Eastern Washington University's men's and women's outdoor track and field teams will travel to Eugene, Ore., this Friday (Apr. 1) and Saturday (Apr. 2) for the Hayward Premiere at the Hayward Field. 
 
Live results can be found here. 
 
On Friday the field events will start at 3 p.m. with the men's hammer throw. The running events will begin at 5:30 p.m. with an exhibition event.
 
Saturday the field events will begin at 11 a.m. with the women's discus. The running events will begin at 1 p.m. with the men's 4x100-meter relay.
 
"The Hayward Premiere is a special meet. It's being held at Hayward Field which will be the site of the first-ever World Track & Field Championships in North America at summer's end," explained head men's coach Stan Kerr. "The tremendous track and field history of the stadium, and now its stunning makeover for the world championships, set the stage for a great competition this weekend." 
 
Hayward Field has many years of history where Olympic athletes have come from. Hayward Field has been renovated and the renovation was competed in 2020 and has since then been a field hosting many main events. The University of Oregon has had the opportunity to host the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials since its renovation. This is a world-class track and field facility that gives many new experiences to the athletes as well as the fans. 
 
"The Hayward Premiere will be a track and field meet that should provide some competitive experience with teams our athletes don't normally see. Track meets that happen in the middle of spring break can be a little tricky, but I don't think any of our athletes wanted to miss this meet. They will be competing in a very historic venue that has recently completed a major renovation. The new Hayward Field hosted the 2021 NCAA track Championships and the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials so I think our athletes can hardly wait to step onto that track," explained head women's coach Marcia Mecklenburg. 
 
Competing at this meet gives the opportunity for Eastern Washington University athletes to compete against other schools that they may not get to compete against at other meets such as Long Beach State, University of Oregon, Wichita State and Oregon State among others.
 
"It's also a top opportunity to compete against programs we typically don't see until regionals. Teams like Long Beach State, University of Oregon and Wichita State have athletes that will certainly add to the quality and depth of every event," explained Kerr.  
 
Last weekend the Eagles split squads at the Buc Scoring / Combined Events Meet and the Al Manuel Invitational. 
 
At the Buc Scoring / Combined Events Meet Maggie Nelson placed first in the heptathlon with 5,130 points setting a new Eastern Washington University school record.  The previous record was set in 2017 by Kendra Hamm. Nelson is the first Eagle in program history to ever score over 5,000 points in the heptathlon, and she also owns the indoor pentathlon school record. Nelson earned her first-career Big Sky Conference Women's Field Athlete of the Week award after the performance, which currently leads the Big Sky and ranks 14th in the nation. Nelson also leads the league in the javelin by over six feet after a personal best toss of 158-8 in the heptathlon which ranks seventh all-time in program history.
 
Hayden McAuliff also competed in the heptathlon and placed fourth with 4,101 points. 
 
At the Buc Scoring / Combined Events Meet the Eagles also competed in the decathlon as well as stand-alone events. 
 
In the decathlon Chris Homen placed first with 6,006 points. Elijah Conley placed third with 5,834 points. Quintin Porterfield also competed and placed fifth with a total of 5,642 points. 
 
In the men's high jump Alex Bishop placed first with a mark of 6-9 and Bobby Say placed first in the men's long jump with a mark of 22-7. 
 
At the Al Manuel Invitational Joe Gauthier, Daniel Gaik, Liam Bracken, and Logan Allen placed first in the men's 4x100-meter relay with a time of 4.11, which ranks eighth all-time in EWU history. 
 
In the women's 400-meter hurdles Alyssa Hoffman placed first with a time of 1:04.6. 
 
"We have had two meets so far, so our athletes have had an opportunity to iron out the kinks. With that in mind I think there are going to be some breakthrough performances this weekend," explained Mecklenburg. 
 
Following this weekend's meets, the Eagles will be competing in Spokane, Wash., for the Whitworth Peace Meet on Friday (Apr. 8) at the Whitworth Pine Bowl.