LOGAN -- Oliver Whaley threw the hammer 59.44 meters to take the Mountain West Conference lead in the event as the BYU men’s track and field team finished competition at the Mt. SAC and Utah State Faldmo Invitiationals on Saturday.

Whaley’s new personal best is a meter improvement from the junior’s previous high while pushing him into the the top 25 in the NCAA west region in the event. Whaley finished in first place at Utah State to win the hammer throw.

Also in Logan, Daniel Lawson took first in the shot put and second in the discus. Lawson’s shot put throw went 16.97 meters to take the championship while also throwing 52.28 meters in the discus.

Joshua Speirs competed for the Cougars in the pole vault, tying for fifth place with a top height of 4.60 meters.

In California at the Mt. SAC Relays, BYU finished out the meet with Ryan Waite running the 800 meters in 1:53.48 to finish in 11th place.

BYU track and field will be back in action at home next week for the annual Robison Invitational, which will take place from April 21-24 at the Clarence Robison Track and Field complex in Provo.

PROVO -- It is a big weekend for the BYU women’s and men’s track and field teams as several athletes head to the prestigious Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut, California, while other athletes will head north to Logan for the Mark Faldmo Invitational at Utah State.

The best track and field athletes in the nation annually attend the Mt. Sac Relays, with sections for Olympians, college elite athletes, college open athletes and high school athletes.

Competing in the elite sections for the women will be Katy Andrews (steeplechase), Katie Bowen (steeplechase), Lacey Cramer (800m), Rachel Lange (steeplechase), Mindy McClurkin (200m and long jump) and Katie Palmer-Cox (steeplechase).

On the men’s side Brandon Hebbert (10000m), Ryan Merriman (steeplechase), Richard Nelson (steeplechase) and Nathan Ogden (10000m) will all compete in elite collegiate sections.

Competition will be intense at the meet, with many of the top 25 ranked schools from the NCAA West Region attending.

At the Mark Faldmo Invitational the BYU men and women will face teams from Utah State, Utah, Idaho State, Utah Valley, Arizona and Weber State.

The Mt. Sac Relays are scheduled to start Thursday evening at 4:00 p.m. MST with the women’s open section of the 3000m steeplechase and is scheduled to conclude on Saturday at 4:55 p.m. MST with the men’s elite section of the 4x400m relay.

The Mark Faldmo Invitational will be a one day meet that will begin on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. MST with the men’s and women’s hammer throw and will conclude at 3:40 p.m. MST with the men’s 4x400m relay.