Idaho concluded the 2019 indoor season with nine Vandals on the podium throughout the three-day Big Sky Track and Field Indoor Championships.
The men finished in fifth overall with 52.5 points and the women in eight overall with 53 points. Both are the highest point totals and best finishes for the program since rejoining the conference in the 2014-2015 season.
Northern Arizona took the conference title on the men’s side with 178.5 overall points. Sacramento State grabbed the women’s title with 100 total points.
“I’m so proud of this team,” said Tim Cawley, director of track and field/cross country in a news release. “Both the men and the women competed tough. So many athletes showed up and beat their rank this weekend and the presence and support the team had for each other was fantastic. The staff did an amazing job getting the team ready.”
Field events
Idaho took the top spot in the shot put on both the men’s and women’s side. Junior Zachary Short closed his dominating indoor season with an equally dominating performance. Short not only claimed the victory in the event, but crushed his own conference record in the process with a throw of 19.81 meters. His performance moves him into the top-10 in the event nationally. The top-16 in the country move on to compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Alabama, to be announced Tuesday night.
Sophomore Hannah Ringel took the victory on the women’s side in the event with a toss of 14.89 meters, good for a new personal best.
Sophomore Cullen Williams had a good showing in the weight throw, taking third with a throw of 19.18 meters.
Idaho represented well in the jumping events, with a number of scoring performances and personal bests. Freshman Zachary Nunis set a new personal record in the triple jump with a leap of 15.14 meters, good for second place. Nunis also earned his spot on the podium in the long jump with a leap of 7.66 meters. His performance secured his second place finish and top-30 spot in the nation.
Junior Karina Moreland also bested her record, setting a new personal best in the triple jump with a leap of 12.17 meters for second place. Teammate junior Jordyn Rauer finished in seventh with a leap of 11.73 meters, an indoor personal record.
Junior Rechelle Meade shined in the long jump, claiming the victory with a leap of 6.13 meters. Meade was in the lead after her second leap of 5.91 meters, but claimed her fifth career medal in the event in the final attempt.
Freshman Henrike Fiedler took fifth in the long jump with a hop of 5.71 meters.
Junior Chloe Woest cleared 3.63 meters in the pole vault, good for an eighth place finish.
Sophomore Britt Ipsen cleared 1.94 meters in the high jump to finish in a tie for eighth place.
Running events
Senior Kaleala Bass finished strong in the women’s 800 meters, taking third in the event with a time of 2:13.23. Sophomore Jenner Higgins finished in seventh overall in the men’s event with a time of 1:54.43.
Senior Andrea Condie scored in multiple distance events for the women. In the 3,000 meters, Condie took fourth with a time of 9:54.51. She also finished in eighth in the 5,000 meters with a time of 17:41.13.
Sophomore Nik Chappee found success in the men’s 400-meter race, finishing in sixth overall with a time of 49.90 seconds. On the women’s side, freshman Lauren Paven claimed claimed seventh place in the event with a time of 59.23 seconds.
Chappee was also part of the fifth-place 4×400-meter relay team that included juniors Mack Baxter and Dean Ellenwood and freshman Nathan Burton. The squad finished in 3:20.24.
Baxter and Ellenwood also teamed up with freshman Ben Shaw and sophomore Caleb Seely in the men’s distance relay, where they finished in second overall with a 10:13.27. On the women’s side, the team of junior Krista Story, freshmen Aaryanna Kurucz, Nathalia Campos and sophomore Malaina Thacker finished in fifth overall with a time of 12:09.43.
In the sprints, junior Ben Doucette took sixth overall in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.28 in the finals.
Meredith Spelbring can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @mere0415