Cowboys and Cowgirls Seek Warm Weather in California

Cowboys and Cowgirls Seek Warm Weather in California

LARAMIE The University of Wyoming men’s and women’s track and field teams will send 16 student-athletes to this weekend’s Brutus Hamilton Challenge in Berkeley, Calif.

The Cowboys and Cowgirls have battled snowy weather all spring along the Front Range, including no competition last weekend after Colorado State’s Jack Christiansen Invite was canceled. Now the program sends some of their top-end talent to California in search of optimal weather and good competition. Fans can follow live results of each day through GoWYO.com.

Wyoming’s last chance to compete at a meet was at the Utah Spring Classic and Weber State Open on April 8-9. The Cowboys and Cowgirls combined for 11 all-time top-10 marks over the course of the two days.

Advertisement - Story continues below...

Junior Audra DeStefano broke her own school record in the steeplechase by seven seconds and set a facility record en route to earning Mountain West Female Track Athlete of the Week. Junior Jordan Charles was impressive as well, as he ran the third-fastest 110-meter hurdles and fifth-fastest 100 meters in program history.

“The purpose of this weekend’s meet is to get NCAA first-round marks,” UW head coach Bryan Berryhill said. “We scheduled this meet because we think it will be good across all event areas to give our kids a chance to hit those marks they need to in order to get to the NCAA’s first round. We are hoping the weather will cooperate.”

 

Last Time Out: DeStefano Downs Steeplechase School Record

Junior Audra DeStefano broke her own school record in the steeplechase to guide the University of Wyoming track and field teams to seven all-time marks on April 9 at the Weber State Outdoor Open at Stewart Stadium. The Cowboys and Cowgirls notched four marks the previous day in Salt Lake City.

“I thought it was a great weekend,” UW head coach Bryan Berryhill said. “We had really nice weather in Utah and Colorado and our kids took advantage of it.”

 

“I was impressed with how they performed given we haven’t been able to get outside for a lot of quality practices this spring. Audra proved she is as mentally tough as any athlete I’ve coach. To run one of the top times in the nation after being sick last week and with the wind blowing like it was today was pretty impressive,” – Head Coach Bryan Berryhill.

 

DeStefano clocked an altitude-converted time of 10:11.65 to win the event and break her previous record of 10:18.51 from last season. The time leads the Mountain West and ranks 14th in the NCAA this season. Her flat time of 10:26.08 was also a facility record for Stewart Stadium.

Senior Catherine Cloetta also ran well in the race, finishing third in a personal-best 11:00.77 to keep her fourth in Cowgirl history in the event. Fellow distance runner Cassidy Meade placed fifth in the 1,500 meters in 4:33.93, good for seventh in Cowgirl history. Freshman Ja’la Henderson won the 100 meters in a personal-best 11.89, which ranks ninth in Wyoming’s record books, while freshman Allegra Carson was third in the triple jump in 38-1 1/2, eighth in Cowgirl history.

Other event victories for the Wyoming women included senior McKenzie Brogan in the 400 meters in 56.75 and junior Mikalah Skates in the 100-meter hurdles in 14.20. At the CU Invite in Boulder, Colo., senior Madison Seaman won the discus with a toss of 152-6.

The Cowboys were paced by junior Jordan Charles with two all-time marks. He won the 110-meter hurdles in 13.83 to move up to third in Cowboy history and was runner-up in the 100 meters in 10.49, good for fifth in Wyoming’s record books. His time in the hurdles is the fastest in the conference this season and 19th in the nation.

Freshman Kyle Alexander was runner-up in the triple jump with a personal-best leap of 44-3 1/2, while sophomore Jonah Henry ran a personal-best 3:54 in the 1,500 meters for fourth. Freshman Bryce Ailshie was third in the 400 meters in 49.11 and senior Wyatt Mirich placed the same in the high jump by clearing 6-4 3/4.

At the CU Invite, senior Tyler Anderson was second in the hammer with a throw of 194-11. Sophomore Garrett Lynch was third in the shot put at 52-0 and fourth in the discus at 156-0. Freshman Martin Fitzwater claimed fourth in the shot put with a personal-best throw of 49-3.

 

 

 

DeStefano Tabbed MW Female Track Athlete of the Week

Wyoming’s Audra DeStefano was named the Mountain West Female Track Athlete of the Week, the conference office announced April 12. The weekly award was the second of her career, while she was the second Cowgirl to claim the accolade this season.

DeStefano, a junior from Gillette, had an impressive outdoor opener at the Weber State Open on April 9 in Ogden, Utah. She won the steeplechase with an altitude-converted time of 10:11.65 to break her own previous school record in the event by seven seconds. Her time led the Mountain West and ranked 14th in the NCAA at the time. DeStefano’s flat time of 10:26.08 was also a facility record for Stewart Stadium.

 

Rewriting Wyoming’s All-Time Top 10

The Cowboys and Cowgirls notched 11 all-time top-10 performances at the Utah Spring Classic and Weber State Open on April 8-9. Junior Audra DeStefano was the top Cowgirl, as she ran 10:11.64 in the steeplechase to break her own school record in the event. Her flat time also set a facility record at Weber State’s Stewart Stadium.

Junior Jordan Charles notched three all-time marks between the two meets, including two at Weber State. He ran the third-fastest 110-meter hurdles in Cowboy history in 13.83 and added the fifth-fastest 100 meters in 10.49. The current Cowboy roster owns 13 individual top-10 marks in Wyoming’s outdoor history, while the current Cowgirls have 19, including 11 this year. UW has 74 entrees between the two programs and the two seasons.

 

 

Outdoor National Rankings

Three Cowboys and Cowgirls currently rank in the NCAA’s top 50 of an event. Junior Jordan Charles is the top Cowboy at No. 23 in the 110-meter hurdles after running 13.83 at the Weber State Open on April 9. Junior Audra DeStefano is the only Cowgirl in the top 50 at No. 19 in the steeplechase. She ran 10:11.64 at the same meet as Charles.

Senior Kyle Sullivan is No. 43 in the decathlon with 6,683 points at last week’s Cal State Invite. Charles and DeStefano also currently lead the Mountain West in their respective events. Teamwise, in the most recent USTFCCCA outdoor mountain region rankings the Cowgirls are 10th and the Cowboys 15th.

 

Next Up

Wyoming makes its final preparations for the Mountain West Outdoor Championships by hosting the 7220 Invite on April 29 at the Louis S. Madrid Sports Complex in Laramie. Events are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.