Air Force Starts Strong at MW Indoor Championships

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Four top-three finishes and a pair of Air Force Top 10 marks highlighted a strong start to the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships today (Feb. 22), as the Falcons kicked off competition inside the Albuquerque Convention Center.

Junior Halle Hamilton became the first Air Force runner in four championship meets to earn a podium finish in the women's 5000-meter run, while senior Eli Bennett picked up the Falcons' 25th medal in the men's race at that distance. Hamilton used a time of 16:57.65 to finish third out of 22 runners in the women's event, while Bennett clocked in at 14:13.92 to earn the same finish in his 21-runner field.

Junior Tiaree Towler also scored for the women at 5000 meters, as she finished sixth overall with a time of 16:59.78 – a mark that, when converted for altitude to 16:32.81a, improved her own No. 7 standing on the Academy's all-time list.

The outcomes of the two distance medley relays took longer than their time on the track to be determined, as both events were struck with post-race protests. The women's quartet of senior Ava Gilliana, freshman Allison Fernstrom, freshman Rachel Fereday, and senior Rachel Crytser had a strong outing in their first race together, as they combined for the fourth-fastest time in Academy history and a trip to the podium. The group collected an altitude-adjusted time of 11:43.56a (11:43.56 raw) to finish third in the 10-team race and put Air Force on the podium for the third time in four years.

On the men's side, the DMR quartet of junior Jason Renze, freshman Jace Martin, senior Alex Patton and senior Sean Maison earned a third-place time of 10:08.44 to secure the program's 16th podium finish, but after an impediment disqualification from the original first-place team, the Falcons were able to exchange their bronze medals for silver and gain two more points in the team standings.

AIR FORCE TOP 10 MARKS

No. 4 – Women's Distance Medley Relay (11:32.92a)

No. 7 – Tiaree Towler, 5000-Meter Run (16:32.81a)

Towler was one of three Falcons to impact the Academy Record Book during the women's 5000-meter run this afternoon, as junior Ally Peterson moved into No. 11 with an altitude-adjusted time of 16:47.25a and freshman Ella Johnson improved her No. 15 time on the all-time list with a 17:01.44a finish.

Freshman Kayla Beach had an impressive conference debut in the pentathlon on Thursday, as she recorded a career-high 3089 points – a personal improvement of more than 50 points – to better her No. 12 standing on the Academy's all-time list. Highlighting Beach's day was a career improvement of nearly nine seconds in the 800-meter run (2:37.14a) and the second-best long jump mark of her career (18'2½").

In addition to the championship finals contested, the first four events of the heptathlon also took place. All three of the Falcons' competitors – senior Braeden Holcombe (2945 points), senior Brian Hubbard (2913 points), freshman Wyatt Curl (2502 points) – tallied career-high Day 1 totals during the first four events. The seniors are currently fourth and fifth, respectively, in the heptathlon, while Curl is ranked ninth after four events. All three Falcons accounted for career-best marks in the high jump, as Holcombe (6'6"), Hubbard (6'2¼") and Curl (6'0") closed out the day with strong finishes. Hubbard also added a career-best mark in the 60-meter dash, as he posted an event-best time of 7.01, while Curl posted a personal-best distance of 21'0½" in the long jump.

The heptathlon trio returns to the Albuquerque Convention Center tomorrow (Feb. 23) morning, as the final three events of the heptathlon kick off the second day of the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships at 10:00 a.m. (MT). Individual events get underway in the field at 12:30 p.m. (MT), while the preliminary round of running events are slated to start one hour later.

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