Bearcats Lead Competition in Outdoor Opener

ROSEBURG, Ore. — Willamette Men's Track and Field competed in their first outdoor competition this Saturday, February 28th at the Umpqua Opener, hosted by Umpqua Community College. They put on a strong performance across 13 events, with several top finishes, securing first place for the men's team in the competition.

In the 400m, the Bearcats took five of the top eight spots, with freshman Major LeProwse racing to first place in 51.02 seconds. Finn Gibson followed to secure second place for Willamette and Cole Beneventi closed out with fifth place. Marcus Nalls and Brandon Todd followed close behind in sixth and seventh. Following the 400m was the 100m, in which Davandre Campbell and Owen Phillips took fourth and fifth place, respectively.

The Bearcats again controlled the top five in the 800m, with Tim McMahon determindly securing second place in just under a two minutes with a time of 1:59.15. Thomas Bernadicou and Liam Bergevin followed in hot pursuit to take third and fourth place. Dustin Harzmann, Adam Lewis, Sage Soto, and Treyton Marty also had stellar perfomances in the race. In the 1500m, Bernadicou took first place, and Marty fourth. Jay Chew, Lewis, and Soto took sixth, seventh, and tenth, respectively, with several season bests.

In the 110m Hurdles, Willamette swept the top five. Campbell secured first with 15.14 seconds, a personal best, while Matthew Nivala, Mason Williams, and Steeley Mucken came close behind to secure second through fourth. Brison Speakthunder also delivered a strong performance to take seventh.

Willamette had three Men's 4x400m teams, and all three perfomed well. Most notable was the team of Todd, Beneventi, Leprowse, and Clate Harden, which took second place. The other two teams took fourth and fifth.

Moving to field events, Carson Naehr took third place with a personal best of 1.77m in High Jump. In Long Jump, the Bearcats dominated the top three spots. Phillips took first place with a jump of 6.55m, followed by Kaleb McArthur and Niko White in second and third. Gibson Hanowell, Devin Owens, and Harden followed with perfomances landing them in seventh, eighth, and ninth, respectively. Elijah Jones, Isaiah Martushev, and Teague Myers competed in Pole Vault; Jones took second place at 4.26m, Martushev and Myers following in third and fourth.

Roan Bashioum and Austin Snodgrass secured first and second in Hammer, Bashioum leading with a throw of 54.89m. In Shot Put, Snodgrass took first for Willamette, with a throw of 14.92m, and Grant Sweitzer sixth. Freshman Wyatt Santucci reached a personal best with a throw of 8.97m, but placed sixteenth. The duo of Bashioum and Snodgrass again secured top three spots in Discus, with Bashioum in first and Snodgrass in third, Sweitzer following in eighth. Judah Ali'ifua was the sole representative of Willamette in Javelin, and in a strong performance placed first with 47.98m.

Next up for the Bearcats is the Erik Anderson Icebreaker (10k Only) on March 6th, followed by the Eldon and Chuck Throwdown on March 7th at home in Salem, Oregon.