The NAU men’s and women’s track and field teams continued their season this past weekend at the Sun Devil Invitational in Tempe, adding three NCAA Regional qualifying marks and nine Big Sky qualifiers as they continue down the road toward the end of the season.

The headlining result of the meet for the men’s squad was put on by sprinter Rodney Overton, who qualified for the NCAA Regionals by placing first in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.7 seconds. He placed fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.34, which also earned him a berth in the regionals. Overton also leads the conference in both events.

“I had been in a slump but those races helped to boost my confidence,” Overton said.

Another top performance on the men’s team came from Morten Bostrom in the steeplechase as he qualified for the NCAA Regionals, placing first with a time of 9:6.95. 

Other strong outings from the men’s side of things came from the throwing events, as Jacob Nicol and Pat Colonnelli each threw personal bests in the discus, with Nicol tossing a distance of 159 feet, 6 inches and Colonnelli heaving a length of 159-2. Both athletes qualified for the Big Sky Championships with those marks.

For the distance squad, David McNeill and Darius Terry placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 800-meter run, allowing the duo to qualify for the conference championships. McNeill’s final time was 1:52.56 while Terry crossed the line at 1:53.21.

“The team is progressing pretty well and showing improvement,” Overton said. “We’re excited to see what we can do in Montana next month.”

The women’s team also continued to display strong performances as they prepared for the end of the regular season and the subsequent conference and regional championships.

The dominating performance from the women came from thrower Michelle Baltimore, who earned a spot in the NCAA Regionals discus competition with a throw of 158-5. 

“I think I did really well and I had a personal best by two meters,” Baltimore said. “It felt pretty good to do.”

Another highlight result from the women’s team came from sprinter Annie Skordas, who posted a time of 12.17 seconds in the women’s 100, now the second fastest time in the conference in that event.

Women’s hurdler Jenne Childs also had an excellent meet, finishing her race in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.66 seconds. 

“We have on more (regular season) meet left so hopefully we can get some more qualifiers,” Baltimore said.

The teams conclude their regular season against ASU and the U of A at the annual Double Dual meet on May 2. From there, they make their way up north to Montana for the Big Sky Championships May 14, 15 and 16. After that, the team travels to Oregon for the NCAA West Regionals.