Men's Track Sets Freshman Records
4/23/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
Ben Payne set a new freshman school record in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 30:36.56. Payne's time is currently the fourth-fastest time in the Mountain West Conference. In the 3,000-meter steeplechase, senior Shane Rogers ran 8:53.85 to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships next month. Rogers' time is the third fastest in school history.
"I was extremely pleased with our overall performance at Mt. SAC," said coach Ralph Lindeman. "It was the best showing we have ever had at this meet. All of our athletes figured prominently in both the invitational and university events."
Anthony Parks' mark of 49'3 ?" in the triple jump was a season best and put him in first place on the conference best marks list. It is also the third-best mark in school history and sets a new freshman record. The old record was 49'2 ? set by Phil Franklin in 1990. Lindeman also praised Shawn Johnson for his performance in the shot put. Johnson's heave of 58'6 ?" ranks him fourth in the conference to date.
In the women's competition, senior Jaime Flood posted the third-fastest time in school history in the 5,000 meters with a time of 17:13.87. In the 1,500 meters, Elissa Ballas won the event with a time of 4:35.12. Her time is the sixth fastest in Air Force history.
This week the teams will be divided between the Jack Christiansen Invitational hosted by Colorado State on Saturday and the Drake Relays in Des Moines, IA. Lindeman said he is taking 15 athletes to Drake while the remainder of the team will be in competing Ft. Collins.
