Utah State track and field earned 31 team points and a new top-10 school performance on May 14 during the first day of the 2026 Mountain West Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Clovis, California.
The event saw junior Walker Deede secure the conference title in men’s javelin with a throw of 72.91 meters (239-2), marking his first Mountain West gold medal. Deede led from his opening attempt and surpassed the competition by over 23 feet. He had previously won silver medals in both 2024 and 2025, becoming Utah State’s first gold medalist in men’s javelin since Kyle Morris in 2021. Junior Kace Jones joined him on the podium with a silver after throwing 62.72 meters (205-9), achieving his best mark on his first attempt.
In women’s javelin, senior Valerie Clark finished fourth with a throw of 47.89 meters (157-1) while sophomore Mary Bryan placed seventh at 42.78 meters (140-4). Their combined seven points were the most for Utah State women in this event since 2023. Nevada’s Lilly Urban took first place with a throw of 54.26 meters (178-0).
Freshman Blake Johns contributed to scoring by finishing fifth in men’s hammer with a mark of 55.90 meters (183-4). In distance events, junior Jedidiah Megargel finished seventh in the men’s 10,000 meters at his first collegiate race at that distance, clocking in at 30:01.61.
On the track, graduate Annie Ivins qualified for Saturday’s women’s final in the 800-meter run with an eighth-place finish overall and improved her standing to fifth all-time for Utah State women’s history at that distance.
At day’s end, Aggie men ranked third overall while USU women sat sixth after accumulating their respective points totals. The championships continue Friday with finals across multiple events including shot put, long jump, high jump, pole vault as well as further track preliminaries.
