MOSCOW, Idaho (February 24, 2023) – The Northern Arizona University track & field teams had a successful first day of competition at the Big Sky Indoor Conference Championships. The men currently sit in first place with 52.50 points while the women are in third with a score of 35 points.
The Lumberjacks set four new Big Sky Conference Championship records, saw seven podium finishes – including two gold medal performances, and qualified 15 different athletes for event finals.
Drew Bosley and
Nico Young finished in first and second in the men's 5000-meter after coming into the race as the top seeds. Bosley ran a time of 13:39.87 to set a new conference championships record as he took home the gold in the event for the second consecutive year and earned his team 10 points. Young was not far behind with a time of 13:43.70 to add eight points to the team total.
Santiago Gomez-Prosser and
Aidan Puffer also scored points in the event, finishing fourth and fifth respectively. Gomez-Prosser ran a time of 14:19.77 to score five points, while Puffer ran a time of 14:22.52 to score four points.
In the women's 5K,
Jesselyn Bries turned up the gas in the final stretch to take second place with a time of 16:39.37 and earn eight points for the 'Jacks. Three other women also earned points in that race, with
Meagan Van Pelt finishing in fourth,
Nikita Moore finishing seventh, and
Alexis Kebbe finishing eighth. Van Pelt ran a time of 16:49.35 to earn five points, Moore ran a 16:54.45 to earn two points, and Kebbe ran a 16:57.76 to earn one point for the team.
The other event win came from the women's distance medley relay, who also set a new conference championships record.
Annika Reiss,
Alonna Johnson,
Odessa Zentz, and
Elise Stearns combined to finish in a time of 11:31.98, dominating the competition to score 10 points for the women. The men's distance medley relay also made it on to the podium, finishing in third to score six points.
Aiden Barnhill,
Ethan Seppala,
Kang Nyoak, and
Brodey Hasty combined to run a time of 9:53.81.
For the jumps squad, three different athletes earned points in their first day of competition. Freshman
Brenna Rodriguez finished in fifth place in the long jump at her first Big Sky Conference Championships. She jumped 5.55 meters to earn four points. On the men's side
Mitchell Effing also competed in the long jump, taking second place with a jump of 7.58 meters to earn eight points.
Jack Normand also scored after finishing tied for seventh in the high jump. He jumped 1.98 meters to earn one and a half points.
The throws group also had a big day in their first day of competition. Freshman
Sariyah Horne-Kemp had a lifetime best in the weight throw, hitting a mark of 18.15 meters to place fourth in the event and earn five points. The three men's shot put competitors each earned points for the team, with
Parker Bays leading the pack with six points. Bays threw for a distance of 17.48 meters to finish third in the event.
Jake Tucker hit a personal best 16.50 meters to place sixth and earn three points. Newcomer
Desmond Lott also had a strong throw, hitting a mark of 16.26 meters to place eighth and earn a point for the team.
Four sprinters qualified for the women's 200-meter race tomorrow, led by
Kyairra Reigh who ran the fastest qualifying time of 23.97. She was closely followed by
Alyssa Colbert who ran a 24.00. Also qualifying were
La Trouchka Duke with a time of 24.26, and
LiNay Perry with a time of 24.53. In the men's 200-meter, three Lumberjacks advanced including
David Dunlap who ran a time of 20.83 to set a new conference championships record. Also qualifying were
Kyle Smith who ran a personal best 21.57 and
Trenton Givens who ran a time of 21.91.
Colbert also set a conference championships record in the 60-meter, running the fastest qualifying time on the day with a time of 7.32. Also qualifying for the women were Duke who ran a time of 7.47, and
Kenya Coburn who ran a time of 7.71. Dunlap and Smith also qualified for the men's 60-meter, with Dunlap running a 6.74 and Smith running a 6.90.
In the 60-meter hurdles, the men saw two qualifying times while the women saw their lone competitor advance.
Trenton Givens ran a time of 7.86 to advance to the finals, while
Wil Peralta ran a personal best 8.05 to advance.
Madeline Wilson was the lone competitor for NAU in the women's 60-meter hurdles, but she qualified for the finals with a time of 8.64.
NAU will also have three competitors in the women's 400-meter finals, with
Kyairra Reigh,
LiNay Perry, and
Alonna Johnson all advancing. Reigh had the fastest qualifying time on the day, running a time of 53.90. Perry and Johnson also qualified for the finals, running times of 55.25 and 55.50 respectively.
The Lumberjacks will have two competitors in each of the 800-meter races tomorrow.
Colin Sahlman and
Theo Quax will run for the men, while
Bryn Morley and
Maggi Congdon will run for the women. Sahlman had the fastest qualifying time for the men, running a personal best 1:49.55. Quax's qualifying time of 1:53.05 was also a personal best. Congdon and Morley each won their heats, Congdon in a time of 2:13.92 and Morley in a time of 2:09.90. Morley's time was also a personal best.
Tomorrow the Lumberjacks will compete in finals for all of the preliminary events completed today, along with the mile, 3000-meter, 4x400-meter relay, men's weight throw, men's and women's triple jump, women's high jump, and women's shot put. Field events will begin at 11:15 a.m. MST with races beginning at 12:25 p.m. MST. Live results can be found
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