GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's and women's track & field teams put together another strong outing on day two of the 2024 RMAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships as they posted seven NCAA provisional qualifying marks and had four different student-athletes earn individual event championships. After two days of action, both teams sit in third place with the men's team holding 61 points and the women's team collecting 40 points.
INSIDE THE 2024 RMAC OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS
UCCS Men's Day 2 Score: 61 points – 3
rd place
UCCS Women's Day 2 Score: 40 points – 3
rd place
Host School: Colorado Mesa University
Location: CMU Track & Field Complex | Grand Junction, Colo.
Elevation: 4,631 ft.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Redshirt senior Sawyer Christopher brought home the first individual event title of day two in the men's javelin throw as he posted a season-best toss of 62.56m on his first attempt of the day to easily win the event by nearly four meters and score ten points for UCCS. Christopher's toss registered as his first NCAA provisional qualifying mark of the outdoor season in the event and would currently rank inside the top-20 in the nation. Senior Thorben Hast also stepped away momentarily from his events in the decathlon to post a mark of 55.73m that was good for eighth place in the competition and scored one additional point for the Mountain Lions.
- The Mountain Lions racked up another individual event champion in the men's long jump, where Richard Safoh claimed the gold medal with an NCAA provisional qualifying leap of 7.40m to score ten points for the UCCS men's team. UCCS added seven more points in the event with freshman Jeffrey Franquemont leaping out to a fifth-place finish with a jump of 7.18m and redshirt senior Peyton Turnage taking sixth place at 7.06m.
- The Mountain Lions also scored a total of 17 points in the women's long jump, led by redshirt senior Audrey Bloomquist with ten points as she earned the individual event title with a season-best NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 5.88m. Redshirt junior Christine Bailey and redshirt sophomore Madissyn Moore accounted for the other seven points in the events as they tied for fifth place with leaps of 5.59m.
- After competing in the men's javelin throw earlier in the day, Hast also completed the final five events of the men's decathlon and went on to post a season-best NCAA provisional qualifying score of 7,073 points to win the event by more than 500 points and score ten points for the UCCS men's team. The senior combined athlete put up personal best efforts in the discus throw (36.58m) and javelin throw (56.57m) on day two while also recording marks of 15.95s in the 110m hurdles, 4.20m in the pole vault, and 4:28.86 in the 1500m. His javelin throw mark of 56.57m also moved him into second place all-time in program history for the event.
- Freshman Phia Edwards collected three points in the women's pole vault as she cleared a bar height of 3.23m to finish sixth overall. Edwards missed her first attempt at 3.38m before the event was retired early.
- UCCS grabbed three points in the women's 3,000m Steeplechase with senior Nadine Almasri finishing in seventh place with an improved NCAA provisional qualifying time of 10:50.97 and redshirt sophomore Molly Breuer taking eighth place overall at an NCAA provisional qualifying time of 10:58.87.
- In the men's 3,000m Steeplechase, redshirt freshman Joseph Impellitteri picked up one point as he recorded a personal best converted time of 9:15.61 to finish eighth overall. His raw time of 9:28.14 also moved him into fourth place all-time in UCCS program history for the event.
- Sophomore Kseniya Nikanorov added one point for UCCS in the women's 10,000m race as she completed the race in a personal best converted time of 36:36.20 to finish in eighth place overall.
- On the first day of the women's heptathlon, redshirt senior Faith Novess led a group of three Mountain Lions in the event as she tabbed a score of 2,822 points through the first four events to sit in second place overall. Novess recorded season-best marks in the 100mh (15.26s) and high jump (1.61m) while posting marks of 10.66m in the shot put and 27.22s in the 200m. Freshmen Lilyana Delagarza and Lanette St. John both sit just outside of scoring range in tenth and eleventh place with 2,211 points and 2,142 points, respectively.
- Two UCCS student-athletes advanced through the preliminary round of the women's 100m hurdles, led by senior Melissa Moreni with the fastest time in the field at 14.07s. Her converted time of 14.11s registered as an NCAA provisional qualifying mark but was just shy of her season-best for the event. Freshman Krissie Sanders joined Moreni in qualifying for the event final, clocking the sixth-fastest time in the field and second-fastest in her heat at a converted 14.51s.
- In the preliminary round of the men's 110m hurdles, freshman Nigel James earned qualification to tomorrow's event final as he won heat three with a converted time of 15.02s that was good for third overall in the field.
- Junior Joseph Hamilton advanced through the preliminary round of the men's 800m as he clocked the fifth-fastest time in the field and won his heat with a converted mark of 1:53.32.
- UCCS had a pair of student-athletes qualify for the final of the women's 200m dash as senior Keyanda Bolton and junior Victoria Farinas clocked the fifth and sixth fastest times in the field, respectively. Bolton crossed the line with a season-best converted time of 24.38s, while Farinas finished with a personal best converted time of 24.39s. With her raw time of 24.32s, Farinas also moved into fourth all-time in program history for the women's outdoor 200m.
- Three Mountain Lions made their way through the initial round of the men's 200m dash, including redshirt senior Brian Mosley Jr., junior Kymani Sterling, and senior Mason Pastorello. Mosley Jr. was the heat three winner as he posted the second-fastest overall time in the field with a personal best raw time of 21.26s, while Sterling also won heat one with the third-fastest time in the field at a season-best raw time of 21.30s. Pastorello finished third overall in heat one, but had the seventh-fastest time in the field at 21.61s to qualify for the final on time.
DAY TWO STANDINGS (MEN) – 9-OF-21 EVENTS SCORED
1. Colorado School of Mines – 83.50 points
2. Colorado Mesa – 69.50 points
3. UCCS – 61 points
4. CSU Pueblo – 46 points
5. Western Colorado – 29.50 points
6. Black Hills State – 19 points
7. Adams State – 13 points
7. South Dakota Mines – 13 points
9. Chadron State – 10 points
10. MSU Denver – 2.50 points
11. Westminster – 1 point
DAY TWO STANDINGS (WOMEN) – 8-OF-21 EVENTS SCORED
1. Colorado School of Mines – 91.50 points
2. Colorado Mesa – 55.50 points
3. UCCS – 40 points
4. Western Colorado – 27 points
5. CSU Pueblo – 21 points
6. Adams State – 18 points
7. New Mexico Highlands – 17 points
8. South Dakota Mines – 10 points
9. Fort Lewis – 9 points
10. Westminster – 8 points
10. Black Hills State – 8 points
12. MSU Denver – 6 points
BEYOND THE RESULTS
- On day two of the conference championship meet, UCCS recorded outdoor record book updates in three events, including the women's 200m, men's 3,000m Steeplechase, and men's javelin throw.
- Across the first two days of the outdoor conference championship meet, the Mountain Lion men and women have combined to record a total of 15 NCAA provisional qualifying marks and seven podium finishes, including five individual event champions.
UP NEXT
- The 2024 RMAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will conclude tomorrow from the CMU Track & Field Complex in Grand Junction, Colo. Day three action is set to get underway at 10:30 a.m. with the heptathlon long jump.
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
