University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Saturday, February 25
Moscow, Idaho
University of Northern Colorado
at
Big Sky Indoor Championships
Photo by: Stormie Sickler
Campbell Headed to NCAAs as Bears Claim Multiple Podiums at Big Skys
2/25/2023 6:50:00 PM | Men's Track & Field, Women's Track & Field, Track & Field
MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Northern Colorado track and field teams finished the Big Sky Indoor Championships on Friday with seven podium finishes, bringing the team's total for the championships to eight.Â
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"I'm so very proud of both of our teams in the way they gave it everything they had, and competed today to end this championship," director of track and field Wayne Angel said. "You cannot look at the results from this meet and say that the Big Sky conference is not one of the best conferences in the NCAA and our athletes are certainly counted among that group. It was a lot of fun to see them raise their level of performance and compete the way that they did today. I thought both teams fought hard and competed as I expected them to do from the first event to the last event. It says a lot about their character and mindset."
As expected, Jerome Campbell took first in the 60m hurdles after breaking the meet record the day prior in the prelims. The freshman cross the finish line in 7.65, just 0.2 seconds off his record time. His time of 7.63 that he recorded in the prelims ranks tied for the seventh fastest time in the NCAA and earns him an invite to the NCAA Indoor Championships this March, and he becomes the first UNC hurdler to make it to the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Campbell then followed up with a second place finish in the 60m dash, posting his personal best time of 6.66, which is also the second fastest time in the Big Sky this season, just behind the first-place time of 6.64.
"Jerome's performances were probably our biggest ones of the day.," Angel added. "For a freshman to come into this competition and perform that well in the  60-meter hurdles and 60-meter dash speaks volumes of his potential as a podium finisher at the NCAA championships."Â
UNC claimed a two-three finish in the 400m, as August Van de Weijer crossed the line in 47.47 and Raphael Egbuchilem came across in 47.53 for the Bears. The duo then followed up with a fourth and fifth place finish for UNC in the 200m, as the runners swapped leads with Egbuchilem finishing in 21.71 and Van de Wiejer right behind him with a time of 21.76.
The men's 4x400 relay team took bronze, as the team of Van de Weijer, Egbuchilem, Edgar Garcia and Jesse Hayward finished with a time of 3:13.81. Hayward also took a fourth-place finish in the 800m with a time of 1:50.89.
On the women's side, Regina Mpigachai podiumed in both of her events, finishing second in the 800m with a time of 2:07.51, and taking third in the mile with a time of 4:47.70.
"We knew coming into this championship that we would have to perform at our highest level possible and that there would be little room for error." Angel said. "That's what makes the Big Sky Conference one of the best conferences in the country; you have to come ready to give your best at all times and in every event. We did that today and took one more step towards making Northern Colorado significant in the Big Sky and in the world of track and field. We had several outstanding performances this weekend. We are moving in the right direction. We will be prepared for the Big Sky Championships in three months time at home; that will be our focus. We will continue to work hard for the rest of the year, and I am confident that we will make our UNC family proud when that time comes."
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"I'm so very proud of both of our teams in the way they gave it everything they had, and competed today to end this championship," director of track and field Wayne Angel said. "You cannot look at the results from this meet and say that the Big Sky conference is not one of the best conferences in the NCAA and our athletes are certainly counted among that group. It was a lot of fun to see them raise their level of performance and compete the way that they did today. I thought both teams fought hard and competed as I expected them to do from the first event to the last event. It says a lot about their character and mindset."
As expected, Jerome Campbell took first in the 60m hurdles after breaking the meet record the day prior in the prelims. The freshman cross the finish line in 7.65, just 0.2 seconds off his record time. His time of 7.63 that he recorded in the prelims ranks tied for the seventh fastest time in the NCAA and earns him an invite to the NCAA Indoor Championships this March, and he becomes the first UNC hurdler to make it to the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Campbell then followed up with a second place finish in the 60m dash, posting his personal best time of 6.66, which is also the second fastest time in the Big Sky this season, just behind the first-place time of 6.64.
"Jerome's performances were probably our biggest ones of the day.," Angel added. "For a freshman to come into this competition and perform that well in the  60-meter hurdles and 60-meter dash speaks volumes of his potential as a podium finisher at the NCAA championships."Â
UNC claimed a two-three finish in the 400m, as August Van de Weijer crossed the line in 47.47 and Raphael Egbuchilem came across in 47.53 for the Bears. The duo then followed up with a fourth and fifth place finish for UNC in the 200m, as the runners swapped leads with Egbuchilem finishing in 21.71 and Van de Wiejer right behind him with a time of 21.76.
The men's 4x400 relay team took bronze, as the team of Van de Weijer, Egbuchilem, Edgar Garcia and Jesse Hayward finished with a time of 3:13.81. Hayward also took a fourth-place finish in the 800m with a time of 1:50.89.
On the women's side, Regina Mpigachai podiumed in both of her events, finishing second in the 800m with a time of 2:07.51, and taking third in the mile with a time of 4:47.70.
"We knew coming into this championship that we would have to perform at our highest level possible and that there would be little room for error." Angel said. "That's what makes the Big Sky Conference one of the best conferences in the country; you have to come ready to give your best at all times and in every event. We did that today and took one more step towards making Northern Colorado significant in the Big Sky and in the world of track and field. We had several outstanding performances this weekend. We are moving in the right direction. We will be prepared for the Big Sky Championships in three months time at home; that will be our focus. We will continue to work hard for the rest of the year, and I am confident that we will make our UNC family proud when that time comes."
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| Feb. 25, 2023 • Big Sky Indoor Track and Field Championships • Moscow, Idaho | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players Mentioned
/ Men's Track & Field
/ Men's Track & Field
/ Men's Track & Field
/ Men's Track & Field
/ Women's Track & Field
/ Women's Track & Field
/ Women's Track & Field
/ Women's Track & Field
/ Women's Track & Field
/ Men's Track & Field
/ Men's Track & Field
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