Mersal, Reynolds Win Back-to-Back Mountain West Titles, Six Advance to Finals

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (February 28, 2025) – Seniors Kareem Mersal and Daniel Reynolds win back-to-back Mountain West titles as the University of Wyoming track and field program sets 18 personal bests and five Top-10 program times on day two of the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships, Friday.

Reynolds opened the day with a monstrous first toss, the only one needed to secure his second-straight Mountain West weight throw championship. A throw, that even the cameras couldn’t zoom out enough for, reached a distance of 82’ 2 3/4" (25.06 meters). This performance boosted Reynolds to the NCAA lead, No. 2 in NCAA history, No. 7 in the U.S. and No. 8 in the world. He is also the first to ever reach 25 meters with a two turn throw. This mark also set the Mountain West Championship record, the Mountain West record and the Wyoming program record.

Freshmen Charles LaFore and Colt Sotelo also made the weight throw final. LaFore set a personal best with his throw of 64’ 4 3/4” (19.63 meters) for fifth place and Sotelo earned ninth with his personal best throw of 60’ 1 3/4" (18.33 meters). The Cowboys gained 14 team points from this single event.

In the men’s long jump, Mersal also secured back-to-back Mountain West titles, this time doing so with a jump of 25’ 5 1/4" (7.75 meters). Mersal set this mark on his third attempt, with all five successful tries well ahead of the competition.

Sophomore Christian Edwards took sixth with his best jump landing him at 22’ 9” (6.93 meters). In total, the two Cowboys earned 13 points for the team in the long jump.

Freshman Koi Adderley was the lone Cowgirl in the high jump. She placed fifth overall after clearing a personal best height of 5’ 6 1/2" (1.69 meters) on her first attempt, adding 2.5 points for the Cowgirls.

The women’s long jump was led for the Cowgirls by freshman Taliah Morris. Her jump of 18’ 11 1/4” (5.77 meters) earned her eighth place and a team point. Three other Cowgirls, junior Elayna Chafee (13th), senior Joan Easter (19th) and Adderley (20th) also competed.

Morris’ day didn’t end there as she also ran in the 60-meter and 200-meter prelims. In the 60 meters, she placed 16th with a time of 7.69, but she truly shined in the 200 meters. In that event, the freshman advanced to the final with an altitude adjusted time of 23.71. Not only is this a personal best, but it also tied the No. 1 time in indoor program history. The Wyoming native now sits atop the record book with three-time All-American Jessica Fox, matching her time from the 2004 indoor season.

Three other Cowgirls set personal bests in the 200-meter prelims. Freshman Megan Witkiewicz ran a time of 24.98, freshman Madeline Thorne finished with a time of 25.15 and sophomore Isabelle Harvey crossed the line at 26.15, all after altitude adjustments.

In the men’s 60-meter prelims, junior Carter McComb ran to a seventh-place finish of 6.85 and qualified for the final on Saturday.

Senior Jaheim Ferguson advanced to the 60-meter hurdles final with his time of 8.35 in the prelims, finishing seventh.

In the women’s 60-meter hurdles prelims, two Cowgirls set personal bests. Freshman Carly Norman ran to ninth, just missing the final, with a time of 8.76 while freshman Avery Navest finished with a time of 9.35, both altitude adjusted.

Two Cowboys advanced to the men’s 400-meter final. In sixth, freshman Bradley Ekstrom ran a time of 48.09 while sophomore Cody Hape ran to eighth and crossed the line at 48.72.

The women’s 400-meter prelim, while not advancing any Cowgirls, saw four personal bests. Freshman Eva Dellorco ran a time of 55.50, good for the No. 10 time in indoor school history. Senior Gabby Drube finished with a time of 55.94, Thorne finished at 57.51 and Harvey crossed the line at 57.95, all personal bests after altitude conversions.

Cowgirl Libby Berryhill-Worshek set a personal best on her way to advancing to the 800-meter final. Her time of 2:10.76, after conversions, seeded her fifth going into Saturday. Freshmen Hanan Aldelemy and Lily Nichols also set personal bests, finishing in 11th at 2:13.39 and 20th at 2:19.55, respectively.

In the men’s 800-meter prelim, senior Tristan Knueppel just missed out on the final, finishing 10th with a personal best time of 1:52.24.

Senior Abigail Whitman entered the program's Top-10 list with her performance in the mile run. Her altitude converted time of 4:51.85 was good for No. 7 in school history and landed her in 15th place.

In the men’s mile, sophomore Jake Bach finished in 11th with a time of 4:14.28 while junior Mac Zastrow ran to a 15th-place finish at 4:16.30. Senior Trevor Stephen came in 17th with his time of 4:19.24.

UP NEXT

The third and final day of the Mountain West Indoor Championship will begin tomorrow at 10 a.m., with the men’s shot put. Wyoming will compete in six track finals and four field events. The full schedule can be found here.

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