By Briannah McGee – Spear Reporter | Junior Ethan Fong leaps in the long jumps during the Mountain West Indoor Track & Field Championships on Feb. 28 (Photo courtesy of SJSU Athletics)
The Mountain West Indoor Track & Field Championships proved to be a competitive three-day showing for San Jose State track and field, highlighted by standout sprint performances from graduate student Zoe Ewell and key contributions on the men’s side.
On Thursday, Ewell set the tone early by placing first in the women’s 200-meter dash preliminaries with a time of 23.95 seconds.
Teammate junior Sharli’e McCuller followed with a strong performance of her own, clocking 24.16 seconds in the same event to secure a first-place finish in her heat.
“We’re going to take this momentum from tonight and carry it over to tomorrow morning and get as many podium finishes as we can,” SJSU head coach Charles Ryan said after Thursday’s success.
Friday’s action was headlined by Ewell’s continued dominance on the track and a podium finish in the field.
Ewell placed first in the women’s 60-meter dash preliminaries, winning her heat and posting the fastest overall time out of 25 competitors at 7.30 seconds.
In the men’s long jump, junior Ethan Fong earned a third-place finish with a leap of 7.49 meters (24 feet, 7 inches), securing a podium spot and valuable team points.
By Saturday’s finals, both Spartan squads wrapped up competition with resilient efforts.
The women finished with eight points, all scored by Ewell, who placed second in the 60-meter final.
The men totaled 28 points, led by Fong’s combined 15 points in the long and triple jump.
Additional scoring came from sophomore Tyson Bonilla, freshman Dontae Smith in the 400 meters, the distance medley relay, senior Jared Jones in the 60 meters, and a combined seven points from freshmen Julius Baker and Hayden Bowne in the 60-meter hurdles.
Despite the team’s last-place finish, the Spartans showcased promising individual performances and momentum heading into the outdoor season.
SJSU will travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas for the NCAA Indoor Championship on March 13-14.
