Friday, March 22
Pueblo, CO
1:00 pm MT
Air Force Academy
at
Spank Blasing Invitational
Photo by: Grace Bradley, NCAA Photos
Air Force Opens Outdoor Season at CSU Pueblo
3/20/2024 4:11:00 PM | Track and Field
After Mother Nature cancelled last week's attempted opener, the outdoor portion of the 2024 track and field season will get underway this weekend (March 22-23), when Air Force travels south to Pueblo for the Spank Blasing Invitational.
MEET INFORMATION
The Spank Blasing Invitational will be held at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl, located off Troy Avenue in Pueblo. The hammer throw, javelin throw and triple jump will take place on Friday, while the remaining events will be held on Saturday. A complete schedule of events is listed below. Live results are scheduled through Rapid Results – a direct link will be posted on the Falcons' schedule page when available. Tickets ($10 for adults, $5 for seniors and children aged 7-17) and can be purchased at GoThunderwolves.com.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY – 1:00 p.m.: Women's Hammer Throw, followed by Men's Hammer Throw; 1:00 p.m.: Men's Javelin Throw, followed by Women's Javelin Throw; 1:00 p.m.: Women's Triple Jump, followed by Men's Triple Jump; SATURDAY – 10:00 a.m.: 5000-Meter Run; 11:00 a.m.: Men's Shot Put, followed by Women's Shot Put; 11:00 a.m.: Women's Discus Throw, followed by Men's Discus Throw; 11:00 a.m.: Men's Long Jump, followed by Women's Long Jump; 11:00 a.m.: Women's High Jump, followed by Men's High Jump; 11:00 a.m.: Women's Pole Vault, followed by Men's Pole Vault; 11:05 a.m.: 3000-Meter Steeplechase, followed by 4x100-Meter Relay, 1500-Meter Run, 110-/100-Meter Hurdles; 1:45 p.m.: 400-Meter Dash, followed by 100-Meter Dash, 800-Meter Run, 400-Meter Hurdles, 200-Meter Dash, 3000-Meter Run, 4x400-Meter Relay (men compete first in all running events)
LOOK WHO'S BACK: OUTDOOR EDITION
Air Force's roster includes one NCAA finalist (Eli Bennett – 5000-meter run), 12 NCAA Outdoor qualifiers (Bennett, Javin Bostic – 100-meter dash; Cameron Breier – 400-meter hurdles; Rachel Crytser – 3000-meter steeplechase; Ava Gilliana – 800-meter run; Darek Hackett – 400-meter hurdles; Halle Hamilton – 5000-meter run; Caiden Macktinger – pole vault; Sean Maison – 1500-meter run; Joe Nizich – javelin throw; Jason Renze – 3000-meter steeplechase; Jalan Rivers – high jump), five Mountain West Outdoor champions (Bostic – 100-meter dash; Hackett – 400-meter hurdles; Maison – 1500-meter run; Rivers – high jump; Braeden Holcombe - decathlon), and three Air Force Outdoor Record Holders (Bostic – 100-meter dash; Maison – 1500-meter run; Katie Thompson – long jump).
HOME SWEET HOME
Eight Falcons hail from the state of Colorado, including three – Keegan Bennett, Alex Falk, Braeden Holcombe – from the Colorado Springs/Monument area. The squad's Centennial State roster also includes Jackson Connelly (Aurora), Ryan Hajek (Denver), Ella Johnson (Glenwood Springs), Jayden Nats (Highlands Ranch) and Dominykas Remeikis (Breckenridge).
WE'LL BE SEEING YOU
The Falcons will host one meet at the Cadet Outdoor Track and Field Complex this spring, as they close out the regular season with the Air Force Twilight Open on Friday, May 3.
ON THE SIDELINES
Ryan Cole is in his second season as the Air Force Director of Track & Field and Cross Country – and his 10th year overall as the coach of the team's middle distance and distance runners, while Scott Steffan is in his second season as Head Coach of the track and field team and his 17th overseeing the Falcons' vertical jumps program. Cole and Steffan, who also coaches the program's multi-event athletes, will be joined by assistant coaches Laura Bowerman (middle distance, distance), Dave Hightower (sprints, relays), Dustin Imdieke (hurdles, horizontal jumps) and Kyle Lille (throws).
INDOOR RECAP
Highlighted by conference titles from Braeden Holcombe (heptathlon) and Jalan Rivers (high jump), the men finished second and the women placed eighth at the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships in Albuquerque on Feb. 22-24. The Falcons accounted for 14 all-conference awards, including 11 individual honors and three all-MW relay teams.
