Stout field to vie in MWC championships
Competition begins today at Abq. CC
Since New Mexico swept its way to Mountain West Conference men’s and women’s indoor track and field titles in 2014 and 2015, a funny thing has happened. The rest of the league is catching up to the Lobos. UNM hopes its home-track advantage is meaningful beginning today, when the three-day Mountain West Conference Indoor Championships get underway at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
The Lobos won’t be the favorites. They’ve lost the tussle over the broom with the Air Force men and Colorado State women, who swept the indoor and outdoor titles in 2016.
“We’re just going to give it a shot and see what happens and see if we can get people to run a little faster and jump a little farther,” UNM coach Joe Franklin said.
Six men’s teams and 11 women’s teams are competing. Colorado State’s men and women both are ranked third in regional coaches polls. Air Force (fourth), Utah State (seventh) and Wyoming (10th) also are ahead of the Lobo men in such rankings; the Lobo women are eighth regionally, with Wyoming (10th) and Air Force (12th).
Then there are San Diego State and Boise State, both ranked in the deeper West region and competing for points here this weekend.
The other item besides vying for team honors is qualify-
ing for the NCAA Championships, to be held March 10-11 in College Station, Texas.
Besides, UNM triple jumper Jannell Hadnot, the league leader in her event, the Lobo men and women are strong in the distances. Alice Wright, Calli Thackery (reigning league track athlete of the week) and Sophie Connor are on the verge of NCAA qualifying, and sophomore Josh Kerr of Scottland has had a superb season.
Albuquerque’s Kyra Mohns is the current league leader in the pentathlon.
Of last year’s 15 individual event winners, 13 are back for this weekend. And three athletes already have set league records — CSU’s Hunter Price in the heptathlon, the Rams’ Lorenda Holston in the women’s 60-meter hurdles (8.06 seconds at the Don Kirby meet here Feb. 11) and Air Force’s Shelley Spires in the high jump (6 feet, 1½ inches).