GUNNISON, Colo.  Western Colorado track & field is set to host its Big Red Machine Open on Saturday, an annual event contested in the Mountaineer Field House.

Field events are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. with the men's and women's weight throw, and track events follow at 11 a.m. with the preliminary heats of the men's then the women's 60-meter hurdles.

Western initiated its 2025-26 indoor schedule with the Mountaineer Open in early December 2025.

Saturday's Open could see a highlight on the oval from Allison Beasley and Tyler Nord.

Beasley will race in the women's 3,000m run, an event in which she has already posted the 11th fastest time in Division II with an NCAA provisional time of 9 minutes, 46.04 seconds (altitude adjusted).

Nord will compete in the men's mile, an event in which he posted an NCAA provisional time of 4:07.15 in the 2023-24 indoor season. Nord has already run to a provisional time this season in the 3,000.

Addisyn Sweeney and Meghan Benkendorf for the women, and Joseph Purbrick for the men could also add highlights for Western on the track.

Sweeney and Purbrick will both be racing in their first competitions of the season in the 60m hurdles, and Benkendorf will circle the oval for the first time this indoor season in the 400.

Both Sweeney and Benkendorf are scheduled to be part of Western's 4x400 relay team, and Sweeney will also add the long jump to her busy day.

Competing in the men's long and triple jumps for the Mountaineers will be Nolan Kemper, whose best results in both events came at the 2025 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference indoor championships.

Rylee Blanton and Austin John will both compete in their respective shot put and weight throw events.

Blanton has posted the 26th best women's weight throw in the region, and the 33rd longest shot put result, while John has the 16th longest shot put toss and 18th best weight throw in the men's region rankings.

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