Idaho track and field split ways over the weekend, as part of the squad traveled south to compete at the Bronco Challenge in Boise and the other to Seattle for the Husky Classic.
The Vandals competed well against their in-state rival, bringing in nine individual titles Saturday.
Senior Kaleala Bass took the victory in the women’s 800 meters with a time of 2:11.06 — a new personal best. Her mark is currently the second-best in the conference. Sophomore Jenner Higgins won the event on the men’s side with a time of 1:54.15, a new season best. Junior Dean Ellenwood was not far behind in third with a 1:55.17.
Idaho followed in suit with past performances of the season with a strong showing in the field events. Junior Zachary Short and sophomore Hannah Ringel both took the title in the shotput competitions. Short finished first on the men’s side with a throw of 18.62 meters. Ringel won the women’s event with a toss of 13.21 meters.
Junior Karina Moreland represented Idaho in the triple jump, taking first with a new personal record. Moreland won with a leap of 12.05 meters. On the men’s side, freshman Zachary Nunis won the event with a jump of 14.77 meters. His performance moves him into the top-five in the Big Sky.
Freshman Henrike Fiedler hopped her way to victory in the women’s long jump with a personal best leap of 5.86 meters. Junior Rechelle Meade took third with a leap of 5.59 meters.
Junior Chloe Woest cleared 3.66 meters in the women’s pole vault for the first time in her career. Her performance moves her into the top-10 in conference.
A number of Idaho athletes performed well in the distance events as well. Junior Dwain Stucker led a pack of Vandals in the top of the men’s 5,000-meter run. Stucker won the event with a time of 15:11.48. He was followed closely by junior Drew Schultz (15:12.80), senior Skylar Ovnicek (15:20.82) and junior Grayson Ollar (15:32.83).
On the women’s side, senior Erin Hagen took the victory in the mile with a time of 4:56.96. Sophomore Malaina Thacker finished in second with a 5:00.48. Junior Krista story took fourth in the event with a time of 5:04.27.
A duo of Idaho distance runners competed in the Husky Classic in Seattle. Junior Kara Story and senior Andrea Condie both competed in the women’s 5,000-meter race. Condie finished in 39th overall with a time of 16:47.65. Story finished not too far behind with a time of 16L57.69, good for 44th overall.
While much of his team competed across the Pacific Northwest, junior Ben Doucette took a trip out south to compete at the Tyson Invitational hosted by Arkansas. Doucette finished overall in 16th with a time of 8.19 seconds.
Meredith Spelbring can be reached at [email protected]