Merkley's Two Titles Bolt Bengals to First Through Day One :: Sets Big Sky Indoor Pentathlon Record and also wins high jump

Feb. 29, 2008

Pocatello, ID --- Cassie Merkley picked up a pair of titles in the opening two events, and she and teammate Sydney Wendt had a literal field day scoring points as the Idaho State women's team took the lead after the opening day of the 2008 Big Sky Indoor Track & Field Championships, hosted at Idaho State University's Holt Arena. The Bengals picked up 54 points, 16 more than second place Weber State.

Merkley broke her own pentathlon record, which she set last year, by recording 3,892 points, and she also picked up a win in the high jump. In both events, she denied her teammate Wendt, who finished second in both. The Bengals did most of their damage in those two events, scoring 45 of their 54 points on the day. ISU also got a second place finish in the distance medley relay, behind Montana.

The Wildcats scored at least five points in all but one event, and their consistency earned them 38 points and second place. Weber State didn't win any of the six events, and in fact they had no all-conference finishes (top three) in any event, but they bunched up points in slots four through eight, garnering them a solid day. Sacramento State is in third with 35 points, getting 20 in the long jump, including a title for Lori Vaught.

Northern Arizona is right in the mix of things in fourth place with 34 points, helped in part by a title in the shot put for Candice Bryant.

The final day of the 2008 Big Sky Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships opens with the weight throw at 10:30 am, and the championship running events begin at 12:05 pm.

NOTES: Along with Merkley, Idaho State's Sydney Wendt also scored a provisional mark in the pentathlon with a career-best 3,709 points, but it ranks just 28th in the NCAA this season ... Merkley now has 61 career indoor points, good for ninth on the Big Sky list, and she became ISU's all-time leading scorer ... Montana's Loni Perkins-Judisch can also move into Montana's top slot, and she owns the best 400 time in the prelims ... Montana's distance medley time of 11:46.67 was the third-best in championship history behind only a hand-timed 11:45.3 for Boise State in 1996.