, sitting in seventh with 163-03.
In the shot put, Phillips and Root will join Trevor Gilreath and also seek out all-conference-worthy performances. Gilreath heads to Portland seeded fifth, after placing second in the indoor championships back in February. Phillips came in third just one year ago in the shot.
MSU will also have two competitors in the javelin when Tanner Gambill and Conner Kelly make their first Big Sky Championship appearances.
While the women have a bit more work cut out for them, the Blue and Gold still have strong representation in their throwing events. In the women's javelin, Dawn Blevins and Brittnee Grimstad will also be making their Big Sky debut. Blevins has been the leader in the javelin for MSU this spring with a best throw of 137-09.
Kristi VandeBergh is registered for two events in her hometown of Forest Grove, Ore. She enters the meet with a four-seed in the shot put with a distance of 48-00.50, just a few feet off from the top competitor. Along with Brittnee Grimstad, she'll also make an appearance in the discus.
Madison Wills will also make her first appearance at the Big Sky meet this weekend. She is the lone Bobcat in the hammer throw. She is ranked 19th overall.
JUMPS
The MSU women have a strong roster of jumpers for this year's outdoor championship. The pole vault has three women ready to go including indoor runner-up Rebekka Chamber who sits seeded in the number 15 spot. Libby Madison earned her automatic qualifier less than a week ago at the Tom Gage Classic in her final attempt for a spot on the conference squad. She and Chambers both enter the meet with a height of 3.60m (11-09.75). Casey Teska is the team's highest ranked vaulter, entering the meet with a fourth seed of 3.80m (12-05.50) and will hope to capitalize on her season-long improvement with her first all-conference finish.
Amber Amsbaugh, who in the last year and 16 high jump appearances has placed lower than first only five times, will look to defend last year's outdoor title in the event. She also won the indoor high jump in February. The junior jumper is ranked fourth going into the high jump. Joining her in the event is Alisa Gilchrist, who is one of four high jumpers with a height of 5-05. Adess Durglo is the third jumper in the event who will also look to score points for Montana State. Durglo will represent MSU in the triple jump, as well.
James Andrews, Kevin Close and Jake Mushaben will compete in the men's jumping events. Andrews, who also played football for MSU and joined the track and field squad this spring, will make his first Big Sky appearance in the long jump along with Jake Mushaben. Mushaben placed sixth at the indoor championships and this weekend marks his first outdoor conference meet.
Kevin Close will compete in the triple jump, He placed eighth in the event at the indoor meet. Both Andrews and Close will also help out the Bobcat relays.
SPRINTS
Seven Bobcat women will participate in the sprint events at the meet. Led by veteran Katie Niemeir, MSU will look for several all-Big Sky performances. Niemeir will run both hurdle races as well as both the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. At last year's outdoor meet, she placed third in the 400 hurdles and second in the 100 hurdles and will seek out her first individual championship title. Niemeir will be joined by Paige Squire in both events, after an injury plagued freshman season kept her out of the Big Sky meet. Niemeir and Squire are seeded eighth and 15th, respectively in the short hurdles.
Madeline Fuchs enters the 400 hurdles with her two teammates as the four-seed. Last year, Fuchs placed second in the league with a sub-minute lifetime best performance.
Chelsea Bourque could also add additional points for Montana State in the short hurdles. She'll also compete in the 200.
Chantel Jaeger has been a pillar of the MSU sprinters this year with at least three meets earning double individual wins. She'll compete in the 200 along with Bourque and look to improve upon her sixth place finish from 2012.
In the 400, Sonia Antar and Iris Hardarson will put their best foot forward. Last year, Antar failed to advance out of prelims in the 400 and placed 10th overall. Hardarson, like Squire, faced injury her freshman year and did not compete. Antar will enter the race with the eighth fastest time while Hardarson is 11th.
