Photo by: Isaiah Vasquez, NCAA Photos
Falcons Claim 20 All-Conference Honors
5/19/2022 3:13:00 PM | Track and Field
Charles Dimnwaobi led the Falcons with three medals at last week's championship meet.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Interim head coach Ryan Cole and 19 members of the Air Force track and field team were honored by the Mountain West this afternoon (May 19) for their performances at last week's MW Outdoor Track and Field Championships in California.
Cole, who has claimed four MW Coach of the Year awards in cross country, saw the men's track and field team capture its sixth MW Outdoor team title last week in a true "team" performance. The men tallied 211.50 points – the second-highest team score in Academy history, with only 30 points coming from the three conference champions. Backed by 27 different scorers, Air Force accounted for 39 different scoring finishes – the program's highest single-meet point-production since 2001 (40).
It is the eighth time Air Force has claimed the men's coaching award during the outdoor season, as coaching legend Ralph Lindeman claimed half of his 14 MW Coach of the Year awards outdoors.
POSTSEASON AWARDS
MW Men's Coach of the Year: Ryan Cole
The conference also recognized the individuals and relays that captured all-conference status at the MW Outdoor Championships after placing within the top three of their respective events. Air Force combined for 20 all-conference awards (19 individuals, one relay), with the 19 honors by the men accounting for the second-highest total in program history.
Senior Charles Dimnwaobi led the Falcons with three medals at the 2022 outdoor championships, as he placed second in the 100-meter dash, third in the 200-meter dash, and ran on the winning 4x100-meter relay with classmates Sean Geither, sophomore Jackson Connelly, and fellow senior Wyatt Murphy.
Like Dimnwaobi, Murphy and junior Sam Gilman also left the championship meet with multiple medals. Murphy claimed a runner-up finish in the decathlon, while Gilman placed second in both the 1500-meter and 5000-meter events. Murphy and sophomore teammate Braeden Holcombe claimed spots on the decathlon podium for the second-straight year, as Holcombe became the program's first MW Decathlon champion in five years, while Gilman and classmate Ryan Johnson finished second and third, respectively, in the 5000-meter run – finishes that helped Air Force account for five of the six combined 5000-meter medals awarded during the two (indoor/outdoor) championship meets in 2022.
The men also earned multiple medals in the 400-meter hurdles (freshman Darek Hackett, freshman Cameron Breier) and pole vault (sophomore Caiden Macktinger, senior Ethan Gardner), while freshman Jalan Rivers and senior Ari Martinez represented Air Force on the high jump podium in both the men's and women's events (third-place finishes for both). Hackett and Breier marked the first time in program history that Air Force has sent multiple 400-meter hurdlers to the podium, while Macktinger and Gardner marked the 20th-straight championship meet where the Falcons have placed at least two men on the pole vault podium.
Freshmen Bryce Lentz (3000-meter steeplechase) and Joe Nizich (javelin throw) earned all-conference honors in their first MW Outdoor meet, as Lentz won the 3000-meter steeplechase in a Championship Meet Record time and Nizich claimed second-place honors in the javelin throw. Junior Jaret Prete placed second in the hammer throw for his second-straight trip to the podium in that event, while senior Ryan Ioanidis (10,000-meter run), junior Cameron Harris (110-meter hurdles) and senior LaShawn Taylor (triple jump) all medaled after taking third in their respective events.
ALL-CONFERENCE HONOREES
Men's 100-Meter Dash: Charles Dimnwaobi (second-place finish)
Men's 200-Meter Dash: Charles Dimnwaobi (third-place finish)
Men's 1500-Meter Run: Sam Gilman (second-place finish)
Men's 5000-Meter Run: Sam Gilman (second-place finish)
Men's 5000-Meter Run: Ryan Johnson (third-place finish)
Men's 10,000-Meter Run: Ryan Ioanidis (third-place finish)
Men's 110-Meter Hurdles: Cameron Harris (third-place finish)
Men's 400-Meter Hurdles: Darek Hackett (second-place finish)
Men's 400-Meter Hurdles: Cameron Breier (third-place finish)
Men's 3000-Meter Steeplechase: Bryce Lentz (MW champion)
Men's High Jump: Jalan Rivers (third-place finish)
Women's High Jump: Ari Martinez (third-place finish)
Men's Pole Vault: Caiden Macktinger (second-place finish)
Men's Pole Vault: Ethan Gardner (third-place finish)
Men's Triple Jump: LaShawn Taylor (third-place finish)
Men's Hammer Throw: Jaret Prete (second-place finish)
Men's Javelin Throw: Joe Nizich (second-place finish)
Men's Decathlon: Braeden Holcombe (MW champion)
Men's Decathlon: Wyatt Murphy (second-place finish)
Men's 4x100 Relay: Sean Geither, Jackson Connelly, Charles Dimnwaobi, Wyatt Murphy (MW champion)
Cole, who has claimed four MW Coach of the Year awards in cross country, saw the men's track and field team capture its sixth MW Outdoor team title last week in a true "team" performance. The men tallied 211.50 points – the second-highest team score in Academy history, with only 30 points coming from the three conference champions. Backed by 27 different scorers, Air Force accounted for 39 different scoring finishes – the program's highest single-meet point-production since 2001 (40).
