PROVO -- It was a windy first day of individual competition but track and field athletes still found their ways to high marks at the Robison Invitational Friday.
"We did well and advanced many athletes today," men's coach Mark Robison said. "We hope tomorrow is even better than today and we can get rid of this wind."
Senior Matt Anderson qualified for regionals in the long jump with a jump of 24 feet 6.25 inches to take second in the competition. That mark is well beyond Anderson's previous personal best and is currently the furthest mark in the Mountain West Conference. Weber State's Wiley King took the win in the event with a jump of 25 feet 3.5 inches.
Kathleen Moyeda opened things up for the women by winning the women's open pole vault competition with a mark of 11 feet 5.75 inches.
Freshmen Chris Reno and Blaine Baker went first and third in the javelin throw. Reno had the furthest throw with a regional-qualifying mark of 202 feet 10 inches.
The discus competition was head-to-head between All-American Niklas Arrhenius and national champion Ian Waltz. Waltz, competing unattached, took fifth in the world championships in the discus throw. The two pushed each other but in the end it was Waltz with the win and a mark of 209 feet 1 inch and Arrhenius in second with a throw of 202 feet 1 inch.
In the javelin, freshman Sarah Butler took first in collegiate, third overall with a regional-qualifying throw of 143 feet 8 inches. Freshman Piret Kuresson took the next mark with a fourth-place finish and a time of 143 feet 2 inches to qualify. Tiffany Arrhenius was the first Cougar to finish in the women's shot put, taking fourth with a mark of 41 feet 5.75 inches.
Laura Taylor won the 800-meter open in a time 2:14.71 followed by teammate Lorette Hanson in at 2:15.35 to finish second and Carolyn Quebe in third with a time of 2:15.46. Lisa Frischnecht won the women's 5,000 meters with a time of 18:13.61. The next Cougar across the line was Jocelyn Gardner, in third with a time 0f 18:36.16.
The first Cougar to finish in the men's 5,000 meters was Jeremiah West who finished third with a time of 15:43.35.
Several athletes also qualified for finals in their events. Sophomore Challis Firl took first in the 400-meter trials with a time of 57.09 to advance along with her teammate Michelle Lindsay who took third. In the men's 400-meter trials, Jason Howard tied for third with a time of 49.02 to advance. Freshman standout Mindy Neeley won both the 100-meter and 200-meter trials with times of 11.72 and 24.63, respectively.
Hurdler Nicole Nevitt took third in the 400-meter hurdles trials with a time of 1:03.80 to qualify for the finals. Nevitt also qualified in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing fourth with a time of 14.49, just behind teammate Sarah Lacey who finished second with a time o14.18.
"We did awesome today," women's coach Craig Poole said. "We qualified in every event that needed to be qualified in. I'm very encouraged."
Five BYU athletes qualified for finals in the men's 400-meter hurdles, led by Ben Garlick with the best mark in trials with his time of 52.57. Gardner also qualified in the 110-meter hurdles, along with teammates Jake Garlick, Nate Rencher and Nate Page.
Freshman Nicole Nevitt took first in her heat of the women's 400-meter hurdles and will compete in the finals Saturday.
Junior Paul Smith regionally qualified in the 100 meters with a time of 10.43 and took first in his heat to advance to the finals tomorrow. Three other Cougars will also advance to Saturday's finals. Smith later returned to win his heat in the 200 meters with another regional-qualifying time of 21.18.
The last day of competition will begin Saturday at 10 a.m. with the women's hammer throw. The Cougars will host the Mountain West Conference Outdoor Championships and NCAA Regionals in May. Visit www.byucougars.com and www.byutrack.com for more information.