The men's sprints corps is small but fierce, with three ready to compete for the Blue and Gold. Chris Wilson leads the way after a Big Sky title in the 100 and runner-up in the 200 just one year ago. He'll compete in both events again and look for two more gold medals.
Nick Melone will also look for an all-conference finish in the 100, as well as the 400 hurdles. Last year, Melone competed in the 400 hurdles and came in fifth. He and Wilson also contributed to the 4x100 relay that took the conference crown and set a new program record.
Slater Powell will add depth with Williamson in the 110 hurdles. This marks Powell's first Big Sky Outdoor Championship since 2011 after suffering injury in 2012. He placed second as a freshman two years ago.
DISTANCE/MIDDLE DISTANCE
The distance events have been experiencing a wildly successful year and they don't expect that to end in Portland. In the women's 800, MSU has three women rostered, beginning with Lierin Flanagan, who is ranked fifth in the league in 2:11.38. Kaylee Schmitz and Christie Schiel will also compete, marking their first Big Sky championship track meet.
Heather Demorest is the lone representative in the 1,500 with a 10th seed after securing a lifetime best time at the Tom Gage Classic of 4:30.12. She will also compete in the 3,000 steeplechase with an impressive fourth ranked time of 10:40.97.
Megan Beam rounds out the women's competitors in the 10,000. Last year she placed 12th in the race.
The men's 800 features two of the big stars of 2013. Grant Grosvenor and Matt Tex hold the first and second ranks, respectively, after record setting performances back at the Mondo Mid Major Challenge in April. Grosvenor's time of 1:49.28 marks a program best. After placing second in the indoor 800 this winter, the Mill Creek, Wash. native will seek to regain the 800 title that was his for all of 2012. Freshman Marcus Swan is also slated to compete as he has seen considerable improvement in his first year in Blue and Gold.
In addition to the 800, Grosvenor, the 2012 indoor and outdoor champion, will also compete in the 1,500. He'll team up with Michael Asay, Forrest Jarvi and Jacob Kirk and the quartet will work toward valuable points for the Bobcats for the team standings.
Before the 1,500, Kirk will give the steeplechase a shot with his third seed. His time of 8:50.60 is barely two seconds behind the top time of 8:48.51.
Like the 800, the 5,000 showcases the talent of three Bobcats. Trevor Polson enters the meet with the highest spot on the list in ninth, while Zachary Kughn and Seth Garbett are 14th and 15th, respectively.
The meet begins Wednesday, May 8 and both Wednesday and Thursday will commence with the decathlon at 11:30 a.m. (MDT) and the heptathlon at 12:15 p.m. Friday's session starts with field events at 11:30 a.m. and track events at 3:15 p.m. The final day of competition will also start at 11:30 and running will be at 1 p.m.
For more meet information, check out Portland State's Championship Headquarters. The meet will also have live results and be available on Big Sky TV.
Overall, Montana State has 24 women and 25 men qualified for the conference meet. Each team can have up to 25 athletes compete at the meet. Overall, 468 Big Sky student-athletes will be in attendance in Forest Grove.
MULTIS
The meet kicks off with the decathlon and heptathlon taking place on Wednesday and Thursday. Three will represent Montana State in the sometimes-grueling, two-day affair. Powhattan Williamson enters the meet ranked fourth in the league with a season-high score of 6,291, set at the Mondo Mid-Major Challenge in April. In 2012, Williamson came in ninth in the decathlon, with his career-best score of 6,472.
Williamson is coming off a season of steady improvement beginning with his runner-up finish at the 2013 Indoor Championships in the heptathlon. The Billings, Mont. native will face off with several familiar faces from the indoor meet including Montana's Austin Emry who held the lead for the majority of the heptathlon before no-heighting in the pole vault and eventually finishing third behind Jeff Mohl and Williamson.
Williamson will also compete individually in the 110 hurdles.
