Eastern Washington University men's and women's track and field teams have their regular season behind them and they are now preparing to travel to Bozeman, Mont., this weekend (Feb.24-26) for the Big Sky Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Worthington Arena.

Live results can be found here.

Live video can be found here.

The meet will begin on Thursday at 9 a.m. Pacific time with the men's heptathlon. At 9:30 a.m. PT the women's pentathlon will begin.

On Friday the meet will begin at 9 a.m. PT with day two of the men's heptathlon. Field events that day will start at 2 p.m. PT with the men's weight throw. The running events will also start at 2 p.m. PT with the women's 60-meter hurdle trials.

Saturday is the last day of the championships and it will begin with field events at 9:30 a.m. PT with the women's weight throw finals. Running events will begin at 11 a.m. PT with the final women's mile.

"The Big Sky Indoor Track and Field Championships are tremendous in many ways.  It's an opportunity for the conference to showcase its finest athletes.  It will be interesting to see how many Big Sky athletes will move on from this meet to the NCAA DI Track and Field National Championships in Birmingham, Ala.," explained head men's coach Stan Kerr.
 
Head women's coach Marcia Mecklenburg stated, "We are looking forward to the indoor championships. There isn't a more exciting place in the conference for an indoor track and field meet than Montana State and they always do a first-class job putting it on. It will be fun to see what our athletes can do. They have put the training in and I feel the meets we have competed in have provided them with some great competition for preparation."

On Feb 11-12 the Eagles split squads with some in Spokane for the Whitworth Invitational and some in Seattle for the Husky Classic.

On the first day of the Husky Classic Vernice Keyes placed third overall in the weight throw tossing 62-9 1/4. This mark placed her third all-time in the Eastern Washington University record book. She also is third on the Big Sky Conference performance list now from this mark.

Alex Bishop recorded a third-place finish in the high jump, clearing 6-5 on the first day of the Husky Classic.

Colton Kautz placed fifth in the weight throw with a season-best mark of 57-5 1/2.

On the second day of the Husky Classic, the Eagles brought home four new top-ten marks and a first-place finish from Zach Klobutcher in the pole vault.

At the Husky Classic Klobutcher had a first-place finish in the pole vault where he cleared 16-8 3/4 for a new personal best that ranks second in all-time in the EWU record book. This mark also placed him second on the Big Sky Conference performance list.

Morgan Fossen and Savannah Schultz had a mark of 13-3 1/2. This mark ties them for third place in the EWU record book on the all-time top-ten list. They are both tied for first place on the Big Sky Conference performance list after competing this past weekend.

Katrina Terry and Hally Ruff also competed at the Husky Classic and finished seventh and ninth overall. Terry is third on the Big Sky Conference performance list where she had a mark of 12-11 1/2 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open. This mark placed Terry in the EWU record book all-time top-ten list. Ruff is also recognized on the Big Sky Conference performance list in fifth place with a mark of 12-7 1/2 from the WSU Invitational.

Bobby Say competed in the long jump and triple jump finishing second in both. He leaped 23-2 1/2 in the long jump and had a mark of 49-7 in the triple jump. Say is also fourth on the Big Sky Conference performance list in the men's triple jump where he had a mark of 50-3 1/4 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open.

Katie Petsch finished fifth overall in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.55 which is a new personal best for her and is the third fastest time in EWU history. In the women's 60-meters Petsch is third on the Big Sky Conference performance list where she had a time of 7.55 at the 2022 Husky Classic. This personal best placed her in third place on the EWU all-time top-ten list in the record book.

Joe Gauthier finished sixth overall in the 60-meters with a time of 6.82. Gauthier is known for setting a school record in the 60-meters placing him first on the EWU all-time top-ten list. He also is first on the Big Sky Conference performance list where he had a time of 6.68 at the Idaho Team Challenge.

At the Whitworth Invitational, several Eagles set personal records. Nicole Deherrera finished third overall in the mile with a time of 5:12.00.

Brayden Freitag finished second in the pole vault, clearing a new personal best of 15-3 1/2.

Kerr stated, "Heading into this meet we are expecting our team to have several great performances.  Leading the way for the team as they have done so throughout the indoor season are Klobutcher, Say, Gauthier, Kautz, and Daniel Gaik. Providing solid team depth in their respective events are Bishop, Liam Bracken, Chris Homen, Elijah Conley, and Noah Hasselblad.  Both relays, the distance medley relay with Daniel Miller, Logan Allen, Alec Kness, and Marcus Lemon, and the 4x400 crew of Bracken, Allen, Quintin Porterfield, and Gaik look to put points on the board for us."
 
