The University of Utah track and field team had a big weekend at the Weber State Winter Open in Ogden. The open was especially impressive for sophomore Taylor Watson, who broke a school record for 55-meter dash — a record that she had set the year before, in fact. Several more records were set or bested throughout the two-day open.

Maya Lebar competed in the preliminaries of the 55-meter and tied the school record with a PR time of 7.16. Lebar’s record was short-lived, however, as Watson stepped up following her run and bested it with a time of 7.00. Watson ended up winning the event title and Lebar finished in third overall.

Another great race for the Utes was the 600 meter race, where every winner for the Utes registered new PRs. Among these players were Lauren O’Banion, who won the event with a time of 1:39.54. She was followed by Brooke Martin and Kayla Rees, who ran in a neck-and-neck finish with times of 1:41.05 and 1:41.15 respectively. Fourth place went to Ruby Jane Mathewson with a time of 1:43.46.

Personal records were being shattered right and left, and it was a great start to what should be an impressive year. Goals for the team heading into the open were to improve and continue building on what had been happening for the program over the course of the last few years. Particularly, fans and coaches wanted to see how the team would build off the success of last season.

In that regard, the open was a massive success, and it seems that the Utes are ready for an impressive season led by talented players and an encouraging coaching staff.

The Utes will play again next week in Idaho as they progress further into the season. Many of the same players from the cross-country team are hoping for continued success this year on track and field, while the players on the team from last year are looking forward to continued success and improvement.

The Jackson Open in Boise, Idaho will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14.

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