In the women's heptathlon, MSU will have two competitors. Sadie McMillan enters the meet ranked tenth with a score of 4,398. Kortnee Barrett will also compete in her final outdoor championship with a 14th seed in the two-day event with her score of 4,199. In 2012, McMillan and Barrett placed sixth and eighth, respectively. McMillan will compete in the 100 hurdles on Friday, as well.
THROWS
Arguably the backbone of Montana State Track and Field this year, assistant coach Mike Carignan has high hopes and expectations of his crew in Oregon this weekend. Led by a veteran crew, the Bobcat throwers will look to accumulate all-conference nods and many points for MSU. In the hammer throw, six 'Cats are slated to compete with David Phillips entering the event seeded second with a program record distance of 211-07.25. Phillips will be joined by Sean Ferriter, Derek Marsh, Zach Sharp, Eddie Stevenson and Calvin Root in the event, as well.
With the exception of Stevenson, that same group will also compete in the discus. Phillips again is the highest seed, sitting in seventh with 163-03.
In the shot put, Phillips and Root will join Trevor Gilreath and also seek out all-conference-worthy performances. Gilreath heads to Portland seeded fifth, after placing second in the indoor championships back in February. Phillips came in third just one year ago in the shot.
MSU will also have two competitors in the javelin when Tanner Gambill and Conner Kelly make their first Big Sky Championship appearances.
While the women have a bit more work cut out for them, the Blue and Gold still have strong representation in their throwing events. In the women's javelin, Dawn Blevins and Brittnee Grimstad will also be making their Big Sky debut. Blevins has been the leader in the javelin for MSU this spring with a best throw of 137-09.
Kristi VandeBergh is registered for two events in her hometown of Forest Grove, Ore. She enters the meet with a four-seed in the shot put with a distance of 48-00.50, just a few feet off from the top competitor. Along with Brittnee Grimstad, she'll also make an appearance in the discus.
Madison Wills will also make her first appearance at the Big Sky meet this weekend. She is the lone Bobcat in the hammer throw. She is ranked 19th overall.
JUMPS
The MSU women have a strong roster of jumpers for this year's outdoor championship. The pole vault has three women ready to go including indoor runner-up Rebekka Chamber who sits seeded in the number 15 spot. Libby Madison earned her automatic qualifier less than a week ago at the Tom Gage Classic in her final attempt for a spot on the conference squad. She and Chambers both enter the meet with a height of 3.60m (11-09.75). Casey Teska is the team's highest ranked vaulter, entering the meet with a fourth seed of 3.80m (12-05.50) and will hope to capitalize on her season-long improvement with her first all-conference finish.
Amber Amsbaugh, who in the last year and 16 high jump appearances has placed lower than first only five times, will look to defend last year's outdoor title in the event. She also won the indoor high jump in February. The junior jumper is ranked fourth going into the high jump. Joining her in the event is Alisa Gilchrist, who is one of four high jumpers with a height of 5-05. Adess Durglo is the third jumper in the event who will also look to score points for Montana State. Durglo will represent MSU in the triple jump, as well.
James Andrews, Kevin Close and Jake Mushaben will compete in the men's jumping events. Andrews, who also played football for MSU and joined the track and field squad this spring, will make his first Big Sky appearance in the long jump along with Jake Mushaben. Mushaben placed sixth at the indoor championships and this weekend marks his first outdoor conference meet.
Kevin Close will compete in the triple jump, He placed eighth in the event at the indoor meet. Both Andrews and Close will also help out the Bobcat relays.
SPRINTS
Seven Bobcat women will participate in the sprint events at the meet. Led by veteran Katie Niemeir, MSU will look for several all-Big Sky performances. Niemeir will run both hurdle races as well as both the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. At last year's outdoor meet, she placed third in the 400 hurdles and second in the 100 hurdles and will seek out her first individual championship title. Niemeir will be joined by Paige Squire in both events, after an injury plagued freshman season kept her out of the Big Sky meet. Niemeir and Squire are seeded eighth and 15th, respectively in the short hurdles.