Gaik is currently sixth in the EWU record book all-time top-ten list for the men's 60-meters with a time of 6.88.  In the men's 200-meters Gaik is second on the Big Sky Conference performance list where he had a time of 21.48 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open. Gaik is also third in the EWU record book all-time top-ten list for this time. He also is first on the Big Sky Conference performance list for the men's 400-meters where he had a time of 47.40 at the Idaho Team Challenge. In the 400-meters he is third on the all-time top-ten list in the EWU record book with this time.

In the men's heptathlon, Conley is fourth on the Big Sky Conference performance list with 4,366 points from the Candy Cane Multi 2021.

For the women's team Mecklenburg explained, "Events to watch are definitely the women's pole vault. With Schultz, Fossen, Terry, and Ruff, we are currently ranked one, two, three, and five. Other events where we are ranked in the top three are Maggie Nelson in the pentathlon, Petsch in the 60-meter, and Keyes in the weight throw."

Nelson set a school record in the women's pentathlon with 3,604 points at the WSU Invitational. These points also place her third on the Big Sky Conference performance list.

"The elite level of this meet makes it very memorable for veterans and rookies as well," explained Kerr.
 
"It's time to see where we stack up in the Big Sky Conference," stated Mecklenburg.

Should any athletes qualify for the NCAA Championships the Eagles will be headed to Birmingham, Ala., on March 11-12 for the NCAA DI Track and Field National Championships. The outdoor track and field season will begin on Saturday, March 19 with the Sam Adams/Whitworth.

Big Sky Conference Performance List
 
This weekend is the Big Sky Conference Track and Field Indoor Championships which are taking place on Feb. 24-26, in Bozeman, Mont., the following athletes rank inside the top-ten in the Big Sky in their respective events.
 
Men 60-meter
1. Joe Gauthier with a time of 6.68 at the Idaho Team Challenge
8. Daniel Gaik with a time of 6.88 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open
 
Women 60-meter
3. Katie Petsch with a time of 7.55 at the 2022 Husky Classic
 
Men 200-meter
2. Daniel Gaik with a time of 21.48 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open
 
Women 200-meter
7. Katie Petsch with a time of 24.95 at the WSU Invitational
 
Men 400-meter
1. Daniel Gaik with a time of 47.40 at the Idaho Team challenge
9. Liam Bracken with a time of 48.62 at the Idaho Team Challenge
 
Men 4 x 400 Relay
6. Eastern Washington with a time of 3:19.65 at the 2022 Husky Classic
 
Women 4 x 400 Relay
8. Eastern Washington with a time of 3:58.73 at the 2022 Husky Classic
 
Men Distance Medley Relay
4. Eastern Washington with a time of 10:40.38 at the WSU Invitational
 
Women Distance Medley Relay
2. Eastern Washington with a time of 12:34.34 at the WSU Invitational
 
Men High Jump
6. Alex Bishop with a mark of 6-8 3/4 at the Cougar Classic Invitational
 
Men Pole Vault
2. Zach Klobutcher with a mark of 16-8 3/4 at the 2022 Husky Classic
10. Brayden Freitag with a mark of 15-3 1/2 at the Whitworth Invitational
 
Women Pole Vault
1. Morgan Fossen with a mark of 13-3 1/2 at the 2022 Husky Classic
2. Savannah Schultz with a mark of 13-3 1/2 at the 2022 Husky Classic
3. Katrina Terry with a mark of 12-11 1/2 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open
5. Hally Ruff with a mark of 12-7 1/2 at the WSU Invitational 
 
Men Long Jump
3. Bobby Say with a mark of 23-10 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open
 
Men Triple Jump
4. Bobby Say with a mark of 50-30 1/4 at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open
 
Women Shot Put
7. Carissa Stovall with a mark of 44-5 1/2 at the Idaho Team Challenge
9. Kaitlyn Paller with a mark of 44-2 at the Idaho Team Challenge
 
Women Weight Throw
3. Vernice Keyes with a mark of 62-9 1/4 at the 2022 Husky Classic
 
Women Pentathlon
3. Maggie Nelson with 3,604 points at the WSU Invitational 
 
Men Heptathlon
4. Elijah Conley with 4,366 points at the Candy Cane Multi
6. Chris Homen with 4,286 points at the Candy Cane Multi
7. Parker Wubbena with 4,195 points at the Candy Cane Multi