Thursday, May 9
Clovis, CA
10:30 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
Mountain West Championships
Photo by: Brendall O’Banon, NCAA Photos
Three Finals, Three Titles for Air Force Men at MW Championships
5/9/2024 11:56:00 PM | Track and Field
CLOVIS, Calif. -- The Air Force men's track and field kicked off the Mountain West Outdoor Championships in dominating fashion on Thursday, May 9, going three-for-three in conference titles and seeing seven different Falcons accumulate scoring finishes in those events. Backed by 20+ point performances in both the hammer and javelin throws, the men tallied 53 points on Thursday and hold a 32-point advantage over the field after the first three events
Sophomore Texas Tanner kicked off the Falcons' day with a victory in the hammer throw. Recording a throw of 67.98 meters (223'0"), Tanner became just the second Air Force thrower to claim a conference title in the hammer – and the first since Robert Drye won back-to-back titles in 2011-12. Tanner led the Falcons to three of the top-four finishes in the event, as senior Gerrit Tamminga recorded a throw of 63.99 meters (209'11") to finish third and junior Cooper Stroka posted a distance of 62.08 meters (203'8") to take fourth to help Air Force tally 21 points.
The Falcons' success continued in the next final, as junior Joe Nizich matched his career-best - and No. 5 all-time at Air Force – distance of 67.24 meters (220'7") to win the javelin throw and become the first member of the men's team to win that title since Matt Schwandt in 2007 – and the first overall since Paige Blackburn in 2012. The senior trio of Keith Oswald, Teagun Glenn and Tamminga helped Air Force to a 22-point output in the javelin throw, as Oswald finished fourth (61.11m, 200'6"), Glenn placed fifth (59.27m, 194'5") and Tamminga finished sixth (58.70m, 192'7") in his first javelin competition of the year.
Senior Luke Combs capped the night by becoming the first Academy runner to win a 10,000-meter championship since Kyle Eller in 2017 – and did it in record-setting fashion. Combs and New Mexico's Vincent Chirchir battled for the majority of the race; immediately separating themselves from the pack and trading the lead numerous times during the 10,000-meter trek around the track at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Combs retook the lead in the final laps and pulled away for a five-second victory over the field. Crossing the finish line in a time of 29:05.72, Combs knocked more than 19 seconds off a Championship Meet Record that had stood since 2018.
The women opened their scoring with six points in the 10,000-meter run, as junior Tiaree Towler clocked the seventh-fastest time in Air Force history (34:20.69) to finish fourth and sophomore India Jones added an eighth-place time of 35:31.00. The Falcons are currently sixth in the team standings after three events.
Qualifying heats of the 200-meter dash, 800-meter run, and 400-meter hurdles were also contested today, with Air Force advancing six men and three women into Saturday's finals. The men advanced three into the 200-meter dash, as junior Javin Bostic won his heat with the fastest qualifying mark of the day (20.81) and two others – sophomore Jettason Rose (21.24), senior Jackson Connelly (21.45) – advanced on time. Juniors Darek Hackett (51.54) and Cameron Breier (51.68) won their respective heats to earn an automatic berth into the finals – and finish 1-2 in qualifying, while senior Alex Patton finished second in his 800-meter heat (1:50.58) to earn an Auto Q into the finals. On the women's side, freshman Liliane Aittama (2:08.23, auto) and senior Ava Gilliana (2:09.27, time) qualified for the finals of the 800-meter run, while junior Taylor Rioux used a 24.06 finish – a mark just 0.02 off her own program record – to earn the final qualifying time in the 200-meter dash.
A pair of freshmen also impacted the Academy Record Book during today's preliminary heats, as Camryn Bodine debuted at No. 12 on the program's all-time standings of the 800-meter run after clocking 2:11.42 and Clara Teigland moved up to No. 13 on the all-time standings of the 400-meter hurdles (62.89).
In addition, the first five events of the decathlon – and first four of the heptathlon – took place around Veterans Memorial Stadium. Senior Braeden Holcombe led a trio of Falcons in the decathlon, amassing his best opening day total (3740 points), following first-place scores in the long jump (6.71m, 22'0¼" – 746 points) and high jump (1.99m, 6'6¼" – 794 points). The senior rounded out his opening day with 842 points in the 400-meter dash (49.46), 759 points in the 100-meter dash (11.47) and 599 points in the shot put (11.87m, 48'11½").
Backed by a first-place finish in the 100-meter dash (10.98, 865 points), senior Brian Hubbard finished Thursday in fourth with 3493 points. The senior, who added a third-place, 679-point distance of 6.52 meters (21'0¼") in the long jump, earned 744 points in the 400-meter dash (51.56), 620 points in the shot put (12.22m, 40'1¼") and 585 points in the high jump (1.75m, 5'6¾"). Freshman Wyatt Curl, who tied Holcombe for the high jump lead (1.99m, 6'6¼", 794 points), amassed 3364 points to sit in fifth following the first day of action. In addition to finishing third in the long jump (6.42m, 21'0¾", 679 points), Curl added 722 points in the 400-meter dash (52.06), 713 points in the 100-meter dash (11.69) and 456 points in the shot put (9.51m, 31'2½").
On the women's side, freshman Kayla Beach tallied 2480 points during the first day of action in the heptathlon after competing in the 100-meter hurdles (16.05, 708 points), high jump (1.49m, 4'10¼"), shot put (8.77, 28'9¼") and 200-meter dash (26.86, 724 points).
