Thursday, May 14
Clovis, CA
10:30 am MT
Air Force Academy
at
Mountain West Championships
Texas Tanner, Women’s 10K Headline First Day at MW Championships
5/14/2026 11:29:00 PM | Track and Field
CLOVIS, Calif. – A hammer throw title from senior Texas Tanner and 10K podium finishes from senior India Jones and junior Ella Johnson highlighted d a strong opening day for the Air Force track and field team, as the Falcons opened competition at the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Outdoor Championships on Thursday, May 14.
Tanner, who improved his own Championship Meet and Stadium Record during four of six attempts on Thursday, finished the day with a 77.72-meter (255'0") mark – the second-best throw in Mountain West (and Air Force) history behind his own NCAA No. 2 all-time distance of 78.87 meters. It is the third-straight hammer championship from Tanner, who became just the second MW thrower – and the first since 2007-09 – to win three-straight titles in the hammer throw.
Jones and Johnson combined for a historic 25-lap trek around the track at Veterans Memorial Stadium, as the pair finished second and third, respectively, in the 10,000-meter run. Jones, who finished third as a freshman, returned to the podium with a runner-up time of 34:28.02, while Johnson claimed all-conference honors for the second-straight year by placing third in 34:34.94.
With tonight's finishes – which matched the largest medal haul for the women in that event, Jones and Johnson have now accounted for four of the program's podium finishes in the 10,000-meter run
Tanner paced the men to half of the scoring finishes in the hammer, as all four of the Air Force competitors finished within the top eight. Junior Arden Jenkins improved his overall distance by nearly two meters to finish sixth at with a 54.01-meter (177'2") throw, while sophomore Evan Keefe and senior Massimo Grisotto finished seventh (54.00m/ also 177'2") and eighth (52.85m/173'4"), respectively.
The men accounted for three additional scoring finishes on Thursday, as sophomore Trenton Groff and freshman Cameron Downing finished sixth (58.92m/193'3") and seventh (58.58m/192'2"), respectively, in their first conference javelin throw and senior Tanner Lindahl, who missed most of the season with injury, closed out the night with a fifth-place time of 29:57.90 in the 10,000-meter run.
Air Force claimed two additional scoring finishes from the throws, as freshman Cadee Alder recorded a javelin distance of 43.54 meters (142'10") to finish sixth in her conference debut and senior Paige Birch posted a season-best 54.36-meter (178'4") throw to place eighth in the hammer.
Five Falcons opened competition in their respective multi-events on Thursday.
Backed by a winning, 1003-point clearance in the high jump, Morgan Glaser leads a trio of women in the heptathlon. The sophomore posted a height of 1.82 meters (5'11½") – a mark just 0.01 shy of the facility record – on her signature event to help finish the opening day in fourth with 3074 points (her best Day 1 total). Classmate Sarah Reynolds used third-place marks in the two running events to stand in fifth afer four events with 3059 points, while junior Kayla Beach recorded her best Day 1 total (2987 points) for an eighth-place standing.
Freshman Chris Atunku and junior Wyatt Curl are currently fifth and sixth, respectively, in the decathlon after the first five events. Backed by a first-place, 740-point tally of 1.93 meters (6'4") in the high jump. Atunku amassed 3411 points in his first-ever decathlon, while Curl – who helped Air Force to a 1-2 finish in the high jump (1.90m/6'2¾") – tallied 3362 points in his return to the decathlon after injury.
Three prelims were also contested tonight, with the men advancing every competitor into the finals.
Junior Jonah Hochstetler (1:49.94) and sophomore Parker Hintz (1:52.18) won their respective 800-meter heats to earn an auto bid into the finals, while sophomore Patrick Allen advanced on time with a 1:50.59 finish (No. 18 all-time at Air Force) – with Hochstetler posting the fastest time of all 24 preliminary contenders. Sophomore Asher Jenkins (20.87) and freshman Zachary DeWalt (20.90) won their respective heats of the 100-meter dash for the Big Q, while senior Jettason Rose advanced on time (20.94) after helping DeWalt to a 1-2 Air Force finish in the opening heat. Junior Ryan Hajek and freshman Colton Manock rounded out the Falcons' sweep of qualifiers, as Hajek earned an automatic bid (52.44) and Manock advanced on time (52.85, No. 21 all-time at Air Force) in the 400-meter hurdles.
On the women's side, juniors Liliane Aittama and Allison Fernstrom advanced to Saturday's final in their respective events. Aittama posted an 800-meter time of 2:09.07 to win her preliminary heat and earn an automatic spot into the championship race, while Fernstrom finished second in her heat of the 400-meter hurdles (59.99) to earn a Big Q into the final.
