GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— After a brilliant start to the outdoor portion of the season last week, the Colorado Mesa University Maverick track and field teams will take their talents on the road to compete in this weekend's Chuck Haering Invitational at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl.
 
Field event action in the hammer throw, javelin throw and triple jump will be contested on Friday afternoon, staring at 2 p.m. while the bulk of the meet will take place on Saturday morning, starting with running events at 9 a.m. and field events at 10 a.m.
 
More than 50 Maverick athletes are expected to compete.
 
Live results, which currently includes all of the event start times, will be available throughout the meet at the link above.
 
The meet program can be downloaded here.
 
Daily Recaps of the Mavs' marks will be posted on www.cmumavericks.com each evening.
 
Last Time Out
 
The Mavericks opened up their outdoor campaign at home last week, hosting the Maverick Early Bird Open last Thursday and Friday.  They won 23 events and set a pair of school records while also taking down two facility records.
 
They also added five new NCAA Division II Championship provisional qualifying marks, three of which rank the Mavs amongst the top ten in the nation.
 
On the first day, Kaiya Graves smashed her own school record in the women's javelin while Izaak Siefken bettered the facility record in the men's half of the event.  The Mavs won all six events they contested on Thursday.
 
The victories kept coming on Friday as the Mavs claimed 17 more event wins, highlighted by a record-smashing men's 4x100-meter relay effort of 39.62 seconds.  Meanwhile, Graves (women's discus), Antone Higgs (men's triple jump) and Kammi Merritt (women's 400 hurdles) all turned in career-bests and NCAA provisional qualifying marks.
 
The Competition
 
This weekend's meet will include athletes from ten different teams, including eight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference squads.  Additional unattached athletes will also compete.
 
The list of opposition from the RMAC includes the Colorado School of Mines, the host ThunderWolves, Fort Lewis, MSU Denver, New Mexico Highlands, Regis and UCCS.
 
Athletes from Hillsdale in Michigan and Division III Colorado College will also compete.
 
Relay Record
 
The Mavericks' aforementioned 4x100-meter relay squad of Amaris Mora, Joseph Randolph, Marik Cummings and Teo Casados blazed to a time of 39.62 seconds last Friday, a mark that is the quickest in Division II this season even with the altitude conversion penalty that puts it at 39.74 seconds on the national list.
 
The Mavs' actual time is the third fastest in the history of the RMAC and allowed the Mav quartet to be named as the RMAC Track Athletes of the Week, an honor that is typically given to a single athlete,
 
The time is sure to qualify the Mavericks for the NCAA Division II Championships in May and would have ranked fourth on last year's final season national performance list. 
 
It was an incredible 0.59 seconds faster than the Mavs' former school record of 40.21 that Mora, Cummings and Casados set alongside Quentin Hartel while taking the silver medal at last year's RMAC Championships.
 
It also broke the former track record of 40.34, set by UCCS at the 2024 RMAC Championships.
 
The Mavericks have never previously qualified a men's relay team for the national championships.
 
Double Qualifier
 
Maverick junior thrower Kaiya Graves set NCAA Championship qualifying and career-best marks in both the javelin and discus throws last week.  The Laurel, Montana native smashed her nearly 2-year old CMU standard in the javelin by 8 feet, 8 inches with a throw of 43.56 meters (142-11) last Thursday before coming back to win the discus with a mark of 45.79 meters (150-3) as she moved up four spots to third in program history.
 
Her discus throw mark leads the RMAC by 2.61 meters (8 feet, 7 inches) over teammate Kylie Mayer and puts her 15^th on the national performance list as on Friday.  Her javelin throw ranks her second in the conference and 14^th nationally.
 
Jumping Back In
 
After redshirting during the 2025-26 indoor season, 2-time NCAA Championship qualifier Antone Higgs had an impressive return in his return to the main Maverick lineup.  He won both the long and triple jump events during the Maverick Early Bird Open, setting a career-best of 15.08 meters (49-5.75) in the triple jump after setting a solid mark of 7.16 meters (23-6) to win the long jump.
 
The Bahamian senior leads the RMAC in the long jump and stands second in the conference and sixth nationally in the triple jump.
 
Throwing Prowess
 
CMU throws coach Jay Shuman can certainly be proud of his athletes in the early going of the outdoor season. 
 
The Mavs won seven of the eight throwing events during last week's meet.  Four different Maverick men won events while the Mav men went 1-2 in three of them.
 
The Mav women went 1-2-3 in the discus throw and won three events with Augustine Hancock (hammer) joining double-winner Kaiya Graves in the victory club.
 
Earlier in March, Shuman also took Maverick redshirt senior Izaak Siefken to the Beach Opener in Long Beach, California, where Siefken smashed his own school record in the javelin throw while winning out of a field of 18 athletes, including six Division I athletes.
 
Coaching Honor
 
On Monday, Maverick associate head coach Tim Reetz, who guides the Maverick sprinters, hurdlers and relay units, was recognized as the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's Men's South Central Region Assistant Coach of the Year for the 2025-26 indoor season.
 
The honor came just days after Reetz was riding high from the first outdoor meet, which saw the Maverick women win five sprinting, hurdling and relay events.  The Maverick men also won five such events.
 
