The third week of outdoor competition features a meet the Vandals attend regularly and one they haven’t visited in years. It is also the season debut for most of the Idaho athletes as the team splits to Tempe, Ariz., for the Sun Angel Classic and Spokane for the Sam Adams Classic.
“It’s exciting,” Idaho coach Wayne Phipps said of the team opener. “We’ve had a couple good weeks of weather and training so we’re excited about both meets at Spokane and at Arizona State.”
The Vandals make several trips to Spokane every year but the current team has never competed at Arizona State — a program well known for its track and field teams and meets.
“It’s a very good meet,” Phipps said of the Sun Angel Classic. “There will be a lot of schools down there. It’s one of the longest running meets definitely in the Southwest and Arizona State hosting it brings nationally ranked teams on both sides.”
According to an April 1 report by Sun Devil Athletics, the Sun Angel Classic has featured nearly 50 Olympians over its 33-year existence, including numerous medalists, and even more international and world team members. It is no different this year with 2012 Olympians Jessica Cosby (USA/hammer), Brittany Borman (USA/javelin), Jim Steacy (Canada/hammer), Heather Steacy (Canada/hammer), Liz Gleadle (Canada/javelin), Kenneth Medwood (Belize/400mH), Sonali Merrill (Sri Lanka/400-meter hurdles) and Nate Brannan (Canada, 1500-meters) among the more than 2,000 competitors expected to perform on Friday and Saturday.
“For (Vandals) opening up, they’re going to be in a situation where they’re going to kind of be thrown into immediate competition but I think it’s a group that’s definitely capable of handling that,” Phipps said. “It’s a very elite group of athletes who have demonstrated over the years that they can compete at a very high level.”
Senior Lauren Schaffer is one Vandal being thrown into the competition at Arizona State. Schaffer hasn’t competed outdoors since 2011 when she shattered the Idaho 800 record in 2 minutes, 7.33 seconds and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinal Round of the national championships. She redshirted her 2012 outdoor season. Most recently, Schaffer was an All-WAC runner in the 800-meter run during the 2012 indoor season.
“I know that I feel I’m in better shape than I have been in the past at this time of year,” she said. “So just to be able to prove it at a big meet for my first meet … is pretty exciting.”
The primary Vandal squad is heading to Arizona but another group is competing at Whitworth for the Sam Adams Classic.
Phipps said the Sam Adams Classic will feature less competition and is a better choice of meet for some of the athletes. He said splitting the team between two meets usually happens several times throughout the season. Some athletes need to constantly face elite competition in order to have the best chance at qualifying for nationals. Other athletes, such as freshmen, or athletes that are new to an event function better in smaller meet atmospheres early in the season in preparation for larger meets later.
“For a lot of people, this is their first meet since our indoor conference (championship), so it’s been awhile,” Schaffer said. “Making that transition from indoors to outdoors is going to be a big one.”
Stephan Wiebe can be reached at [email protected]