Bearcats Win Nine Events at Oregon State-Portland-Willamette Meet

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

CORVALLIS, ORE. -- The Willamette University track and field teams won a total of nine events at the Oregon State-Portland-Willamette meet hosted by Oregon State University, March 22-23 at the Whyte Track & Field Center. The Bearcat men's team won five events and the Willamette women's team earned victories in four events.

Dylan Jones (Fr., Santa Maria, CA/Ernest Righetti HS) of Willamette won the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.26 seconds. He won by 0.13 over teammate Chris Luetjen (Jr., Lake Oswego, OR/Lake Oswego HS), who finished second in 11.39 seconds.

The Willamette mens' 4 x 100-meter relay team of Tom Fiechtner (Jr., Poway, CA/Cathedral HS), Jullian Haley (Fr., Shoreline, WA/University Preparatory Academy), Matt Paparella (Fr., Glendale, AZ/Ironwood HS) and Jones recorded a winning time of 42.91 seconds. The University of Portland took second place in 43.84 seconds.

Three of the wins by the Bearcat men's team were registered in the throwing events.

Tyler Higley (So., Aloha, OR/Aloha HS) prevailed in the shot put with a top distance of 44' 0.50". He won by 4.5 inches over Wyatt Briggs (Sr., Scio, OR/Scio HS), also from Willamette, who took second place at 43' 8".

Briggs (Sr., Scio, OR/Scio HS) won the discus with a throw of 142' 6" on his final attempt. His winning toss was just 15 inches away from his personal record of 143' 9", set last year at the NWC Championships.

Max Faulhaber (Jr., Eugene, OR/Sheldon HS) took first place in the hammer throw with a winning toss of 168' 0.75". Briggs finished second in the event, just 4 inches behind Faulhaber, with a toss of 167' 8.75".

WU runner Michaela Freeby (So., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) earned the winning time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at 11:10.38.

The Bearcats won the women's 4 x 100-meter relay in 50.13 seconds. Portland took second place in 50.55 seconds. Running on the relay team for Willamette were Ashland Bernard (Fr., Kirkland, WA/Juanita HS), Audrey Taylor (Fr., Portland, OR/La Salle HS), Carmela Roberts (Fr., Santa Cruz, CA/Santa Cruz HS) and Kylea Johnson (Fr., Onalaska WA/Onalaska HS).

Kelsey Engstrom (So., Clinton, WA/South Whidbey HS) of WU finished first in the hammer throw with a distance of 137' 5". Taryn Greenberg (So., Newport Beach, CA/Corona Del Mar HS) of WU was second in the event with a toss of 122' 4".

Jameka Townsend (Fr., Okanogan, WA/Okanogan HS) provided Willamette with a victory in the javelin throw, as she recorded a top distance of 129' 4.25". She won by 6.25" over Kayla Fleskes from Oregon State, who finished second at 128' 10".

Other top performances by the Willamette men's team:

Fiechtner took second place in the 400-meter dash with a time of 50.34 seconds and Nick Celebrezze (Fr., Moscow, ID/Moscow HS) was third in 50.61 seconds. Shane Fekete of Portland won the event in 50.17 seconds.

Paparella finished second in the long jump at 20' 2.25". Nathan DeVaughn was the winner for Portland at 22' 1.75".

In the javelin throw, Jordan Loos (So., Springfield, OR/Thurston HS) earned second place with a distance of 167' 8". Mark Schireman from Portland achieved a winning throw of 173' 4.50".

Other top results for the Bearcat women's team:

Taylor Ostrander (Fr., Soldotna, AK/Kenai Central HS) placed second behind Freeby in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. The time for Ostrander was 11:29.48.

Roberts claimed second place in the 400-meter dash at 1:01.59.

Johnson finished third in the 100-meter dash in 13.23 seconds. Hannah Souders of Portland won the 100 in 13.02 seconds.

In the high jump, Maya Bowton took fourth place at 5' 1.75".

Taylor Ottomano earned third place in the triple jump with a distance of 32' 3".

Townsend placed third in the shot put. Her top throw covered 34' 2.75".

Jossalyn Wright took third place during the discus with a top throw of 122' 5.50". Fleskes from OSU won the javelin with a toss of 126' 9.50".

Next on Willamette's schedule:

Up next for the Bearcats is the Willamette Invitational on Saturday, April 6. Action at the Charles Bowles Track will get underway at 9:30 a.m. (PDT). Each season, the Willamette Invitational is one of the largest collegiate track and field meets on the West Coast.