The Falcons return to the track tomorrow (May 11) morning for Day 2 of the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The decathlon trio kicks off the day at 9:30 a.m. (PT), while individual events are slated to begin at 4:00 p.m., inside Veterans Memorial Stadium.
| MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPION |
| Luke Combs, 10000-Meter Run |
| Joe Nizich, Javelin Throw |
| Texas Tanner, Hammer Throw |
Sophomore Texas Tanner kicked off the Falcons' day with a victory in the hammer throw. Recording a throw of 67.98 meters (223'0"), Tanner became just the second Air Force thrower to claim a conference title in the hammer – and the first since Robert Drye won back-to-back titles in 2011-12. Tanner led the Falcons to three of the top-four finishes in the event, as senior Gerrit Tamminga recorded a throw of 63.99 meters (209'11") to finish third and junior Cooper Stroka posted a distance of 62.08 meters (203'8") to take fourth to help Air Force tally 21 points.
The Falcons' success continued in the next final, as junior Joe Nizich matched his career-best - and No. 5 all-time at Air Force – distance of 67.24 meters (220'7") to win the javelin throw and become the first member of the men's team to win that title since Matt Schwandt in 2007 – and the first overall since Paige Blackburn in 2012. The senior trio of Keith Oswald, Teagun Glenn and Tamminga helped Air Force to a 22-point output in the javelin throw, as Oswald finished fourth (61.11m, 200'6"), Glenn placed fifth (59.27m, 194'5") and Tamminga finished sixth (58.70m, 192'7") in his first javelin competition of the year.
Senior Luke Combs capped the night by becoming the first Academy runner to win a 10,000-meter championship since Kyle Eller in 2017 – and did it in record-setting fashion. Combs and New Mexico's Vincent Chirchir battled for the majority of the race; immediately separating themselves from the pack and trading the lead numerous times during the 10,000-meter trek around the track at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Combs retook the lead in the final laps and pulled away for a five-second victory over the field. Crossing the finish line in a time of 29:05.72, Combs knocked more than 19 seconds off a Championship Meet Record that had stood since 2018.
The women opened their scoring with six points in the 10,000-meter run, as junior Tiaree Towler clocked the seventh-fastest time in Air Force history (34:20.69) to finish fourth and sophomore India Jones added an eighth-place time of 35:31.00. The Falcons are currently sixth in the team standings after three events.
Qualifying heats of the 200-meter dash, 800-meter run, and 400-meter hurdles were also contested today, with Air Force advancing six men and three women into Saturday's finals. The men advanced three into the 200-meter dash, as junior Javin Bostic won his heat with the fastest qualifying mark of the day (20.81) and two others – sophomore Jettason Rose (21.24), senior Jackson Connelly (21.45) – advanced on time. Juniors Darek Hackett (51.54) and Cameron Breier (51.68) won their respective heats to earn an automatic berth into the finals – and finish 1-2 in qualifying, while senior Alex Patton finished second in his 800-meter heat (1:50.58) to earn an Auto Q into the finals. On the women's side, freshman Liliane Aittama (2:08.23, auto) and senior Ava Gilliana (2:09.27, time) qualified for the finals of the 800-meter run, while junior Taylor Rioux used a 24.06 finish – a mark just 0.02 off her own program record – to earn the final qualifying time in the 200-meter dash.
A pair of freshmen also impacted the Academy Record Book during today's preliminary heats, as Camryn Bodine debuted at No. 12 on the program's all-time standings of the 800-meter run after clocking 2:11.42 and Clara Teigland moved up to No. 13 on the all-time standings of the 400-meter hurdles (62.89).
In addition, the first five events of the decathlon – and first four of the heptathlon – took place around Veterans Memorial Stadium. Senior Braeden Holcombe led a trio of Falcons in the decathlon, amassing his best opening day total (3740 points), following first-place scores in the long jump (6.71m, 22'0¼" – 746 points) and high jump (1.99m, 6'6¼" – 794 points). The senior rounded out his opening day with 842 points in the 400-meter dash (49.46), 759 points in the 100-meter dash (11.47) and 599 points in the shot put (11.87m, 48'11½").
Backed by a first-place finish in the 100-meter dash (10.98, 865 points), senior Brian Hubbard finished Thursday in fourth with 3493 points. The senior, who added a third-place, 679-point distance of 6.52 meters (21'0¼") in the long jump, earned 744 points in the 400-meter dash (51.56), 620 points in the shot put (12.22m, 40'1¼") and 585 points in the high jump (1.75m, 5'6¾"). Freshman Wyatt Curl, who tied Holcombe for the high jump lead (1.99m, 6'6¼", 794 points), amassed 3364 points to sit in fifth following the first day of action. In addition to finishing third in the long jump (6.42m, 21'0¾", 679 points), Curl added 722 points in the 400-meter dash (52.06), 713 points in the 100-meter dash (11.69) and 456 points in the shot put (9.51m, 31'2½").
On the women's side, freshman Kayla Beach tallied 2480 points during the first day of action in the heptathlon after competing in the 100-meter hurdles (16.05, 708 points), high jump (1.49m, 4'10¼"), shot put (8.77, 28'9¼") and 200-meter dash (26.86, 724 points).
The Falcons return to the track tomorrow (May 11) morning for Day 2 of the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The decathlon trio kicks off the day at 9:30 a.m. (PT), while individual events are slated to begin at 4:00 p.m., inside Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Players Mentioned
Distance
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
400m Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Distance
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