Sports
Utah State Track & Field Prepares for NCAA West First Rounds
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State track and field’s 21 qualified athletes are set to compete at the 2025 NCAA West First Rounds at E.B. Cushing Stadium in College Station, Texas, from Wednesday to Saturday, May 28-31. MEET INFORMATION 2025 NCAA West First Rounds Date: May 28-31, 2025 Start: Wednesday @ 9 a.m.; Thursday @ 9 […]
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State track and field’s 21 qualified athletes are set to compete at the 2025 NCAA West First Rounds at E.B. Cushing Stadium in College Station, Texas, from Wednesday to Saturday, May 28-31.
MEET INFORMATION
2025 NCAA West First Rounds
Date: May 28-31, 2025
Start: Wednesday @ 9 a.m.; Thursday @ 9 a.m.; Friday @ noon; Saturday @ noon (MT)
Site: College Station, Texas
Venue: E.B. Cushing Stadium
Live Streaming: ESPN+
Live Results: Record Timing
Competitions: Meet Schedule and Start Lists (Men and Women)
More Information: Championships Central
DIRECTOR OF TRACK & FIELD/CROSS COUNTRY ARTIE GULDEN
“This will be a great week for us! We are very proud to have 21 student-athletes here at the NCAA West prelims. We have a lot of kids not satisfied with just being here – they want to move on. If we can compete like we’ve competed all year, I like our chances to have a number of them move on to the NCAA finals.”
RAISING THE BAR
Hammer, who holds the USU outdoor pole vault record, made Aggie history by clearing 5.50 meters (18-0.5) at the BYU Indoor Invitational on January 11, setting the Utah State indoor pole vault record. His mark bested the previous record of 5.45 meters (17-10.5), which was set by Lance White in 1994 and matched by Mark Calvin in 1998. Hammer broke his own record the following week by clearing 5.55 meters (18-2.5) at the Snake River Open on Jan. 17. At the Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Invite on Feb. 1, Hammer broke both his own record and the George Nelson Fieldhouse record with his mark of 5.60 meters (18-4.5). On February 15, the Nampa, Idaho, product cleared 5.61 meters (18-4.75) at the Tyson Invitational to break the school record. Hammer tied his school record en route to a sixth-place finish at the 2025 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, earning first-team All-American honors. He joins White as the only USU men’s pole vaulters to earn both indoor and outdoor All-American honors.
On April 17, Hammer broke his own outdoor school record and Mountain West record at the Pacific Coast Invitational, clearing 5.68 meters (18-7.5), then broke it again two days later at the Beach Invitational with a height of 5.70 meters (18-8.25). He also broke his own MW championship record by clearing 5.65 meters (18-6.5) at the conference championships on May 17. Hammer enters the prelims with the second-best outdoor pole vault mark in the NCAA and the seventh-highest mark of any American, professional or collegiate, in 2025.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOK
Utah State distance runners have set six school records during the 2025 outdoor campaign. At the Stanford Invitational on April 4, graduate Camren Todd shattered the USU record in the 10,000 meters with his finishing time of 28:10.91, a time 22.54 seconds faster than the record set by Luke Beattie in 2021. Junior Sarah Ellis became the first Aggie woman to break a school record in the 2024-25 campaign by running the 5,000 meters in 16:04.58, topping Mica Rivera’s time of 16:07.73 set in 2023. On April 16 at the Bryan Clay Invitational, junior Logan Garnica broke the USU record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:33.91, topping graduate teammate Max Wehrli’s mark from the 2024 edition of the meet. Stanford’s track hosted another Utah State school record as Thornley topped Ellis’ 5,000-meter performance with her own time of 16:01.44 at the Payton Jordan Invitational. Two more school records fell at the 2025 Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Clovis, California, as graduate Hannah Davidson ran the 1,500 meters in 4:23.72, topping Tylee Skinner’s time of 4:23.99 from 2018, and sophomore Shelby Jensen clocked in at 9:48.44 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to best Cierra Simmons-Mecham’s record time of 9:49.33 from the same 2018 season. Five of the six record-breaking runners will feature at the NCAA prelims.
