Bobcat Track and Field Bids Farewell to 20 Seniors

Saturday, May 2

Missoula, MT

Montana State University

Montana Open

5/8/2015 9:37:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field, Track & Field

By: Jordan Simkins

COMPLETE RESULTS

Montana State Track and Field hosted a rainy Tom Gage Classic this evening, bidding farewell to 20 seniors at the conclusion of the meet. Despite the cold, windy and wet conditions, 23 Bobcat's hit Big Sky Conference qualifying marks and two broke Bobcat track and field complex records.

"This is going to be a tough group to replace," head coach Dale Kennedy said. "It's the largest group of senior we've ever had and possibly one of the strongest. It's going to take a few years to fill everyone's shoes, but they aren't done yet. I'm excited to see what they do next week at the conference championships."

The women's 4x100 consisting three seniors, Iris Hardarson, Paige Squire and Chantel Jaeger along with Daryan Box ran the fastest time they have all season, clocking a time of 46.19. This is the second fastest time in school history. Squire found herself on top of the podium in the 100-meter and 400-meter hurdles for the second week in a row, winning the races in 13.86 and 58.88 seconds. Carley McCutchen followed Squire in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.18 and Amanda Jaynes finished second in the 400-meter hurdles (1:01.40).

Heather Demorest finished out her home tenure at MSU by breaking the facility record in the 1500-meter, recording a time of 4:30.55. Jaeger and Hardarson went one-two in the 400, with time of 54.89 and 56.32. MSU took the top four spots in the 100, with Josephine Petruska leading the way, running a time of 12.07.

The women's 800-meter was no different than the 100, as four Bobcat's crossed the finish line first. Kaylee Schmitz earned the top time of 2:11.88, with Christie Schiel placing behind her (2:12.83). The 'Cats continued to finish on top, bringing in spots one through five in the 200. Jaeger made her way to number one, as she ran a 24.42 race. Petruska, Sara Dolese, Chelsea Bourque and Box all clocked times inside the BSC qualifying mark.

The Blue and Gold continued to finish on top with four taking the top marks in the javelin. Taylor Pfister led all throwers, earning a mark of 140-0. Casey Teska cleared a height of 12-05.5, winning the event by almost ten inches. Amy Rovira and Sami Risa finished second with a mark of 11-07.75.
McCutchen won the long jump with a distance of 19-04, while Danielle Muri finished behind her in third marking 18-00.25. Kristi VandeBergh added a second place finish in the discus with a throw of 128-11.

Michael Asay kicked off the running events for the men, earning a personal-best 3:53.09 in 1500-meter race. Rory Bauer finished ahead of all 400-meter competitors with a time of 48.05. The 110-meter hurdles was won by a Bobcat, as Mason Storm came in first with a time of 15.15. Crisitan Soratos chalked up another record, breaking the facility time in the 5000. Soratos ran the race in 14:30.35.

Sean Ferriter closed out his home career as a Bobcat, winning another hammer throw event with a mark of 208-01. Zach Sharp placed second with a throw of 183-11. Ryan Kropp led all pole vaulters, with a cleared height of 16-02.75. Finishing third, Austin Decker earned a mark of 15-03.

"The team is ready for the championships next week. We hit a lot of personal-bests today and qualified quite a few more athletes for the meet. They're all on a mission to improve from the indoor championships and show everyone what they can do."

After the meet, MSU honored twenty seniors: Chelsea Bourque, Heather Demorest, Iris Hardarson, Chantel Jaeger, Carley McCutchen, Samantha Risa, Amy Rovira, Paige Squire, Kristi VandeBergh, Keely West, Madison Wills, Michael Asay, Rory Bauer, Sean Ferriter, Seth Garbett, Aaron Johnston, Ryan Kropp, Cristian Soratos, Shae Stein and Matt Tex.

Montana State will compete at the Big Sky Conference Championships in Cheney, Wash., beginning next Wednesday, May 13^th.