Colorado State University Athletics
Bedard Q&A from MWC championships
2/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Indoor Track & Field
Feb. 27, 2009
By Mallory Mortvedt
Athletic Media Relations
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The atmosphere of the 2009 Mountain West Conference indoor track and field championships seemed to be quite calm on Friday morning. All around the royal blue track of the Air Force Academy, athletes seemed to be quiet with anticipation, contrasting with the crowd, who seemed to grow with excitement as each event was called over the loud speaker. In the middle of the championships, Colorado State Head Coach Brian Bedard shared with CSURams.com a few thoughts about this second day of competition.
What are your expectations for today’s meet?
“We are trying to get as many people into the finals as we can. The men’s high jump was not ranked that high, and they ended up doing great. The men’s weight throw is also a big event for us today. Basically, we want to advance as many prelim rounds as possible and score as many points for our team as we can.”
Who has had a good performance so far?
“I believe Caston Mabin has had a great day. He is a freshman who competed in the high jump and was ranked fifth coming in, and took a second place win. He did not compete like a freshman. He competed with a lot of composure and was very aggressive, and definitely exceeded our expectations.”
How will this meet help the athletes when the outdoor season comes?
“This is the first Mountain West Conference experience for many of our younger athletes and it has been very intense. There are higher-level expectations, and we hope to get some momentum going, and then hope to use this as a building block for our upcoming outdoor season.”
What has been the biggest surprise so far, if any?
“I think how well we scored in the high jump and long jump. The long jumpers were not even ranked in the top eight, and two guys ended up placing pretty well. Those were points that we were not expecting, and that is always a nice surprise.”
You have a young team this year; how does competing in this event help you for future years?
“This goes back to how we are helping the athletes prepare for the outdoor season. The Mountain West Conference always means more to our team, and we want to perform at or beyond our expected level. We need to expose our young athletes to high-intensity competition, and compete under those conditions and get comfortable with it.”