COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The 2020 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Indoor Track & Field Champions begin their journey for a repeat as the University of Colorado Colorado Springs track & field teams sign 22 incoming Mountain Lions for the 2020-21 season.

"Our staff has worked diligently to sign the highest quality recruiting class in our history, and it proved one more time that this program is only going to bet better," UCCS Track & Field Head Coach Ross Fellows stated. "Student-athletes come here with intentions to win both on and off the track, and that is what makes me proud as their head coach.

"I could not be happier and more eager for the new breed of Mountain Lions.  Our mission statement in succeeding is doing very simple things, but doing them extraordinarily well; sign the top student-athletes, and provide them with world-class coaching and education.  That is us, that is UCCS Track and Field."

Peter Ackah, a native of Accra, Ghana, joins the Mountain Lions after transferring from Cloud County Community College where he is set to earn an associate degree in 2020. Ackah has experienced a great amount of success at the junior college level as he notched four All-America NJCAA honors as well as four KJCAA All-Conference selections. At Cloud County CC, Ackah posted personal bests in the 60m (7.06s), 100m (10.82s), long jump (7.59m), and triple jump (15.27m). Even before his impressive junior college resume, Ackah was a three-time Best Field Athlete and National Athlete while at his high school Prempeh College. Ackah is also a record holder for the long jump at Gussa and was a top-three nominee in the men's category in the Ghana Awards of the Year in 2017.

Transferring from Concordia University Irvine, Woodland Park, Colo. native Emily Arseneau joins the Mountain Lions as a throws student-athlete who graduated from Woodland Park High School in 2019. While at Woodland Park High School, Arseneau was a two-sport athlete with a varsity letter in volleyball and four varsity letters in track & field. As a track & field student-athlete, Arseneau is a school record holder in the shot put and a three-time Female Track & Field Athlete of the Year, Most Valuable Track & Field Athlete of the Year, three-time state qualifier, and two-time state runner-up. Arseneau has excelled academically as well with two academic All-State First Team selections, one Academic All-State Honorable Mention, and voted Department of the Army Female Scholar and Athlete of the Year.

A Dallas, Texas native, Ashley Benton is set to graduate from Life High School Waxahachie in 2020 where she has sprinted to numerous individual and team awards on the track. Individually, Benton posted personal bests of 25.15s in the 200m and 56.7s in the 400m. She also has been selected as Life High School Waxahachie Sprinter of the Year (2016-17) and a two-time Most Valuable Player at Life High School (2017-18, 2018-19). Additionally, Benton earned three All-State selections including two Texas Track & Field Coaches Association All-State Track Field (2017, 2018) selections and an Ellis County All-State selection in 2019. From a team standpoint, Benton has helped the Mustangs qualify for regional and state three separate times. At the state and regional meets, Benton and the Mustangs recorded two third place finishes at state and two regional team championships (first time in school history). At the UIL Regional Track Meets, Benton and the Mustangs placed second in the 4x100m (2018), first place in the 4x100m and second place in the 4x400m in 2019. They then added a third pace finish in the 4x100m at the UIL State Meet in 2017. Academically, Benton adds a three-year AB Honor Roll selection (2017, 2019, 2020) and Grading Awards in college, career, military breadlines cord, and distinguished in Spanish.

From Clifton, Colo., Cassidy Bittner joins the 2020 Mountain Lions as a three-sport student-athlete who is set to graduate from Palisade High School in 2020. A four-year varsity letter in softball, Bittner was a two-year captain on the softball team where she was a three-time all-conference and an All-State selection. Also a varsity letter in basketball, Bittner helped the Palisade Bulldogs to a first-round playoff appearance in 2019. On the track, Bittner notched three varsity letters as she earned all-conference in the 100m hurdles and 4x100m relay, 2019 Grand Junction Daily Sentinel Female Track Athlete of the Year, and Top Jumper during her junior year. As a freshman, she was voted Rookie of the Year and followed that up with Female MVP as a sophomore in track & field. In the classroom, Bittner is a three-year academic letter, an academic all-state selection in softball, basketball, and track & field, and an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme Candidate.

A sprinter from Palmer High School, Keyanda Bolton is set to graduate from Palmer in 2020. As a Colorado Springs, Colo. native, Bolton is a Colorado Springs Metro League All-Conference Second Team selection with personal bests of 7.86s in the 60m and 24.91s in the 200m. Bolton has stayed active in extracurricular activities by being involved in Palmer's Mock Trial and Student Council.

Making his way to UCCS from the Western Slope, Holden Daniels (Eagle, Colo.) joins the program as a pole-vaulter and graduated from the Eagle Valley High School in 2020. Daniels is a three-year varsity track & field letter winner who has helped Eagle Valley to a Regional Runner Up finish for the Western Slope. Individually, Daniels is an all-conference pole vaulter has registered three top-10 finishes at the Colorado 4A State Championship s, including a second-place finish. Outside of high school, Daniels has qualified for every Junior Olympics since the eighth grade.

