PITTSBURG, Kan.— Grand Junction native and Colorado Mesa University freshman
Miller Jones recorded a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference-leading and improved high-level NCAA Division II Championship provisional qualifying mark in the triple jump as he and junior teammate
Eddie Kurjak won events to lead the Maverick track & field team's efforts on the second and final day of the Indoor Gorilla Classic.
Jones' mark of 15.57 meters (51 feet, 1 inches) moved him to second on CMU's all-time performers chart behind only former all-American
Gunner Rigsby and will almost assuredly earn Jones of a return trip here to Pittsburg State University's Plaster Center, which will host next month's NCAA Division II National Championships. Jones, who also claimed his first collegiate win on Saturday after setting the Colorado 4A State Championship record while competing for the Grand Junction High School Tigers last spring, will rank as high as third on the national performance list pending other weekend results from around the country.
Kurjak also turned in a winning high jump effort of 2.19 meters (7-2.25), just one centimeter off his school-record setting jump of 2.20 meters (7-2.5) set just two weeks ago in Golden, Colorado. Kurjak is currently tied for third on the national list. He has now cleared more than seven feet in each of his last three meets and has won three straight and four of five high jump competitions this season, placing second in the other.
Meanwhile,
Josie Coffey took second in the invitational section of the women's high jump, clearing 1.72 meters (5-7.75) after setting her CMU record of 1.74 meters (5-8.5) two weeks prior.
The Mavs also had some other strong efforts both on the track and in the field.
In the men's 60-meter dash,
Teo Casados and
Elijah Williams both reached the finals after running preliminary round times of 6.77 and 6.78 seconds, respectively. Casados' mark is a slightly improved NCAA Championship provisional qualifying mark after he ran an altitude-adjusted time of 6.79 (6.75-actual) in December. Williams had an earlier altitude-adjusted season-best of 6.76.
In the finals, Casados placed fifth in 6.80 seconds while Williams was seventh in 6.81. Fellow Maverick
Kade Christensen was tenth in the preliminary round with a time of 6.87 seconds.
CMU sophomore
Justin Blanton also shined in the 400 meters, crossing the line in 49.39 seconds to move up five spots to third in program history while placing 20
th in a field of 50 starters.
Kelsey Montague was 24
th in 49.68 seconds.
After advancing out of Friday qualifying in the women's 60 meters,
Gaby Horton finished 17
th in the preliminary round on Saturday, running to a time of 7.84 seconds.
Elsewhere,
Kylee Kielian finished ninth in the women's triple jump with a mark of 11.58 meters (38-0) while
Venesa Handzhiyska was 13
th with a performance of 11.41 meters (37-5.25).
Zace Buckhold also placed ninth in the men's triple jump behind Jones with a leap of 14.17 meters (46-5.75)
Katie Thomson also led a group of four Mavs in the women's 60-meter hurdles, placing 25
th in 9.30 seconds.
The Mavericks will send another contingent of athletes to the Western Colorado Open in Gunnison next Friday (Feb. 16) before competing in the RMAC Championships on Feb. 23-24 in Spearfish, South Dakota.