The men (25 points) and women (18) are both in second after three events.
The Falcons return to Veterans Memorial Stadium tomorrow (May 15) for the second day of action at the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
| MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPIONS |
| Texas Tanner, Men's Hammer Throw |
Tanner, who improved his own Championship Meet and Stadium Record during four of six attempts on Thursday, finished the day with a 77.72-meter (255'0") mark – the second-best throw in Mountain West (and Air Force) history behind his own NCAA No. 2 all-time distance of 78.87 meters. It is the third-straight hammer championship from Tanner, who became just the second MW thrower – and the first since 2007-09 – to win three-straight titles in the hammer throw.
Jones and Johnson combined for a historic 25-lap trek around the track at Veterans Memorial Stadium, as the pair finished second and third, respectively, in the 10,000-meter run. Jones, who finished third as a freshman, returned to the podium with a runner-up time of 34:28.02, while Johnson claimed all-conference honors for the second-straight year by placing third in 34:34.94.
With tonight's finishes – which matched the largest medal haul for the women in that event, Jones and Johnson have now accounted for four of the program's podium finishes in the 10,000-meter run
Tanner paced the men to half of the scoring finishes in the hammer, as all four of the Air Force competitors finished within the top eight. Junior Arden Jenkins improved his overall distance by nearly two meters to finish sixth at with a 54.01-meter (177'2") throw, while sophomore Evan Keefe and senior Massimo Grisotto finished seventh (54.00m/ also 177'2") and eighth (52.85m/173'4"), respectively.
The men accounted for three additional scoring finishes on Thursday, as sophomore Trenton Groff and freshman Cameron Downing finished sixth (58.92m/193'3") and seventh (58.58m/192'2"), respectively, in their first conference javelin throw and senior Tanner Lindahl, who missed most of the season with injury, closed out the night with a fifth-place time of 29:57.90 in the 10,000-meter run.
Air Force claimed two additional scoring finishes from the throws, as freshman Cadee Alder recorded a javelin distance of 43.54 meters (142'10") to finish sixth in her conference debut and senior Paige Birch posted a season-best 54.36-meter (178'4") throw to place eighth in the hammer.
Five Falcons opened competition in their respective multi-events on Thursday.
Backed by a winning, 1003-point clearance in the high jump, Morgan Glaser leads a trio of women in the heptathlon. The sophomore posted a height of 1.82 meters (5'11½") – a mark just 0.01 shy of the facility record – on her signature event to help finish the opening day in fourth with 3074 points (her best Day 1 total). Classmate Sarah Reynolds used third-place marks in the two running events to stand in fifth afer four events with 3059 points, while junior Kayla Beach recorded her best Day 1 total (2987 points) for an eighth-place standing.
Freshman Chris Atunku and junior Wyatt Curl are currently fifth and sixth, respectively, in the decathlon after the first five events. Backed by a first-place, 740-point tally of 1.93 meters (6'4") in the high jump. Atunku amassed 3411 points in his first-ever decathlon, while Curl – who helped Air Force to a 1-2 finish in the high jump (1.90m/6'2¾") – tallied 3362 points in his return to the decathlon after injury.
Three prelims were also contested tonight, with the men advancing every competitor into the finals.
Junior Jonah Hochstetler (1:49.94) and sophomore Parker Hintz (1:52.18) won their respective 800-meter heats to earn an auto bid into the finals, while sophomore Patrick Allen advanced on time with a 1:50.59 finish (No. 18 all-time at Air Force) – with Hochstetler posting the fastest time of all 24 preliminary contenders. Sophomore Asher Jenkins (20.87) and freshman Zachary DeWalt (20.90) won their respective heats of the 100-meter dash for the Big Q, while senior Jettason Rose advanced on time (20.94) after helping DeWalt to a 1-2 Air Force finish in the opening heat. Junior Ryan Hajek and freshman Colton Manock rounded out the Falcons' sweep of qualifiers, as Hajek earned an automatic bid (52.44) and Manock advanced on time (52.85, No. 21 all-time at Air Force) in the 400-meter hurdles.
On the women's side, juniors Liliane Aittama and Allison Fernstrom advanced to Saturday's final in their respective events. Aittama posted an 800-meter time of 2:09.07 to win her preliminary heat and earn an automatic spot into the championship race, while Fernstrom finished second in her heat of the 400-meter hurdles (59.99) to earn a Big Q into the final.
The men (25 points) and women (18) are both in second after three events.
The Falcons return to Veterans Memorial Stadium tomorrow (May 15) for the second day of action at the Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Players Mentioned
Middle Distance
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Middle Distance, Distance
/ Track and Field
High Jump
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Decathlon, Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Javelin
/ Track and Field
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints, Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Throws
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