USU’s sprint squad set their first school record of the year in the final meet of the regular season. At the Franson Last Chance in Azusa, California, the women’s 4×400-meter relay team of freshman Mashaylee Jones, senior Emma Reeves, Nielson and junior Alison Richter broke USU’s 29-year-old record in the event with their time of 3:38.66.
POLE VAULT U
Utah State pole vaulters have claimed eight top-10 placements in Aggie history so far in the 2025 track and field season. Hammer’s indoor school record of 5.61 meters (18-4.75) headlined a prolific indoor season that also saw Richards set the sixth-best mark in school history at the Tyson Invitational with a clearance of 5.25 meters (17-2.75) and junior Marshall Rasmussen set the seventh best with a height of 5.21 meters (17-1) at the MW Indoor Championships. On the women’s side, freshman Abbie Scott claimed the second-best height in Aggie history by clearing 4.11 meters (13-5.75) in her silver-medal performance at the MW Indoor Championships and freshman Lucy Jeppson set the fifth-best mark with her clearance of 3.88 meters (12-8.75) at the BYU December Invitational. Aggie vaulters have carried their momentum into the outdoor season, with Richards setting USU’s fourth-best mark of 5.30 meters (17-4.75) at the Bobcat Invitational, Rasmussen posting the seventh-best mark of 5.19 meters (17-0.25) at the UNLV Rebel ELITE, and Hammer twice breaking the outdoor school record at April’s Long Beach, California, meets. All three vaulters are set to compete at the NCAA prelims on Wednesday.
BOUND FOR OREGON?
Utah State has 21 athletes competing in 18 events at the NCAA West First Rounds. Berths to the First Rounds were awarded to the region’s top 48 individuals and top 24 relay teams in each event. Aggie athletes set to compete this weekend are listed below with their regional seed and converted marks.
USU Men:
MEET INFORMATION
2025 NCAA West First Rounds
Date: May 28-31, 2025
Start: Wednesday @ 9 a.m.; Thursday @ 9 a.m.; Friday @ noon; Saturday @ noon (MT)
Site: College Station, Texas
Venue: E.B. Cushing Stadium
Live Streaming: ESPN+
Live Results: Record Timing
Competitions: Meet Schedule and Start Lists (Men and Women)
More Information: Championships Central
DIRECTOR OF TRACK & FIELD/CROSS COUNTRY ARTIE GULDEN
“This will be a great week for us! We are very proud to have 21 student-athletes here at the NCAA West prelims. We have a lot of kids not satisfied with just being here – they want to move on. If we can compete like we’ve competed all year, I like our chances to have a number of them move on to the NCAA finals.”
RAISING THE BAR
Hammer, who holds the USU outdoor pole vault record, made Aggie history by clearing 5.50 meters (18-0.5) at the BYU Indoor Invitational on January 11, setting the Utah State indoor pole vault record. His mark bested the previous record of 5.45 meters (17-10.5), which was set by Lance White in 1994 and matched by Mark Calvin in 1998. Hammer broke his own record the following week by clearing 5.55 meters (18-2.5) at the Snake River Open on Jan. 17. At the Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Invite on Feb. 1, Hammer broke both his own record and the George Nelson Fieldhouse record with his mark of 5.60 meters (18-4.5). On February 15, the Nampa, Idaho, product cleared 5.61 meters (18-4.75) at the Tyson Invitational to break the school record. Hammer tied his school record en route to a sixth-place finish at the 2025 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships, earning first-team All-American honors. He joins White as the only USU men’s pole vaulters to earn both indoor and outdoor All-American honors.