A sprinter at Doherty High School, Isaiah Escalante-Garcia graduated in 2020. A Colorado Springs, Colo. native, Escalante-Garcia also attended Pueblo East High School (2016-17) as he holds personal bests of 48.89s in the 400m, 22.33s in the 200m, and 11.03s in the 100m. Escalante-Garcia ranked second in the state for returning 400m sprinters as he came to break the school record for the 4x100m relay in 2019. A three-year letter winner in track & field, Escalante-Garcia also shined in football where he was a second team all-conference selection as a defensive back. Off the playing field, Escalante-Garcia went to state as a member of DECA.

A graduate from Mountain Valley High School in 2020, Luke Hard signs with the Mountain Lions as a throws student-athlete. Registering personal bests in the shot put (52' 4") and discus (139' 3"), Hard is a two-time state qualifier (2018, 2019) as he was voted team's Most Valuable Male Thrower. A two-time varsity letter winner in track & field, Hard also performed exceptionally on the gridiron as he earned all-area honors and all-conference from 2019-20 while also being a team captain (2019-20). Hard has combined his athleticism with his academics, receiving three All-State Academic Honorable Mention selections.

Thorben Hast comes over from Stelle, Niedersachsen where he is set to graduate from Carl Friedrich Gauẞ Schule in 2020. As a multi student-athlete, Hast is the unofficial German U20 Decathlon Team Record Holder and recorded second place at the German U20 Heptathlon Championships. With a decathlon PR of 7,010 points, Hast obtained a Team Championship at the German U20 Decathlon Championships in 2019.

From San Antonio, Texas, Gabriella Martinez is a four-year varsity letter winner in track & field where she posts personal bests in the 400m (60.01s), 200m (27.0s), 4x400m (split: 58.7s), and 4x200m (split: 25.4s) at Reagan High School. A graduate from Reagan High school in 2020, Martinez is a three-time 6A area regional qualifier and a state qualifier. Martinez has helped the Reagan Rattlers to an impressive four 6A District Championships (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019), three 6A Area Championships (2017, 2018, 2019), and two 6A Regional Championships (2018, 2019). In the classroom Martinez has excelled by being a two-time member of the Underclassman Honors Society, three-time Academic All-District selection, and four-time member of the National Society of High School Scholars. Besides track & field, Martinez is involved in numerous extracurricular activities including Paws for a Cause, Got Hope Club, DECA Club, UNICEF Club, Model United Nations Class/Club, Leadership Club, Winners Circle, and was involved in art shows during her freshman year.

Holding personal bests of 5' 6.25" in the high jump, 15.35s in the 100m hurdles, and 3,812 points in the heptathlon, Katelyn McMoore joins the 2020-21 Mountain Lions as a high jump and multi student-athlete. A Colorado Springs, Colo. native, McMoore graduated from Liberty High School in 2020 where she was a two-sport student-athlete in volleyball and track & field. As a varsity letter winner in volleyball, McMoore was a 2018 CHSAA All-State Honorable Mention, 2018 CSML All-League First Team selection, and was voted Liberty Junior Varsity's Volleyball Most Inspirational Player in 2016. McMoore's athletic accomplishments do not stop there as she continued her stellar play on the track by earning numerous awards. A Liberty High School Vertical Record Holder and High Jump Record Holder (5' 6.25" in 2018) McMoore was a Track & Field Rotary Champions Nominee in 2019. She is also a Gazette Preps Girls' Track & Field All-Stars First Team in the high jump, Varsity's Track & Field MVP, and Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year in 2018. McMoore backs her athletic awards with academic honors as well by earning three academic letters, two DECA Activity Letters, two World Language Awards, and winning the Liberty High School Order of the Crest Award (the highest honor at Liberty High School). In addition to being a team captain on the volleyball and track & field teams, McMoore was a member of the National Honor Society, member of the Spanish National Honor Society, VP of Finance for DECA, and Vice President of the Lancer Lunatics.

A native of Helena, Mont., Melissa Moreni joins UCCS as the Capital High School record holder in the 4x100m relay, freshman record holder in the 4x100m and 4x400m relays, and holds the second fastest 4x100m relay time in the state of Montana. A 2020 graduate of Capital High School, Moreni is a three-year letter winner in track & field and a varsity letter in soccer. Moreni holds personal bests in the 100m hurdles (14.97s) and 300m hurdles (46.24s) as she helped the Capital Bruins to a Western Divisional Championship in 2019. As the valedictorian, Moreni earned academic all-state honors in soccer (2019) while also being a member in the National Honors Society and Spirit Club.

