Long Jumpers Lead Falcons at Mountain Lion Open

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Backed by two of the top four long jump distances in Air Force history, several members of the track and field team wrapped up a busy weekend of competition with a full day of action at the Mountain Lion Open in Colorado Springs on Saturday, Feb. 15.

AIR FORCE TOP 10 MARKS

No. 2 – Alese Banks, Women's Long Jump (5.81m, 19'0½")

No. 4 – Kayla Beach, Women's Long Jump (5.74m, 18'9¾")

No. 8 – Ryan McFadden, Women's 60-Meter Dash (7.75)

Freshman Alese Banks became just the second Falcon in program history to surpass 19 feet in the long jump, as she leapt out to a career-best distance of 19'0½" (5.81m) – a personal improvement of more than one foot – to finish second in the meet and lead Air Force to a 2-3 finish in the 21-jumper event. Sophomore Kayla Beach added more than six inches to her previous best, as she recorded a distance of 18'9¾" (5.74m) to earn a third-place finish and move into No. 4 on the Academy's all-time standings.

One other addition was made to the Air Force Top 10 on Saturday, as freshman Ryan McFadden clocked a 60-meter time of 7.75 to take outright control of No. 8 on the Falcons' all-time standings.

In addition to their impressive performances in the long jump, Banks and Beach also impacted the Academy Record Book in the 60-meter events. Banks clocked a career-best time of 8.01 to debut at No. 25 on the program standings in the dash, while Beach lowered her time in the hurdles to 9.19 – equaling the 20th-fastest mark in Academy history. Junior Jacqui Spencer, in her first meet since the 2023 outdoor championships, debuted at No. 14 on the 60-meter hurdles standings after clocking a 9.09 finish during qualifying.

Senior Darek Hackett swept through the rounds of the hurdles on Saturday, winning the prelim in 8.03 and the final in 7.96. Classmate Travon Steven-Long recorded a distance of 6.72 meters (22'0½") to finish fourth in the long jump, while a handful of underclassmen accounted for seven additional top-five finishes at the Mountain Lion Open.

Newcomer Wyatt Cernyar and sophomore Jevonte Eaves finished second (1:57.14) and third (1:57.62), respectively, in the 800-meter run, while freshman Junior Allen and sophomore Joseph White accounted for two of the four fastest times in the mile. Allen clocked a time of 4:20.13 to place second in the 28-runner field, while White added a fourth-place time of 4:22.53. Fellow sophomore Ryan Hajek rounded out the men's list of top-five finishers, as he ran a 50-flat to place third in the 400-meter dash. On the women's side, sophomore Carly Foster finished fourth in the mile with a time of 5:13.71 and freshman Sarah Reynolds tied for fifth in the high jump with a clearance of 1.60 meters (5'2¾").

Air Force is off from competition until Feb. 27-Mar. 1, when it returns to Albuquerque, N.M., for the 2025 Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships at the ABQ Convention Center.

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