Smith Fieldhouse
Smith Fieldhouse Provo UT 84606
PROVO, Utah — BYU women's and men's track and field teams made their indoor season debut with the opening day of the BYU Indoor Invitational on Thursday afternoon at the Smith Fieldhouse.
Women’s Recap
The BYU women left Thursday with four event wins and a new mark on the program’s pole vault top-10 board.
Sophomore vaulter Rebekah Ross cleared a personal-best 4.21m/13-9.75 to win the women’s pole vault competition and rise to No. 6 all-time at BYU. With her clearance on Thursday, Ross surpasses Sierra Hansen’s mark set in 2018.
Maren Garnett, a newcomer to the team from Utah State, placed second at 3.75m/12-3.75.
Jessica Thompson and Gretchen Hoekstre dominated women’s throws on Thursday. Thompson notched a personal-best 18.35m/60-2.5 to win the weight throw while Hoekstre took first in the shot put at 14.69m/48-2.25. Thompson’s weight throw keeps her at No. 5 all-time at BYU.
Freshman Maddie Passmore made her collegiate debut on Thursday and made the most of it as she won the women’s triple jump. Passmore, a native of Clovis, California, jumped 11.97m/39-3.25 to overcome UVU’s Olivia Pixton by more than a meter.
Maddy Eaton and Tori Lord also began their BYU track and field careers on Thursday. Both multi athletes closed the day strong with top-5 800m finishes at 2:32.32 and 2:33, respectively. Lord came in sixth (2841) and Eaton 9th (2764) in the final overall pentathlon standings.
Men's Recap
Senior multi-event athlete Dallin Vorkink was the only Cougar to compete for the men's team Thursday. He registered a personal best in the heptathlon 60-meter race, crossing the line at 6.91 seconds.
The Kirksville, Missouri native competed in three additional heptathlon events, including a first-place finish in the shot put (12.46m/44-2).
Through four events, Vorkink stands at fifth overall in the heptathlon results.
BYU’s December home meet concludes on Friday at the Smith Fieldhouse. Events resume at 11 a.m. MST and include sprints, mid-distance and men’s pole vault.
Track and Field set to host first home meet of indoor season
PROVO, Utah – BYU women's and men's indoor track and field launches its home indoor season with the BYU December Invite on Thursday and Friday, Dec. 8-9 at the Smith Fieldhouse.
Last time out…
The Cougars kicked off the indoor season this past weekend at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season-Opener at Boston University, with only distance runners competing. Notching a new school record in the 5000-meter, Casey Clinger headlined the historic meet as eight runners set new top-10 marks. View the full meet recap here.
Meet Information
- Visiting Teams
- Utah Valley, Weber State, Utah, Westminster, Northwest Nazarene
- Thursday, Dec. 8
- Events begin at 11:20 a.m. MST
- Women’s pentathlon, men’s heptathlon, long jump, pole vault, triple jump, shot put, weight throw
- Friday, Dec. 9
- Events begin at 11:00 a.m. MST
- Men’s heptathlon, 60m hurdles, high jump, mile, pole vault, 800m, 300m, high jump, 3000m
- Attendance
- This is a non-ticketed event, spectators are allowed. There will be spectator seating in the west annex of the Smith Fieldhouse.
- Full meet schedule
Thursday and Friday’s meet will be the first of three indoor competitions the Cougars will host during the 2023 season. The next home meet will be on January 12-14.
As only distance runners participated in last week’s events, this week will mark the 2023 season debut of several athletes.