The University of Wyoming women’s track team defeated the Colorado State Rams 76-33 during Saturday’s Border War Dual in Gillette. The Cowgirls won eight of 12 individual events on the way to their victory.
Senior Audrey West and freshman McKenzie Brogan each stood out for the Pokes, winning two events apiece.
Sadly the Cowboys did not fare as well as the women’s team, losing their dual against the Rams 66-55. Mason Finley continued to be a force for the Pokes, winning two titles in Saturday’s competition.
“I thought both teams competed with good energy and effort today,” said UW head coach Bryan Berryhill, “and that was great to see in our first meet back from break.”
West scored in bunches for the Cowgirls, winning two events and placing second in another. West won titles in the 200 meters with a personal-best 25.35 and the long jump with an 18-4 1/4. In the 60-meter dash West earned a second-place finish with a personal-best 7.66.
Brogan’s first place finishes came in the 400-meter dash in 58.3 and the 600-meter dash in 1:36.3.
Senior Jenna Mann took first in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.49 and redshirt freshman Audra DeStefano won the mile in 5:07.
Finley’s first victory of the day came in the weight throw with a personal-best 63-8 3/4, which put him at 20th in the nation in the event. He went on to gain his second title of the day in the shot put with a throw of 62-7 3/4.
“The great thing about Mason’s performance today is he knew that he had to throw the weight before the shot to help the team,” Berryhill said. “So he did that knowing that would probably affect his showing in the shot, but he did it for the team.”
Senior Garret Zans earned another title for the men with a 4:20 mile. Fellow middle-distance runners Harry Fisher—who won the 600-meter dash in 1:21—and Thomas Atkinson—who won the 800-meter dash in 1:58—both won titles in their debuts as Cowboys.
“The women showed they are very balanced today,” Berryhill said. “We have a lot of good athletes in all the events and showed that with our scoring. We were missing a couple of key men due to injuries, so that affected us today, but we need to get to the point where we have more depth.”
The Wyoming track teams will resume competition on Friday and Saturday at the Air Force Invitational in Colorado Springs, Colo.
