AZUSA, Calif. – A pair of Western Washington University Track & Field men's student-athletes are off to a good start after the first day of competition in the decathlon at the 2019 Bryan Clay Invitational hosted by Azusa Pacific University. 
 
A total of 59 competitors finished the first five events of the decathlon on Wednesday at Cougar Athletic Stadium on the East Campus of APU. The competition was divided into four groups that filled the first day of competition of the three-day Bryan Clay Invitational.
 
WWU sophomore Seren Dances (Port Townsend, WA) is in 3^rd place in the first grouping of decathletes and 29^th overall in field made up mostly of NCAA Division I athletes. Dances totaled 3,632 points, finishing 3^rd in his group in the long jump (6.96m/22-10) and the high jump (1.90m/6-2.75). Dances set a PR in the decathlon with 6,151 points at last year's Bryan Clay Invitational, totaling 6,151 points. His total through the first five events last year while recording the 5^th-best total in program history was 3,492 points (now No. 6), 140 below his day one total on Wednesday.
 
Freshman Ian Rinefort (Ashland, OR) is 5^th in the Group 2 with 3,519 points, 34^th overall among the 59 competitors. Rinefort recorded personal best marks in the shot put (10.62m/34-10.25) and the high jump (1.87m/6-1.5). A second-day specialist, Rinefort is already ahead of his point total of 3,364 from the UBC Open (March 30-31) that resulted in 6,303 points, the 5^th-best mark in WWU history.
 
Dances and Rinefort will conclude the decathlon competition on Thursday beginning at 8 am. The meet can be followed online via live results and webcast via FloTrack at the following links:
 
»       Bryan Clay Invitational Live Results
»       Bryan Clay Invitational Webcast (subscription via FloTrack)
»       Bryan Clay Invitational Meet Central
  Sophomore Avery Lux (Fort Collins, CO) competed at the Cal State LA Twilight Open in the hammer throw, an event that was held at Cerritos College in Norwalk, California. Lux finished 4th in the competition, falling just short of his PR with a mark of 54.73m/179-6. Lux threw 54.90m/180-1 earlier this season for the 4^th-best mark in program history and currently the top mark in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
  Several members of the WWU Track & Field program are in Southern California to compete in four different meets. Thursday's schedule includes the following student-athletes in competition:
 
»       Seren Dances – Bryan Clay Invitational (Decathlon)
»       Ian Rinefort – Bryan Clay Invitational (Decathlon)
»       Dylan Hayes – Bryan Clay Invitational (3,000m Steeplechase)
»       Talia Dreicer – Bryan Clay Invitational (3,000m Steeplechase)
»       Sophia Galvez – Mt. Sac Relays (10,000m)