It is the eighth time Air Force has claimed the men's coaching award during the outdoor season, as coaching legend Ralph Lindeman claimed half of his 14 MW Coach of the Year awards outdoors.
POSTSEASON AWARDS
MW Men's Coach of the Year: Ryan Cole
The conference also recognized the individuals and relays that captured all-conference status at the MW Outdoor Championships after placing within the top three of their respective events. Air Force combined for 20 all-conference awards (19 individuals, one relay), with the 19 honors by the men accounting for the second-highest total in program history.
Senior Charles Dimnwaobi led the Falcons with three medals at the 2022 outdoor championships, as he placed second in the 100-meter dash, third in the 200-meter dash, and ran on the winning 4x100-meter relay with classmates Sean Geither, sophomore Jackson Connelly, and fellow senior Wyatt Murphy.
Like Dimnwaobi, Murphy and junior Sam Gilman also left the championship meet with multiple medals. Murphy claimed a runner-up finish in the decathlon, while Gilman placed second in both the 1500-meter and 5000-meter events. Murphy and sophomore teammate Braeden Holcombe claimed spots on the decathlon podium for the second-straight year, as Holcombe became the program's first MW Decathlon champion in five years, while Gilman and classmate Ryan Johnson finished second and third, respectively, in the 5000-meter run – finishes that helped Air Force account for five of the six combined 5000-meter medals awarded during the two (indoor/outdoor) championship meets in 2022.
The men also earned multiple medals in the 400-meter hurdles (freshman Darek Hackett, freshman Cameron Breier) and pole vault (sophomore Caiden Macktinger, senior Ethan Gardner), while freshman Jalan Rivers and senior Ari Martinez represented Air Force on the high jump podium in both the men's and women's events (third-place finishes for both). Hackett and Breier marked the first time in program history that Air Force has sent multiple 400-meter hurdlers to the podium, while Macktinger and Gardner marked the 20th-straight championship meet where the Falcons have placed at least two men on the pole vault podium.
Freshmen Bryce Lentz (3000-meter steeplechase) and Joe Nizich (javelin throw) earned all-conference honors in their first MW Outdoor meet, as Lentz won the 3000-meter steeplechase in a Championship Meet Record time and Nizich claimed second-place honors in the javelin throw. Junior Jaret Prete placed second in the hammer throw for his second-straight trip to the podium in that event, while senior Ryan Ioanidis (10,000-meter run), junior Cameron Harris (110-meter hurdles) and senior LaShawn Taylor (triple jump) all medaled after taking third in their respective events.
ALL-CONFERENCE HONOREES
Men's 100-Meter Dash: Charles Dimnwaobi (second-place finish)
Men's 200-Meter Dash: Charles Dimnwaobi (third-place finish)
Men's 1500-Meter Run: Sam Gilman (second-place finish)
Men's 5000-Meter Run: Sam Gilman (second-place finish)
Men's 5000-Meter Run: Ryan Johnson (third-place finish)
Men's 10,000-Meter Run: Ryan Ioanidis (third-place finish)
Men's 110-Meter Hurdles: Cameron Harris (third-place finish)
Men's 400-Meter Hurdles: Darek Hackett (second-place finish)
Men's 400-Meter Hurdles: Cameron Breier (third-place finish)
Men's 3000-Meter Steeplechase: Bryce Lentz (MW champion)
Men's High Jump: Jalan Rivers (third-place finish)
Women's High Jump: Ari Martinez (third-place finish)
Men's Pole Vault: Caiden Macktinger (second-place finish)
Men's Pole Vault: Ethan Gardner (third-place finish)
Men's Triple Jump: LaShawn Taylor (third-place finish)
Men's Hammer Throw: Jaret Prete (second-place finish)
Men's Javelin Throw: Joe Nizich (second-place finish)
Men's Decathlon: Braeden Holcombe (MW champion)
Men's Decathlon: Wyatt Murphy (second-place finish)
Men's 4x100 Relay: Sean Geither, Jackson Connelly, Charles Dimnwaobi, Wyatt Murphy (MW champion)
Players Mentioned
400m / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
100m / 200m
/ Track and Field
100m / 200m
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
400m / 200m
/ Track and Field
1500m / 800m
/ Track and Field
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
110m Hurdles / 400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Decathlon / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
1500m / 5000m
/ Track and Field
3000m Steeplechase
/ Track and Field
1500m / 5000m
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault / High Jump
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Decathlon / 100m / Long Jump
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Hammer / Discus / Shot Put
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Triple Jump / Long Jump
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