Saturday, March 26
San Diego, CA
10:00 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
Aztec Invitational
Photo by: Sierra Lyon
Falcons Impact Record Book in San Diego
3/26/2022 9:34:00 PM | Track and Field
Backed by five Top 10 marks, the Falcons made 14 improvements to Air Force's all-time standings.
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Highlighted by 14 improvements to the Air Force Record Book and a pair of first-place finishes, the track and field team wrapped up a successful weekend of competition at the 43rd-annual Aztec Invitational this evening (March 26) in San Diego.
AIR FORCE'S TOP 10 MARKS
Men's 4x100-Meter Relay: 40.21 (No. 3 all-time)
Women's 200-Meter Dash: Grace Proesch, 24.99 (No. 4 all-time)
Women's 4x400-Meter Relay: 3:44.33 (No. 4 all-time)
Women's 800-Meter Run: Brid O'Connell, 2:10.35 (No. 6 all-time)
Women's 200-Meter Dash: Taylor Rioux, 25.28 (No. 8 all-time)
The women's sprint lineup had a stellar day on the Sports Deck track, as they made six additions to the Air Force Record Book – including the fourth-fastest 4x400-meter relay in Academy history. Freshman Taylor Rioux joined a senior-laden lineup of Michelle Roca, Brid O'Connell and Grace Proesch to cross the finish line in a time of 3:44.33, placing fourth in the meet and accounting for the second-fastest time in the last 38 Air Force seasons.
The members of the relay also all made individual improvements to the program's all-time standings on Saturday. Competing in her first outdoor meet since freshman year, Proesch clocked a time of 24.99 to debut at No. 4 in the 200-meter dash and entered the program's 100-meter standings after clocking the 12th-fastest time in Air Force history at 12.46. Rioux joined Proesch in the top-10 of the 200-meter dash, as her 25.28 performance – a 0.49 improvement from last week – is the eighth-fastest time in program history. O'Connell clocked the Academy's sixth-fastest 800-meter time (2:10.35) to finish fourth out of 28 runners in that event, while Roca captured the same placement in the 400-meter hurdles after opening her outdoor campaign with a Senior Class Record 60.66 – a mark just shy of her own Academy Record.
Senior Ari Martinez captured the women's best finish at the Aztec Invitational, as she cleared 5'7¼" – a mark just a half-inch shy of her personal best – to tie for second in the 17-athlete high jump competition. The women's vertical jump roster also accounted for three scoring finishes in the pole vault, as seniors Erika Willis and Frankie Porambo tied for sixth with matching heights of 12'4" and freshman Katie Schlather added an eighth-place clearance of 11'10".
Two other members of the women's squad impacted the program's Top 20 on Saturday, as sophomores Ally Stauffer and Alexxis Brown registered the first 130-foot javelin throws of their careers to move into 19th (132'2") and 20th (131'3"), respectively, on the Academy's all-time standings.
On the men's side, the 4x100-meter relay of senior Sean Geither, sophomore Jackson Connelly, senior Charles Dimnwaobi and junior Zac Larrier accounted for the third-fastest time in Academy history – and the fastest overall in five years – during a 40.21 performance that was second in the meet. Larrier also picked up an event title in the 400-meter dash (career-best 47.68 – No. 21 on the program's all-time list) and joined Dimnwaobi, Geither and senior La'akea Aiu on the 4x400-meter relay that finished second in 3:13.59, while Connelly finished sixth in the 100-meter dash (10.82) and Dimnwaobi scored for Air Force in the 200-meter dash following a wind-aided 21.54 performance.
AIR FORCE FIRST-PLACE FINISHES
Men's 400-Meter Dash: Zac Larrier, 47.68
Men's High Jump: Jake Hall, 6'9½"
Senior Jake Hall cleared 6'9½" to win the high jump and lead Air Force to half of the scoring finishes in that event. Freshman Collin Schulz tied for third with an outdoor-best height of 6'7½" (No. 23 on the program's all-time list), while sophomore Philip Hundl and freshman Jalan Rivers tied for seventh with matching clearances of 6'5½" – a season-best for the sophomore, who also led Air Force to four of the eight scoring marks in the 110-meter hurdles. Hundl posted a time of 15.01 (15.006) to narrowly edge junior Cameron Harris (15.01, 15.010) for fourth, while freshman Darek Hackett and sophomore Braeden Holcombe finished sixth (season-best 15.11) and seventh (season-debut 15.18), respectively.
