Cougars Land First and Second After Day One

LARAMIE -- Despite battling heavy winds the BYU combined event athletes got the Cougars off to a strong start on Wednesday at the Mountain West Conference Track and Field Championships in Laramie, Wyo.

Leading the way for the No. 11 nationally ranked women’s team was the heptathlete duo of Amy Menlove and Mindy Robins. Menlove sits in first with a total of 3,195 points and Robins is currently in fifth with 2,742 points.

“I think we’ve done awesome when you consider the conditions,” said BYU women’s track and field head coach Craig Poole. “It’s been windy and chilly, but I think Amy and Mindy handled everything really well.”

Menlove and Robins set an impressive tone by placing first and second in the meets’ first event, the 100-meter hurdles.

Menlove set a Louis S. Madrid Sports Complex record in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.60, and Robins finished right behind in a time of 14.29.

Menlove continued her impressive days work in the shot put where she took second with a distance of 35-07.75. The junior wrapped up day one with a first-place finish in the 200-meter dash in a time of 25.03.

“I wasn’t concerned about the conditions, I was just excited to compete in the Conference Championships,” Menlove said. “I’ve been dealing with an injury for over a month, so I felt I did pretty well under the circumstances.”

Menlove, the 2009 NCAA Indoor National Champion in the pentathlon, has competed in limited action for most of the outdoor season due to a lower back injury.

Both Menlove and Robins will look to improve on their marks tomorrow, beginning with long jump at 12 p.m. MT.

Keeping a dominant presence for the Cougars, sophomore Meelis Kosk and freshman Brett Birkeland got strong starts in the decathlon placing second and third at the close of day one.

“We had a good first day,” said BYU men’s track and field head coach Mark Robison. “Brett won the long jump with his best jump eve and Meelis brought home the shot put. I’m happy with the results, especially since the weather has been less than ideal. There are still great things to come from both athletes tomorrow.”

Kosk secured second after completing the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.29, the long jump in a distance of 6.70 meters, the high jump clearing 1.83 meters, the 400-meter dash in 52.01 and the shot put with a final first-place distance of 13.07 meters (42 feet 10.75 inches). With 3,589 points, Kosk trails the first-place position by less than 100 points.

Also representing the Cougars, Birkeland completed day one with a total of 3,528 points. Finishing the 100-meter dash in a time of 11.18, the long jump with a season-best and first-place mark of 6.89 meters, the high jump in 1.80 meters, the 400-meter dash in 50.46 and the shot put in 10.21 meters (33 feet 6 inches), Birkeland follows closely behind in third place.

At the start of Thursday’s events, junior Jay Petsch from Wyoming currently sits in first place with 3,671 points while fourth through sixth are currently held by Skylar Morgan from Air Force (3,497 points), Noa Palicia from Air Force (3,292 points) and Brian Wilson from New Mexico (3,236 points).

BYU will compete again tomorrow to finish up the remaining events, including the 110 meter hurdles, discus throw, pole vault and javelin throw. The decathlon competition is scheduled to resume Thursday at noon MT.