Madeline Fuchs enters the 400 hurdles with her two teammates as the four-seed. Last year, Fuchs placed second in the league with a sub-minute lifetime best performance.
Chelsea Bourque could also add additional points for Montana State in the short hurdles. She'll also compete in the 200.
Chantel Jaeger has been a pillar of the MSU sprinters this year with at least three meets earning double individual wins. She'll compete in the 200 along with Bourque and look to improve upon her sixth place finish from 2012.
In the 400, Sonia Antar and Iris Hardarson will put their best foot forward. Last year, Antar failed to advance out of prelims in the 400 and placed 10th overall. Hardarson, like Squire, faced injury her freshman year and did not compete. Antar will enter the race with the eighth fastest time while Hardarson is 11th.
The men's sprints corps is small but fierce, with three ready to compete for the Blue and Gold. Chris Wilson leads the way after a Big Sky title in the 100 and runner-up in the 200 just one year ago. He'll compete in both events again and look for two more gold medals.
Nick Melone will also look for an all-conference finish in the 100, as well as the 400 hurdles. Last year, Melone competed in the 400 hurdles and came in fifth. He and Wilson also contributed to the 4x100 relay that took the conference crown and set a new program record.
Slater Powell will add depth with Williamson in the 110 hurdles. This marks Powell's first Big Sky Outdoor Championship since 2011 after suffering injury in 2012. He placed second as a freshman two years ago.
DISTANCE/MIDDLE DISTANCE
The distance events have been experiencing a wildly successful year and they don't expect that to end in Portland. In the women's 800, MSU has three women rostered, beginning with Lierin Flanagan, who is ranked fifth in the league in 2:11.38. Kaylee Schmitz and Christie Schiel will also compete, marking their first Big Sky championship track meet.
Heather Demorest is the lone representative in the 1,500 with a 10th seed after securing a lifetime best time at the Tom Gage Classic of 4:30.12. She will also compete in the 3,000 steeplechase with an impressive fourth ranked time of 10:40.97.
Megan Beam rounds out the women's competitors in the 10,000. Last year she placed 12th in the race.
The men's 800 features two of the big stars of 2013. Grant Grosvenor and Matt Tex hold the first and second ranks, respectively, after record setting performances back at the Mondo Mid Major Challenge in April. Grosvenor's time of 1:49.28 marks a program best. After placing second in the indoor 800 this winter, the Mill Creek, Wash. native will seek to regain the 800 title that was his for all of 2012. Freshman Marcus Swan is also slated to compete as he has seen considerable improvement in his first year in Blue and Gold.
In addition to the 800, Grosvenor, the 2012 indoor and outdoor champion, will also compete in the 1,500. He'll team up with Michael Asay, Forrest Jarvi and Jacob Kirk and the quartet will work toward valuable points for the Bobcats for the team standings.
Before the 1,500, Kirk will give the steeplechase a shot with his third seed. His time of 8:50.60 is barely two seconds behind the top time of 8:48.51.
Like the 800, the 5,000 showcases the talent of three Bobcats. Trevor Polson enters the meet with the highest spot on the list in ninth, while Zachary Kughn and Seth Garbett are 14th and 15th, respectively.
The meet begins Wednesday, May 8 and both Wednesday and Thursday will commence with the decathlon at 11:30 a.m. (MDT) and the heptathlon at 12:15 p.m. Friday's session starts with field events at 11:30 a.m. and track events at 3:15 p.m. The final day of competition will also start at 11:30 and running will be at 1 p.m.
For more meet information, check out Portland State's Championship Headquarters. The meet will also have live results and be available on Big Sky TV.
Big Sky Preview
Friday, February 11
Track and Field Big Sky Championships
Monday, February 18
Coach Kennedy - Feb. 11, 2013
Tuesday, February 12
Coach Kennedy - Feb. 4, 2013
Tuesday, February 05
