Montana State Track and Field competed at the Mountain States Games, hosted by Idaho State. The Bobcat men finished in third place of eight teams while the women finished sixth of 11 programs. (Complete Results)
Patrick Casey led the Bobcat men in the distance events earning two gold medals in the meet. Casey won the 800 Meter Run with a time of 1:52.19, a Big Sky Conference Championships automatic qualifier. The Laurel, Mont. native tabbed top honors in the Mile, with a time of 4:06.75, well ahead of conference qualifying standards.
The Men's Shot Put was arguably one of the strongest events for the Blue and Gold with three of the top four finishers. Senior
Morgan Norgaard took gold with a throw of 16.34m (53-11.00) followed by junior
David Phillips in second place (16.18m, 53-01.00) and newcomer
Trevor Gilreath in fourth (16.07m, 52-08.75).
Phillips and Norgaard also earned first (18.58m, 60-11.50) and fourth (16.25m, 53-03.75), respectively in the Weight Throw. Phillips improved on last week's mark for a season-best distance.
In the Heptathlon,
Jeff Mohl finished second with 5,290 points, just one point behind the top-finisher. Mohl's total point tally was also a season-high for the freshman.
For the Bobcat Women, junior
Camille Marchand brought two medals back to Bozeman, including a gold in the 60 Meter Dash (7.69) and silver in the 200 (25.01). Both times are BSC qualifiers.
Heather Haug continued her progress with a second place finish in the 800, with a time of 2:18.27. The Livingston native took the same place in the Mile, clocking in at 4:56.53.
In the Weight Throw, senior Kirsten Lee tied for third place with a distance of 16.03m (52-07.25), which is an automatic BSC qualifying distance.
With a score of 3,538 points, sophomore
Sarah McGree finished third in the Pentathlon, best her previous season high of 3,492.
“We really handled this environment well,” said head coach
Dale Kennedy. “Our kids competed and represented Montana State in great light. This is another step toward the Big Sky Championships.”
The Blue and Gold track squads return to Bozeman next Friday, Feb. 4, for the MSU Dual Meet Invitational with Idaho State and the University of Montana, the first of three consecutive home meets. The scored meet is slated for a 4:30 p.m. start.
