ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Fresno State opened the 2024 Mountain West Indoor Track & Field Championships with a bang on Thursday with its multis group racking up 21 points at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Junior Madison Hutton earned her first MW title while senior Kaja Bins grabbed her first bronze.
Fresno State sits in second, six points back of Colorado State, after Day 1. The Bulldogs are one point ahead of New Mexico.
Finishing two points shy of her personal best with 3,982 points, Hutton became just the second Bulldog to win a title in the multi-event, joining Jestena Mattson who was a two-time winner. The junior finished in the Top 2 in three of the five events. Hutton placed first in the long jump with a leap of 6.02m/19-9 on her final attempt after fouling on the previous two. The Surrey, England native also had a scare in the high jump, needing to clear her opening height on her third attempt.
Perseverance was on Hutton's side. The junior has moved up the standings at each championship before claiming this year's title.
Like her teammate, Bins has also waited her time to grab a medal. New PRs for both in the 60-meter hurdles help them along the way.
In the middle of the pack after two events, Bins moved up the leaderboard in her final three events. The senior from Dusseldorf, Germany finished third in the shot put and long jump before closing the meet second in the 800 meters. Bins ended the competition with 3,715 points.
Kaitlynn Perez claimed the final points for the 'Dogs finishing fourth with a personal best 3,678 points, fifth-most all-time in program history. Helping her land in that spot was setting a new personal best in the high jump, winning the event with a height of 1.71m/5-7.25. The mark moved her up to No. 5 all-time at Fresno State.
Day 2 will begin at noon PT for the Bulldogs in the long jump.