NAMPA, Idaho – Mountaineers Track & Field had a solid start on day one of the annual NNU Invitational as they picked up two event winners, while the multi-event athletes posted quality results. Highlighting the were wins by Justin Ash and Moses McAninch.

In his collegiate debut in the 10,000-meter run, Ash was superb in the 25-lap race. The true freshman won the race with a final time of 31:59.93.He edged second placed by over 12 seconds en route to the win. His time was just over 24 seconds off from the NAIA B qualifying standard. 

For McAninch, he remains undefeated on the year in the javelin after picking up his second win in as many meets this outdoor season. He once again won with ease, defeating second place by over 21 feet, with a throw of 178-5. He hit the winning mark on his final throw of the day.

Currently in first in their respective event after day one is TJ Davis is the decathlon. The 2022 NAIA Indoor National Champion racked up 3,588 points on the first day and has a 205 point lead over second place. He picked up wins in three of the five events to establish his leading heading into day two.

Davis' three wins came in the 100-meter dash, shot put, and 400-meter dash. He placed second in the long jump and tied for third in the high jump. He clocked an 11.19 in the 100 and 50.16 in the 400 for his two track event wins. In shot put, he heaved the rock 40-3 ¼, which was nearly two feet further than second place. In the long jump, Davis leaped 21-8 and in high jump he cleared 5-10 ½. 

On the track, the only event run was the 10,000. On the men's side, the only other competitor was Winston Telford who finished sixth running a 33:13.89. On the women's side, Dierdre McKay and Jessica McDonald competed. Mckay was fifth with a time of 45:16.83, while McDonald was sixth with a time of 49:54.09.

In the field, the hammer throw also went on day one along with javelin. Highlighting the throws group, outside of McAninch, was Maggie Ledbetter in the hammer throw. She placed third with a mark of 151-5. Finishing just outside the top-five was Danielle Church who posted a throw of 129-5.

On the men's side in the hammer throw, Adam Kopf led the charge with a 12th place finish. He hit a mark of 133-2. Tanner Nett finished two spots back in 14th with a mark of 120-8. In the javelin, EOU took home the top two spots on the men's side. Finishing in second by McAninch was Cody Silva. He posted a throw of 157-1, edging out second by 11 inches, for the runner-up finish. On the women's side, Lainy Jacobsen led the way with a fourth place finish. She threw 121-8 to place inside the top-five.

In the heptathlon, Karli Bedard is the one competitor on the list for the Mountaineers. She sits fourth after the first day with 2,473 total points. She had two third place finishes in the four events on day one in the high jump and shot put. She cleared 5-2 ¼ in the high jump and threw 30-8 ½ in the shot put. She placed fourth in the 100-meter hurdles, running 16.24. In the 200-meter dash, Bedard finished fifth with a time of 28.55.

Day two of the NNU Invite gets underway Saturday, April 2, at 8 a.m. PT at Bohner Track. Live results for the meet can be found by clicking the link above.

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