The CSU track and field teams competed in Lincoln, Neb., on
Valentine’s Day.
The teams competed at the non-scoring Adidas Classic. The focus
was on individual performances and preparation for the Mountain
West Conference Championship, two weeks away.
“We got a lot done this weekend,” head coach Del Hessel said.
“We learned a lot about our team.”
The coaches and the competition learned that CSU is a force to
be reckoned with.
John Woods won the 60-meter dash in 6.69 seconds, a provisional
qualifying time for the NCAA National Championships in March. Woods
did not compete in the 200 because of his quality 60 time. Mike
Nicks was also a provisional qualifier, once again running a
spectacular mile. He finished in 4 minutes, 04.69 seconds.
Nicks led from start to finish and, at times, held a 20- to
30-yard lead.
“Both John and Mike ran great races,” Hessel said. “Mike went
out in the mile and ran away with it.”
The Rams also had strong performances in the 60-meter hurdles.
Sophomores Mike Horton and Justin Hazzard finished in 8.19 and a
tie for fifth place.
“We usually put it out pretty hard,” Horton said. “We’ll be
doing some big things together.”
Some of the distance runners competed in Ames, Iowa, at Iowa
State on Friday night. The ISU Classic provided stellar competition
and another chance to prepare.
Hessel said Josh Vigil and Dylan Olchin left Iowa disappointed
after running the 5,000 in 14:16, they desired 14:05. He pointed to
being overtrained as the cause. The two, as well as a few others,
will rest this weekend while the team runs at the Air Force
Academy.
Colleen Blair had, according to Hessel, “The best race I’ve ever
seen her run.”
She ran the 5,000 in Ames and finished fifth in 17:09.
Back in Nebraska, Danielle Korb and Rebekah Yetzer ran
outstanding races. Yetzer caught Korb in the 1,000, winning in
2:58.31. Korb finished second in 2:58.46.
“I don’t think we’ve seen (Korb) at her very best,” Hessel said.
“And Bekah is getting better every week.”
The teams, once again, had strong contributions from their
freshmen.
In addition to Yetzer and Korb, Megan Fox finished third in the
200 and Jenay DeLoach placed seventh in the 200 and third in the
long jump.
Multi-event athletes Cristina Gourdin and Katie Lloyd won’t show
up in the results but are setting themselves up for a really good
conference meet, Hessel said.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.