Track squads begin 2012 season
Senior thrower Lindsey Spencer broke two school records at the Arizona-hosted Willie Williams Classic on Friday and Saturday.
Spencer took second in the hammer throw on Friday with a mark of 60.30 meters, passing former Aggie All-American Krista Larson. Spencer won the discus Saturday and claimed her second school record with a throw of 53.10 meters.
USU head coach Greg Gensel said she had a good weekend.
“She’s been working really hard and coming back from an illness,” Gensel said. “We’re real pleased to see her start off the outdoor season this way.”
Hunter Nelson led a trio of Aggies to a top-four finish in the 1500-meter run – Aaron Clements and Daniel Howell took third and fourth, respectively. In the women’s race Stephanie Burt finished second, while Hannah Williams took fourth and Kim Quinn finished fifth.
Junior distance runner Brittany Fisher did not compete because she was injured in a rock climbing accident Monday morning. Gensel said USU probably would have had success in the 1500 even if his athletes weren’t trying to run well for their injured teammate.
“I’m not saying that it didn’t have anything to with it,” Gensel said. “They’re here for a reason in running, and although we support Brittany and mean well – and what’s best for her and everything – the kids know that they’re here for a reason and that’s to run. And they are prepared for that, so they ran well.”
Kaylee Campbell took second in the steeplechase with a time of 11 minutes, 38.60 seconds, and Austin Neuner took fifth in the men’s with a 9:53.44.
Gensel said the young Aggie steeplechasers ran well in their first outdoor meet.
“It’s early in the season,” he said. “We haven’t had a chance to practice it outdoors, so that’s good.”
Camille Fehlberg won the 400 hurdles in 1:02.73 and Tyler Killpack finished second in the 800 in 1:54.23.
“We’ve got a lot of the people who didn’t win events,” Gensel said. “But, we’ve got a lot of people who stepped up and performed well.”
Other performances include Silas Pimentel and Nic Bowens in the 100, clocking 10.57 and 10.58, respectively. Spela Hus took fifth in the shot put with a throw of 14.89.
The Aggies will next compete in UC Irvine’s Spring Break Invitational on March 23-24.
– tavin.stucki@aggiemail.usu.edu