Greeley, COLO. – On the backs of some gritty and nail-biting performances, the Northern Arizona University men's track and field team finds itself in first place heading into the second and final day of the 2016 Big Sky Outdoor Conference Championships tomorrow.

The Lumberjack men—swiping 54 points during today's action—currently sit ahead of second place Montana State (34pts) and third place Idaho (33pts), thanks in large part to performances from the likes of Cory Glines and Shawn Collins.

Glines, the redshirt sophomore from Canton, Ohio, raced in the men's 10000m event this afternoon along side teammates Tyler Day, Matt Baxter and Harvey Nelson. As the lead pack turned into the final 100m, Glines—who was in second place by about 10m—found another level as he hit turbo speed and inched in 0.08 seconds ahead of Southern Utah's Hayden Hawks for the first place finish, conference title, and arguably the most exciting performance of the day. Day tallied six points as well, while Baxter (5) and Nelson (2) also contributed to today's total.

"That was an awesome ending to a great race," said Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Eric Heins. "Hawks is such a great racer and competitor, but for [Glines] to nip him at the line, that's a huge win for him. Very proud of Cory to not give up there and fight to the end."  

Glines' performance was arguably the most exciting because of Collins' showing in the shot put, which eerily resembled what he did at indoor conference championships in February. On his final throw of the day—and to close out the event, nonetheless—Collins muscled a personal-best 59-02.75 (18.05m) mark for 10 points and the victory. With the win, Collins became the first Lumberjack since 2010 to win the conference title in the shot put event during both the outdoor and indoor seasons.

The sprinting trio of James Fisher, Isiah Kennedy and Kossi Tchenawou also did not disappoint today, with all three advancing to finals in the men's 100m and 200m events.

"I sensed our group was ready last night," said Associate Head Coach Kenny McDaniel. "But I have to say, I'm not surprised because that is what we've trained for. Those guys fed off each other coming off the 100m today, and it just carried over into the 200m. Right now, we have a lot of momentum and they just have to come out here tomorrow and execute." 

On the flip side, the women's team did not have their best day, but some key Lumberjack performances on Friday leave the women clinging to a chance at securing a conference title Saturday. Currently, the women are in fourth-place with 30 points and trail first-place Montana by 30. 

If the Lumberjacks are going to get back into contention, they are going to need athletes like Nicole Fotinos and Jasmine Malone to step up big time like they did today. Both placed first overall in their respective 400m heats and earned a shot at scoring big tomorrow in the finals. Fotinos and Malone will also compete in the 200m finals and run a leg in the 4x100m relay Saturday, while Malone is slated to start the 4x400m relay for the women as well. 

For the throwers, Jessica Weise (ranked No. 2 in the conference), Rachel Pott (No. 5) and Tiana Hatler Stefick (No. 7) will also be heavily relied on to rack up points in the women's shot put tomorrow. Those three performing up to their abilities will be crucial for the Lumberjacks if they are to stage a comeback.

Speaking of valuable points, redshirt-senior Alexis Clay nabbed three today, outperforming her conference ranking—15th coming into the outdoor championships—and surprising the women's long jump field by placing sixth with a 19-01.50 (5.83m) leap. 

The women will also have distance athlete Kylie Goo running in the women's 1500m Saturday, while Kayla Freeman, Melanie Townsend and Paige Gilchrist will compete in the 5000m race. All four are capable of having big days, and the Lumberjack women will certainly need it if they are to pull close of first. 

NOTES

Kadie McNamara registed a career-best today in the women's discus, slinging a 148-04 (45.21m) saucer for a fourth-place mark and five points ... Caleb Hoover (9:07.89) and Tim Cummings (9:08.94) cruised to first place and second place finishes in the men's 3000m steeplechase event, with Hoover reclaiming the conference title in that event for the second time in three years and Cummings recording a new PR … Ashley Taylor saved a very strong showing for conference today in the women's 400m hurdles, running a 59.74 to finish first in the prelims … JaShawn Combs (110m hurdles) and Peter Lomong (800m) also qualified for finals in their respective events today ... Brittany Vielma—who came in ranked 23rd in the conference—stole the show in the women's hammer, hitting a PR in the prelims with a 172-10  (52.69m) throw in her last attempt during finals