Iowa State Classic Day One Results

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – It was a day of personal bests for the Northern Arizona University track and field team as the Lumberjacks wrapped up first-day action from the NAU Invite and Iowa State Classic. 

On the men's side, distance athletes Futsum Zienasellassie and Nathan Weitz both recorded career-best times in the 3,000m race at the ISU Classic. Zienasellassie logged a fourth-place finish with a time of 7:53.76 and Weitz secured eighth-place with a time of 7:56.09. In addition to being qualifying marks, those times are ranked No. 1 and 2 in the Big Sky as of today. 

"Weitz's performance was huge," said Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Eric Heins. "He hasn't been that competitive in a 3,000m race in his career, so for his first one to be a sub-eight minutes and within three seconds of Zienasellassie is awesome. Zienasellassie got a little under the weather earlier in the week, and I believe that affected his confidence a little bit because this was a big time race. But once he bounces back, he'll be fine."

For the sprinters, senior Bria Edwards, redshirt-sophomore Ashley Taylor and true freshman Jasmine Malone all set personal records today. After adjusting for altitude, Edwards finished in third place (25.34) and Taylor in fifth place (25.81) in the women's 200m event, while Malone came in second-place with a time of 25.14. For Malone, her 200m time has improved at every meet this season, and she currently holds the eighth-best conference time in that event.

Redshirt-senior Jessica Weise also notched a career-best mark on Friday night in the women's weight throw event, coming in second-place with a 18.17m, 59-07.50 throw. She finished behind teammate and conference-leader Brooke Andersen, who muscled a 19.16m, 62-10.50 throw for a first-place victory.

"The strength of our women's team is that throws area and that sprint group," said Heins. "It's great to have coaches like Coach Ott and Coach McDaniel that know how to guide their athletes throughout the year. Some weeks, they're throwing or sprinting on tired arms or tired legs, but they know that's what you need to do to compete at your best at the end of the year." 

The Lumberjacks continue competition from both the NAU Invite and the ISU Classic tomorrow morning. The NAU Invite begins at 9 a.m. from the Walkup Skydome, while the ISU Classic has a 9 a.m. start time for the running events. All times are in mountain standard (MT).

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