Four Mounties Post Qualifying Marks to Open Outdoor Season

LA GRANDE – (Release from Eastern Oregon University) The Mountaineers got off to a strong start opening the outdoor season at the Yote Icebreak Invite on Saturday. EOU traveled to the College of Idaho hosted meet in Nampa and had four individuals post qualifying marks with two “A” Standards and two “B” Standards. Despite some cold weather and a strong breeze the Mounties also had six athletes move into the top-25 all-time performances in their respective events.
 
“There were a lot of good performances, especially considering the day started out at 38 degrees,” Head Coach Ben Welch said. “Most of the day it was in the mid-40’s with 10-15 mile per hour cold winds.”
 
Next on the schedule is the Buc Scoring / Combined Events Meet hosted by Whitworth. The Mountaineers will travel up to Spokane next weekend for the two-day meet on Thursday, March 23 and Friday, March 24.
 
WOMEN
 
The two biggest highlights of the day on the women’s side came in the throws.
 
Maggie Ledbetter led the way with an “A” Standard in the women’s shot. The grad student won the event with a throw of 13.77 meters on her final attempt. Kenna Woodward was right behind her in second place with a 12.35 meter throw of her own.
 
The two flipped spots in the women’s hammer throw. Woodward took the top spot with a 50.2 meter throw in her first attempt of the day. The mark won her the event and earned her an “A” Standard. Ledbetter took second in the event with a throw of 48.41 meters.
 
Also making some noise in the throws was Trinity Hill. The junior finished third right behind her teammate Maggie Ledbetter with a throw of 36.73 meters which moves her into No. 18 all-time in the EOU record books. Ledbetter took second with a throw of 38.58 meters.
 
On the track the Mounties best performances came in the women’s 400 meter hurdles. Morgan Bayes won the event with a time of 1:05.54 and was followed by Sydney Peck with a time of 1:08.4 which ranks No. 23 all-time.
 
 
MEN
 
As for the men, they also posted strong performances, especially in the field events.
 
Moses McAninch led the way with a first-place finish in the javelin. The junior claimed his spot in the national championships later this spring with an “A” Standard mark of 58.33 meters.
 
A couple of Mounties broke into the top-25 all-time marks in the hammer throw. Mark Church and Brooks Michaels tied for second with a throw of 44.95 meters which puts the pair side-by-side at No. 25 all-time in program history for the event.
 
In the high jump, Tyler Jones picked up right where he left off in the indoor season with a “B” Standard mark. The sophomore cleared 2.05 meters on his last try winning the event. The mark puts him at No. 4 all-time in the EOU record books.
 
On the track, one Mountie moved up in the record books. Israel Miles won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 56.93 seconds. The time ranks No. 24 in the EOU record books.

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