A small group of Bobcat Track and Field athletes traveled to Palo Alto, Calif. to compete in the elite Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational, hosted by Stanford. With MSU's participants all qualified for the Big Sky Championships, the meet afforded the opportunity to compete against some of the nation's best in the sport. (Results)

Montana State earned four medals, including two golds; and placed in the top five in nine events.

Amanda Murphy produced one of the top performances of the day in the hammer throw. While not a season's best, the Charlo, Mont. native still launched a throw of 193-05.00 (58.96m) for a first place finish. Her throw was nearly four feet ahead of second place. Murphy also took eigth in the shot put in 43-08.50 (13.32m).

Bobby Biskupiak earned the second gold medal of the day after winning the pole vault with a height of 16-08.75 (5.10m). Biskupiak's results rank him sixth all-time in the Bobcat record book. In the women's pole vault, after a record setting performance the week before, Stacey Irvine finished fifth with a height of 12-07.50 (3.85m).

Patrick Casey did not place but did have the best run of his outdoor career in the 1,500. After breaking the school record back on April 15 at the Mt. SAC Relays, Casey returned to the track on Sunday and reset his own record with a time of 3:41.34 (previous record of 3:43.69). Casey's competitors in the 1,500 were comprised of mostly professionals.

Heather Haug also had a groundbreaking day when she clocked in at 10:34.73 in the 3,000 steeplechase. Her time was not only 14 seconds faster than her previous best but also sets a new program record.

The javelin was a lucrative event for the Bobcats with two fifth place finishes. Hannah Counter threw a distance of 128-03.00 (39.10m) while Willie Sullivan finished with 204-10.00 (62.44m).

In the men's long jump, Adam Hutter grabbed the bronze medal with a height of 22-11.00 (6.98m). Hutter's showing in the high jump marks a season best for both him and the program. Teammate Asa Staven finished seventh in the event with 21-07.50 (6.59m).

In the hurdles, Katie Niemeir had a second week in a row of lifetime bests. She finished seventh in both the 400 hurdles (1:05.61) and the 400 hurdles. Her time in the 400 was a PR, clocking in at 14.14 and ranks her fifth all-time for MSU. Slater Powell, in the men's competition, took silver in the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.61.

“What meet this was for us,” said head coach Dale Kennedy. “We had some absolutely remarkable performances against some of the best competitors in the country.”

Montana State returns to Bozeman for the Tom Gage Classic at the Bobcat Track and Field Complex on Friday, May 6. The meet will mark the last chance to qualify for the Big Sky Championships being held in Sacramento, Calif. May 11-14.