Falcons Wrap up Action at Kit Mayer Classic

GOLDEN, Colo. -- A small contingent of Air Force track and field athletes wrapped up competition at the Kit Mayer Classic this afternoon (April 19) in Golden. Despite competing under cold and rainy conditions at the Stermole Track and Field Complex, the Falcons picked up two event titles and made four improvements to the Academy's all-time standings.

On the track, sophomore Beatrice Shea debuted at No. 21 on the program's all-time standings of the 10,000-meter run after clocking a time of 38:03.97 (adjusted for altitude), while Air Force swept the top spots of the men's and women's 400-meter dash. Freshman James Warmbrod IV won the men's race in a time of 47.65, while junior Taylor Rioux (55.42) and freshman Kori Leverenz (56.64) bettered the field by more than one second for a 1-2 sweep in the 13-sprinter race.

From the field, the women made a pair of improvements to the Academy's all-time standings in the hammer throw, as senior Alexxis Brown recorded a personal-best throw of 49.57 meters (162'7") and freshman Paige Birch posted a career distance of 49.12 meters (161'2") to move into No. 13 and No. 15, respectively, on the program's all-time list – while also finishing within the top four of the overall field.

With the meet's vertical events moved inside Steinhauer Fieldhouse due to the unfavorable jumping conditions, the women also impacted the Air Force's Indoor Top 25 on Friday. Senior Kasarah Hernandez recorded a lifetime best clearance of 3.82 meters (12'6¼") to match the 15th-best indoor pole vault mark in program history. Hernandez, who finished fifth in the meet, was one of two Falcons to record that clearance, as freshman Alex Brooks also cleared 3.82 meters to finish sixth, based on attempts.

Back on the track, the men accounted for a pair of top-five finishes in the 100-meter dash, as freshman Jace Martin earned runner-up honors with a time of 10.98 and classmate Ryan Hajek finished fifth in 11.15. Hajek also earned a top-five finish in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing fourth in a time of 55.41, while fellow freshmen Patrick Lawson and Ben Sklodowski collected fifth-place finishes in the 1500-meter run (career-best 3:52.01a) and 110-meter hurdles (15.01), respectively.

Seniors Zoe Iwu and Amanda Fraga helped the women to multiple top-five marks in the 200-meter dash after finishing third (26.47) and fifth (26.76), respectively, while a quartet of freshmen rounded out the list of top-five finishers. Anna Harden finished third out of 20 runners in the 1500-meter run (4:40.98a), while Allison Fernstrom picked up the same placement in the 100-meter hurdles (15.37), Brooke Coleman took fourth in the 100-meter dash (12.51) as the weather conditions deteriorated, and Rachel Fereday finished just 0.01 seconds off her PR with a fourth-place time of 2:14.55a in the 800-meter run.

In the throws, freshman Mitchell Blakeslee finished third in both the shot put (14.13m, 46'4¼") and discus (46.20m, 151'7"), while – on the women's side, classmate Madisyn Maley earned a fifth-place finish in the discus (36.30m, 119'1") and junior Nadja Wilson earned the same finish in the javelin (33.68m, 110'6").

The Falcons split up next week for a pair of meets. Part of the team heads to Des Moines, Iowa, for the historic Drake Relays on April 25-27, while the rest of the squad stays in Colorado for the Doug Max Invitational in Fort Collins on April 27.

Footer

The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the u.s air force of non-u.s. government sites or the information, products, or services contained therein. Although the u.s. air force may or may not use these sites as additional distribution channels for department of defense information, it does not exercise editorial control over all of the information that you may find at these locations. Such links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this website.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Paige Birch

Mitchell Blakeslee

Alex Brooks

Alexxis Brown

Brooke Coleman

Rachel Fereday

Allison Fernstrom

Amanda Fraga

Ryan Hajek

Anna Harden

Kasarah Hernandez

Zoe Iwu

Patrick Lawson

Kori Leverenz

Madisyn Maley

Jace Martin

Taylor Rioux

Beatrice Shea

Ben Sklodowski

James Warmbrod IV

Nadja Wilson

Footer