The Weber State University track teams experienced a successful start to 2019, as the men’s and women’s teams each won five events at the Stacy Dragila Open in Pocatello on Jan. 11 and 12.

In the women’s 3,000 meter run, the Wildcats brought home the top three finishes. Sophomores Lexie Thompson, Michayla Miller and Abby Lawrence finished in first through third place with times of 9:55.11, 10:18.56 and 10:24.38, respectively.

After the race, Thompson’s time was adjusted to 9:42.40, which is currently the fastest time in the Big Sky Conference.

Another new conference high was established in the shot put, as sophomore Sophie Merritt led the way with 48-01.25 points. Her time ranks sixth in WSU history. Freshman Losa Latu and junior Deidre Wilson placed second and third in the competition, respectively.

In the high jump, sophomore Annie Watts recorded the top mark in the conference with a time of 5-07.75.

“We had some great performances overall. Our high jumpers had great marks, with Watts tying her all time mark,” women’s head coach Paul Pilkington said. “The throwers had a great showing as well as they swept the podium and Sophie Merritt posted on our all-time list. Lexie Thompson posted a great 3K time.”

On the men’s side, sophomore Daunte Atkinson won the 200 meter dash with a time of 22.19.

Freshman Tracen Warnick achieved first place in the mile run. His time was 4:12.72, the second fastest in the conference. In the 3,000 meter run, sophomore Krey Ramsey placed second in the Big Sky with an adjusted time of 8:38.87.

In the 60 meter hurdles, sophomore Caleb Whitney took home second place with a personal best time of 8.25. It was also the ninth fastest in Weber State history.

The Wildcats took home the trophy for the 1600 meter relay with a time of 3:20.29. On the pole vault, senior Keaton Pace finished third with a mark of 15-07.00, seventh best in WSU history.

“In this meet, I wanted to see that they were focused and mentally tough, and I saw some of that,” men’s head coach Corbin Talley said. “Keaton Pace had a great finish today. We have a bunch of work to do, and we will start right back up to come back stronger for next week.”

The ‘Cats then competed in the Ed Jacoby Invitational at Boise State University on Jan. 18 and 19, taking home seven trophies.

The top performances included sophomore Nick Benham taking first place in the shot put with a time of 57-09.50, which ranked second in the conference. On the women’s side, Merritt took home first place with her 49-08.25 mark and currently leads the conference.