PROVO, Utah – Freshman Lexi Eaton scored a new personal record in the high jump at the first outdoor home meet of the season, a height which placed her in the top-15 in the nation, as the women’s track and field team competed against the University of Southern California and Boise State this weekend in Provo.

Eaton, competing in only her second competition of the year, cleared 1.80m (5’ 10.75”) for the first place finish.

Along with Eaton, five other Cougars secured first-place finishes, with BYU exhibiting especially strong performances in the field events.

Nicole Naatjes finished first in the pole vault, clearing 4.02m (13’ 02.25”), and Rachel Fisher came in second, with a height of 3.87m (12’ 08.25”).

The Cougars went two-three-four in the long jump as Fatima Dedrickson jumped 5.69m (18’ 08.00”) for second place, Mellissa Keltner secured a third place finish with a distance of 5.57m (18’ 03.25”) and Elizabeth Wilson came in fourth with a jump of 5.50m (18’ 00.50”).

Keltner also finished first in the triple jump with leaps of 12.13m (39’ 09.50”) with Wilson coming in third, jumping 11.69m (38’ 04.25”).

Rounding out the field events, Brianna French took second in the discus, with a distance of 45.16m (148’ 02.00”), and Allyson Wardell-Andersen finished first in the javelin, throwing 47.76m (156’ 08.25”), a distance that places her just outside the top-25 nationally.

On the track, BYU finished three in the top four in the 1500m, with Katherine Swanson finishing first in 4:47.02, Sarah Darby coming in third in 4:47.76 and Jessica Hilton placing fourth with a time of 4:49.42.

Kendra Christensen finished first in the 3000m, with a time of 10:31.59 and Jenessa Carlson finished second in the 800m in 2:12.69.

And in the 400m, Angela Shields finished second with a time of 1:01.78 and Diane Stewart came in third, finishing in 1:02.40.

Full results from the BYU Tri-Meet can be found at www.runnercard.com.

Along with the BYU Tri-Meet, some distance runners went to California to participate in the Stanford Invitational.  Highlights from the Stanford meet include the 2012 national champion Nachelle Mackie finishing first in the 800m, with a time of 2:03.02.  More results from the Stanford meet can be found at www.gostanford.com.

The Cougars head back to California next week to participate in the Rafer Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational in Los Angeles, April 13-14.

PROVO, Utah – This week the BYU men’s and women’s track and field teams will host their first outdoor meet of the season against Pac-12 powerhouse University of Southern California and Boise State at the Clarence F. Robison Track and Field Complex on Saturday, April 7.

The BYU women broke into the USTFCCCA top-25 this week, at No. 24, and the men hang just outside the top-25 with their current ranking of 26. BYU will face tough competition as USC enters the meet with their men ranked eighth nationally and their women ranked fourth. 

 NCAA indoor mile record holder Miles Batty will be opening his outdoor season at the tri-meet. A two-time national champion, Batty will be participating in the 1500-meters. Batty was an All-American in the 1500m last season and promises to put on a good show in the event.

Other highly ranked men that will be competing include Victor Weirich (ranked third in the pole vault), Chris Carter (eighth in the 400m hurdles), Kevin Nielsen (ninth in the decathlon), Ryan Waite (10th in the 800m) and Cade Lindahl (14th in the 400m).

USC will also bring several athletes ranked in the top-10 in the nation in their respective events. The Trojans feature top-10 athletes in the 100m, 200m, 400m, 10000m, 400m hurdles, hammer throw and javelin. USC also has the number one 4x400m team and the nation’s top 400m runner.

The Cougar men have the 16th-ranked 4x400m relay team, whose best time is just seconds behind that of USC. The final event of the meet has the potential to be an epic showdown between two of the top relay teams in the nation.   

On the women’s side, Christen Guenther will lead the team as the sixth-ranked pole vaulter in the NCAA. Allyson Anderson will compete in the javelin and her season best mark also currently ranks sixth in the nation.

Another women’s athlete to watch is Lexi Eaton, a freshman high jumper that competed for the first time in her college career at the UVU Invitational last week and won the high jump. Eaton was also on the women’s basketball team and was named the West Coast Conference Newcomer of the Year this season.

The USC women will also bring several impressive athletes, including top-10 athletes in the 200m, 10000m, discus and hammer throw.

The meet will be the first scored meet of the outdoor season for the Cougars. The women’s pole vault will be the first event of the meet and will begin at 11:00 a.m. MST. 

Running competition will begin at 1:00 p.m. with the women’s 3000m steeplechase. The final event will be the men’s 4x400m at 3:30 p.m.

Admission to the meet will be $5 per person. Children under age five are free and students with an All-Sports pass will be admitted without charge as well. Live stats will be available at runnercard.com.