SPOKANE, Wash. — Eastern Washington Track and Field knocked the rust off for a second time this year at the Spokane Sports Showcase and Spokane Indoor Challenge meets held at The Podium in Spokane on Jan. 12-13. The weekend will be one to remember as EWU senior Madelyn Knight broke the school record for the 60-meter hurdles and Zach Klobutcher set a new mark in the pole vault.

"What a day for Zach and Mads," Tucker said. "Starting with Zach, this was a rough week. Battling back from a nagging injury to breaking the school record. Today was the day he needed in regard to mind over matter. We talk about a button and he pushed it today, knowing the sky is the limit." 

Klobutcher broke his own school record in the pole vault, clearing 5.22 meters to win the event. Continuing Eastern's long tradition of standout pole vaulters, he set the previous record of 5.21 last season.

Last month, in Eastern's first competition of the season, Knight moved into second in program history in the 60-meter hurdles. On Saturday, she took it to the next level, beating the previous school record of 8.51 — set by Seville Broussard in 1999 — by over a tenth of a second, crossing at 8.37 to win the event and set the top time in the Big Sky Conference this year. She ran 8.47 in the prelims.

"Madi the Magnificent," said EWU Director of Track and Field Erin Tucker. "I think the opener in December showed her what I have been telling her since last year. Breaking the school record twice in one day, during the second meet, is madness." 

Other notable results from the weekend include Rusty Lee moving into 8th in EWU history in the men's 60-meter hurdles with an 8.46 in the finals, earning 3rd on Saturday. Bradley Fillis won the men's shot put with a 15.82 meter mark. The women's 4x400 relay — Knight, Takiyah Blue, Sydney Thweatt and Jordan Koetje — finished 4th at 3:52.74, good for 9th in program history. Ellie Linnenburger and Lilly Fetzer finished 3rd and 4th in the 3,000 meters in Friday's Spokane Sports Showcase, good for 5th and 6th in the Big Sky so far this year.

"We competed hard and worked to get better, that is all you can ask for," Tucker added. "Now, back to practice to start focusing on the Kibbie Dome next weekend. We are moving in the direction I like and have a lot more in the tank." 

Eastern will compete in the Lauren McCluskey Memorial hosted by the University of Idaho next weekend, starting on Jan. 19.
 

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Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.

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