The opening weekend of the 2009 Big West track & field season was a busy one and that was reflected in the weekly awards. Two athletes shared the men’s track honor, while the rest of the awards were won by athletes from three different schools.

On the track side of the ledger, the men's Athlete of the Week award was given to sophomore Thomas Phillips of UC Davis and junior Scott Smith of UC Santa Barbara. Thomas, a native of San Jose, Calif., finished first in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 52.30 at the California Quad Opener, while Smith, who hails from Laguna Niguel, Calif., finished fourth in the 5K at the Ben Brown Invitational in 14:14.09. He was tops amongst collegiate competitors.

The women's track award was won by UC Irvine senior Candice Chavez. The Yorba Linda, Calif., native finished second in a field of 89 in the 5K with a career-best time of 16:39.87. Her performance qualified her for  NCAA Regionals and was 19 seconds better than her previous best.

The field awards saw Cal State Fullerton's Garrett Myers (men) and UC Davis' Ashley Hearn (women) claim the honors. Myers, a senior from Corona, Calif., finished first at the Ben Brown Invitational in the long jump, posting a mark of 24-10. The performance is an NCAA Regional qualifier, a personal best and set the early standard in the Big West in the event.

Hearn, a sophomore from Rocklin, Calif., had a big day at the California Quad Opener. The thrower finished first in the discus (155-09), third in the shot put (41-11.25) and fourth in the hammer (167-10). Hearn’s hammer throw was a PR by 13 feet, 1 inch, while the shot put was PR by more than two feet (previous, 39-08.50).