After a six week break, the Mavericks were off to the races in their first competition of 2010 this Friday at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The break didn't seem to have any effects on Michelle Clements as she took to the track first in the women's weight throw. On just her second throw she posted a school record mark of 40 feet 11¾ inches. Clements set the previous record back in December at Mines with a 38-2¼ toss. The sophomore placed 8th overall in the DI meet out of a 24 woman field with her record breaking throw.
“This is just the second time Michelle has thrown the weight in competition,” head coach Katrice Thomas said. “I'm happy that after a long break she came to the ring with an aggressive throw and a personal best. We are very proud of Michelle's progress, but at the same time she still has a lot to learn and a lot of experience to gain in this event.” Thomas added that she expects even bigger throws from Clements as the season progresses.
The first event on the track was just as successful for the Mavs as the first field event. Alexis Skarda toed the line in the 1600m run and the sophomore won the event easily as she cruised around the track in a time of 5:18.30 bettering the 2nd place runner by just over 11 seconds. Skarda also claimed the Mavericks mile record which she shattered by 13 seconds.
According to Thomas, Skarda looked strong but very relaxed in her race. “I'm not sure that Alexis realized how close she was to hitting a provisional mark in the event,” Thomas said. “She feels as if she can run a lot faster than the time she posted. And with it being so early in the season, we are looking forward to that progression. In the meantime, after the altitude/track conversion she is currently sitting at a time of 5:07.14 which is good enough for the 4th fastest time nationally.” Skarda was just 3.14 seconds off of the provisional qualifying mark.
Grand Junction's own Breanna Jones had a strong showing in her first collegiate 200m dash. Jones sprinted to 27.00 and secured the 8th fastest time on the night. “Once this freshmen gets rid of the freshmen jitters, I think she is going to hold her own in this event,” Thomas said.
The Mavs were not at full force at this meet as only 8 Mavericks suited up to compete. According to Coach Thomas, this meet was optional and for those who choose to go, was an opportunity to shake off the rust from the holiday break. “I am very pleased with the outcome of this meet,” she said. “I definitely was holding my breath for the past six weeks, but in practice it was evident that fitness levels, for the most part, still look strong, which will play a huge part in our quest to improve upon last year's conference finish.”
The Mavericks, with the help of Skarda, are yet another record closer to their team goal of completely rewriting the record books. Of the 18 records the number of records broken so far is at 7- women's 300m dash, 1500m run, 1600m run, 60m hurdles, shot put, weight throw and triple jump.
The Mavericks will look to break more records as they travel back to the conference site to compete in the Joe Davies meet hosted by the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, CO. Events start at 6 p.m. Friday and will resume Saturday at 10 a.m.
