Grand Canyon University made a notable debut at the Mountain West Indoor Championships in Reno, Nevada, earning four gold medals and setting two school records. The event marked the Lopes’ first appearance at this conference meet.
Junior Eva Lowder claimed the program’s first individual title of the weekend by clearing 14 feet, 3/4 inch in pole vault. Lowder, who already holds the school’s record in the event, narrowly missed qualifying for the NCAA Indoor Championships on her final attempt.
Sophomore Nina Thevenin won the women’s 60-meter dash with a time of 7.32 seconds. She also broke a 15-year-old school record in the 200 meters by finishing second with a time of 23.31 seconds.
On the men’s side, graduate student Justin Raines stood out as he became the only athlete to win multiple individual titles at the meet. Raines finished first in both the 60-meter dash (6.62 seconds) and the 200 meters (20.79 seconds).
In addition to these victories, Grand Canyon secured eight other podium finishes during the championships. These results led to a third-place finish for GCU men and seventh place for GCU women.
The women’s team had strong performances in several events. Senior Taliyah Booker placed fourth in the 400 meters while sophomore Cassie Small finished seventh in the 60 meters. The women’s relay team also took fourth place in the 1,600 relay.
In field events, Tatum Moku earned second place behind Lowder in pole vault. Both athletes transferred from Washington State and have raised performance standards for GCU’s pole vault program.
For men’s field events, juniors Antoni Smith and Praise Jibunor contributed with fourth-place finishes in high jump and long jump respectively.
Saturday saw Grand Canyon score most of its points through sprint events. Graduate Manny Joseph won silver in the men’s 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.82 seconds—just one-hundredth of a second behind first place—while junior Francisco Marques placed among the top four at 7.95 seconds.
Senior Miguel Rosario added a third-place finish behind Raines’ victory in the men’s 60-meter dash with his own time of 6.65 seconds.
Additional podium spots were earned by senior Germain Lemaitre (third place, men’s 800 meters) with a time of 1:53.83 and senior Conner Kittleson (third place, men’s 200 meters) who ran it in 20.94 seconds.
The final event at Reno-Tahoe Convention Center featured GCU’s men’s relay team finishing third in the 4×400 meter relay—just two-hundredths of a second away from taking second place.
Grand Canyon Antelopes compete as an intercollegiate athletics program based at Grand Canyon University under NCAA Division I rules according to their official website. The university provides opportunities for student-athletes to develop athletically while balancing academic commitments and contributes to athletic traditions within collegiate sports.
