Phoenix, AZ – The Firestorm Track & Field program traveled just down the road from campus to Paradise Valley Community College on Saturday to compete against a mix of GSAC, Division One and Junior College competition.  This was a two-day meet to facilitate the first Decathlon of the season for the Firestorm decathletes.

Decathlon
Senior Manny Valenzuela led the way with 4,958 points to secure fifth place in a talented field.  This was the first Decathlon for Valenzuela since 2024 when he scored 4,673 to get fourth place at the GSAC Championships.  Competing in their first Decathlon was sophomores Luca Munoz and Maximus Gidley who finished seventh and eighth place respectively.

Sprints & Jumps
The team received strong performances from a pair of 400 runners.  Sophomore Markeese Wright set a new personal best of 48.48, and freshman John Terry did the same with a time of 49.70.  Senior Jase Carrasquillo high jumped 6' 1.5" to finish seventh in the high jump.

Middle Distance 
Sophomore Isaac Linan used a strong surge over the final 75 meters to secure a new personal best in the 800 with a time of 1:55.46.  Freshmen Landyn Deboard and Adriel Valenzuela also ran well with times of 1:58.65 and 1:59.27 respectively.

Throws
Junior TaHaj Acoff won the shot put with a toss of 54' 06" and freshman javelin thrower Isaac McKeown picked up where he left off last week and throw it 185' 02".  Also having impressive javelin performances was sophomore Brooks Rasmussen who improved from a week ago with a throw of 179' 10" while senior Trevin Janssen made his javelin season debut by setting a new personal best for the event with a throw of 162' 03". 

Manny Valenzuela Decathlon Results – 5^th Place (4,958 points)
       100 Meters: 12.39 (576 points)
       Long Jump: 18-07.25 (516 points)
       Shot Put: 27-02.00 (383 points)
       High Jump: 5' 03" (464 points)
       400 Meters: 55.42 (582 points)       
       110 Meter Hurdles: 18.77 (453 points)
       Discus: 85' 10" (390 points)
       Pole Vault: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       Javelin: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       1500 Meters: 4:48.14 (630 points)
 
Luca Munoz Decathlon Results – 7^th Place (4,276 points)
       100 Meters: 11.92 (667 points)
       Long Jump: 17-08.25 (459 points)
       Shot Put: 32' 05.75 (480 points)
       High Jump: 4' 09" (352 points)
       400 Meters: 53.97 (641 points)       
       110 Meter Hurdles: 21.19 (261 points)
       Discus: 67' 08"(284 points)
       Pole Vault: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       Javelin: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       1500 Meters: 5:19.10 (455 points)
 
Maximus Gidley Decathlon Results – 8^th Place (3,200 points)
       100 Meters: 12.44 (567 points)
       Long Jump: 16' 01.75"(367 points)
       Shot Put: 25' 04.5" (350 points)
       High Jump: 4' 11.5" (396 points)
       400 Meters: 1:00.11 (409 points)       
       110 Meter Hurdles: 22.22 (195 points)
       Discus: 56' 10" (223 points)
       Pole Vault: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       Javelin: 13-02.5 (626 points)
       1500 Meters: 5:22.60 (437 points)
 
Top Track Finishers
4x100M Relay: Wright, Lieberman, Menard, Terry – 41.62
100 Meters: Anthony Brazier – 11.04
200 Meters: Markeese Wright – 22.03
400 Meters: Markeese Wright– 48.48 Personal Best
800 Meters: Isaac Linan – 1:55.46
110M Hurdles: Thaddious Thurman – 15.94
400M Hurdles: Brenton Szymanski – 55.89
4x100M Relay: Linan, Deboard, Johnson, Valenzuela - 42.16
 
Top Field Finishers
Discus: TaHaj Acoff – 150' 02"
Shot Put: TaHaj Acoff  – 54' 06"
Hammer: TaHaj Acoff  – 135' 04"
Javelin: Isaac McKeown – 185' 02"
High Jump: Jase Carrasquillo – 6' 1.5"
 
Next On the Schedule
The Firestorm will travel east to Mesa Community College next Saturday March 28 for the Carvel Jackson Memorial Invitational.  Field events begin at 9:00am and track events start at 4:30pm.

Roll Storm!