Five Cougars Qualify In First Outdoor Meet

TUCSON -- In only its first outdoor competition of the season, the BYU track and field qualified five athletes, while receiving seven NCAA regional qualifying marks during the Willie Williams Classic at the University of Arizona.

The men's hurdlers led the way with three qualifying marks. Sophomore Jake Garlick received to qualifying marks, one in the 100-meter hurdles, and the other in the 400-meter hurdles. Garlick won the 400 hurdles with a time of 51.18, while finishing third in the 100 hurdles.

Ben Gardner also received a qualifying mark in the in the 400 hurdles with a time 52.12, finishing second to Garlick. Bryan Payne, Kansas Whitear and Nate Rencher all finished in the top-10 of the 400 hurdles for the Cougars.

The women's pole vaulters received two qualifying marks.

Mandy Kelly and Makenzie Hobbs both cleared 12 feet 5.5 inches, to finish one-two in the pole vault. Kelly had one less miss than Hobbs, giving her the victory. Melissa Dyer finished fourth, while Ashley McCallister placed seventh.

Estonia native Maret Komarova received qualifying marks in both the shot put and the javelin, placing fifth in each event.

The women's distance squad also performed well in the meet, though it didn't received any qualifying marks.

In the 1,500 meters, the Cougars placed five of the top-six runners. Freshman Ann Marie Thomas won the race with Kristy Barrus finishing second, Rena Chesser in fourth, Ann Heiner fifth and Sarah Ingebretsen in sixth.

Thomas crossed the finish line in 4:37.83.

The Cougars also had a one-two finish in the 5,000 meters. Lisa Frishknecht won the race with teammate Amber Duffin finishing right behind; Frishknecht ran the race in 17:48.18 and Duffin 17:48.22.

The men's high jump competition was dominated by the Cougars. Sophomore Bryce Bergen won the competition with a leap of 6 feet 6.75 inches. Conference indoor champion David Pendergrass placed fifth, while Gabe Casdorph and Bryce Nielson placed seventh and 10th respectively.

Pendergrass finished second in the triple jump, with teammate Matt Anderson finishing third, Anderson also placed fourth in the long jump.

Other Cougars with top-10 finishes include: Michelle Lindsay and Laura Taylor (800 meters), Taylor Law (100 and 400 meter hurdles), Lindsey Sommer (long jump and triple jump), Maret Komarova (shot put and javelin), Nicole Nevitt (high jump), David Chesser (400 meters), Brett Andrus and Nathan Ogden and David Weiler (1,500 meters).

The Cougars rested their athletes that competed in the NCAA Indoor Championships. The Cougars look to get stronger next week when they compete at Stanford and Arizona State.

For complete meet results, please visit www.arizonaathletics.com.