Colorado Springs, Colo. native Kierra Nash signs with UCCS as a throws student-athlete who graduated from Fountain Fort Carson High School in 2020. Nash has claimed four top-5 finishes in the discus including first-place finishes at the Doherty Inv. (130' 7"), Fountain Fort Carson Inv. (127' 7"), John Tate Challenge Cup (126' 3"), and Banana Belt Inv. (121' 5"). A three-time CSML Champion, Nash was crowned CSML Discus Champion in 2018 & 2019 and was crowned CSML Shot Put Champion as well in 2019. Nash then went on to the 2019 CHSAA Class 5A State Championships where she placed 16^th in the shot put and 13^th in the discus. Academically, Nash is a four-time Honor Roll and Student-athlete Honor Roll selection as she went on to become John Lynch Student-Athlete of the Month in February of 2019.

A 2016 graduate of Parkrose High School, Lydia Pavlenko is a jumps student-athlete who transfers in from Colorado State University-Pueblo. From Portland, Ore., Pavlenko is a 2018 All-RMAC First Team selection in high jump where she finished in third place at the 2018-19 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships. At CSU-Pueblo, Pavlenko posted personal bests of 1.63m in the high jump, 5.41m in the long jump, and 12.00m in the triple jump.

A throws student-athlete from Centennial, Colo., Faythe Sheffield graduated from Arapahoe High School in 2020 where she recorded personal bests of 39' 6.5" in the shot put and 116' in the discus. Voted team MVP during her sophomore year, Sheffield is a four-year letter winner and two-time state qualifier as she claimed a seventh-place finish in her sophomore year and a ninth-place finish in her junior year at state. During her freshman, sophomore, and junior year Sheffield has notched 14 top-10 finishes including first-place finishes at Centennial League Championships (sophomore year), Cherry Creek Invitational (sophomore year), City of Littleton Championships (sophomore year), and Fleet Spring Qualifier (junior year). As a team, Sheffield has helped the Arapahoe Warriors to nine top-10 finishes including a first-place finish in the City of Littleton Championships in 2017 and an eighth-place finish in the CHSAA 5A State Championships in 2019. In a stellar high school career, Sheffield also adds honor roll selections during her freshman and senior year.

UCCS stacks up with another impressive throws student-athlete as Mancos, Colo. native Caden Showalter joins the 2020-21 Mountain Lions. With personal bests of 50' 10" in the shot put and 163' 8" in the discus, the 2020 Mancos High School graduate is a two-sport athlete in both basketball and track & field. On the court, Showalter is a two-time All-State selection, two-time all-star game selection, and a three-time all-conference first team selection. In track & field, Showalter is a three-time state qualifier and  three-time SJBL Player of the Year as he went on to go undefeated his junior year in the discus in route to becoming State Champion in both the discus and shot put to claim All-State honors in 2019. Showalter has also helped the Mancos BlueJays basketball team to their first basketball district championship in over 15 years, first regional championship in nearly 20 years in 2019, and the BlueJays first state appearance in over 15 years. The team success continued on the track as Showalter helped the BlueJays to three league championships and a state runner-up finish in 2019. Outside of his achievements at Mancos High School, Showalter is a District Junior Olympics Champion for shot put and discus, a 2019 National Junior Olympics qualifier in the shot put and discus, and registered a pair of fifth-place finishes in the Regional USATF Junior Olympics. Academically, Showalter achieved Academic All-State honors, earned three SJBL Academic All-Conference selections, and is an honor roll recipient. Additionally, Showalter is involved in extracurricular activities such as National Honor Society, Big Brother Program, and was a Leader in the High School Leadership program.

A three-sport student-athlete and four-year letter winner in volleyball, basketball, and track & field, Ryley Smartt graduated from Genoa-Hugo High School in 2020. Smartt has experienced success in all three sports as the Hugo, Colo. native also attended McClave High School from 2016-17. A two-time varsity captain in volleyball, Smartt is a three-time All-State Honorable Mention selection and an All-State First Team selection as she has helped Genoa-Hugo to two district championships, two regional championships, and two state appearances. In basketball, Smartt is a two-time All-State Honorable Mention and two-time varsity team captain who helped Genoa-Hugo to three regional appearances and a district championship in her senior year as she added Union Pacific All-League selections in both basketball and volleyball (2017-19). For track & field, Smartt continued to shine as she qualified for state in the shot put three consecutive years and qualified in the discus her sophomore and junior year. Smartt was a state runner-up in the shot put her sophomore year and state runner-up in the discus her junior year as she was crowned state champion in the shot put as a junior to earn All-State First Team. Smartt also stays active outside of athletics by being involved in the school newspaper and the FFA for three years where she was Sentinel her freshman and junior year, and a Secretary her sophomore and junior year. Academically, Smartt made her way to the honor roll all four years while having perfect attendance for three years and earning academic excellence honors.