Hackett earned runner-up honors in the 400-meter hurdles, as he clocked the 20th-fastest time in program history (53.27) during his event debut, while senior LaShawn Taylor claimed the same finish in the triple jump following a career-best distance of 48'4½" (No. 15 in Air Force history), and freshman Joe Nizich matched the program's 13th-best distance in the javelin – 208'4" – to tie for third during his collegiate debut. Sophomore Teagun Glenn joined Nizich among the top-eight of the javelin finishers with a seventh-place throw of 182'2", while Hundl picked up his third scoring finish of the day after placing seventh in the 400-meter hurdles behind an event debut of 56.52.
The men earned a pair of scoring finishes in the pole vault, as senior Ethan Gardner cleared a season-best 16'5½" to finish second and freshman Ben Charlebois cleared 15'0" to take fifth. Junior Hayden Bullock scored for the Falcons in the discus throw (fifth, 177'2") and senior Wyatt Murphy rounded out Air Force's point producers with an eighth-place distance of 22'5¼" in the long jump.
Despite not sending any of their middle distance or distance runners to San Diego, the men amassed 131 points to finish third in the 13-team meet – bettering a similarly staffed PAC-12 squad from Oregon (106).
The sprinters, jumpers and javelin throwers on the women's roster accounted for 27.20 points to finish ninth out of 16 teams.
The distance runners will open their outdoor season next weekend, as they head to California for the Mike Fanelli Track Classic and Stanford Invitational, while the rest of the squad will host the Front Range Open at the Cadet Outdoor Track and Field Complex.
AIR FORCE'S TOP 10 MARKS
Men's 4x100-Meter Relay: 40.21 (No. 3 all-time)
Women's 200-Meter Dash: Grace Proesch, 24.99 (No. 4 all-time)
Women's 4x400-Meter Relay: 3:44.33 (No. 4 all-time)
Women's 800-Meter Run: Brid O'Connell, 2:10.35 (No. 6 all-time)
Women's 200-Meter Dash: Taylor Rioux, 25.28 (No. 8 all-time)
The women's sprint lineup had a stellar day on the Sports Deck track, as they made six additions to the Air Force Record Book – including the fourth-fastest 4x400-meter relay in Academy history. Freshman Taylor Rioux joined a senior-laden lineup of Michelle Roca, Brid O'Connell and Grace Proesch to cross the finish line in a time of 3:44.33, placing fourth in the meet and accounting for the second-fastest time in the last 38 Air Force seasons.
The members of the relay also all made individual improvements to the program's all-time standings on Saturday. Competing in her first outdoor meet since freshman year, Proesch clocked a time of 24.99 to debut at No. 4 in the 200-meter dash and entered the program's 100-meter standings after clocking the 12th-fastest time in Air Force history at 12.46. Rioux joined Proesch in the top-10 of the 200-meter dash, as her 25.28 performance – a 0.49 improvement from last week – is the eighth-fastest time in program history. O'Connell clocked the Academy's sixth-fastest 800-meter time (2:10.35) to finish fourth out of 28 runners in that event, while Roca captured the same placement in the 400-meter hurdles after opening her outdoor campaign with a Senior Class Record 60.66 – a mark just shy of her own Academy Record.
Senior Ari Martinez captured the women's best finish at the Aztec Invitational, as she cleared 5'7¼" – a mark just a half-inch shy of her personal best – to tie for second in the 17-athlete high jump competition. The women's vertical jump roster also accounted for three scoring finishes in the pole vault, as seniors Erika Willis and Frankie Porambo tied for sixth with matching heights of 12'4" and freshman Katie Schlather added an eighth-place clearance of 11'10".
