The Montana State Track and Field team is prepped and ready for one of the most important meets of the season- the Cat-Griz Dual - the epic rivalry of the Treasure state.
In a sport generally focused on the individual performance, MSU will adjust their attention to the team effort in hopes of shifting the momentum from double losses to the Griz in 2010. Last year, the Bobcat men fell, 110-79, while the women were clipped, 98-93.
The meet, taking place on Saturday, April 23, in Missoula, Mont., marks the 78th match-up for the men and the 29th for the women. Montana holds the lead at 54-23, over MSU all-time, while the women are tied at 14 dual wins apiece. Both the MSU men and women earned their last win back in 2009 in Missoula.
Two athletes from each school will be allowed to score in every event. First place earns five points, second earns three, third earns two and fourth earns one. The top relay from each team will also earn points.
Montana State will look to many of the multis athletes for depth in the field events. Asa Staven and Jeff Mohl will be pivotal in many of the jumps in hopes of garnering additional points for the Bobcats.
The MSU women will look to overcome a numbers deficit in the distance events but still have high expectations for Heather Haug and Heather Demorest in the 1,500 and steeplechase, respectively.
“This meet brings out high quality competition,” said Kennedy. “The longstanding tradition of Cat-Griz really drives these kids to compete for their school and put their best foot forward in a team effort.”
With just three weeks remaining before the Big Sky Championships, MSU will continue to take advantage of the opportunity to gain automatic qualifiers for the meet, being held in Sacramento, May 11-14. The Bobcats currently have 17 women qualified in 14 events, while the men have 15 qualified athletes in 11 events.
