Cougs set to open season with WSU Open Indoor this weekend...

PULLMAN--Washington State University’s indoor track and field teams open the 2013 indoor season with the 11th Annual WSU Indoor Open this Friday and Saturday, in the Indoor Facility on the Pullman campus.

The Cougs will compete against a field that includes athletes from the University of Idaho, Whitworth, Spokane Community College, along with clubs from Eastern Washington.

NCAA scorer and reigning MPSF and Pac-12 long jump champ Stephan Scott-Ellis (left/photo by Paul Merca) will open his 2013 season in his specialty, but will not compete in the triple jump, an event that he scored in at last year's NCAA indoor meet.

When asked about his expectations for this weekend's meet, WSU head coach Rick Sloan said, “The same thing I expect from the first meet every year.  We’ve been training since late August and I think we’re ready to get out and have some competitive feelings in our body rather than just training. Across the board there’s some good, new people coming in. I think that the people that we have returning have done a good job of preparing themselves."

Courtesy of WSU Athletics, here's a video interview with Sloan previewing the meet.

The start lists for the meet are available here.

University of Washington junior Katie Flood was one of ten athletes named by the USTFCCCA on its 2013 Bowerman Award pre-season watch list.

Flood, the reigning NCAA outdoor champ at 1500 meters, is one of four Pac-12 athletes named on the initial Bowerman watch list, which includes Arizona's Brigetta Barrett and Georganne Moline; and Oregon's English Gardner.

In addition to the initial list of ten athletes, University Place resident Andrea Geubelle, the defending NCAA indoor champion in the triple jump, was one of six additional athletes that received a mention by the USTFCCCA.

On the men's side, Rainier Beach HS grad and University of Oregon junior Michael Berry was one of six athletes outside the initial ten athletes on the pre-season watch list to receive a mention.

The Bowerman, which debuted in 2009, is presented annually by the USTFCCCA to the most outstanding male and female collegiate track & field athletes in the nation.

The USTFCCCA' release naming the initial members of the watch list, is available here.

NOTE:  The sports information office at Washington State University, and the USTFCCCA contributed to this report.