NCAA Rankings
 
The Mavericks have already posted six NCAA Championship provisional qualifying marks, including four that put the Mavs in the top seven of the country.
 
Here's a look at all of the Mavs' early season national rankings, which they hope will hold up for national selection.  The top 22 declared athletes in each individual event will earn NCAA selection for the May 21-23 meet in Emporia, Kansas.  The top 16 relay teams in each event will also be selected as will the top 16 declared men's decathletes and women's heptathletes.
 
Men
4x100m Relay- 1. Colorado Mesa (39.74*)
Triple Jump- 6. Antone Higgs (15.08m/49-5.75)
Javelin Throw- 4. Izaak Siefken (68.58m/225-0)

Women
400m Hurdles- 7. Kammi Merritt (1:01.10*)
Discus Throw- 15. Kaiya Graves (45.79m/150-3)
Javelin Throw- 14. Graves (43.56m/142-11)
 
*-Altitude Adjusted Time

Early Conference Leaders
 
The Mavericks also have five individuals who lead the RMAC early on this outdoor season.  Both of CMU 4x100-meter relays also pace the conference heading into this weekend.
 
Here's a look at all of the Mavs' RMAC-leading marks.
 
Men's
200m- Teo Casados (21.15*)
4x100m Relay- 39.74*
Long Jump- Antone Higgs (7.16m/23-6)
Javelin Throw- Izaak Siefken (68.58m/225-0)

Women
100m- Hannah Schissler (11.92*)
4x100m Relay- 46.81*
Discus Throw- Kaiya Graves (45.79m/150-3)
 
*-Altitude Adjusted Time

Entries
 
The Mavericks have entered 56 athletes (31 women, 25 women) into the meet and are expected to compete in 30 (17 women's, 13 men's) total events.  They have made 112 total entries.
 
All of the Mavericks' entries are listed below.
 
Men (25 Athletes, 52 Entries)
100m (5): Mason Anderson, Justin Blanton, Marik Cummings, Amaris Mora, Joseph Randolph
200m (9): Blake Ames, Blake Anderson, Blanton, Cummings, Jordan Fraser Logan Hafey, Asa Keim, Mora, Randolph
400m (3): Blake Anderson, Fraser, Hafey
800m (1): Edgar Hernandez
110m Hurdles (3): Aidan Brownell, AJ Iarusso, Trevor Kendall
400m Hurdles (2): Ames, Brownell
4x400m Relay: 1 Team
High Jump (2): Keim, Devin Shea
Long Jump (7): Mason Anderson, Salem Brunk, Weston Domich, Jalen Hale, Antone Higgs, Hayden Moreno, Shea
Triple Jump (4): Brunk, Domich, Hale, Higgs
Shot Put (4): Jackson Bevan, Van Chambers, Keim, Kaiden Major
Discus Throw (6): Bevan, Chambers, Kannon Garrettson, Keim, Major, Austin Schultz
Hammer Throw (5): Bevan, Chambers, Garettson, Major, Schultz
 
Women (31 Athletes, 60 Entries)
100m (7): Elaina Arcand, Sierra Buzick, Taiya Carl, Sylvia Johansen, Kammi Merritt, Genesis Nehmer, Hannah Schissler
200m (9): Arcand, Buzick, Cami Costello, Olivia Langner, Atahlia Mills, Merritt, Nehmer, Schissler, Abby Varner
400m (3): Costello, Langner, Varner
1500m (2): Elizabeth Boice, Caitlyn Boyle
5K (3): Wehazit Kelati, Kate Linstedt, Autumn McQuitty
100m Hurdles (2): Mills, Jessie Schaffer
400m Hurdles (2): Emily Fowler, Schaffer
4x100m Relay: 1 Team
4x400m Relay: 1 Team
High Jump (4): Misha Edwards, Kaelea Gibson, Addison Hayes, Mills
Pole Vault (1): Carl
Long Jump (6): Edwards, Waycee Harvey, Hayes, Emily Hruby, Addy Kirkpatrick, Kendra Ritzmann
Triple Jump (4): Harvey, Hayes, Kirkpatrick, Ritzmann
Shot Put (3): Aaliyah Bos, Brilee Jensen, Elly Thiem
Discus Throw (6): Bos, Kaiya Graves, Brilee Jensen, Augustine Hancock, Kylie Mayer, Theim
Hammer Throw (4): Bos, Hancock, Jensen, Thiem
Javelin Throw (2): Ritzmann, Mayer
 
Colorado Mesa turns 100
 
The CMU Century Celebration stands as the cornerstone of Colorado Mesa University's year-long centennial celebration. This ambitious initiative unites our community in honoring a rich heritage while boldly envisioning the next hundred years of academic excellence.

Led by the Steering Committee and six specialized sub-committees, we're orchestrating a transformative experience that will resonate through generations. Each committee brings unique expertise to create an unforgettable commemoration of our past, present and future.
 
To learn more about Colorado Mesa's 100-year celebration, visit cmucentury.com.
 
Up Next
 
The Mavericks will return home to host the High Desert Dental Maverick Invitational next Thursday and Friday (Apr. 2-3).

An elite group of Mavericks will also compete at next week's Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in Austin.