GREAT FALLS, Mont. – The University of Providence track and field team will get to compete in Great Falls for the first time this season, when they host the Providence Open on Thursday. The meet, which will be held at Memorial Stadium, will begin at 10:00 a.m.

"It's always good to be at home," head coach Tony Arntson said. "You don't have to travel and the kids get to sleep in their own beds. Obviously this is the one where we look for their best performances. It's a prelim for conference for us. It's good for us to get out there and compete. It makes a big difference."

The team is coming off a wonky weekend in Billings, where the team was scheduled to compete at the Yellowjacket/Battlin' Bear Invitational. The meet was nearly halfway complete before a rainstorm came down on the competition, ending the competition.

That meet was supposed to be a formal introduction to the conference competitors among the Frontier schools, but since that was rained out the Providence Open will replace that. Carroll College and Montana Tech will be sending their full teams, while Rocky Mountain College is planning to send a handful of competitors.

"It's getting to be that time of the year," Arntson said. "Our season is so fast. Once it starts it's about over. Technically we have two more conference meets counting this one. You start to get a feel of where you stack up. What events can our kids be most successful in? What events do we start to focus on? That's where we're at right now with our track athletes. Our field athletes, they're locked in."

The coaching staffis hoping to see massive improvements from some of their team, including Nash Grafe, Jessica Lozano, Violet Johnson, Justin Krabbenhoft, Joe McMillan and Ciaran Molloy. The meet will also mark the season debut of Terra Bertsch and Dawson Fowler.

"We got some kids who we were hoping to see get out there in Billings," Arntson said. "We got a few extra days of practice in which is good for them.  We got a lot of exciting things to look forward to on Thursday. It's going to be fun."