COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. and SEATTLE -- Arlene Gowar led BYU women's track and field Saturday at the Air Force Collegiate Open in Colorado Springs.

The Cougars split up and half of the team traveled to Seattle to compete in the Husky Classic. The Husky Classic is traditionally a great venue for long distance runners, while the Air Force Collegiate Open is better designed for power events.

“There were a lot of improvements and good marks today,” hurdles and jumps coach Mark Robison said.  “So we are just looking ahead to the MPSF meet and what’s ahead. There were a lot of really good performances today.”

Gowar had a phenomenal performance in the 200m and won first place with a time of 24.61. She also finished in second place in the 60 meters with a time of 7.55, while the first place finisher had a time of 7.54.

Freshman Nicole Laws won second place in the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.63.

Rachel Fisher finished in third place in the pole vault with a height of 3.85m (12’7.5”). Elizabeth Wilson finished in third place in the long jump with a mark of 5.58m (18’3.75”).  Chloe Richardson took third place in the triple jump with a mark of 11.89m (39’0.25”).

Deezbaa Whaley continued her streak in the weight throw, taking third place with a mark 18.55m (60’10.5”).

In Seattle, freshman Shea Martinez finished in third place with a loaded field in the 800 meters with a time of 2:08.68 bringing her even closer to qualifying for nationals.

Full results for the meet in Washington can be found at GoHuskies.com and results for the meet at the Academy can be found at TFRRS.org. 

PROVO, Utah—The Cougars will be splitting up for their meets Friday and Saturday, sending the distance runners to the Husky Classic in Seattle and their sprinters and field athletes to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“We are looking forward to these meets,” head coach Ed Eyestone said. “This should be a big weekend for our distance runners. Seattle has a great track for distance and we have to maximize our opportunities there. It is just a matter of getting qualifying marks for nationals.”

For many of the distance runners, this will be their first or second time competing in a race during indoor season. Senior Sarah Yingling will be running the mile in Seattle, alongside fellow teammate and sophomore Makenna Smith. Distance coach Patrick Shane said both women have had great practices and workouts leading up to the meet and expects improvement on Saturday.

In Seattle, the meet will begin at 4:00 p.m. PST on Feb. 14 and resume Feb. 15 at 9:00 a.m. PST with the field events.

In Colorado, the meet will begin Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m. MST.

Results from the Husky Classic can be found at gohuskies.com, while results from the Academy can be found at goairforcefalcons.com.