Friday, May 12
Clovis, CA
10:30 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
Mountain West Championships
Photo by: Tyler Schank, NCAA Photos
Jalan Rivers Claims Mountain West High Jump Title
5/12/2023 11:46:00 PM | Track and Field
CLOVIS, Calif. – Air Force sophomore Jalan Rivers completed his season sweep of conference titles in the high jump this evening (May 12), as the Air Force track and field team continued competition at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships in Clovis. Rivers was one of four podium finishers for Air Force on Friday, while the squad impacted the Academy's all-time standings in six different events and qualified 11 more runners into tomorrow's finals.
MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPION
Jalan Rivers, High Jump
Rivers, who claimed the MW Indoor title in February, added an outdoor championship to his collection this evening, as he recorded the Falcons' first crown of the 2023 outdoor meet. Rivers, the first Falcon to ever collect the indoor and outdoor titles in the same season, captured the men's first outdoor high jump title since 2016 after recording a winning clearance of 6'9½". He was one of two sophomores to score for the Falcons in that event, as classmate Collin Schulz tied for fifth with a height of 6'4".
After two days of competition, battling temperatures in the high 80s, junior Braeden Holcombe, classmate Brian Hubbard and freshman Connor Munson combined for 15 points in the decathlon. Holcombe placed second in the 10-event competition with a season-best 6995 points, while Hubbard and Munson finished fifth (6668) and sixth (6460), respectively. With a personal improvement of nearly 100 points, Hubbard moved into 12th on the program's all-time list, while Munson debuted at No. 19 in the Academy Record Book after competing in his first collegiate decathlon.
Holcombe, who entered the day in fourth, gained ground right from the start, tallying the highest point total in the 110-meter hurdle event (14.79). The junior finished within the top three of the discus throw (130'6", third), pole vault (season-best 14'3¼", second) and javelin throw (season-best 160'3"), while closing out the day with a 4:45.88 in the 1500-meter run – his first run of the year at that distance.
Air Force garnered another silver medal on Friday, as senior Hayden Bullock recorded a throw of 59'1¼" to take second in the shot put. Bullock, who won the indoor title earlier this year, recorded a throw of 59'1¼" tonight to finish second in the 15-thrower event. Bullock paced the Falcons to a pair of scoring finishes in the shot put, as junior Gerrit Tamminga finished eighth with a throw of 53'3¾".
The men continue to lead the conference standings, as they finished the second day with 80.50 points. While Colorado State has closed the gap to six (74.50), the two teams have currently distanced themselves from the field by more than 36 points.
On the women's side, junior Rachel Crytser improved her own No. 3 mark on the program's all-time steeplechase standings, as she clocked a time of 10:18.96 to finish third – and became just the third Falcon to earn a podium finish in the women's steeplechase at the conference meet.
Crytser's six-point finish brings the women's two-day tally to 12, as they currently stand in 10th place.
AIR FORCE TOP-10 MARKS
No. 2 – Cameron Harris, 110-Meter Hurdles (13.63)
No. 3 – Jacqui Spencer, 100-Meter Hurdles (14.43)
No. 6 – Taylor Rioux, 400-Meter Dash (55.43)
No. 7 – Jackson Connelly, 100-Meter Dash (10.50)
Several qualifying races were also contested today, with the Falcons advancing at least one runner in every event they contested and accounting for six improvements to the Academy's all-time standings, including a pair of top-three marks in the hurdle events.
Senior Cameron Harris raced to Air Force's second-fastest time ever in the 110-meter hurdles, as he clocked a time of 13.63 to win his heat and earn the automatic qualifying spot into the finals. With a time that is just 0.01 off Jamiel Trimble's Academy Record, Harris broke the Meet and Facility records while leading the Falcons to three advancing finishes. Sophomore Darek Hackett, who qualified in the 400-meter hurdles yesterday, added a trip to the finals of the 110-meter version today, equaling the 16th-fastest time in Air Force history at 14.28. Junior Philip Hundl helped Air Force go 1-2-3 in their heat, as he clocked a time of 14.32 to advance to the finals and give Air Force a strong presence on the starting line.
The men also advanced three to the finals of the 1500-meter run. Junior Sean Maison posted the fastest time of the preliminary round (3:45.79) to earn an automatic bid into the finals, while senior Sam Gilman (3:52.67) and junior Eli Bennett (3:52.75) also earned Big Qs into the finals by finishing within the top four of their respective heats.
The men also qualified two into the finals of the 100-meter dash, as sophomore Javin Bostic recorded a time of 10.37 – a mark just 0.03 off his own Academy Record – to win his heat, while junior Jackson Connelly clocked a 10.50 – the seventh-fastest time in program history – to advance to the finals on time.
On the women's side, freshman Jacqui Spencer recorded the third-fastest 100-meter hurdles time in program history (14.43) to advance on time, while sophomore Taylor Rioux qualified to the finals of the 400-meter dash following the sixth-fastest performance in Academy history (55.43), and senior Maddie Edwards accounted for the 13th-fastest 1500-meter time in program history, as Edwards raced to an advancing time of 4:30.29.
Elsewhere around the stadium, freshman Chloe Kinlaw moved into 17th on the program's all-time pole vault standings after recording a career-best clearance of 11'9" to finish 10th in the meet – just two attempts shy of a scoring finish, while junior Rebecca Wusinich clocked the 23rd-fastest time in program history (4:33.17) during her qualifying round.