Two other members of the women's squad impacted the program's Top 20 on Saturday, as sophomores Ally Stauffer and Alexxis Brown registered the first 130-foot javelin throws of their careers to move into 19th (132'2") and 20th (131'3"), respectively, on the Academy's all-time standings.
On the men's side, the 4x100-meter relay of senior Sean Geither, sophomore Jackson Connelly, senior Charles Dimnwaobi and junior Zac Larrier accounted for the third-fastest time in Academy history – and the fastest overall in five years – during a 40.21 performance that was second in the meet. Larrier also picked up an event title in the 400-meter dash (career-best 47.68 – No. 21 on the program's all-time list) and joined Dimnwaobi, Geither and senior La'akea Aiu on the 4x400-meter relay that finished second in 3:13.59, while Connelly finished sixth in the 100-meter dash (10.82) and Dimnwaobi scored for Air Force in the 200-meter dash following a wind-aided 21.54 performance.
AIR FORCE FIRST-PLACE FINISHES
Men's 400-Meter Dash: Zac Larrier, 47.68
Men's High Jump: Jake Hall, 6'9½"
Senior Jake Hall cleared 6'9½" to win the high jump and lead Air Force to half of the scoring finishes in that event. Freshman Collin Schulz tied for third with an outdoor-best height of 6'7½" (No. 23 on the program's all-time list), while sophomore Philip Hundl and freshman Jalan Rivers tied for seventh with matching clearances of 6'5½" – a season-best for the sophomore, who also led Air Force to four of the eight scoring marks in the 110-meter hurdles. Hundl posted a time of 15.01 (15.006) to narrowly edge junior Cameron Harris (15.01, 15.010) for fourth, while freshman Darek Hackett and sophomore Braeden Holcombe finished sixth (season-best 15.11) and seventh (season-debut 15.18), respectively.
Hackett earned runner-up honors in the 400-meter hurdles, as he clocked the 20th-fastest time in program history (53.27) during his event debut, while senior LaShawn Taylor claimed the same finish in the triple jump following a career-best distance of 48'4½" (No. 15 in Air Force history), and freshman Joe Nizich matched the program's 13th-best distance in the javelin – 208'4" – to tie for third during his collegiate debut. Sophomore Teagun Glenn joined Nizich among the top-eight of the javelin finishers with a seventh-place throw of 182'2", while Hundl picked up his third scoring finish of the day after placing seventh in the 400-meter hurdles behind an event debut of 56.52.
The men earned a pair of scoring finishes in the pole vault, as senior Ethan Gardner cleared a season-best 16'5½" to finish second and freshman Ben Charlebois cleared 15'0" to take fifth. Junior Hayden Bullock scored for the Falcons in the discus throw (fifth, 177'2") and senior Wyatt Murphy rounded out Air Force's point producers with an eighth-place distance of 22'5¼" in the long jump.
Despite not sending any of their middle distance or distance runners to San Diego, the men amassed 131 points to finish third in the 13-team meet – bettering a similarly staffed PAC-12 squad from Oregon (106).
The sprinters, jumpers and javelin throwers on the women's roster accounted for 27.20 points to finish ninth out of 16 teams.
The distance runners will open their outdoor season next weekend, as they head to California for the Mike Fanelli Track Classic and Stanford Invitational, while the rest of the squad will host the Front Range Open at the Cadet Outdoor Track and Field Complex.
Players Mentioned
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
Shot Put / Discus
/ Track and Field
100m / 200m
/ Track and Field
100m / 200m
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
400m / 200m
/ Track and Field
Javelin / Discus / Shot Put
/ Track and Field
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Decathlon / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
110m Hurdles / High Jump
/ Track and Field
200m / 400m
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Decathlon / 100m / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
800m / 400m
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
200m / 400m
/ Track and Field
400m
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Triple Jump / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and FieldRyan Cole Interview - August 26th, 2025
Tuesday, August 26
Ryan Cole Interview March 11, 2025
Tuesday, March 11
Ryan Cole Interview May 20, 2024
Monday, May 20
Ryan Cole Interview - May 20, 2024
Monday, May 20
