Bearcats Win 16 Events in Dual Meet with Corban

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University track and field teams won 16 of 29 events during a dual meet with crosstown rival Corban University on Thursday, March 15 at the Charles Bowles Track. The Bearcats earned first place in seven women's event's and finished first in nine men's events.

Seven members of the WU women's team each claimed first place in one event.

Michaela Freeby (Fr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) won the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:03.17. Her time moved her into fourth place on Willamette's top 10 list.

Sally Venable (Sr., Ventura, CA/Foothill Technology HS) took second place in the steeplechase at 11:24.60 to register a new personal record and improve from ninth to seventh on WU's all-time list. Sara McSweeney (Sr., Petaluma, WA/Casa Grande HS) placed third in 11:51.31. Freeby and Venable have the top two times in NCAA Division III so far this season.

Also winning events on track were Stevie Gildehaus (Jr., Spokane Valley, WA/University HS), Alisha Till (Jr., Richland, WA/Richland HS) and Molly Bond (Fr., Clarkston, WA/Asotin HS).

Gildehaus won the 800-meter run in 2:25.32. Till took first place in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 42:16.75 and Bond won the 100-meter hurdles in 16.57 seconds. WU teammate Katie Kalugin was second in the 100-meter hurdles at 16.96 seconds.

Athletes winning field events for the Bearcat women's team were Taryn Greenberg (Fr., Newport Beach, CA/Corona Del Mar HS) in the hammer throw, Jossalynn Wright (Fr., Aumsville, OR/Cascade HS) in the shot put and Kelsey Engstrom (Fr., Clinton, Wa/South Whidbey HS) in the discus throw.

Greenberg took first place in the hammer with a top distance of 127' 3" to move into 10th on Willamette's all-time list. Her distance also placed her 13th in the current NCAA Division III national standings in the hammer.

Wright tossed the shot 35' 1.75" to win the event. She was followed by Engstrom in second at 33' 1". Engstrom gained first place in the discus with a top throw of 97'11:". Kaeleigh Thorp (Fr., San Leandro, CA/Encinal HS) was second in the discus with a distance of 97' 3".

Wyatt Briggs (Jr., Scio, OR/Scio HS) achieved first place in two throwing events for the Bearcat men's team. He won the discus with a toss of 135' 9" and led the field in the shot put with a distance of 41' 10". Max Faulhaber (So., Eugene, OR/Sheldon HS) placed second in the shot put at 40' 6".

Faulhaber won the hammer throw for the second meet in a row, after taking first place at the Lane Preview last Friday (March 9). Against Corban, Faulhaber recorded a top throw of 165' 2". Briggs took second place in the event with a throw of 158' 1".

Willamette's Nolan Mayther (Jr., Longview, WA/Kelso HS) earned first place in the javelin throw. His longest toss covered 172' 9".

Ray White (Sr., Corona, CA/Centennial HS) of WU won the long jump with a top leap of 21' 1.50". Spencer Clemmer (Sr., Sacramento, CA/Elk Grove HS) was second in the long jump at 20' 9".

Clemmer also held the lead in the pole vault with a successful attempt at 12' 11.75". The event was postponed by the weather and may be completed on Friday if the weather permits.

Event winners on the track for the Willamette men's squad were Ben Beeler (Fr., San Francisco, CA/Archbishop Riordan HS), Max Craddock (Fr., Wichita, KS/Wichita Collegiate School) and Julio Silva (Fr., Medford, OR/St. Mary's School).

Beeler took first place in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:00.85. He won by about two seconds over David Brown of Corban, who placed second in 2:02.70. Craddock won the 10,000-meter run by completing the race in 34:19.17.

Silva placed first in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:14.02 for a 3.57-second margin over John Weber from Corban (10:17.59). Brian Gnerre (Jr., Torrance, CA/Torrance HS) was third in the steeplechase at 10:22.01.

Also for the WU men's team, Sungyoung Lee (Fr., Ellensburg, WA/Ellensburg HS) was second and Neal Howard (Sr., Seattle, WA/Ballard HS) was third in the 100-meter dash. Brett Johnson won the event for the Warriors in 11.09 seconds, while Lee finished in 11.21 seconds and Howard crossed the finish line in 11.25 seconds.

In the 400-meter dash, Corban's Nathan Swanson won in 50.24 seconds, while Tom Fiechtner (So., Poway, CA/Cathedral HS) placed second in 51.16 seconds.

Willamette will be sending about 20 athletes to the Oregon Preview at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., on Sunday, March 18. Competition is scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m.