Air Force returns to Veterans Memorial Stadium tomorrow (May 14) for Championship Saturday at the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Action begins for the Falcons at 3:00 p.m. (PT) and can be watched live on the MW Network and MW App.
MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPION
Jalan Rivers, High Jump
Rivers, who claimed the MW Indoor title in February, added an outdoor championship to his collection this evening, as he recorded the Falcons' first crown of the 2023 outdoor meet. Rivers, the first Falcon to ever collect the indoor and outdoor titles in the same season, captured the men's first outdoor high jump title since 2016 after recording a winning clearance of 6'9½". He was one of two sophomores to score for the Falcons in that event, as classmate Collin Schulz tied for fifth with a height of 6'4".
After two days of competition, battling temperatures in the high 80s, junior Braeden Holcombe, classmate Brian Hubbard and freshman Connor Munson combined for 15 points in the decathlon. Holcombe placed second in the 10-event competition with a season-best 6995 points, while Hubbard and Munson finished fifth (6668) and sixth (6460), respectively. With a personal improvement of nearly 100 points, Hubbard moved into 12th on the program's all-time list, while Munson debuted at No. 19 in the Academy Record Book after competing in his first collegiate decathlon.
Holcombe, who entered the day in fourth, gained ground right from the start, tallying the highest point total in the 110-meter hurdle event (14.79). The junior finished within the top three of the discus throw (130'6", third), pole vault (season-best 14'3¼", second) and javelin throw (season-best 160'3"), while closing out the day with a 4:45.88 in the 1500-meter run – his first run of the year at that distance.
Air Force garnered another silver medal on Friday, as senior Hayden Bullock recorded a throw of 59'1¼" to take second in the shot put. Bullock, who won the indoor title earlier this year, recorded a throw of 59'1¼" tonight to finish second in the 15-thrower event. Bullock paced the Falcons to a pair of scoring finishes in the shot put, as junior Gerrit Tamminga finished eighth with a throw of 53'3¾".
The men continue to lead the conference standings, as they finished the second day with 80.50 points. While Colorado State has closed the gap to six (74.50), the two teams have currently distanced themselves from the field by more than 36 points.
On the women's side, junior Rachel Crytser improved her own No. 3 mark on the program's all-time steeplechase standings, as she clocked a time of 10:18.96 to finish third – and became just the third Falcon to earn a podium finish in the women's steeplechase at the conference meet.
Crytser's six-point finish brings the women's two-day tally to 12, as they currently stand in 10th place.
AIR FORCE TOP-10 MARKS
No. 2 – Cameron Harris, 110-Meter Hurdles (13.63)
No. 3 – Jacqui Spencer, 100-Meter Hurdles (14.43)
No. 6 – Taylor Rioux, 400-Meter Dash (55.43)
No. 7 – Jackson Connelly, 100-Meter Dash (10.50)
Several qualifying races were also contested today, with the Falcons advancing at least one runner in every event they contested and accounting for six improvements to the Academy's all-time standings, including a pair of top-three marks in the hurdle events.
Senior Cameron Harris raced to Air Force's second-fastest time ever in the 110-meter hurdles, as he clocked a time of 13.63 to win his heat and earn the automatic qualifying spot into the finals. With a time that is just 0.01 off Jamiel Trimble's Academy Record, Harris broke the Meet and Facility records while leading the Falcons to three advancing finishes. Sophomore Darek Hackett, who qualified in the 400-meter hurdles yesterday, added a trip to the finals of the 110-meter version today, equaling the 16th-fastest time in Air Force history at 14.28. Junior Philip Hundl helped Air Force go 1-2-3 in their heat, as he clocked a time of 14.32 to advance to the finals and give Air Force a strong presence on the starting line.
The men also advanced three to the finals of the 1500-meter run. Junior Sean Maison posted the fastest time of the preliminary round (3:45.79) to earn an automatic bid into the finals, while senior Sam Gilman (3:52.67) and junior Eli Bennett (3:52.75) also earned Big Qs into the finals by finishing within the top four of their respective heats.
The men also qualified two into the finals of the 100-meter dash, as sophomore Javin Bostic recorded a time of 10.37 – a mark just 0.03 off his own Academy Record – to win his heat, while junior Jackson Connelly clocked a 10.50 – the seventh-fastest time in program history – to advance to the finals on time.
On the women's side, freshman Jacqui Spencer recorded the third-fastest 100-meter hurdles time in program history (14.43) to advance on time, while sophomore Taylor Rioux qualified to the finals of the 400-meter dash following the sixth-fastest performance in Academy history (55.43), and senior Maddie Edwards accounted for the 13th-fastest 1500-meter time in program history, as Edwards raced to an advancing time of 4:30.29.
Elsewhere around the stadium, freshman Chloe Kinlaw moved into 17th on the program's all-time pole vault standings after recording a career-best clearance of 11'9" to finish 10th in the meet – just two attempts shy of a scoring finish, while junior Rebecca Wusinich clocked the 23rd-fastest time in program history (4:33.17) during her qualifying round.
Air Force returns to Veterans Memorial Stadium tomorrow (May 14) for Championship Saturday at the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Action begins for the Falcons at 3:00 p.m. (PT) and can be watched live on the MW Network and MW App.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Hurdles, High Jump
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Distance
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