A native of Canon City, Colo. Noah Vidmar signs with UCCS as a jumps student-athlete who graduated from Canon City High School in 2020. As a two-sport student-athlete, Vidmar is a three-year varsity letter winner in football and a two-year varsity letter winner in track & field. An All-State selection and two-time all-conference selection in track, Vidmar is also a two-time state qualifier and a Southern League State Qualifier. Vidmar helped the Canon City Tigers to a football playoff appearance in 2017 as he earned an academic letter and Gold Honor Roll for three years.

Hailing from Aurora, Colo., Richard Safoh comes to UCCS as a four-year varsity letter winner from Gateway High School. Safoh, a 2020 graduate from Gateway, has posted indoor PRs of 7.30s in the 60m and 44' 6.25" in the triple jump while notching outdoor PRs of 22.61s in the 200, 50.86s in the 400m, 19' 8.5" in the long jump, and 44' 10.5" in the triple jump. As a freshman in 2017, Safoh began to make an immediate impact as a track & field student-athlete by recording two top-10 finishes at the EMAC Track & Field Championships with a seventh-place finish time in the 400m and second-place time in the 4x800m relay, all while topping the 2017 season off as Gateway's Track & Field Outstanding Freshman. He continued to make a presence on the track in 2018 as Safoh jumped his way to triple jump champion at the EMAC Track & Field Championships while also adding a second place finish in the 400m, second place finish in the 4x200m relay, and fifth place finish in the 4x400m relay. Safoh then repeated in earning outstanding athlete award in 2018 by earning Gateway Track & Field Outstanding Sophomore. In 2019, Safoh registered another championship finish at the EMAC Track & Field Championships by taking first in the 4x400m relay and adding a runner-up finish in the triple jump, third-place finish in the 200m, and a third-place finish in the 400m. At the CHSAA Track & Field Championships Safoh had two top-15 finishes in the triple jump in back-to-back years with a 13^th place finish in 2018 and a 12^th place finish in 2019. The Colorado native helped Gateway High School to a second-place finish at the EMAC Championships (2018-19) as he garnered academic honor roll selections all four years. Safoh also served as the manager for both the track & field team and the women's basketball team.
 
From Colorado Springs, Colo., Jaelyn Wilson is a 2020 graduate of Vista Ridge High School. Also an attended of Lewis Palmer High School (2016), Air Academy High School (2017-18), and Fountain Fort Carson High School (2018-19), Wilson experienced success at each school by qualifying for state in track & field all four years of high school. In 2017, Wilson put herself on the map by ranking third in state for the 4x400m relay. Then just a year later she burst on to the scene by ranking second in state in the 4x400m relay, fourth in the 800m medley relay, and fourth in the 400m for Colorado 4A. At the state meet in 2018, Wilson placed top-8 in the 800m medley relay, 400m, and 800m relay. A three-sport varsity letter winner (track & field, cross country, and basketball), Wilson took 38^th in state for the Cross Country 5k in 2018 while at Fountain Fort Carson, becoming the first girl to qualify for state in seven years. From 2017-18, Wilson also set three new school records for relays while at Air Academy in the 4x200m, 4x400m, and the sprint medley. On the basketball court, Wilson helped Air Academy to the Championships at UNC her sophomore year. Wilson has also excelled academically as she received an academic letter during her freshman and sophomore years at Air Academy, as well as achieving honor roll her sophomore year.
 
A 2017 graduate of Ramona High School, Justice Mendoza (Ramona, Calif.) was a four-year soccer student-athlete before he joined the track & field team his senior year. As a sprints student-athlete, Mendoza ran the 100m, 200m, and relays where he recorded PRs of 11.25s in the 100m and 22.36s in the 200m. Mendoza makes his way to UCCS after transferring from San Diego Mesa College as he registered PRs in the 100m (11.1s), 200m (22.10s), 300m (35.30s), 400m (50.50s), and the 600m (1:31.00).
 
Chase Monestime (Aurora, Colo.) signs with UCCS Track & Field as a 2020 graduate from Cherokee Trail High School where he competed in both sprints events and jumps events. The three-year varsity letter winner has notched PRs of 11.16s in the 100m, 22.61s in the 200m, and 20' 3.5" in the long jump as Monestime earned the Cherokee Trail Cougar Award in 2018. In 2019, Monestime claimed an All-Aurora Team selection as he registered first place times in the 4x100m and 4x200m relay at the Centennial League Championships with a third-place finish in the 4x200m relay at the state meet. Monestime and Cherokee Trail Cougars were crowned Centennial League Champions in 2019 as they went on to place fifth as a team at the CHSAA Class 5A State Championships. Academically, Monestime is a four-time Honor Roll selection, 2019 academic letter winner, and a 2019 CHSAA Academic All-State First Team selection. Outside of athletics, was a member of DECA at Cherokee Trail High School.

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