By Adrianne Nash
BYU men’s track got off to a powerful start in the Mountain West Conference championships, taking the lead after a victory in the decathlon.
BYU men swept the decathlon, with Curtis Pugsley, Hyrum Prince, and Daniel Parkinson taking first, second, and third places, respectively.
The sweep gave BYU a total of 24 team points, putting it comfortably in first place after two days of competition. Air Force, the second place team, scored only seven points.
Pugsley scored a new personal best of 7,525 points. The score places Pugsley among the top ten in the nation. It also virtually guarantees him a trip to the NCAA championships.
Pugsley was dominant in every event, taking first place in six events, second place in three events, and third place only once.
However, Pugsley said that he still felt cautious about his lead for most of the competition.
“The decathlon can change pretty fast,” Pugsley said. “I had to keep the attitude that it’s not over until it’s over.”
Pugsley said that only after the pole vault, the eighth event in the competition, did he feel that he had clinched the win.
Pugsley hopes that he will perform as well in the individual field events, which begin on Friday. Pugsley will be competing in the pole vault, high jump, and long jump.
The decisive victory in the decathlon was an example of the changes in competition in the new Mountain West Conference.
Many athletes, and even the coaches, feel that BYU will be a more dominant track and field team in the new conference due to the lack of competitive programs in other universities.
“There’ll be some good people in all the events,” said assistant coach Mark Robison. “But some events are weak as to depth.”
Head coach Willard Hirschi agrees. He said that now that powerful track and field schools like Rice, UTEP, and Utah State are no longer in the same conference, the level of competition has diminished.
“The performance required to score on the events won’t be as high,” said Hirschi.
However, Hirschi expressed his confidence that competition for the first place in each event will be very high.
“On paper, we could win easily … if our kids perform like they’re capable of performing,” Hirschi said.
Other athletes on the team insist that their strongest competition is among themselves, both physically and mentally.
Sprinter Kenneth Andam, whose event finals take place May 20, said that he is sufficiently recovered from a foot fracture to put forward a winning effort in every event.
“Right now, my strongest competition is Thobias [Akwenye],” Andam said.
Akwenye, another BYU sprinter, said that, despite the lack of tough competition within the conference, there is much pressure on BYU’s men to continue to improve.
“The conference is weaker, but that still doesn’t mean we’re any better,” Akwenye said.
Russ Elggren, a BYU hurdler, also said that most of his competition will be his teammates.
“We’re a very, very strong hurdling team,” Elggren said. “There are fewer teams in the conference, which allows for greater depth in a team.”
Elggren will be competing in the 110 m and 400 m hurdles. The qualifying trials will be held Friday, with the finals taking place on Saturday.
Hirschi also anticipated a tight competition in the field events, especially from Wyoming, who took a surprising second place in the conference indoor championships in the field events.
The actual level of competition remains to be seen, with the bulk of the events taking place May 19 and 20.
Hirschi anticipates strong competition in various events from Colorado State University and Air Force.
Andam, however, is confident that he’ll be able to handle whatever challenges he faces.
“You just go out and run your own race,” Andam said. “The person who’s mentally ready will run the race, and I know that I’m mentally ready.”
