The Mountain Lion Track and Field teams maintained their dominance in the RMAC Indoor Track and Field Championships last weekend, with the men solidifying their fourth consecutive title and the women’s team finishing second overall.
Both the men’s and women’s teams went into the two-day tournament ranked No. 8 and No. 14 in the nation, respectively, and established their dominion in one of the toughest conferences in Division II. Adams State hosted the contest in Alamosa, Colorado, where UCCS earned seven gold, six silver and eleven bronze medals to go along with 38 NCAA tournament qualifying marks.
Junior Audrey Bloomquist led the competition this weekend, earning RMAC Female Athlete of the Meet after claiming titles in the triple jump and 60-meter dash and taking third place in the long jump. Her efforts earned the most points of any female at the competition, giving UCCS 26 team points.
Junior Faith Novess gave UCCS points in four events, two being podium placing. In the pentathlon — consisting of the 60-meter hurdle, high jump, shot put, long jump and 800-meter run — Novess finished second, giving UCCS eight points. She also locked in a third-place finish in the 60-meter hurdle, fourth in the long jump and fifth in the high jump. In total, Novess earned UCCS 23 points over the tournament.
Sophomore Thorban Hast got first in the Heptathlon, which has the same events as the women’s pentathlon with the addition of the pole vault, 60-meter dash and 1000-meter run. Hast went into the second day of competition in fourth place but returned and won the whole event on the second day.
Junior Brian Mosely Jr. earned a gold medal and beat his previous provisional mark in the 60-meter dash, running it in 6.74 seconds. Along with Bloomquist’s gold, the Mountain Lions nearly swept the whole podium in the 60-meter dash, winning five of the six podium spots in both men’s and women’s races.
While UCCS didn’t have any top three finishers in the men’s 400-meter dash, four Mountain Lions took up half the available points in the event, securing fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth place and giving UCCS 13 team points towards their victory.
- Sophomore Justice Mendoza made two podium finishes, securing the fastest 200-meter dash time for a gold medal and getting third in the 60-meter dash. His 200-meter time ranks 15th in the nation.
- Sophomore Missy Moreni continued her reign over the 60-meter hurdle, winning her second RMAC title.
- Senior Dakota Abbott came into the tournament ranked third in RMAC for the triple jump but secured his spot at first with a seasonal best 15.70-meter jump.
- Sophomore Kate Hedlund earned 20 points for UCCS, getting second in the distance medley and the mile run while earning fifth in the 800-meter run.
After the competition, the men’s team tallied 143 points, beating out number two Adams State by 38 points. The women’s team barely missed first place, dropping to Mines by 10.5 points.
The NCAA DII Indoor Championships will be held from March 10-11 in Virginia Beach. The Outdoor Track and Field season is set to begin March 17-18 at the Dr. Dan Caprioglio Early Bird Invite in Pueblo, Colorado.
Photo from gomountainlions.com.