When the Mountain West indoor track and field championships kick off today at the Albuquerque Convention Center, the men’s team title won’t be a foregone conclusion.

With perennial front-runner BYU no longer around to claim the trophy – which it did for nine years straight before leaving the conference – the team competition should be fierce. The host Lobos, Air Force and Mountain West newcomer Boise State all have a legitimate shot at the title, according to UNM head coach Joe Franklin.

	Today through Saturday Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships Albuquerque Convention Center Daily admission $5 Start times: Today-11 a.m., men’s heptathlon; 11:10 a.m., women’s pentathlon Friday-11 a.m., men’s heptathlon; 1 p.m., field events; 1:30 p.m. track events (qualifying, plus 5,000 meters and distance medley finals) Saturday-9:45 a.m. field events; 10:45 a.m. track finals

“There’s three teams that could win it, depending on who gets sick, who gets tired, who has the best day,” he said. “Literally, it’s a tossup.”

BYU had also dominated the women’s side, winning 10 titles since 2000. But Franklin doesn’t expect the Cougars’ absence to result in a free-for-all in this year’s women’s title race, saying 2011 runner-up TCU is “definitely out in front” followed by a group that includes UNLV, UNM and San Diego State.

The Lobos were third on both the men’s and women’s side last year.

The three-day conference meet kicks off today with competition in the men’s heptathlon and women’s pentathlon. The heptathlon continues Friday morning, and track and field events commence Friday afternoon. The track finals – and several more field events – are set Saturday.

In addition to chasing a team title, the Lobos are looking for some national-worthy individual performances. This marks the Lobos’ first scored meet of 2012, and having team awards at stake often serves to enhance performance, Franklin said.

“This is it – especially when it’s actually a meet,” he said. “You put all the eggs in this basket and see what happens.”

Ross Millington is the only Lobo currently assured a trip to Idaho for next month’s NCAA championships, having already met the automatic qualifying standard in the 3,000 meters.

But several Lobos are in the hunt for an invitation, something Franklin said generally requires a top-14 national ranking. Among those approaching that threshold are junior Floyd Ross in the triple jump (currently No. 19 nationally); freshman Beejay Lee in the 60 dash (21st); and sophomores Logan Pflibsen in the pole vault (30th) and Kendall Spencer in the long jump (28th).

Pole vaulter Amber Menke, a junior, is 27th nationally and is the Lobo women’s leading candidate to make the postseason. Franklin also expects significant improvement out of miler Josephine Moultrie, who ranks 42nd.

MWC TRACK & FIELD
— This article appeared on page D2 of the Albuquerque Journal