Melice named league’s top freshman
5/14/2019 3:28:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field
OGDEN, Utah – Xavier Melice made his mark for the Montana track & field program last week, scoring in three different events and being the anchor leg for the Grizzlies' school-record 4x400 relay team. On Tuesday, the talented newcomer earned Big Sky Conference's Freshman of the Year honors.
Melice qualified for the finals in both of his sprint events, finishing fourth in the 400 meters and second in the 200 meters – his first podium appearance. His biggest moment, though, came on the relay team that set school and Dornblaser Field records with a time of 3:09.69. Trailing Northern Colorado by two full strides with roughly 100 meters to go, Melice turned on the jets and won the race. The victory pushed Montana's men's team into third place in the final team standings.
During his freshman season, Melice trimmed more than a full second off of his top high school 200 meters time (21.28) and nearly 4 seconds off of his 400 (47.45). Melice is a product of Helena, Montana, where he competed in the 100, 200, 400 and both relays at the 2018 Class AA-C state meet.
The 2019 Big Sky Championships, held in Missoula, was an exciting meet across the board for the Grizzlies, who placed third on the men's side and fourth on the women's. The 184 combined points earned by the two teams are the second-most in the past 15 seasons by the Montana track & field program. Overall, Montana returns more than two-thirds of its point-scorers next year, including 80 percent of its total from the men's side.
While Saturday marked the end of the 2019 season as a whole, several Grizzlies will advance to the NCAA West Regional next week in Sacramento, California. Announcements will be made on Thursday.
Melice qualified for the finals in both of his sprint events, finishing fourth in the 400 meters and second in the 200 meters – his first podium appearance. His biggest moment, though, came on the relay team that set school and Dornblaser Field records with a time of 3:09.69. Trailing Northern Colorado by two full strides with roughly 100 meters to go, Melice turned on the jets and won the race. The victory pushed Montana's men's team into third place in the final team standings.
During his freshman season, Melice trimmed more than a full second off of his top high school 200 meters time (21.28) and nearly 4 seconds off of his 400 (47.45). Melice is a product of Helena, Montana, where he competed in the 100, 200, 400 and both relays at the 2018 Class AA-C state meet.
The 2019 Big Sky Championships, held in Missoula, was an exciting meet across the board for the Grizzlies, who placed third on the men's side and fourth on the women's. The 184 combined points earned by the two teams are the second-most in the past 15 seasons by the Montana track & field program. Overall, Montana returns more than two-thirds of its point-scorers next year, including 80 percent of its total from the men's side.
While Saturday marked the end of the 2019 season as a whole, several Grizzlies will advance to the NCAA West Regional next week in Sacramento, California. Announcements will be made on Thursday.
Players Mentioned
Sprints
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