To kick start the 2019 indoor track and field season, the annual opening meet hosted by Idaho honored Pullman-native Lauren McCluskey.
“There were a lot of great performances, too,” Idaho director of track and field/Cross country Tim Cawley said in a news release. “It shows that our team is in a good place. I’m just excited to build on a good start.”
The Vandals opened the indoor season with a number of wins and personal records.
Junior Ben Doucette brought in two victories for the Vandals — one in the 60-meter hurdles and in the 200 meters. Doucette won the final of the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.88 seconds, setting a new personal best and the fastest time in conference. His time is also currently 16th in the country. He took the win in the 200-meter race with 21.91 seconds.
Freshman Henrike Fiedler finished fourth in the 60-meter hurdles in a time of 9.26 in the final after running 9.17 in the preliminary. Fiedler made her mark in the long jump, winning the event with a jump of 5.76 meters.
Juniors Jordyn Rauer and Karina Moreland took first and third in the triple jump. Rauer took first with a leap of 11.71 meters, a new personal record. Moreland finished in third with a leap 11.41 meters. She also placed in the 60-meters (fourth) with a new personal best of 7.97 seconds in the final.
The Vandals continued to find success in other field events throughout the meet, particularly in the shot put. Junior Zachary Short grabbed the victory in the shot put with a toss of 18.97 meters, leaving his previous record in the dust. The toss would have secured Short the best mark in the Big Sky last season by over half a meter.
Sophomore Hannah Ringel sealed another Idaho shot put victory, winning with a throw of 13.75 meters.
Sprinters prepare to race the men’s 60m hurdle final at the Idaho Kibbie Dome, Saturday.
Sophomore Cullen Williams took third in the weight throw with a throw of 16.12 meters. Sophomore Britt Ipsen found success in the high jump, finishing third with 2.00 meters. He also finished fourth in the long jump with a leap of 6.81 meters.
Idaho continued its strong performance across the board, carrying into the middle distance and distance events.
Freshman Aaryanna Kurucz came in under the minute mark in the women’s 400 meters, finishing the event in 59.68 seconds. Junior Kaizer Gillispie also grabbed a 400 victory, completing the race in 48.68 seconds. Sophomore Nik Chappee took second followed close behind in second with a time of 49.51 seconds.
Both the men and women fared well in the 800-meter race. On the women’s side, Idaho took the top-three spots, lead by senior Kaleala Bass. Bass won the event in 2:15.28. Senior Erin Hagen (second) and freshman Malaina Thacker (third) followed close behind.
The men went first-second in the event, led by junior Dean Ellenwood in first with a time of 1:55.37. Sophomore Caleb Seely finished steps behind in second with a 1:55.81.
Junior Emily Wesseling put her name in the mix for the women’s mile, grabbing third with a time of 5:19.64. Freshman Nathalia Campos finished close behind in fourth with a 5:21.05.
On the men’s side, freshman Ben Shaw led the Idaho pack in the men’s mile, finishing in second with a time of 4:17.78.
Cawley said he expected to see some highs and some lows in the opening meet of the season, but saw more than expected.
“I saw a lot more up than I was expecting, which was good,” Cawley said. “We had a lot of wins, which was good. We got out and competed. We saw a lot of PR’s too. I saw a lot more ups than downs. I saw a lot of very strong performances today.”
Idaho will continue with the fast start to the indoor season, traveling across the border to the WSU Indoor Collegiate beginning Friday in Pullman.
Meredith Spelbring can be reached at [email protected]