ALBUQUERQUE -- Facing its toughest competition of the season, the BYU track teams responded well with several athletes posting solid performances.

Men

Sophomore Victor Weirich set a new personal best in the pole vault, clearing 5.50m (18-00.50) to win the event and earn the best mark in the country so far.

“The performance of the meet has to go to Victor in the pole vault,” men’s head coach Mark Robison said. “Wow, what a great meet.”

Several of BYU’s distance runners ran in the 800-meter and did not fail to impress while securing the top three finishes. Junior Miles Batty ran a 1:49.49 to win with junior Justin Hedin and senior Brian Weirich right behind with times of 1:50.43 and 1:52.14, respectively.

"We had a great meet against some phenomenal competition and we really, really ran well,” Robison said. “I’m pretty excited, I think we are going to be pretty darn good.”

The 4x400 relay team of junior Chris Carter and sophomores Sean Adams, James Derek McAllister and Cade Lindahl also faired well, turning in a time of 3:13.61 to win the event.

Senior Leif Arrhenius won the shot put with a mark of 18.39m (60-04.00). The jumpers for BYU also competed well with Anse Myller DeAraujo finishing fourth with a jump of 14.95m (49-00.75) and Kyle Mills right behind with a mark of 14.89m (48-10.25).

Women

Sophomore Rachel Fisher, competing for the first time in two weeks, placed first among collegiate competitors in the pole vault by clearing 4.15m (13-7.25). The mark currently ranks first in the Mountain West Conference and seventh in the NCAA.

Christen Botteron took second among collegiate competitors in the pole vault with a height of 4.00m (13-01.50). Following Botteron was teammate Kelli Ehardt in third with a vault of 4.00m (13.01.50).

In the sprint events, senior Porshe Giddings continued to run well with a 24.06 time in the 200m dash, a time that ranks first in the MWC and 11th in the nation. Junior Natalie Stewart ran the 400m for the first time this season and finished in 56.51, a time good enough for sixth.

Fatima Makakala ran well in the 60m hurdles, finishing preliminaries with a time of 8.61 and taking seventh in the finals.

In the field events, junior Diana Blauer surpassed her season best in the high jump with a leap of 1.82m (5-11.50). Blauer’s mark ranks second in the MWC and sixth in the NCAA.

Complete meet results can be found on www.golobos.com. Next up BYU will compete in the Washington Invitational on Jan. 28-29.

PROVO -- The third weekend of the BYU track and field season will get under way on Friday as the men’s and women’s teams head to Albuquerque to compete at the New Mexico Cherry and Silver Invitational.

"We'll have great competition and a great facility," men's head coach Mark Robison said. "This week will give us a pretty good idea of where we are at and who we are going to be."

The Cougars will face their best competition yet with several quality teams in attendance. Pac-10 schools Stanford, Cal and Arizona will participate along with conference opponents Colorado State and New Mexico plus some smaller schools.

Senior Porshe Giddings will lead the women’s team after winning her first Mountain West Conference Athlete of the Week award following the Snake River Open. Giddings currently holds the top MWC time in the 200m and has the second-fastest 60m time in the conference.

The men’s team has seen solid performances out of the distance runners this season, with junior Miles Batty still holding the fastest mile time in the country at 3:59.27. After a week off for most of the distance team, athletes will be looking to improve on early success.

Field events have been going well and will continue to be a strength for the Cougars. Freshman Zachary Stetler recently posted a personal-best 16.58m (54-04.75) in the shot put last week at the Snake River Open.

After opening the season at home on a 322-meter track and then competing at Idaho State on a unique wooden track, this marks the first meet of the season for the Cougars that will feature a traditional, 200-meter track.

The meet is slated to begin on Friday evening with the men’s and women’s long jump at 5:00 p.m. MDT. Action will begin on Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. with the women’s pole vault and is scheduled to conclude at 3:40 p.m. with the women’s 4x400m relay. Complete results will be available at golobos.com.