USU Track and Field Teams at WAC Championships this Weekend

Utah State University’s track and field teams return to Boise, Idaho, this week to compete in the 2008 Western Athletic Conference Indoor Championships hosted by Boise State University, Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 28 - Mar. 1, at Jacksons Indoor Track.


The men's heptathlon and women's pentathlon will take place on Thursday, followed by the field and running events on Friday and Saturday.

USU's men's team finished second last season just behind Boise State and the Aggie women came in fourth behind Cal State Northridge, Louisiana Tech and Boise State.

Five different Utah State athletes hold six top marks in the WAC going into the competition and eight Utah State athletes hold second-place in their events. The WAC-leading athletes include freshman Silas Pimentel with the fastest time in both the 60m (6.81) and the 200m (21.48), freshman Chio Lopez with a 4:10.87 mile, sophomore Steve Strickland in the men's 3,000m (8:20.21), junior Seth Wold with a time of 14:26.19 in the 5,000m and senior Amy Egan with the fastest time in the 800m of 2:08.27, which is a USU school record and also a NCAA provisional qualifying mark.

"I feel like with those conference leading times we definitely have a good chance for both the men's and women's teams, but those times don't mean anything if we don't perform well at the actually race," Utah State head coach Gregg Gensel said. "That's why we have the race, to prove ourselves."

USU athletes holding second-place in the WAC are junior Nick Karren in the 400m (47.55) and the 60m hurdles (8.14), freshman Hunter Nelson in the 3,000m with a time of 8:28.42, junior John Strang in the high jump with a height of 6-9.75, freshman Charles Hopkins in the heptathlon with 4,798 points, freshman Katelyn Jensen in the 200m with a time of 24.82, sophomore Erin Stratton with a time of 4:57.87 in the mile, senior Stacie (Lifferth) Dorius in the women's 3,000m with a time of 9:53.25 and freshman Sonia Grabowska in the pole vault with a height of 12-9.00, as well USU's men's 4x400m relay team (3:16.36).

"Our toughest competitors on the women's side are Hawai'i, Louisiana Tech and Idaho," Gensel said. "For the men, all four teams will be tough to beat."

In all, Utah State has 25 marks in the top 10 of the WAC rankings, plus the 4x400 relay team, while the Aggies have 43 top 10 marks on the men's side in addition to the 4x400 relay team.

"We prepare a little different for this race, we let the kids rest more, we don't run them as hard and we just hope it pays off in the end," Gensel said.

USU has four returning individual winners from last year's WAC Championships in senior Logan Moore (heptathlon pole vault) and Strang (heptathlon high jump) on the men's side, along with Egan (800m) and Dorius (3,000m) on the women's side.

Four Aggies will be looking to improve on their top-three finishes at last year's competition in Logan Moore who placed second overall in the heptathlon, John Strang who finished second in the high jump and heptathlon 60m and third in the heptathlon 60m hurdles, senior Ben Kessen who placed third in the mile and Wold who finished second in the 5,000m.

Last year the men's outdoor track and field team won the WAC Championships and in the fall the men's cross country team won their third-straight WAC title.

After the WAC Championships, USU's qualified athletes will compete in the 2008 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., March 14-15 hosted by the University of Arkansas.

 

60m — 1. Silas Pimentel (6.81(6.82)); 5. John Strang (6.97 @); 6. Lamar Brown (6.99 @)

200m — 1. Silas Pimentel (21.48); 4. Nick Karren (21.66)

400m — 2. Nick Karren (47.55); 6. Keith Williams (49.22); 7. Brett Knighton (49.34); 8. Brandon Waller (49.50)

800m — 4. James Allred (1:55.44); 7. Andrew Niccoli (1:56.34 @); 9. Heath Wing (1:57.66)

Mile — 1. Chio Lopez (4:10.87 @); 3. Seth Wold (4:12.82); 4. Steve Strickland (4:13.47); 5. Jason Holt (4:14.32); 8. Eric Larson (4:18.16 @); 9. Jared Glenn (4:18.96)

3,000m — 1. Steve Strickland (8:20.21); 2. Hunter Nelson (8:28.42); 3. Seth Wold (8:33.25#); 4. Jason Holt (8:38.55#); 8. Jared Glenn (8:50.53); 10. Andrew Niccoli (8:55.54#)

5,000m — 1. Seth Wold (14:26.19)

60m HH — 2. Nick Karren (8.14); 4. John Strang (8.29 @); 6. Keith Williams (8.39); 7. Blake Bolen (8.52 @); 9. Logan Moore (8.68)

4x400m Relay — 2. Utah State (3:16.36)

High Jump — 2. John Strang (6-9.75); 3. Casey Parker (6-6.75)

Pole Vault — 3. Palmer Hawkins (15-1.00); 6. David Loomis (15); 7. Charles Hopkins (14-9.00); 8. Jake Maybe (14-7.25)

Long Jump — 5. John Strang (23-10.75); 6. Blake Hadfield (23-6.75)

Triple Jump — 5. Blake Hadfield (48-11.00)

Shot Put — 3. Joe Canavan (54-2.5); 7. Tyler Ellis (50-10.25); 8. Daniel Cruz (49-11.25)

Heptathlon — 2. Charles Hopkins (4798.00); 3. John Strang (4660.00)

60m — 5. Maria Halton (7.71 @)

200m — 2. Katelyn Jensen (24.82); 5. Maria Halton (24.86)

400m — 5. Katelyn Jensen (56.41); 8. Katie Thatcher (57.03); 9. Elaine Connolly (57.34)

800m — 1. Amy Egan (2:08.27); 5. Erin Stratton (2:17.30 @)

Mile — 2. Erin Stratton (4:57.87); 7. Stacie Lifferth (5:04.91); 8. Vanessa Hawkins (5:09.36); 9. Allison Taylor (5:11.16); 10. Alicia Holt (5:12.64)

3000m — 2. Stacie Lifferth (9:53.25); 6. Vanessa Hawkins (10:13.38); 9. Amy Egan (10:28.01)

5000m — 10. Becca Bostwick (19:15.12)

60m HH — 4. Ashlee Cannon (8.72)

4x400m Relay — 3. Utah State (3:50.89)

High Jump — 5. Jennifer Scheiss (5-5.00); 7. Tara Pickett (5-4.25); 9. Aimee Savageau (5-3.25)

Pole Vault — 2. Sonia Grabowska (12-9.00)

Long Jump — 3. Katelyn Jensen (18-10.5); 10. Kimiko Kamo (18-0.5)

Weight Throw — 3. Krista Larson (55-10.5)