CU Invitational – April 8-9
Potts Field – Boulder, Colo. [Meet Info/Schedule] [Live Results]

---

NORTH ON HIGHWAY 93
That is the likely route for the Colorado School of Mines Men's and Women's Track & Field teams this weekend as they head to Boulder, Colo., for the CU Invitational hosted by the University of Colorado on Friday and Saturday. It looks to be a large meet with at least 13 institutions represented in the early entries. With multiple NCAA Division I programs to set the pace and nearly perfect weather in the forecast, it should be a great weekend for low times and high marks across the board.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Fans planning to attend either day of the CU Invitational should be aware that all spectators are restricted to all Clear Bag Policy rules and regulations as laid out on page six of the MEET INFO packet.
 
FAN INFORMATION
Admission will be free on Friday with an $8 fee for all spectators on Saturday. Recommended event parking will be available in lot 532 located north of the hammer/discus field. Some of the lots on East Campus require a permit. A full parking map is available on page four of the MEET INFO packet.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
At the very least, live results will be offered at www.cubuffs.com/tracklive. There will potentially be live video with information to follow. If there is live video, it will be linked at www.minesathletics.com and on Twitter at @MinesAthletics.
 
WEATHER FORECAST
Friday offers clear skies and a high of 66 degrees. Wind speeds look to stay in the single digits and humidity won't clear 25 percent. Saturday's forecast projects partly-cloudy skies and a high temperature of 72 degrees. The wind will pick up to 15 mph throughout the day, but overall the environment should remain pleasant. Sunscreen and layers with a light jacket will likely be the move for spectator preparation.
 
WEEKEND FORMAT
The CU Invitational is slated to last two days. Action will start Friday at 2 p.m. with the hammer throw, javelin and triple jump. All other events will compete on Saturday starting at 11 a.m. with the shot put, discus, long jump, high jump, pole vault and the 5,000-meter run. The schedule in the MEET INFO packet is tentative as of Thursday afternoon. A final schedule will be made available once entries are closed and seeding is complete. Start times should remain the same but could shuffle due to weather or safety concerns.
 
GUEST LIST
As mentioned above, the early entries have 13 institutions represented ranging from NCAA Division I all the way down to junior college level. The DI programs planning to attend are Air Force, Colorado State, Northern Colorado and the University of Wyoming with the University of Colorado obviously there as the hosts. Among the NCAA Division II representatives are Mines, Colorado Mesa, Colorado Christian, MSU Denver, Western Colorado, UCCS and CSU Pueblo. Carrying the NCAA Division III banner will be Colorado College out of Colorado Springs. Rounding out the field is Central Wyoming College of the NJCAA. There is still a chance for other institutions to enter and expand the field as of the writing of this preview.
 
LAST WEEKEND
It was a divide-and-conquer sort of weekend for the Orediggers as a crew of distance folks competed at the Stanford Invitational in California while the rest of the Mines squad got after it in Grand Junction at the Maverick Invite. Highlights were aplenty at both sites. In California, Zoe Baker shattered her own program record in the women's 10,000-meter run and put her name at #3 in the nation this season. Dillon Powell destroyed the program record in the men's 10K, running the #8 time DII history and the #1 time in the nation this season. Jake Mitchem did the same in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and posted the #9-ranked time in the history of DII. Molly Maksin joined Baker in the 10K and ran the program's #2 fastest time ever and the #5-ranked time in DII this season. Back in Colorado, the women's 4x400-meter relay team of Randi Higashi, Grace Galvin, Amena Nelson and Aryelle Wright burned out a NCAA-qualifying 3:46.16 which broke their own program record and put them #8 in the nation this season. Field highlights were led by Grant Redmond who cleared 2.06 meters (6-9.0) in the high jump to ranked tied for #12 in the nation. Galvin, Nelson, Mackenzie Duck, Allison Comer, Avery Herbold, Hannah Miller, Kitt Rupar and Kathleen Tomon made contributions to the program record book as well.
 
RMAC TRACK ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Mines claimed both the men's and women's RMAC Track Athlete of the Week awards on Wednesday thanks to Zoe Baker and Jake Mitchem. Baker won the first outdoor award of her career thanks to her 33:52.75 10,000-meter run in California. Mitchem won the first weekly award of any sort of his career by clocking 8:37.87 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Both were program records as Mitchem took over #1 in the nation this season and #9 all-time in the history of DII while Baker put herself #3 in the nation this season.
 
BAKER CROWNED RMAC ACADEMIC ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Zoe Baker had a big day on Wednesday as she was also announced as the RMAC Academic Athlete of the Year for indoor track & field. She led a contingency of 44 Orediggers who were honored on the conference's academic squads. Baker was also RMAC First-Team All-Academic as were Dillon Powell, Jake Mitchem and Grant Redmond. It marked the second time Baker has won RMAC Academic Athlete of the Year for Indoor Track & Field and her fourth top academic honor thanks to two RMAC Academic Runner of the Year accolades in cross country. Baker was also a two-time USTFCCCA All-American during the indoor season, won the RMAC Summit Award and her second straight NCAA Elite 90 at the NCAA Championships.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
The second edition of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association National Track & Field Rating Index came out on Tuesday. Both Mines' men and women made significant jumps. The Oredigger men rose 17 spots to #8 in the nation. Mines' women jumped from #31 to #23. West Texas A&M remained #1 on the women's list. Grand Valley State did the same on the men's side. As a reminder, the USTFCCCA's National TRFI is not a ranking but rather a predictor of national finish based on current NCAA qualifiers.
 
SMALL CHANGE
The NCAA made a small yet notable change for all of track & field in 2021-22. No longer will automatic qualifying times and marks for the NCAA Championships exist. Only a provisional line will be set for all events and the selection committee will choose from those meeting, or surpassing, that one mark.
 
STANDING IN THE HALL OF FAME
Earlier this school year, two Colorado School of Mines Cross Country and Track & Field stars were inducted into the Mines Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the 2021 class. Mack McLain and Dr. Mark Husted entered the Hall of Fame together as two of the most decorated Orediggers of all time in any sport. McLain enters as easily the most decorated Oredigger with three individual national titles and 12 career all-America awards which are the most by any Oredigger in any sport. Husted joins him as a two-time NCAA Division II National Champion and six-time all-American as a student-athlete. Husted was also part of the coaching staff for the men's cross country national crown in 2019.
 
UP NEXT
Mines will have a busy week and a short turnaround after its trip to Boulder. The Orediggers will have representatives at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif., starting Wednesday with more at the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif., on Friday. The men and women will also compete at the Maverick Open in Grand Junction, Colo., on Friday and Saturday. Live coverage information and a full preview will be released next week at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines track & field on Twitter and Instagram at @csmtrack. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.