Friday, February 26
USAFA
9:00 am MT
Air Force Academy
vs
Championships at the Peak
Photo by: Justin Tafoya, NCAA Photos
Falcons Continue Action at Championships at the Peak
2/26/2021 6:24:00 PM | Track and Field
The men lead the competition after two days of action, while the women are in fourth.
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Highlighted by one event title and a pair of improvements to the Academy's all-time standings, the Air Force track and field team wrapped up another successful day of action at the Championships at the Peak meet at the Academy on Friday, Feb. 26. The men currently lead the meet, while the women are sitting in fifth after two days of action.
Junior Ryan Ioanidis accounted for the Falcons' first points of the meet, as he won the 5000-meter run – the first final of the Championships – and paced the men to six scoring finishes. In his first race of the year, Ioanidis took the lead at the start of the penultimate lap and cruised to the easy victory behind a time of 15:09.47. Classmate AJ Kedge posted a career-best time of 15:17.91 to place third his first race of the year at that distance, while classmate Joseph Wittig and freshman Ryan Child finished fourth (15:19.77) and fifth (15:20.40), respectively, in their first collegiate 5000-meter run. Junior Matt Zacharias added a career-best, sixth-place time of 15:36.41, while freshman Jett Knight closed out the scoring with a seventh-place, debut time of 15:53.44.
Junior Wyatt Murphy accounted for the fifth-best heptathlon total in Academy history this afternoon, as he scored 5343 points to finish second in the 13-athlete multi-event meet. Murphy, who registered four career-best marks yesterday, added another pair of PRs today – tallying personal-best marks in the 60-meter hurdles (8.39) and pole vault (14'1¼") – to add nearly 175 points to his previous best. Senior Tyler Gurchiek also posted a career-best mark in the heptathlon, as he added nearly 125 points to his career total to finish eighth with 4831 points. Like Murphy, he posted a personal-best mark in the pole vault (14'5¼"), while registering the second-fastest hurdles time of his career (8.70 – just 0.01 off his best.
Air Force also accounted for multiple scoring finishes in the high jump, as junior Jake Hall tied for third at 6'6¾" and freshman Philip Hundl placed seventh at 6'4¾". The distance medley relay of junior Garrett Blenkush, junior La'akea Aiu, senior Aric Kedge and sophomore Aidan Boyle wrapped up the second day of action, as they combined for a third-place time of 10:37.80.
With 52.50 points, the Falcons currently lead the men's competition, holding an 11.50 advantage over Wichita State, who is in second with 41 points. Wyoming is right behind the Shockers with 39.50 point, while Arizona is in fourth (14) and a trio of teams – Utah State, California, USC – round out the top-five of the Championships, sharing matching totals of 10 points.
The women earned four top-eight finishes this afternoon, collecting one scoring placement in every contested final. Junior Frankie Porambo recorded a clearance of 12'5½" to finish sixth in the pole vault, while freshman Katie Thompson and senior Meghan Carbiener picked up seventh-place finishes in the long jump (18'7") and weight throw (54'5½"), respectively. The distance medley relay of freshman Rebecca Wusinich, junior Brid O'Connell, sophomore Stephanie Gregersen and freshman Rayna Fruchey capped the day with a runner-up time of 12:56.44.
Air Force is currently in fourth on the women's side, with 14.50 points. Arizona State leads the meet with 28 points – holding a half-point advantage over Colorado State. Wichita State (15) and Air Force are third and fourth in the overall standings, while Wyoming and California are tied for fifth with 11 points.
In addition to today's finals, the qualifying rounds of the sprint events took place this afternoon. Junior Sean Geither posted a career-best time of 48.38 to advance out the qualifying round of the 400-meter dash, while sophomore Cameron Harris used a personal-best time of 8.07 to earn a spot in the finals of the 60-meter hurdles.
Junior Michelle Roca continued her climb up the all-time standings of the 400-meter dash this afternoon, as she registered the seventh-fastest time in Academy history – 57.02 – during the preliminary round.
Air Force returns to the Cadet Field House tomorrow (Feb. 27) for Championship Saturday at the Championships at the Peak meet. Action begins at 10:00 a.m. (MT), with the men's shot put and women's high jump.
