Recap: MSUB finishes GNAC Indoor Season

NAMPA Ida. – In two straight days of competition, The Montana State University Billings track and field team competed in the Great Northwest Athletics Conference Indoor Championships. MSUB leaves indoor season behind headed to outdoor. The Yellowjackets will hope to build on the lessons learned from the indoor season.

Both MSUB teams finished in tenth place out of ten schools. The women finished with three points and the men scored 12. Western Washington University was the overall team champion on the men's' side with a final score of 137 and Concordia University, Portland won the women's championship scoring 128.33 points. Paige Johnson of Concordia scored 35 points by herself and is the second-most by an individual in GNAC history.

Mason Schram was the only Yellowjacket close to a podium as he qualified for the 60 meter dash finals Friday night. He finished in fourth place in the finals on Saturday with a time of 7.07, just twi tenths behind the third place finisher.

Nikki Aiken was the iron women for the Yellowjackets. In two days she nearly ran an entire 10K. Frist she competed in the 5K in a time of 18:34.62 which was good enough for eighth place. Next she ran the 1600m leg of the women's distance medley relay then she ran the 3K in a personal best time of 10:38.84 which placed her 10^th overall. She closed things out by running one leg of the 4 x 400m relay. Aiken alongside Brenna Beckett, Sierra Durbin and Kailee Stoppel made up MSUB's relay team.

Forrest Cross took seventh in the shot put with a toss of 14.83m collecting two points for the men's team. He also took 11^th in the weight throw with a 14.83m heave.

All three women's weight thrower competitors peaked this weekend and had season bests. Mariah May led the way with and eighth place finish on a 15.0m toss. Taylor Stringari took 14^th with a throw of 13.73m and Brynn Jolma took 18^th in a 12.19m throw.

Beckett took ninth in the triple jump with a flight of 11.10m. She holds the school record for both the long and triple jumps but did not register in the long jump committing one too many fouls.

Isaiah Girard earned two points for MSUB as he took home seventh place in the high jump with a leap of 1.96m. Girard also finished 19^th in the long jump at 6.16m.

The men's distance medley relay team took sixth place. Logan Straus handed to Tyler Rued then Nicholas Redgrave passed to baton to Ase Ackerman as the closing leg. Ackerman as able to pick off a few teams in front of him vaulting MSUB into sixth place and earning three points.

Bryant Edegerton ran a new personal best in the 5K with a time of 15:54.49 as he finished in 14^th place.

"I am really proud of our overall effort," said head coach Jon Woehl. "We saw improvement every step of the way during indoor season and can take a lot of positive things away from this. We will look to build on them heading to the outdoor season."

Athlete of the Meet: For his fourth place finish Mason Schram is named the St. Vincent Healthcare Athlete of the meet. Nikki Aiken is also named the athlete of the meet for her nearly 10K or 50 laps around the track over two days.