The BYU women's track & field team claimed its 19th straight league outdoor track and field title Saturday, while the men overcame a 38-point deficit following Friday's competition to pick up their 15th title in the past 18 years at the 2001 Mountain West Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships in San Diego.
The Cougar women outscored their closest opponent by 65.6 points, totaling 229.83 points. Colorado State came in second with 164.33 points, while San Diego State finished third with 148 total points.
In men's action, BYU scored 199 points on the final day of competition to outscore Air Force, 240-182. Colorado State finished the men's competition with 171 points. The Cougars' Maret Komarova was named the MWC outstanding freshman after finishing second in the heptathlon and fourth in the javelin and also competing in the shot put.
Senior Elizabeth Jackson won the outstanding performer award after setting a U.S. record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Friday and winning the 5,000 meters in a meet record 16:34.01. BYU senior Kenneth Andam earned top-scoring honors, recording a first-place finish in the 100 and 200 meters as well as running the anchor leg of the winning 4x100-meter relay.
"We just had an outstanding day," BYU men's coach Mark Robison said. "After trailing following yesterday's events, we had some work to do. Our staff did a great job getting these guys ready. The guys responded by putting the hammer down and taking care of business."
The women started the day with a dominating performance in the 1,500 meters, placing first, second and fourth in the event. Courtney Meldrum won the event in a provisional qualifying time of 4:21.03.
They followed that event with a first-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles, won by senior Kirsten Bolm. The BYU presence was again felt in the 800 meters, with the Cougars taking the top-three spots. Holly Haguewood won the event with a time of 2:08.49, followed by Jamie Philburn (2:10.90) and Tara Haynes posting a 2:11.39. BYU took second in both the 4x100- and 4x400-meter relays, recoding a time of 46.57 and 3:46.67, respectively.
In the field events, Jeana Bingham won the high jump with a height of 5'09.25, while Nikki Hughes finished third in the triple jump after placing second in the long jump Friday. Becky Beachler and Cathy Fuailemaa finished seventh and eighth in the discus, while Fuailemaa took fourth in the hammer with a mark of 170'09.00. Missy Wood finished third in the javelin with a toss of 147'07.00, followed by Komarova in fourth and Carrie Sanders in fifth.
In the men's competition, BYU started the day with a victory in the 4x100-meter relay, posting a time of 40.16. The Cougars started racking up the points after the 1,500 meters with Nathan Harrison and Lewis Jones taking third and fourth in the event. Slade Combs picked up another MWC championship, winning the 110-meter hurdles in a time of 14.23, while Daymon Visser picked up second-place points with a time of 14.45. In the 400 meters, sophomore Matt Nielsen led a 1-2-4 contingent, finishing in a winning-time of 47.15. Kish Beverly took second with a time of 47.77, while Matt Rowe turned in a 48.21. Andam won the 100 meters in a time of 10.35, while Thobias Akwenye finished third in a time of 10.51. Andam and Akwenye also placed first and fourth, respectively, in the 200 meters. Junior Mao Tjiroze turned in a life-time best and automatic qualifying time of 1:47.28 in the 800 meters, finishing second to Olympic qualifier Bryan Berryhill from Colorado State.
In the field events, All-American Jim Roberts finished first in the shot put with a mark of 61'01.50 and fourth in the hammer with a toss of 188'05.00. Perhaps one of the most outstanding individual performances of the meet came from junior Jeff Hansen, who posted a new MWC and BYU record in the pole vault, recording a mark of 18'00.50. Freshman Gabe Casodorph won the high jump at a personal best, 6'07.00".
The Cougars, who have qualified in over 30 events, will await final NCAA qualifying standardsto be determined next week. BYU will next travel to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore., beginning Wednesday.
BIG WEST TRACK: James Parker won the Big West Conference hammer throw for the fourth time in his career and recorded his seventh all-time league title to lead the Utah State men at the conference championships in Long Beach, Calif., on Friday. On the women's side Katie Farner posted her second and third top-three finishes of the meet.
Both the Aggie men and women were in third place heading into the final day of competition. Idaho leads the women's event with 72 points with Cal Poly second at 55 and Utah State third at 43. Idaho also leads the men with 83 points with Cal Poly second at 64 and Utah State third at 56 points.
Parker, a senior standout, threw the hammer 235-09 to win the event by 42 feet and one inch over runner-up T.J. Crater of Idaho.
Parker's toss was his best of the season, and he already owned the nation's second-best throw heading into the meet.
Parker also posted a runner-up finish in the discus with a toss of 185-03.
RAMS WIN 13TH TITLE: The Highland Rams won the National High School Rugby Championship Saturday, the 13th championship in 17 years for the Rams. Playing at Ohio State University, Highland defeated Xavier 29-0 in the semifinal, and Westerville High School 37-13 in the final. Isi Fa was named tournament MVP.
MID-CON BASEBALL: Oral Roberts pounded out three home runs, including two in a two-out, seven-run rally in the first inning, en route to a 13-7 win over Southern Utah in the championship game of the Mid-Continent Conference tournament Saturday in Tulsa, Okla. ORU claims its fourth-straight Mid-Con title and earns the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.