SIOUX FALLS, S.D.—South Dakota fourth-year junior Marshall Faurot, fourth-year sophomore Gen Hirata and junior Jacy Pulse were named the TicketSmarter Summit League Track and Field Peak Performers of the Week for the period ended April 16.
 
Hirata, hailing from Fredericksburg, Virginia, captured the collegiate pole vault title at the 63rd annual Mt. SAC Relays with a personal best height of 14-7 ¼ (4.45m). The performance moved her to third in the NCAA standings this spring and atop the Summit standings by nearly five inches. Hirata garners her third career weekly accolade from the Summit and first of the season.
 
Pulse, a native of Salem, South Dakota, ran on the Coyotes' record-breaking 4x100-meter relay that won titles at both the 63rd annual Mt. SAC Relays and the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate. The relay clocked a school record time of 44.89 seconds. Individually, Pulse won the 400-meter hurdles at the Mt. SAC Relays in 58.31 seconds. She leads the Summit and ranks 41st nationally in the 400 hurdles. Pulse picks up her third career weekly accolade from the Summit and second this spring.
 
This marks the fourth consecutive week of South Dakota sweeping the women's track and field Peak Performer of the Week awards. The South Dakota women are ranked No. 34 nationally by the U.S. Track and Field & Cross Country Coaches Association. Hirata headlines the nation's No. 1 women's pole vault squad from USTFCCA's event squad rankings.
 
Faurot, hailing from Scott City, Kansas, vaulted a season-best 17-7 ¼ (5.37m) at the Beach Invitational. He finished runner-up in the competition and moved to the top of the Summit standings by more than six inches. He's tied for 21st in the nation in the event. Faurot garners the Summit honor for the second time of his career, with both honors coming in 2023.
 
South Dakota track and field returns to action next week. USD will host an abbreviated version of the South Dakota Challenge on Monday, April 24, before heading off to Des Moines, Iowa, for the Drake Relays held April 27-29.