On April 17, Hammer broke his own outdoor school record and Mountain West record at the Pacific Coast Invitational, clearing 5.68 meters (18-7.5), then broke it again two days later at the Beach Invitational with a height of 5.70 meters (18-8.25). He also broke his own MW championship record by clearing 5.65 meters (18-6.5) at the conference championships on May 17. Hammer enters the prelims with the second-best outdoor pole vault mark in the NCAA and the seventh-highest mark of any American, professional or collegiate, in 2025.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOK
Utah State distance runners have set six school records during the 2025 outdoor campaign. At the Stanford Invitational on April 4, graduate Camren Todd shattered the USU record in the 10,000 meters with his finishing time of 28:10.91, a time 22.54 seconds faster than the record set by Luke Beattie in 2021. Junior Sarah Ellis became the first Aggie woman to break a school record in the 2024-25 campaign by running the 5,000 meters in 16:04.58, topping Mica Rivera’s time of 16:07.73 set in 2023. On April 16 at the Bryan Clay Invitational, junior Logan Garnica broke the USU record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:33.91, topping graduate teammate Max Wehrli’s mark from the 2024 edition of the meet. Stanford’s track hosted another Utah State school record as Thornley topped Ellis’ 5,000-meter performance with her own time of 16:01.44 at the Payton Jordan Invitational. Two more school records fell at the 2025 Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Clovis, California, as graduate Hannah Davidson ran the 1,500 meters in 4:23.72, topping Tylee Skinner’s time of 4:23.99 from 2018, and sophomore Shelby Jensen clocked in at 9:48.44 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to best Cierra Simmons-Mecham’s record time of 9:49.33 from the same 2018 season. Five of the six record-breaking runners will feature at the NCAA prelims.
USU’s sprint squad set their first school record of the year in the final meet of the regular season. At the Franson Last Chance in Azusa, California, the women’s 4×400-meter relay team of freshman Mashaylee Jones, senior Emma Reeves, Nielson and junior Alison Richter broke USU’s 29-year-old record in the event with their time of 3:38.66.
POLE VAULT U
Utah State pole vaulters have claimed eight top-10 placements in Aggie history so far in the 2025 track and field season. Hammer’s indoor school record of 5.61 meters (18-4.75) headlined a prolific indoor season that also saw Richards set the sixth-best mark in school history at the Tyson Invitational with a clearance of 5.25 meters (17-2.75) and junior Marshall Rasmussen set the seventh best with a height of 5.21 meters (17-1) at the MW Indoor Championships. On the women’s side, freshman Abbie Scott claimed the second-best height in Aggie history by clearing 4.11 meters (13-5.75) in her silver-medal performance at the MW Indoor Championships and freshman Lucy Jeppson set the fifth-best mark with her clearance of 3.88 meters (12-8.75) at the BYU December Invitational. Aggie vaulters have carried their momentum into the outdoor season, with Richards setting USU’s fourth-best mark of 5.30 meters (17-4.75) at the Bobcat Invitational, Rasmussen posting the seventh-best mark of 5.19 meters (17-0.25) at the UNLV Rebel ELITE, and Hammer twice breaking the outdoor school record at April’s Long Beach, California, meets. All three vaulters are set to compete at the NCAA prelims on Wednesday.
BOUND FOR OREGON?
Utah State has 21 athletes competing in 18 events at the NCAA West First Rounds. Berths to the First Rounds were awarded to the region’s top 48 individuals and top 24 relay teams in each event. Aggie athletes set to compete this weekend are listed below with their regional seed and converted marks.
USU Men:
| Event | USU Athletes |
| 800 Meters | 16. Landon Bott, 1:47.11. |
| 10,000 Meters | 18. Camren Todd, 28:10.91. |
| 3,000-Meter Steeplechase | 9. Logan Garnica, 8:33.91; 34. Garrett Woodhouse, 8:46.89. |
| 4×100-Meter Relay | 17. Utah State (Diego Aguirre-Stewart, Daniel Chase, Mathew Hall, Ayodele Ojo, Brennan Benson), 39.65. |
| High Jump | 32. Taite Priestley, 2.12 meters (6-11.5). |
| Pole Vault | 2. Logan Hammer, 5.70 meters (18-8.25); 27. Javin Richards, 5.30 meters (17-4.5); 44. Marshall Rasmussen, 5.19 meters (17-0.25). |
| Discus | 29. Nate Franz, 57.13 meters (187-5); 39. Joseph Turner, 56.37 meters (184-11). |
| Javelin | 25. Walker Deede, 68.72 meters (225-5). |
USU Women:
The top-12 finishers in each event at each of the NCAA West and East First Rounds will qualify for the NCAA Outdoor National Championships, held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, from June 11-14.
LAST MEET
The Utah State men’s team placed third and the women’s team finished ninth at the 2025 Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Clovis, California, from May 15-17. The Aggies won two individual titles, earned 11 medals, broke two school records and posted 10 performances that rank in the top 10 in Utah State history.
FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow the Utah State track and field programs on X at USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on X at USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.
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