Surprised Mason Storm Takes Big Sky Decathlon Title

Wednesday, May 11

Sacramento, CA

TBA

Montana State University

Big Sky Conference Outdoor Championships

Mason Storm

5/13/2016 1:43:00 PM | Men's Track and Field

A jump from fourth to first in the final event surprised even MSU's newest league champ

By: Bill Lamberty

Mason Storm was feeling alright about himself after the final event of decathlon at the 2016 Big Sky Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The third athlete to cross the finish line in the decathlon's final event, the 1500 meters, he believed his time of 4:39.22 had pushed him from fourth to third, netting him all-conference honors.

And then he ran into Bobcat assistant coach Jake Mushaben.

"He thought he was in third place," says Bobcat multi-events coach Tom Eitel. "He didn't know he'd won. When Jake (Mushaben) told him he was really surprised."

Storm's focus on the task at hand – a characteristic that had him in position to compete for the championship – also had him in one-step-at-a-time mode. "I couldn't believe it at first," the newly-minted Big Sky champion said. "I didn't think I had a shot to move up, especially leaving so many points on the board (earlier in the event). I was blown away."

Storm said he entered the decathlon's final event with a defensive mindset. "I was just trying to keep the guy who was in the place behind me from moving up," he said. "I thought if I ran really well I might be able to move into third, but I didn't know anything beyond that."

What was beyond that was Montana State's third decathlon championship in the last five years, and a crown for the Bobcat sophomore from Great Falls. Storm's three-spot jump was only mildly surprising for Eitel, who has had a hand in all seven of the school's seven league decathlon titles. "When I saw the scores Dalen (Hargett) was in second and Mason was in fourth, and I knew some of the other guys can run," Eitel said. "I thought Mason could win it because he's strong in the (1500 meters)."

Storm, a sophomore outdoors, and Eitel constructed a game plan that worked to near-perfection in the 1500. "We talked about what he needed to run time-wise and who to look for ahead of him," Eitel said. Storm concurred, saying, "I was just trying to keep it close (in the 1500) and finish strong."

Just as Storm's championship pushed the Bobcats to a great start in the conference meet, so Storm's performance in the 100 meters provide him a great start to the decathlon. "I was pretty happy about the 100," Storm said of his personal best time of 11.19 in that event. "That was a great way to start."

Coupled with the All-Big Sky performance of freshman Dalen Hargett (who finished third with 6,537 points), the Cats have the makings of a dynamic tandem in the decathlon years into the future. "It's unique," says Bobcats head coach Dale Kennedy, "and really exciting."