(Editor’s note: Montana State athletics release)
BOZEMAN — The Montana State track and field team completed its first appearance of the New Year by hosting the MSU Open inside Worthington Arena on Friday, Jan. 11. Two Bobcat jumpers made all-time top 10 adjustments to the MSU record book to highlight the action in a meet loaded with talent from across the Big Sky State.
“Overall I’m really encouraged on how our team looked during this meet,” said Lyle Weese, Montana State Director of Track and field. “There were so many outstanding performances that it’s hard to name all of them. So that’s great to come out the first meet and compete that well.”
Wyatt Thompson-Siporen completed a personal-best effort in the pole vault by clearing 16 feet, 9.25 inches (5.11m). His vault moved him from a tie for fifth to a tie for third all-time on the men’s side and is the best mark in the Big Sky this season. Alex Lewis moved from eighth to fourth in program history in the long jump by reaching a distance of 24-00.75 (7.33m). The performance moved Lewis to second on the conference’s performance list. Lewis also placed second to pace the Bobcats in the event.
MSU had several solid efforts in the jumps events. Isabella Calabrese and Alex Hellenberg placed first and third, respectively, in the women’s pole vault. Truanne Roginske finished second in the women’s long jump, nearly reaching her lifetime best in the event with a mark of 18-03.25 (5.57m). Lucy Corbett set a personal best in the high jump as a Bobcat and took second by clearing 5-05 (1.65m).
Twila Reovan led the MSU women in the triple jump with a fourth-place finish. Hellenberg and Caleb Neth each finished fifth in their respective long jump competitions.
“Alex had a great long jump competition, going over 24 feet indoors, can’t say it was due to the wind,” Weese said. “It was great to see that. Lucy will add so much to our team with her ability in the high jump. Wyatt will be a standout for us all year. He’s right on the cusp of getting over that 17-foot mark.”
The Bobcat sprints group provided multiple performances that placed MSU names atop the Big Sky performance list.
McKenna Ramsay earned first-place showings in both the 200 (25.23) and 400 (56.82) that put her second among the league’s runners. Courtney Stromme improved on a lifetime best set in December by taking second in the 400 in a time of 57.63 seconds which put her third among conference competitors.
On the men’s side, seniors Jadin Casey and Mitch Horning finished in the top two spots in the 400. Their times of 49.77 seconds and 49.96 seconds in Worthington Arena place them at the top of the Big Sky.
“They’ve been a great example in terms of their preparation and how they put everything into it,” Weese said of MSU’s sprints upperclassmen. “Obviously, if somebody is performing at a high level, it’s a lot easier for the younger athletes to look up to them. They bring a lot in terms of performance, how they go about preparing and a lot from a leadership perspective.”
Freshman Delaney Smith finished with the top time in the women’s 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.84 which places her atop the Big Sky list. Both of MSU’s 4×400 relays also took first in the MSU Open. Alex Veltkamp and Henry Adams each placed in the top three of an individual event as well.
Cameron Carroll and Kendra Larson led the way in the distance events for Montana State. Carroll ran an altitude-adjusted time of 4:11.65 to finish first in the men’s mile and move to the top of the Big Sky in the event. Larson placed first in the women’s 800 with a Big Sky-best mark of 2:14.01.
Kathleen Glockner and Samuel Bloom each completed lifetime bests in the mile, while Chris Bianchini and Lexi Kyro each finished third in their respective 800 races.
“I was excited with Kendra’s race in the 800, I thought she did a really good job,” Weese said. “Cameron was really aggressive in the mile and has big goals. As we get into more specific training, I’m excited to see where he can go with that. A lot of our longer distance athletes will open up their 2019 season next week.”
Leading the Bobcats in the throws were Alec Nehring and Jordan Fink. Nehring finished second in the men’s shot put with a throw of 54-10.75 (16.73m). Fink completed her top throw of her Bobcat career in the women’s shot put to take third with a mark of 38-07.75 (11.78m). Josh Mertz took fifth in both the weight throw and shot put on the men’s side, while Madi Arneson earned a sixth-place showing in the shot put.
The Montana State track and field team returns to competition on Friday, Jan. 18, when the Bobcats host the first MSU Invitational of the indoor season. The meet is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. inside Worthington Arena.
