For the first time this season, Idaho’s indoor track and field teams will compete with full squads this weekend. The distance runners and multi-event athletes join the rest of the athletes at the Cougar Indoor in Pullman on Friday and Saturday. The Vandals will compete against WSU and Montana in what is expected to be a three-team meet with Utah State having pulled out.
Amrah Canul | Argonaut
Sophomore hurdler Jesse Villines practices Thursday in the Kibbie Dome. The Vandals compete Friday and Saturday at WSU for the Cougar Open.
Washington State Coach Rick Sloan said the Cougar Indoor is the first meet that the Cougars will be competing with their full squads as well. The Cougar Indoor is also the first scoring meet for both the Vandals and Cougars this season.
“It’s an opportunity for the kids that haven’t performed yet and kind of give them an opener,” Idaho coach Julie Taylor said. “We have a pretty well-rounded team, so it will be fun to see how we match up against the Cougars and Montana.”
Idaho’s distance runners are racing for the first time since the conclusion of the cross country season and are eager to get back into competition. They are expected to be one of the strong points for both the men’s and women’s teams this year.
Idaho junior Hannah Kiser is poised for another strong season after a breakout sophomore season in 2012, when she finished as a USTFCCCA Second-Team All-American in the 3000-meter race. She will be one of the distance runners making her season debut at the Cougar Indoor.
“We’re really excited to start competing again because track is really a whole different ball game than cross (country),” Kiser said. “We have a lot of freshman, so I’m really excited for them all to get a taste of indoors.”
Another strong point for the Vandals this season is the throwers. Junior Kyle Rothwell hopes to hit 60 feet in the hammer throw this weekend after fouling on his 60-foot toss at the Idaho Collegiate I. Even with his foul, Rothwell still got a personal record of 59-1.5 at the meet.
“It was pretty surprising … to be just past what I was throwing at the end of last year,” Rothwell said. “It’s definitely a confidence booster going into the next few meets because I’m already getting near my goal s et for this season.”
Many other throwers have already hit personal-best marks as well, which could point to some phenomenal throws at the end of the season if they continue to improve. At the Cougar Indoor, Taylor hopes to see more consistency from the throwing group.
“Now that they’ve competed a couple times, the nerves are kind of under control,” she said. “I’d like to see them continue to improve and I’d like to see a little more consistency with marks. So not only (personal records) but having more throws that are consistently at a higher level.”
The Cougar Indoor is the third meet this season for the Vandals and the second meet at WSU but it is the first scoring meet. Going into a familiar environment offers many advantages for the Vandals as they prepare to see how they stack up against the Cougars and Grizzlies.
“It’s just nice to stay in your own bed, wake up and do your routine and then just head over to Pullman,” senior distance runner Jeff Osborn said. “It just makes it feel like a home meet.”
Stephan Wiebe can be reached at [email protected]