COMING UP
The Falcons split for a busy week of competition during the Academy's Spring Break. Air Force will send part of its squad to Texas for the Texas Relays (Austin) and Bobcat Invitational (San Marcos) on March 27-30, while the rest of the team heads to California for the Stanford Invitational (Palo Alto) and Mike Fanelli Track Classic (San Francisco) on March 29-30.
MEET INFORMATION
The Spank Blasing Invitational will be held at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl, located off Troy Avenue in Pueblo. The hammer throw, javelin throw and triple jump will take place on Friday, while the remaining events will be held on Saturday. A complete schedule of events is listed below. Live results are scheduled through Rapid Results – a direct link will be posted on the Falcons' schedule page when available. Tickets ($10 for adults, $5 for seniors and children aged 7-17) and can be purchased at GoThunderwolves.com.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY – 1:00 p.m.: Women's Hammer Throw, followed by Men's Hammer Throw; 1:00 p.m.: Men's Javelin Throw, followed by Women's Javelin Throw; 1:00 p.m.: Women's Triple Jump, followed by Men's Triple Jump; SATURDAY – 10:00 a.m.: 5000-Meter Run; 11:00 a.m.: Men's Shot Put, followed by Women's Shot Put; 11:00 a.m.: Women's Discus Throw, followed by Men's Discus Throw; 11:00 a.m.: Men's Long Jump, followed by Women's Long Jump; 11:00 a.m.: Women's High Jump, followed by Men's High Jump; 11:00 a.m.: Women's Pole Vault, followed by Men's Pole Vault; 11:05 a.m.: 3000-Meter Steeplechase, followed by 4x100-Meter Relay, 1500-Meter Run, 110-/100-Meter Hurdles; 1:45 p.m.: 400-Meter Dash, followed by 100-Meter Dash, 800-Meter Run, 400-Meter Hurdles, 200-Meter Dash, 3000-Meter Run, 4x400-Meter Relay (men compete first in all running events)
LOOK WHO'S BACK: OUTDOOR EDITION
Air Force's roster includes one NCAA finalist (Eli Bennett – 5000-meter run), 12 NCAA Outdoor qualifiers (Bennett, Javin Bostic – 100-meter dash; Cameron Breier – 400-meter hurdles; Rachel Crytser – 3000-meter steeplechase; Ava Gilliana – 800-meter run; Darek Hackett – 400-meter hurdles; Halle Hamilton – 5000-meter run; Caiden Macktinger – pole vault; Sean Maison – 1500-meter run; Joe Nizich – javelin throw; Jason Renze – 3000-meter steeplechase; Jalan Rivers – high jump), five Mountain West Outdoor champions (Bostic – 100-meter dash; Hackett – 400-meter hurdles; Maison – 1500-meter run; Rivers – high jump; Braeden Holcombe - decathlon), and three Air Force Outdoor Record Holders (Bostic – 100-meter dash; Maison – 1500-meter run; Katie Thompson – long jump).
HOME SWEET HOME
Eight Falcons hail from the state of Colorado, including three – Keegan Bennett, Alex Falk, Braeden Holcombe – from the Colorado Springs/Monument area. The squad's Centennial State roster also includes Jackson Connelly (Aurora), Ryan Hajek (Denver), Ella Johnson (Glenwood Springs), Jayden Nats (Highlands Ranch) and Dominykas Remeikis (Breckenridge).
WE'LL BE SEEING YOU
The Falcons will host one meet at the Cadet Outdoor Track and Field Complex this spring, as they close out the regular season with the Air Force Twilight Open on Friday, May 3.
ON THE SIDELINES
Ryan Cole is in his second season as the Air Force Director of Track & Field and Cross Country – and his 10th year overall as the coach of the team's middle distance and distance runners, while Scott Steffan is in his second season as Head Coach of the track and field team and his 17th overseeing the Falcons' vertical jumps program. Cole and Steffan, who also coaches the program's multi-event athletes, will be joined by assistant coaches Laura Bowerman (middle distance, distance), Dave Hightower (sprints, relays), Dustin Imdieke (hurdles, horizontal jumps) and Kyle Lille (throws).
INDOOR RECAP
Highlighted by conference titles from Braeden Holcombe (heptathlon) and Jalan Rivers (high jump), the men finished second and the women placed eighth at the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships in Albuquerque on Feb. 22-24. The Falcons accounted for 14 all-conference awards, including 11 individual honors and three all-MW relay teams.
COMING UP
The Falcons split for a busy week of competition during the Academy's Spring Break. Air Force will send part of its squad to Texas for the Texas Relays (Austin) and Bobcat Invitational (San Marcos) on March 27-30, while the rest of the team heads to California for the Stanford Invitational (Palo Alto) and Mike Fanelli Track Classic (San Francisco) on March 29-30.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Long Jump, Hurdles
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