Track & Field team splits up for weekend meets

The Chadron State track and field athletes will have their first meet of the second semester in Colorado Springs, Colo., when they compete in the Air Force Academy Invitational Friday and Saturday. Others will have a much shorter road trip to Spearfish, S.D., to face the

competition in the Black Hills State Dave Little Invitational on Saturday.

The last time the Eagle athletes competed was in the beginning of December at the Black Hills State Yellow Jacket Holiday Open. After the winter break, the athletes got back to the grind.

At the Yellow Jacket Holiday Open, many athletes had stellar performances. Skyler Hoopes, sophomore of Lusk, Wyo., set a school record for the pole vault with a height of 15 feet, five inches. Also for pole vault, Kaelie Jelden, senior of Eaton, Colo., won the women’s competition with a launch of 11 feet, five and three-fourths inches, her career best.

In the field part of the meet, Charith Kapukotuwa, senior of Chilaw, Sri Lanka, dominated the weight throw with a distance of 59 feet, four and one-fourth inches, beating his previous best by nearly three feet.

In the running events, junior of St.Leonardo, Jamaica, Alex Graham won the 60-meter dash and nearly beat his personal  and school record he set last year. All of these athletes are expected to shine this coming weekend.

This is the 23rd invitational that the Air Force Academy has hosted, and Chadron will be accompanied by several other RMAC teams as well.

Competition is set to start with throwing events on Friday at the Air Force Invitational and also at the Black Hills Invitational on Saturday.