Schweyen Earns Bronze on Day One of Big Sky Championships
2/27/2025 5:34:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
Shelby Schweyen places third in the pentathlon, while Nicola Paletti and Mathias Mees set themselves up for exciting finish to heptathlon
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- Shelby Schweyen earned a spot on the podium with a third place finish in the pentathlon to cap the first day for Montana State track and field at the 2025 Big Sky Indoor Track & Field Championships at Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, Arizona, on Thursday.
Schweyen, the defending Big Sky champion in the pentathlon and the 2024 outdoor runner-up in the heptathlon, gritted her way through five events and walked away with a bronze medal and six points for the Bobcats.
The Big Sky record-holder thanks to a massive point total of 4,183 three weeks ago at her last pentathlon, Schweyen found tougher sledding on Thursday but still powered her way to a podium finish with 3,781 points.
Schweyen, a Missoula native, turned in a solid 60 meter hurdles and high jump to head into the third event of the day in second place. Thanks to a big throw of 40-01.50, Schweyen leapfrogged her way into first with just the long jump and 800 meters to go.
However, Schweyen couldn't quite find a big mark in the long jump, placing seventh in the event to drop down to third in the table. A second-place finish in the 800 meters left her just 12 points behind the runner-up and 96 points behind the champion, Montana's Whitney Morrison.
On the men's side, Nicola Paletti and Mathias Mees sit first and second, respectively, after the first day of competition in the heptathlon. Through four of seven events, the defending Big Sky indoor heptathlon and outdoor decathlon champion Paletti holds a 122-point advantage over his teammate.
The senior from Bolzano, Italy, cruised his way through the day on Wednesday, looking as comfortable as ever despite not competing all season up to this point due to injury.
After finishing third in the 60 meter dash, Paletti gained the lead thanks to a big leap of 22-09.75 in the long jump and didn't look back.
Mees, a junior from Aartselaar, Belgium, ended his day on a high note by winning the high jump, which catapulted him into second place overall.
The Bobcat duo dominated the high jump, with Mees clearing 6-03.50 and Paletti getting over the bar at 6-02.25 to create separation from the rest of the pack.
The pair returns to action on Friday morning at 10 a.m. with the 60 meter hurdles, followed by the pole vault and then the 1,000 meters.
UP NEXT
After Mees and Paletti finish up the heptathlon tomorrow morning, the rest of the conference championship meet gets underway in full swing from Walkup Skydome.
Finals in the long jump, weight throw, women's pole vault, 5,000 meters, and distance medley relay will be held on Friday, with important track event prelims in every distance up to the mile going on as well all afternoon and into the evening.
The entire 2025 Big Sky Indoor Track & Field Championships are streamed on ESPN+, with live results available on Athletic.live.
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