Junior Ryan Ioanidis accounted for the Falcons' first points of the meet, as he won the 5000-meter run – the first final of the Championships – and paced the men to six scoring finishes. In his first race of the year, Ioanidis took the lead at the start of the penultimate lap and cruised to the easy victory behind a time of 15:09.47. Classmate AJ Kedge posted a career-best time of 15:17.91 to place third his first race of the year at that distance, while classmate Joseph Wittig and freshman Ryan Child finished fourth (15:19.77) and fifth (15:20.40), respectively, in their first collegiate 5000-meter run. Junior Matt Zacharias added a career-best, sixth-place time of 15:36.41, while freshman Jett Knight closed out the scoring with a seventh-place, debut time of 15:53.44.
Junior Wyatt Murphy accounted for the fifth-best heptathlon total in Academy history this afternoon, as he scored 5343 points to finish second in the 13-athlete multi-event meet. Murphy, who registered four career-best marks yesterday, added another pair of PRs today – tallying personal-best marks in the 60-meter hurdles (8.39) and pole vault (14'1¼") – to add nearly 175 points to his previous best. Senior Tyler Gurchiek also posted a career-best mark in the heptathlon, as he added nearly 125 points to his career total to finish eighth with 4831 points. Like Murphy, he posted a personal-best mark in the pole vault (14'5¼"), while registering the second-fastest hurdles time of his career (8.70 – just 0.01 off his best.
Air Force also accounted for multiple scoring finishes in the high jump, as junior Jake Hall tied for third at 6'6¾" and freshman Philip Hundl placed seventh at 6'4¾". The distance medley relay of junior Garrett Blenkush, junior La'akea Aiu, senior Aric Kedge and sophomore Aidan Boyle wrapped up the second day of action, as they combined for a third-place time of 10:37.80.
With 52.50 points, the Falcons currently lead the men's competition, holding an 11.50 advantage over Wichita State, who is in second with 41 points. Wyoming is right behind the Shockers with 39.50 point, while Arizona is in fourth (14) and a trio of teams – Utah State, California, USC – round out the top-five of the Championships, sharing matching totals of 10 points.
The women earned four top-eight finishes this afternoon, collecting one scoring placement in every contested final. Junior Frankie Porambo recorded a clearance of 12'5½" to finish sixth in the pole vault, while freshman Katie Thompson and senior Meghan Carbiener picked up seventh-place finishes in the long jump (18'7") and weight throw (54'5½"), respectively. The distance medley relay of freshman Rebecca Wusinich, junior Brid O'Connell, sophomore Stephanie Gregersen and freshman Rayna Fruchey capped the day with a runner-up time of 12:56.44.
Air Force is currently in fourth on the women's side, with 14.50 points. Arizona State leads the meet with 28 points – holding a half-point advantage over Colorado State. Wichita State (15) and Air Force are third and fourth in the overall standings, while Wyoming and California are tied for fifth with 11 points.
In addition to today's finals, the qualifying rounds of the sprint events took place this afternoon. Junior Sean Geither posted a career-best time of 48.38 to advance out the qualifying round of the 400-meter dash, while sophomore Cameron Harris used a personal-best time of 8.07 to earn a spot in the finals of the 60-meter hurdles.
Junior Michelle Roca continued her climb up the all-time standings of the 400-meter dash this afternoon, as she registered the seventh-fastest time in Academy history – 57.02 – during the preliminary round.
Air Force returns to the Cadet Field House tomorrow (Feb. 27) for Championship Saturday at the Championships at the Peak meet. Action begins at 10:00 a.m. (MT), with the men's shot put and women's high jump.
Players Mentioned
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
800m
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800m / 1500m
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Hammer
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1500m / 5000m
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/ Track and Field
400m
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800m
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Decathlon
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High Jump
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110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
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100m Hurdles / Decathlon
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1500m / 5000m
/ Track and Field
3000m Steeplechase
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800m
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/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
400m
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Long Jump / 100m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
1500m / 5000m
/ Track and Field
/ Track and Field
3000m Steeplechase / 5000m
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