This weekend Colorado Western will host the RMAC Indoor Track and Field Championships, featuring some of the nation’s top teams and individuals. On the men’s side three of the country’s top 11 teams are in the RMAC while the women boast three of the top eight.
For the men, Adams State is ranked fourth in DII currently, with CSU Pueblo making a big jump up to ninth followed closely by Colorado Mines at 11th. Adams State’s women’s team is also ranked fourth nationally, and is joined by CSU Pueblo (seventh) and Colorado Mines (eighth) in a strong conference field. Perhaps the biggest strength the conference has in distance races and as an example in the mile race 17 of the 18 male individuals from the South Central Region who have ran the NCAA qualifying time of 4:07.63 are league members from Colorado schools, while 15 of the 19 women are.
CSU Pueblo’s Helen Braybrook, a senior from the United Kingdom, set the Division II indoor mile record earlier this season with a 4:30.03 and last year won the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships 800m race. Adams State won the NCCAA Indoor title in 2023 and 2024 and again has a deep and talented roster including Kidus Begashaw, who looks to close out his career on a strong note. On the other end of the spectrum, there are numerous freshmen in the RMAC who are making their presence felt in a testament to the quality of athletes the conference has.
Individually several RMAC athletes have recorded the best marks in the South Central Region this year:
Mesa Joseph Randolph 200 meter (20.99)
Mines Jonah Fallon 400 meters (46.48)
Mines Tim Thompson 800 meters (1:47.41)
Adams State Housem Hrabi mile (3:57.42)
Adams State Kidus Begashaw 3000 meters (7:50.08)
Adams State Kidus Begashaw 5000 meters (13:27.42)
CSU Pueblo Distance Medley Relay (9:33.55)
Western Colorado freshman Brandon Kolb High Jump (2.10m)
Mines Aidan Bennett Pole Vault (5.12m)
Mines freshman Alejandro Philippart Long Jump (7.38m)
Adams State Sam Dirkes Shot Put (19.10m)
UC Colorado Springs Michael Roberts Weight Throw (20.39m)
CSU Pueblo Helen Braybrook 800 meters (2:04.20)
CSU Pueblo Helen Braybrook mile (4:30.03)
Adams State Ava O’Connor 3000 meters (9:03.03)
Adams State Tristian Spence 5000 meters (15:50.31)
Adams State Distance Medley Relay (11:11.24)
UC Colorado Springs Brooke Peterson Pole Vault (3.80m)
Mines freshman Violet Williams Long Jump (6.21m)
CSU Pueblo Febe Wessels Shot Put (15.41m)
Mines Jennifer Jarnagin Weight Throw (19.82m)
The two-day competition takes place on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 27-28 and serves as a precursor to the NCAA Championships in mid March.
