Weirich takes first in pole vault at Air Force

PROVO, Utah -- The No. 17 BYU men's track and field team wrapped up competition at both the Air Force and Washington Invitationals Saturday, with 15 athletes finishing in the top 10 of their respective events.

Pole vaulter Victor Weirich was the highlight of the day for the Cougars. Weirich, who is still regaining form after an ankle injury earlier this year, won the seeded pole vault on a short approach, clearing a height of 17-06.50. Fellow Cougar Braydon Bringhurst finished fourth in the event with a mark of 16-06.75.

"The pole vault was definitely our best event today," head coach Mark Robison said. "It was great to see Victor perform so well, especially on a short approach. We didn't run as well as we'd have liked today, but our team made some improvements."

Jason Hinds was the only sprinter to advance to the finals at the Air Force Invitational. He finished in fourth place in the 200 meters final with a time of 22.34.

The Cougars continued to show strength in the jumps on Saturday. Dakoda John tied for second in the high jump, clearing the 06-09.00 mark. Sam Rockwood and Russell Nielson each finished in the top 10 in the high jump as well, with Rockwood jumping 06-07.75 and taking sixth while Nielson jumped 06-06.75 and finished in eighth place.

In the men's shot put, Cougars Dennis Christensen and Jacob Foutz both finished in the top 10 with career-best throws. Christensen threw 53-02.25 and took fifth place while Foutz took eighth with a throw of 50-08.75.

At the Washington Invitational, Cade Lindahl won the 400-meter dash with a time of 48.22, his best mark of the season. In the 800 meters, David Graham won his section and took fourth overall, finishing in 1:51.00.

Ryan Waite took seventh place in the men's invitational mile with a time of 4:06.19. In the unseeded mile, Trevor Fuhriman took eighth with a time of 4:13.06.

BYU had three top-10 finishers in the men's 3,000 meters, led by Jared Ward who finished in fourth with a time of 8:01.87. Tylor Thatcher took sixth with a time of 8:06.55 and Tommy Gruenewald finished in 8:07.14, good for eighth place.

The Cougars head to New York next week for the Armory Collegiate Invitational.

Full results from the final day at the Air Force Invitational can be found here.

DAY 1 RECAP

DAY 2 RECAP