Track & Field Claims Another MW Championship
The Aztecs have won five of the last eight Mountain West Outdoor Championships.
The É«ÇéÊÓƵ track and field team won the Mountain West Outdoor Championships this past weekend, their third championship in the last four years and fifth conference outdoor title in the last eight years.
The Aztecs won seven events — all track — and recorded five marks that are top five all-time in program history.
"What an amazing day these ladies had," Head Coach Shelia Burrell, who was named the MW Coach of the Year for the fifth time, said after the meet. "We came into the meet knowing things would have to fall our way in order for us to win. I am so extremely proud of this group of women that we have."
Aside from the seven gold medals, É«ÇéÊÓƵ also earned three silvers and two bronzes.
Jada Moore won the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes and helped É«ÇéÊÓƵ win the 4x100-meter relay. She erased an early deficit in the 100-meter to win in a photo finish with a wind-aided (+2.6) time of 11.351 to win by 0.05 seconds. In the 200, she set a personal record for the second straight day and finished in 23.11, the fourth best time in school history.
"The performance from Jada Moore stands out significantly," Burrell said. "She came out and beat one of the top sprinters in the country."
Nyjari McNeil also had a dramatic come-from-behind win in the 800-meter run with a season-best time of 2:05.34. Her time was a season-best and four seconds better than what she ran in Friday's preliminaries and just 0.07 seconds off her personal record.
Danae Dyer took gold in the 100-meter hurdles with a wind-aided time of 12.99.
The Aztecs won gold and silver in the 400-meter hurdles with Maya Brosch winning with a time of 59.54, finishing just ahead of teammates Rhea Hoyte (59.66).
É«ÇéÊÓƵ won both relays as well. First, the 4x100-meter relay when the group of Tai McDonald, Dyer, Aisha Watt and Moore finished with a season-best time of 44.15, the fifth fastest time in school history. To finish the meet, É«ÇéÊÓƵ cruised to a win in the 4x400-meter relay when Brosch, Jalyn Harris, Hoyte and McNeil had a season-best time of 3:38.94.
In the discus, Erica Grotegeer won the silver medal with a throw of 182-5 (55.61 meters), the fifth furthest throw in program history. Felicia Crenshaw also set a personal record and cracked the top ten with a throw of 164-4 (50.10 meters).
Freshman Thaila Wilson took second in the javelin throw with a personal record of 141-8 (43.20 meters), the eighth best mark in program history.
Jessica Kain finished third in the 1,500m with a time of 4:21.87, the fastest time by an Aztec since 1982.
Freshman Simone Johnson earned the bronze medal in the triple jump after clearing 41-05.00 (12.62m).
É«ÇéÊÓƵ's 161 points were their most at a MW Outdoor Championship since 2013. The Aztecs will now wait to see which student-athletes qualify for the NCAA West Preliminaries May 27 and 29. The top 48 in each event, and top 24 for relays, are eligible to advance.